The Blood Countess [Paperback]

Andrei Codrescu (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 2, 1996

Andrei Codrescu, NPR commentator and journalist,  has written a fascinating first novel based on the  life of his real-life ancestor, Elizabeth Bathory,  the legendary Blood Countess. Codrescu expertly  weaves together two stories in this neo-gothic  work: that of the 16th-century Hungarian Countess  Elizabeth Bathory, a beautiful and terrifying woman  who bathes in the blood of virgin girls; and of her  distant descendent, a contemporary journalist who  must return to his native Hungary and come to  terms with his bloody and disturbing  past.

Drake Bathory-Kereshtur, a Hungarian-born  journalist who has lived in the United States,  returns to his native Hungary, only to be the target for  recruitment among a patriotic group that wants to  restore the glory--and the horror--of the  Hungarian aristocracy. As a descendent of the Countess  Elizabeth Bathory, he is heir to all that is  wonderful and terrible about his country and his family's  past. Codrescu brilliantly explores Drake's  anguish, as he realizes the truth behind his gruesome  family history. But more importantly, Codrescu  also creates a convincing and historically accurate  picture of a sadistic woman obsessed with youth,  vigor, beauty, and blood_a woman with enough power  to order the deaths of 650 virgins so that she  could bathe in their blood.  

The Blood Countess is a bizarre and  compelling book about the horrors of the past, shown  so effectively in the monstrous yet attractive  personality of Elizabeth, and what pull these horrors  have on those who live  now.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

A folk belief that on bitter cold nights the stars come down to mate with wolves. An adolescent boy, sexually aroused by an "iron maiden" torture device. The smell of paprika and boiled chicken served with Tokay wine. These and other vivid images of Hungary in the 16th century, and Hungary today, swirl together amid scenes of luxury and barbarity and talk of Martin Luther's Christianity and post-Communist ideals in this gloriously gruesome novel inspired by the life of Countess Elizabeth Bathory. They say she killed 650 virgin girls in order to rejuvenate herself with their blood.

From Publishers Weekly

NPR commentator and filmmaker Codrescu's first novel alternates between a pathological 16th-century Hungarian countess and her present-day descendant, a journalist seeking to come to grips with contemporary Europe.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 453 pages
• Publisher: Dell (July 2, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0440221919
• ISBN-13: 978-0440221913
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (61 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #193,224 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Andrei Codrescu (codrescu.com) was born in Sibiu, Transylvania, Romania. His first poetry book "License to Carry a Gun" won the Big Table Poetry award. He founded Exquisite Corpse: a Journal of Books & Ideas (corpse.org), taught literature and poetry at Johns Hopkins University, University of Baltimore, and Louisiana State University where he was MacCurdy Distinguished Professor of English. He is a regular commentator on NPR's All Things Considered since 1983, has received a Peabody Award for writing and starring in the film "Road Scholar. In 1989 he returned to his native Romania to cover the fall of the Ceausescu regime for NPR and ABC News, and wrote "The Hole in the Flag: an Exile's Story of Return and Revolution." He is the author of books of poetry, novels, essays; the most recent are "The Posthuman Dada Guide: Tzara and Lenin Play Chess," (2009) "The Poetry Lesson" (2010) and "whatever gets you through the night: a story of sheherezade and the arabian entertainments" (2011), all published by Princeton University Press.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Historical Detail and an Interesting Story, June 27, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Blood Countess (Paperback)

As a graduate student in the area of Medieval and Renaissance Europe, I always go into historical novels with a bit of skepticism but also hopeful optimism. Codrescu's account of 17th century Hungary and the historical character of Countess Bathory met my optimistic hopes. The brutality, suspicion and general hardship of the time was obviously well-researched, as was the totalitarian power of the noble class which provoked peasant revolts like the one described in the book. The characters were possibly not developed enough, particularly the modern-day Count Bathory-Kereshtur about whom I would have liked to know more. But the complex psychological motivations of Elizabeth Bathory were developed quite well and in a chilling and descriptive manner. The descriptions of violent acts were perhaps a bit graphic, but relevant within the historical context for the period and place in which they occur. Overall a book definitely worth reading, but not for the squeamish.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Blood Countess" weaves suspense and history., August 24, 1996

By A Customer

This review is from: The Blood Countess: A Novel (Hardcover)

Codrescu is a talented and intelligent writer, one who understands that no amount of gore and violence can replace the magic of the true storyteller's art. What Elizabeth Bathory does to the young women who fall prey to her bizzare obsession is clearly secondary to why she does these things. Despite the rather lurid title, this book runs on taut psychological suspense.

Codrescu's dual plot, or tale-within-a-tale, is presented in the frame of a courtroom confession. What propelled this reader through the book was not a tawdry "whodunit" conundrum, but a desire to see when and why the two plotlines would converge. Codrescu evokes character and place so skillfully that the reader experiences the same double vision as the characters themselves.

The only real disappointment comes at the very end. After so much build up, so much allusion, Codrescu's denouement feels somewhat hurried, with a few threads left hanging, a few characters not quite fully utilized.

Nonetheless "The Blood Countess" is a powerful, beautifully written novel steeped in real history and the darkness of the human heart

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Trash in Silken Clothing, July 3, 1999

By 

"ladyshalott" - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Blood Countess (Paperback)

While Codrescu's prose is clear and elegant, all those showy words can't conceal this novel's true, trashy nature. Countess Bathory is indeed an intriguing personage, but the story of her life is contorted by Codrescu's heavy-handed storyline and his unsuccessful attempts at weaving two disparate stories into one effective drama. The gratuitious sex and violence, while intended to be shocking, comes off as cheap, crude, and rather embarrassing. Those interested in the history of Countess Elizabeth Bathory should look elsewhere.