Book Review ~ A Discovery of Witches

A Discovery of Witches (All Souls Trilogy #1)
By Deborah Harkness
Published By Viking Adult

Summary: When historian Diana Bishop opens a bewitched alchemical manuscript in Oxford’s Bodleian Library it represents an unwelcome intrusion of magic into her carefully ordinary life. Though descended from a long line of witches, she is determined to remain untouched by her family’s legacy. She banishes the manuscript to the stacks, but Diana finds it impossible to hold the world of magic at bay any longer.

For witches are not the only otherworldly creatures living alongside humans. There are also creative, destructive daemons and long-lived vampires who become interested in the witch’s discovery. They believe that the manuscript contains important clues about the past and the future, and want to know how Diana Bishop has been able to get her hands on the elusive volume.

Chief among the creatures who gather around Diana is vampire Matthew Clairmont, a geneticist with a passion for Darwin. Together, Diana and Matthew embark on a journey to understand the manuscript’s secrets. But the relationship that develops between the ages-old vampire and the spellbound witch threatens to unravel the fragile peace that has long existed between creatures and humans—and will certainly transform Diana’s world as well.

My Thoughts: I really enjoyed this book. That being said, it is a very heavy book. I don't mean literally, even though it is that as well. At almost 600 pages it has a lot of information that is can be important later on and easy to miss if you just skim over parts. The mix of history, science, and paranormal was well done and I enjoyed it more than I anticipated. 

The characters were an enjoyable mix of old world meets modern. While Diana was not my favorite, throughout the book, she did hold up and by the end I was on her side. There were times that she was either too headstrong or too pliable, and not at the times you would want her to be either. Matthew and his family are typical, long lived vampires with enough history and back story to make them an interesting read. The remaining  witches, daemons, vampires, and humans was an interesting mix with their own quirks . My favorite character had to be the Bishop house and all its ghosts. From slamming doors and shifting rooms I wanted to spend more time finding out it secrets than I did the main story.

The author did an excellent job taking everything throughout the book and bringing to end that felt natural and still set up the next book. I'm looking forward to see what the next book brings for Diana, Matthew, and their hodgepodge group of family and friends.

Rating: 4 (only because I cannot see myself rereading this book due to the sheer volume and focus needed while reading it)