I love when I love a book. It makes me a happier person. I
love when I love an entire series. For the last month that I have spent with these three books, I have enjoyed reading every word.Very few books have brought me the joy that these books have. They have found a spot not only on my LOVE shelf, but in my Top 5.
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| (Source: Kelsey Darling) |
A Discovery of Witches
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| (Source: Kelsey Darling) |
Diana Bishop lives a quiet life as a tenured professor at Yale, currently working on research at Oxford. She spends her days in the Bodleian Library, reading alchemical manuscripts; and her evenings are spent doing yoga, rowing, running, and drinking tea. Despite the mask that Diana keeps up to pretend she is normal, she is anything but. She is a witch, although she uses her magical only sparingly. So she is quite surprised when one of the manuscripts she requested is filled with magic. However, after quickly reviewing the book, she sees that it will not help her with her current research, and so she sends the book back. The book, known by call number Ashmole 782, is not just enchanted. Ashmole 782 calls all sorts of daemons, vampires, and witches to the Bodleian, because before Diana called the book, it was thought to be missing. The witches believe it is the first grimoire; the vampires believe it will tell the story of their creation and the first vampire; the daemons think it is a book that will answer all the secrets of all four species: daemon, witch, vampire, and human. Diana is unsettled by the amount of creatures converging on the Bodleian, because not only does she not know the theories of Ashmole 782, but all of the creatures together will definitely attract the attention of humans which will break the covenant, an old set of rules put in place by the Congregation to help keep the safety of creatures. A few creatures in particular have taken an interest in Diana: the daemon Agatha Wilson, the witch Peter Knox, and the vampire Matthew Clairmont. While all three creatures are characters that play their roles throughout the book, Matthew is the most critical, as Matthew is Diana's true love who helps her accept herself as a witch and helps her discover the truth of Ashmole 782.
Shadow of Night
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| (Source: Kelsey Darling) |
Diana and Matthew know that the world is against them. Their relationship breaks the covenant, even though it is antiquated. It doesn't help that Diana has no control over her magic, that since her discovery of Ashmole 782, has become more unpredictable and uncontrollable. This too has caused the Congregation to show interest in her. Diana and Matthew know that if they want answers about anything, they have to go into hiding. However, they are not going to hide in some far off place; instead, they will hide in some far off time-1590 to be exact. Not only do they hope to be far enough in the past to find Ashmole 782 in its pristine condition, but also that Diana will able to find a powerful witch to help her figure out what she is. Using the magic of time walking, Diana and Matthew return to Elizabethan England. Here, Matthew is reunited with old friends, like Sir Walter Raleigh and Christopher Marlowe. He is also reunited with a man that he dreads seeing again, his father Philippe de Clairmont. Philippe is not only prejudice against witches, but he is a very frightening man. But in true Diana fashion, she wins over Philippe, which benefits her not only in the past, but will also benefit her when they return to the present. But it is also while in the past that Diana learns a secret of Matthew's that will have dire consequences on them once they have returned to the present.
The Book of Life
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| (Source: Kelsey Darling) |
When Diana and Matthew return from 1591, many things have changed. For one, Diana is pregnant with twins, and despite all logic, they are Matthews'. For another, Diana's aunt Emily has been murdered. Armed with the knowledge that they learned in the past along with the powers that Diana has learned to wield, they are ready to avenge Em's death. But returning from hiding has also brought the Congregation down on them again, as well as caused issues with Matthew's siblings who are not wanting to recognize Diana as a Clairmont even though Philippe gave her his blood vow and marked her as his child. But the worst of it is, Matthew's bastard son Benjamin has declared war, not only on the Clairmonts, but all creature-kind. It will take every bit of magic and strength that the couple and their friends and family hold to make sure that they all make it out of this alive.
Just because I love this book doesn't mean that the review is easy to write. In fact, it makes it harder. I have nothing to nit-pick about, nothing negative to say. I love all of the different levels of story involved, how intertwined everything and everyone is. While you have no fully good characters (which thank stars, it annoys the hell out of me when authors try to make the main character a saint), for the most part, they all have some good in them. The bad characters, however, are deliciously evil. Voldemort and Umbridge levels of evil.
Another thing that I love about this book is it has everything! Fencing, fighting, torture, revenge, giants, monsters, chases, escapes, true love, miracles...oh wait, that's
The Princess Bride. But I do feel that most of those words explain the book. And yes, Fred Savage, it is a kissing book. At times a very explicit kissing book.
Deborah Harkness creates a world within our own that is so detailed oriented that it almost seems believable. She makes you believe there is magic in the world, and if you look, you'll see it. But also, she shows you that yes, people fear change, but more of us accept it than oppose it, once we see that new ways of life aren't going to hurt us. And in the world we're living in right now, those two ideas are important to hold on to.
I am also very excited that I don't have to say goodbye to this world yet. In May of this year, she is releasing
The World of All Souls: A Complete Guide to A Discovery of Witches, Shadow of Night and The Book of Life. It will tell the backstory of how Harkness came up with this world she has painted for us, the science behind the creatures, and a historical accuracy that would make Diana Bishop proud. Then in September, Harkness is releasing
Time's Covenant, part of the All Souls Universe. This will tell the past and present story of Marcus Whitmore, Matthew's son whom he turned during the Revolutionary War. While I really want to learn more about Gallowglass, who I have developed a literary crush on, I am excited to not have to say goodbye to these characters I love.
Rating: 10/10
Series:
All Souls (A Discovery of Witches, Shadow of Night, The Book of Life)
Author:
Deborah Harkness
Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Paranormal
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