I have had Elizabeth Kostova’s debut novel The Historian sitting on my To Read shelf for some time so while I recognized her name when her upcoming The Shadow Land came up in my possible preview pile, I hadn’t actually read her work before. The Shadow Land also fell into my recent inclination towards historic fiction that explores the nations of Europe in the aftermath of World War II so I jumped to preview it. Though it proved for me to be slow reading, the depiction of life behind the Iron Curtain in the 1950s is a harsh one that the area struggles to deal with even in the decades after the fall of the Berlin Wall.

Alexandra Boyd decided she needed a change so she signed up to teach English in Bulgaria but before she can even reach her hostel and start to settle in, things begin to go wrong. Assisting a middle-aged man and his elderly parents into a taxi, Alexandra soon discovers that one of their bags has gotten mixed in with her own. Containing the ashes of someone obviously dear to them, she sets about trying to find them again so she can return the urn and apologize for the mix-up. Her taxi driver, Asparuh who tells her to call him Bobby, offers to help her in her efforts to track the family down. Receiving an address from the police, Alexandra insists on returning the remains personally. As she and Bobby follow a trail of breadcrumbs, it becomes clear there’s more to the story of the man in the urn and his family than they realized.

I very much enjoyed the story at the heart of this novel however the pacing drained a lot of my enthusiasm. Receiving Alexandra’s personal backstory in the first section of the novel interspersed with the beginning of her search was compelling but was explored at a depth that wasn’t as necessary to convey how it helped establish parallels between her character and the deceased Stoyan Lazarov, especially since Alexandra as a character gets pushed further and further to the edges of what proves to be the novel’s focus—Stoyan Lazarov’s life. Similarly, there are incidents, especially early in Alexandra and Bobby’s search, that are meant to create tension and inspire questions—who’s following them and why are they apparently after this urn—but there aren’t enough answers to the questions raised and the incidents take too long proving tedious rather than plot-advancing. When the answers do finally come out (in a climax I found incredibly anti-climactic and rushed given all the build-up), it becomes clear that a lot of the early back-and-forth could probably have been cut.

The novel’s strengths lie in the interweaving of Stoyan’s account of what he endured with the pieces finally beginning to fall into place for Alexandra and Bobby in the last third or so of the novel. The psychological means by which Stoyan endured and persevered through what he did are incredibly realized through their presentation in a first person account and blend beautifully with the second-hand accounts of him in the second part of the novel where the portion of his life being described happens after this first-person account takes place. The out-of-order piecing together of Stoyan’s life transcends the clunky mystery/thriller that serves to frame it. But though it doesn’t work too well for me on the page, I can easily envision The Shadow Land being adapted into a television mini-series and I think it would work beautifully in that medium.

The Shadow Land will be available for purchase April 11, 2017.

3/5 Stars

DISCLAIMER: I received an advance copy of The Shadow Land by Elizabeth Kostova from the publisher through NetGalley for the purposes of writing a review.



Eastern Europe has been inhabited in some shape or form since antiquity. 2500 years of civilization can bury a lot of history, and secrets. Even after the Iron Curtain fell in 1991, the east still held an air of mystery and trepidation for those in the west. It is there in the lush Rhodope Mountains that Elizabeth Kostova explores the push and pull of old and new regimes and beliefs, and the dark past of a nation torn apart by circumstance.



The Shadow Land is Elizabeth Kostova’s third novel. First gaining recognition for her stunning debut The Historian, Kostova has certainly found her home in exploring the forgotten or, perhaps overlooked, cultures and histories of Europe. Interestingly, although this is her first novel set in Bulgaria, she is built from Eastern bloc stock. Her husband is a Bulgarian computer programmer, and her family lived in nearby Slovenia in the 1970s. Additionally, Kostova has created the Elizabeth Kostova Foundation (catchy name, right?) to help support creative writing in Bulgaria, the translation of Bulgarian literature into English, and to foster communal growth amongst Bulgarian authors and American/British authors. Bully for Kostova!



