Italian medievalist, semiotician, philosopher and novelist Umberto Eco (1932- ) is best known for his two novels The Name of the Rose (Il nome della rosa) and Foucault's Pendulum.
The Name of the Rose is a historical mystery set in a 14th century Benedictine monastery. Franciscan friar William of Baskerville, aided by his assistant Adso, a Benedictine novice, investigates a series of murders at a monastery that is set to host an important religious debate.
Comparisons have been made with the debut novel The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson and Umberto Eco and The Name of the Rose.
In Foucault's Pendulum, three under-employed editors who work for a minor publishing house decide to amuse themselves by inventing a conspiracy theory. Their conspiracy, which they call 'The Plan', is about an immense and intricate plot to take over the world by a secret order descended from the Knights Templar. As the game goes on, the three slowly become obsessed with the details of this plan. The game turns dangerous when outsiders learn of The Plan, and believe that the men have really discovered the secret to regaining the lost treasure of the Templars.
Shades of The Da Vinci Code to come and the book that Dan Brown denied influenced The Da Vinci Code that culminated in a court case. [see The Da Vinci Code Case]
A copy of The Name of the Rose has been registered as a BookCrossing book. [see BCID 5458065]
BookCrossing books are released into the wild and their progress tracked through the Internet via a unique Book Crossing ID (BCID).