The secret of the maze is known to only a few, among them the master librarian whose job it is to safeguard the collection and supervise the circulation of appropriate volumes. Nowhere is the importance of decoding symbols more apparent than in the library-an intricate labyrinth that houses all types of books, including volumes on pagan rituals and black magic. Before the council can convene, however, the body of a young monk is discovered at the bottom of a cliff, and William, a master logician in the tradition of Sherlock Holmes, is recruited to solve the crime, assisted by Adso, in Watson's role. To this meeting come William of Baskerville, an English Franciscan empowered to represent the emperor, and Adso, William's disciple and scribe. In an effort to avoid a confrontation, both sides agree to meet at the monastery-a Benedictine abbey that is considered neutral ground. On one side stand the Spiritualists and the emperor Louis IV who endorse evangelical poverty on the other stand the corrupt Pope John XXII and the monks who believe that the vow of poverty will rob the church of earthly wealth and power. Dissension among rival factions of the Franciscan order threatens to tear the church apart, and each side is preparing for a fight. The setting is an ancient monastery in northern Italy, the year is 1327, and the air is rife with evil. On one level The Name of the Rose is a murder mystery in which a number of Catholic monks are inexplicably killed.
Some experts attribute the novel's success to the rising interest in fantasy literature. Not only was The Name of the Rose Eco's first novel, it was also a complex creation, long on philosophy and short on sex-definitely not blockbuster material, especially not in Italy where the market for books is small. A respected Italian scholar, Eco built his literary reputation on specialized academic writing about semiotics: the study of how cultures communicate through signs. No one expected The Name of the Rose to become an internationally acclaimed best seller, least of all its author, Eco.
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