The Shadow Land is a bit of a slow burn that follows dual timelines: that of a WWII Gulag-style work camp and a singular prisoner’s experience there, and the present-day journey to return his ashes to their final resting place. Yes, you read that correctly. The main plot device in this book is an urn that accidentally fell into our heroine, Alexandra’s, possession during a chance encounter outside of a hotel in Sofia, Bulgaria. Alexandra immediately realizes what’s happened and, horror-struck, begins an epic quest to deliver the urn to the strangers she met at the hotel armed only with a photograph she took of the family and the name on the urn.


Along the way, she makes an ally in the enigmatic yet impossibly kind-hearted cab-driver Bobby (an Americanized name he offers her after she struggles with the Bulgarian pronunciation) who is more than appears to be, and an apparent stray dog they name Stoycho. In Bobby’s cab, they crisscross western Bulgaria as they track down various family members. That’s where things get interesting.



As Bobby and Alexandra draw ever nearer to the elusive Lazarov family, they encounter increasing levels of resistance from mysterious vandals. Bobby’s cab is spray painted, and the windshield broken. A message is left in blood on the wall of a Lazarov family member’s house. Ultimately, Bobby and Alexandra learn that Stoyan Lazarov, the person whose ashes they carry with them, became aware of a damning truth that could expose government officials and prevent a corrupt political party from taking complete control over the country.



It’s an ambitious book, and a large one. Clocking in around 500 pages, Kostova has quite a bit of ground to cover, and many characters to work with. However, therein lies my major issue with the novel: none of the characters really ever develop. With that much real estate, I was hoping for a little more. In fact, I’m not completely convinced that Alexandra even needed to be in the novel at all. Much like Raiders of the Lost Ark, the ark of the covenant would’ve wound up on that island in the hands of the Nazis with or without Harrison Ford’s help.


It’s not for lack of trying, though. We learn that, in her teens, Alexandra tragically lost her brother to a hiking accident, and has been seeking to fill a void left by him ever since. That sounds like a really powerful beginning to an epic journey of redemption, right? Strangely, about halfway through the book, we just kind of stop hearing about that. If anything, Kostova really only uses that painful history and association with the wilderness as a vehicle to offer breathtaking descriptions of the Bulgarian countryside.



And there, we have my favorite part of the book: the absolutely beautiful prose. Describing a Greek ruin in Plovdiv during a first encounter with a Lazarov relative, Kostova writes:



“Light fell over the great stones in waves and Alexandra felt that she’d never really seen the sun before; it was different in this part of the world, as if a huge veil had been removed and the sky was shining with strength from an earlier time. Her skin felt washed by it, and by the warm wind coming up the hillsides. The stones they sat on looked almost silver. She saw weeds growing unheeded out of the cracks, a cluster of poppies in bright red bloom near the stage. This, she thought, was peace, which came over you when you least expected it.”



Kostova elegantly captures the nature of the sometimes-painful beauty of an area ravaged by politics and corruption. If she’s capable of writing with such aplomb and grace, however, I feel that that makes the flat characters even less forgivable, because I know she can do better. In fact, of the large cast of characters in the novel, the only one that I really felt any connection to was Stoyan Lazarov himself. His beautiful violin music, his gut wrenching ordeals with the pro-Communist Bulgarian police, his harrowing times in the work camp, his tragic chance for redemption in a tiny mountain town, all told through flashbacks and snippets of history the actual characters come across in the course of their adventure.



In fact, the further into the novel we get, the more insight into Stoyan’s incredible life we gain, and the less interested I became in the present. The journey to return Stoyan’s ashes felt like an add-on, just a flimsy framing device to tell the actual story, which was Stoyan’s all along. So why not just tell Stoyan’s story? I understand what Kostova was trying to do, which was to contrast modern Bulgaria with WWII-era Bulgaria and show how much or little has changed and what cultural conflicts still cause oppression in a very real way, but I just found myself so much more attached to Stoyan, so much more invested in his story, that I wish there was more of it, or at least that the same magic spread to some of the other characters, any of the other characters in the novel.



And I just want to say, as a quick aside, what the crap was that nonsense at the end with Neven? No spoilers, read the book and let me know your thoughts. That was just… jarring. Or maybe I interpreted it wrong. Either way, it stopped the plot dead, and I didn’t feel that whole scene was even necessary. Perhaps to give Alexandra a small glimmer of purpose in the grand scheme of things? I’m rambling.



So, quick summary: is this book flawed? Yes. Is it a deal breaker? No. Should you read it? Probably.



While some (almost all) of the characters fall flat, despite the main character being some sort of weird pseudo-MacGuffin with no real point, despite the most interesting character in the novel only appearing in a small way in the latter half of the book, The Shadow Land is chock full of gorgeous prose, and tells a story that I think needs to be told. In today’s society, with the problems we all face on a daily basis, it’s easy to write off a conflict, or an entire culture, that is far away from us geographically and perhaps temporally. Kostova takes that notion and turns it on its head, shoves it in our faces. The characters are made up, but these problems are real, the oppression is real. The Cold War may be over, but the resulting ideological tensions and conflicts are not, and it’s something worth talking about.

This is a great book. The story is complex and goes back and forth between the end of WWII and 2008. The book is divided into three books, each with many chapters. It is a long book, but so interesting. It begins in 2008 when Alexandra Boyd, a mid-twenties American woman from goes to Bulgaria to teach. Raised in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Alexandra has had an upbringing that is unconventional, but happy, with her brother and parents, until the disappearance of one of her loved ones while on a hike in the mountains with her family.

 Alexandra Is a mid-twenties American woman when she lands in Sofia, Bulgaria. Trying to hail a cab, she helps an elderly couple who are having trouble and accidentally winds up with a piece of their luggage. And so it begins. She quickly realizes her mistake and is shocked at what is in the bag she now possesses. A wonderful story emerges, weaving people who were young in the mid 1940's and Alexandra and her taxi driver Bobby. 

I am fascinated with historical fiction from the World War II era, and have read many books set in that period. Usually they are set in some part of Europe, occasionally in the Philippines, Japan, and just recently, a book set in Czechoslovakia and Cuba. But Bulgaria? I had to look it up on a map. I knew generally where it was, but I have never studied Bulgaria, read a book set in Bulgaria and realized I knew nothing about Bulgaria. This fascinating book, in the course of it's wonderful story, teaches so much about Bulgaria. What happened in Bulgaria from the 1940's through the 1980's was shattering, killed tens of thousands of citizens, and forever changed the country. 

Even if you don't become fascinated with Bulgaria, a reader will love this book. It has everything: espionage, romance, twists and turns, high drama, redemption and resolution. This book has captured my heart and it is one of the few books that I will read again. I was thrilled that Elizabeth Kostova has written two other books, and I hope she keeps writing. Phenomenal.

Although I was a little disappointed by The Swan Thieves, I liked Elizabeth Kostova’s The Historian so much that I was excited to get my hands on an early copy of The Shadow Land. It has a few minor problems, but overall, does not disappoint.

Alexandra has arrived in Sophia, Bulgaria, early for her teaching job so that she can have the summer to see the sights. However, a series of errors sets her on a different path. Instead of dropping her at her hostel, her taxi driver takes her to the Hotel Forest. There she helps an elderly couple and middle-aged man with their luggage as they get into a taxi. Only once she is in another taxi does she realize that one of their pieces of luggage got mixed up with hers. To her horror, she finds it contains an urn with someone’s ashes.

With her driver Bobby’s help, Alexandra begins trying to find the family. They had not been staying at the hotel they came out of. Alexandra feels she has no option but to go to the police. Once she has visited with them, though, and has been given an address based on the name on the urn, Stoyan Lazarov, she and Bobby begin to receive threats. Eventually on their search they find a potentially explosive manuscript about Lazarov’s experiences during the Communist regime.

Although the main intent of the novel is to tell about this dark time in Bulgaria’s history, this novel makes a great suspense story in the manner of Mary Stewart, with just a dash of romance. Like Stewart’s novels, it is evocative of its setting, as Alexandra and her friends travel from place to place in Bulgaria.

Alexandra’s adventures in Bulgaria are interrupted, first by the story of her brother Jack’s disappearance when she was younger and later by chapters from Stoyan Lazarov’s manuscript. These interruptions pose one of the slight problems with the novel. There doesn’t seem to be much reason for the first story—as a backstory for Alexandra it is important but could have been handled more economically. The second narrative serves both to finally provide the key to the plot and to prolong the suspense. But I found it to be a bit too prolonged, with too much detail about how Stoyan Lazarov keeps up his inner strength during his trials. The effect of both interruptions was to slow down the main narrative.

Those are minor criticisms, though. A little larger one is that the identity of the villain and his reason for pursuing our heroes are both fairly easy to guess. Still, I found this novel suspenseful and fun to read, with a chunk of Bulgaria’s dark history as a bonus.

Scrappymags 3-word review: I got bored.

Shortest summary ever: Alexandra arrives in Bulgaria to engage in touristy fun travel before starting a job teaching English. She wanders into the city, aids a woman who almost falls and winds up with someone’s cremation ashes. This leads her to befriend her cabbie – Bobby, who speaks remarkable English, and they embark on a back and forth across the country adventure searching for the people who lost the ashes, falling into a strange mystery along the way.

What’s good under the hood: First you should know this is my favorite genre – historical fiction mysteries. Give me these any day and I’ll roll in them like a happy beagle in a pile of good smelling garbage (maybe that’s just my beagle?). Expectations high. I loved the descriptions of Bulgaria. I’m not opposed to longer, narrative descriptions when done well (Just don’t go all Steinbeck on my ass). I even looked up the locales on the map, so that’s a plus in the “piqued my interest” category. I enjoyed looking at pics of Bulgaria and obtaining the “feel” Alexandra must have felt for the country. Beautiful. Kostova is wonderfully talented at this writing and I 5-starred her previous novel The Historian because I thought it was a perfect balance of accurate, vivid description and engaging mystery. The Shadow Land fell short of that expectation. The mystery aspect was clunky and lacking interest (from me). I stopped caring (not a good sign). The story flips point of view and setting (time and place) so multiple narratives are presented. The ashes of Stoyan Lazarov turn into the most interesting part – his story. What he endured, and that historical fiction is what I love and Kostova does well, but the awkward, muddled mystery aspect with Alexandra and Bobby’s adventure turned me off.

What’s bad or made me mad: 1. The premise from the start isn’t believable. A single female, 20’s is
going to befriend a cabbie and then take off with him in a country where she knows no one (including how to speak the language) to return ashes? That’s the beginning. I can suspend disbelief, so I accepted this early on.   photo shadow2.jpeg
2. However, the sub-storyline of how Alexandra lost her brother didn’t make much sense (not a spoiler!!!) It explains what she’s doing in Bulgaria, but an explanation isn’t needed, and the development of that story didn’t happen for me. I wanted to answer the question, “Why am I hearing about this dead brother?” and never felt a satisfactory answer. It didn’t parallel anything. Wasn’t a metaphor, that I could detect, so I felt that sub-story wasn’t needed. Maybe a red herring? Regardless, I felt it unnecessary. 3. The back-and-forth across the country. Oy. I wound up feeling like “ENOUGH.” Going back to places they already were. I wanted to flip ahead. I was bored. Really bored.

Recommend to:

* Those who love historical fiction/mystery like me SHOULD give this a go. Honestly, I often love books others despise and vice versa, so you’ll have to give it a go to see for yourself.
* Anyone interested in Bulgarian tourism. Seriously – if you are like me and love to hear descriptions of places, etc. and then find yourself Googling them. This is for you.

Do Not Recommend to:

* Anyone who wants a “quick and easy” book. This ain’t the one, hon.
* Anyone who isn’t interested in a generally sad book. Not cheery.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. Still love you, just not this book.

Brilliant, allusive and riveting!

Vividly descriptive narrative flows across the pages of Kostava's work at once both musical and poetical. The opening pages draw you in. A veneer of haunting melody continues to engage. 
Alexandra Boyd has come to Bulgaria as a form of penance and a hope for renewal after her beloved brother Jack's death. Bulgaria was the place he'd always wanted to visit. A place from their childhood dreams and games.
An accidental meeting at a taxi ramp in Sofia leads Alexandra to a riveting chase and search across Bulgaria, all the time dogged by her personal loss, whilst uncovering the story of the people she seeks.  Finding an funeral urn misplaced with her luggage, shockingly affects Alexandra coming alongside as it does the memory of her own loss. This fuels the impetus for her decision to find the urn's owners. The quest  becomes paramount to all else.
This quest has Alexandra on a journey crisscrossing not only the geographical Bulgaria, but the memories of the past under communist rule and the fate of the urn's occupant, Stoyan Lazarov, a talented musician, and that of his family.
Through Stoyan's eyes in the past and his family in the present we see the enforced labor camps under Communist rule and their inhumane overseeing. We see the indomitable human spirit struggle for life when circumstances become too much for the body and soul to hold. The dark days of Stoyan's experiences are lightened by the memory methods he develops to engage a different reality, a separating from the concrete, and the awesome discipline of being somewhere other in the midst of hardship as he fights for survival.
The past is set against the present as Alexandra's journey encounters its own dangers--and joys. Alexandra 'could hear music, where there was no music.' A novel of hope!

A NetGalley ARC
(April 2017)

The Shadow Land is Elizabeth Kostova's newest novel. It is set in modern-day Bulgaria but does focus quite a bit on historic events during and right after the World War II. The premise is quite interesting. A young American English teacher arrives in Sofia, Bulgaria, where she has accepted a teaching position, and on her first day there, ends up inadvertently keeping someone else’s bag. When she looks inside, she discovers an ornate wooden box containing someone’s ashes. What follows is a whirlwind of events as she travels to different parts of the country trying to find the deceased man’s relatives, and in the process learns much about his life and Bulgaria’s troubled history.

Elizabeth Kostova’s writing is very suspenseful. It follows almost a wave-like pattern. An attention-grabbing event is followed by a stretch of beautiful descriptions and the main character’s introspective musings. But just as the reader is about to get bored, he/she is jerked awake by some dramatic turn of events in the narrative. Kostova is thus able to hold the reader’s attention and make them want to continue with the story.

I really loved Kostova’s descriptions of Bulgaria. When I read her prose, I see pictures rather than words – she is that good at writing. Since I was reading the novel in an e-book format, I did not realize at first how long it actually is. I think it is 496 pages in print, so please prepare yourself for a long albeit very enjoyable ride. 5 out of 5 stars.

The Shadow Land left me filled with wonder but also a profound sadness. This is a beautifully written tribute to a country that does not get enough attention from the world and to the horrors its citizens faced during the reign of the Soviet Union.

This story follows Alexandra Boyd, an American writer who is plagued with the death of her brother and the grief and guilt associated with a loss at such an age. Her memories of him lead her to a job teaching English in Sofia, Bulgaria. Upon her arrival in Bulgaria, Alex mistakes someones luggage for her own which turn out to be the ashes of a Bulagarian violinist, Stoyan Lazarov. The story continues as Alex searches for a way to return the urn with the help of her friend Bobby (pronounce Bobi) and uncovers the truth about Stoyan's painful past.

From the first page Kostova transports us to Sofia through her words. Having just visited Plovdiv for a wedding, I felt I could vividly envision every tree, every bench, every smell. I know a lot of reviewers said this book dragged because of the details-but that is where the magic is! Bare with me. I loved The Historian. Kostova's descriptions of Romania and Hungary drove me onto a 7 hour long plane ride so that I could experience the Carpathian mountains and the beautiful sights on the Danube for myself. She spends time not only describing the surroundings in great detail but also the feeling you would get seeing the sun rise over the mountains. I can rant and rave about the setting but the plot was just as beautiful.

As a Russian and a millennial, I don't often reflect on the horrific treatment the citizens of the USSR faced. As a first-generation American, I was read the same fairy tales as the ones Alex heard, the same superstitions (don't sit on cold stone or you will freeze your kidneys/never have children. I am not kidding) and told to finish all my food because in the USSR you were lucky if there was meat. At the same time I also heard that no one was homeless and everyone had a job - although no one was paid well. This narrative of life under communist rule fascinated me but while reading this book I realized that it also masked the the atrocities citizens of the Soviet Bloc faced. Although Stoyan Lazarov is a fictional character, the labor camps were not. Inspired by the remains of real labor camps under the communist party, Kostova illustrates the gut-wrenching treatment citizens of Bulgaria were witness to through fiction. Stoyan's storyline or confessions broke my heart. I couldn't help but cry when Neven was recounting his father's final moments. 

The Shadow Land did what every great novel is supposed to do. It had mystery and a dash of romance. It made you think and the ending was cathartic. If you loved The Historian or The Swan Thieves , you will not be disappointed.

Elizabeth Kostova has a way with words that takes you inside the story as the descriptions of the surroundings and places become alive.
The plot is a bit complicated but marvelous written.

So expansive and descriptive of Bulgaria and Kostova, better than anyone can describe in such an evocative way.

Beautiful, and heartfelt.

The Shadow Land by Elizabeth Kostova was hard to put down. It was one of those books that kept me up until 4:00 a.m., two nights in a row, because I just had to know what was happening next.  Like her book, The Historian, the author wraps the reader into the pages and leaves us wanting more.  

In The Shadow Land the author melds the past and the present into one story and tells the tale of a dark time in Bulgaria's past. A past (in the not so distant time) when a person could be taken from their family, with no warning or trial, and sent to labor camps until someone decided to let you out. Chilling and masterfully related to the reader by relating the experience of concert violinist Stoyan Lazarov.

Alexandra is a young woman who has come to Sofia to teach when she accidentally picks up the box holding the ashes of Stoyan Lazarov.  In her quest to return the remains to Mr. Lazarov's family, Alexandra is aptly aided by Bobby, the Bulgarian taxt driver with many secrets of his own. When they are followed to where the family is supposed to be, they discover that not only is the family in peril, but so are Alexandra and Bobby and they people they meet along the trip.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in return for an honest review. I honestly loved this book and highly recommend it to other readers.  I also recommend The Historian, which is on my top ten list.

Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this novel. 
Elizabeth Kostova's writing is wonderfully imaginative and appeasing. Her flow of words asks for the reader to dive in. This novel adds to her repertoire of great novels of our time.
I really enjoyed the layout of this one. We start in modern time. We then flashback to the narrator's past. Then we go back to another character's past. The author made it understandable and not like anything I have ever read.
The author also made this one so atmospheric. The natural surrounds in the present felt real, the past felt real. I really enjoyed this. Not a lot of novels are based in Bulgaria and as the reader, I didn't know anything about the state of things there.  It was all explained to me as I was reading and was refreshing.
The plot was interesting. I questioned some of motives and actions of he main character, but knowing now where the story went, it makes sense.
I really am looking forward to reading more by Elizabeth Kostova.

I love Elizabeth Kostova's previous work but this story wasn't interesting to me. I much prefer her stories with darker undertones. I didn't connect with these characters right away so it was difficult to finish.

This book was a glorious surprise to read. I never gave much thought to Bulgaria, but have now added it to my ever-growing travel wish list. This is the first book I've read by Ms. Kostova, but I suspect it won't be the last. Her writing draws you in and holds you, as I can ruefully attest to by more than one night of too little sleep. The story is good, and sheds light on a subject I was not knowledgeable about previously, and the descriptions of the small towns are enough to transport you there. Well done indeed.

This is an honest review in exchange for an ARC from NetGalley.

I am saddened that I could not like this book more.  I do not like giving low stars for any book for I feel that does a complete disservice to the author and publisher.

I loved this book. I know others have said they thought it started very slowly but I didn't have that experience. In trying to tell someone about the book I realized how complex the plot is. I thought the tension built appropriately through the book--it was a slow, steady build. I loved the characters of Bobby and Alexandra and then others they met along the way including Stoycha.

The history of the Bulgarian work camps was a new revelation to me. Lazarov's brilliant career made for an interesting contrast. I wanted to drink wine and listen to Vivaldi as I read this book. 

Great twists and turns as the plot unfolds for the final reveal. Again, I loved it!

I don't read horror--or any kind of monster story, really. (Except I do love my Frankenstein!) So you wouldn't think I'd fall for a book about shadow landDracula, but I did. And let's face it. The Historian got so much buzz when it was published, how could I not? The adventures of Paul and Helen searching Vlad the Impaler's burial place in Bulgaria and Budapest--the mountains, the monasteries, the countryside--were just as exotic as the tales of Dracula. The novel was myth layered over history layered over politics and even at 647 pages I didn't want it to end.

So I was so excited to get an advance digital copy of Elizabeth Kostova's third novel, The Shadow Land. The publisher's blurb said only that a young American in Bulgaria is left holding an "ornately carved wooden box" and inside? "... an urn filled with human ashes." The girl, it seems, mistakenly takes the bag of a handsome gentleman she bumps into in a taxi line. Sounded to me like I might go on another romp to Vlad's stomping grounds--could this be another (true) vampire story? Because, remember, at the end of The Historian, the narrator gets a small velvet book that isn't hers ...

But no. This is a story about that American, Alexandra Boyd, and her attempts to return those ashes. She's befriended by taxi driver Bobby Iliev, who drives her from the city of Sofia to a monastery to the mountains to another village ... and they're always just behind (or maybe it's ahead of) the Man Who Lost His Bag. Kostova alternates several tales: the race to return the ashes, Alexandra's childhood, Stoyan Lazarov (he of the ashes), and, eventually, Bobby's background. The only horror in the novel is the horror of Bulgaria's past as a Soviet bloc country. For my reading taste, it was a patchwork of stories that never quite came together. And, sadly, didn't hold my interest.

I've become quite familiar with the disappointment of reading books that don't meet my standards for good storytelling. So I think what bothers me the most is this--was my dislike of Shadow Land based on the story itself--or the writing--or the fact that for months I had been anticipating a return to The Historian? It's happened before. I was captivated by The Thirteenth Tale and then aghast at Bellman & Black. (Maybe "aghast" is a little strong ... ) If you read enough, you'll read plenty of clunkers.

The Shadow Land will be released on Tuesday, April 11, and I'm impatient to read what other reviewers have to say. Who knows? Maybe it's just me.
[REVIEW WILL BE LIVE ON SUNDAY 4-9-17 in AM]

As soon as our main character, and American, sets foot in Sofia, Bulgaria, her mystery begins. In this strange but beautiful country for a teaching position, Alexandra is expecting to do some sight-seeing before she begins her teaching assignment. But when she helps a young man and two elderly people who are struggling with their bas, her life changes forever. After settling the threesome in  cab, Alexandra realizes that she still has one of their bags. Upon searching the bag for some id, she discovers it contains a beautiful urn filled with ashes, human ashes. Her hunt for the bag’s owners begins, revealing an unimaginable and complex mystery and leading to new and lasting friendships as well as unforgettable experiences.

This historical fiction is very well-written and peopled with realistic and memorable characters. The mystery slowly reveals itself, as the story unfurls, leading the reader into Alexandra’s past, present, and future. Although this story is a bit overly-long and drawn out in places, it is excellent.

Beautifully written, I absolutely loved this book and was sad when it ended.  The lush details and descriptions warranted reading very carefully and rereading some passages. After finishing the book, I feel as if i have visited Bulgaria  The characters were beautiful and mysterious and sad.  The faint whispers of the supernatural were so well placed. I am so happy to have been introduced to this author. I immediately went to see what other novels she has written. I hope they are as enjoyable and wonderful as The Shadow Land.