Bookworm | A Discovery of Witches and Shadow of Night

Obviously not my picture!

"A Discovery of Witches" and "Shadow of Night" by Deborah Harkness


Guys. Guys.  Can I just say that I am SO happy that I chose to read these two books before I left for London?! I am totally in love. "A Discovery of Witches" and "Shadow of Night" are books one and two in Harkness' All Soul's Trilogy. The series begins with Diana Bishop, who is a witch that has denied her magical abilities and has chosen to pursue a life of studies. At Oxford, she stumbles across a magical book, which, unbeknownst to her, eventually turns her life around, starting with meeting the dark and brooding vampire, Matthew de Clermont. His presence, as well as the growing curiosity of other creatures, forces her to face who she really is.

Okay, so I know what you're thinking. Not another vampire book. Honestly, it is the best vampire/magical story I've ever read, outside of Stoker's "Dracula" and Rowling's "Harry Potter." Diana is an educated adult and Matthew is a 1500 year-old vampire, so any interaction between them is calculated and rational, which is wonderful and refreshing. The first book and most of the second book are written in the first person narrative, which I'm always a little leery of, but almost immediately I was too engrossed to care. And you know what also makes this series awesome? HISTORY. FACT. SCIENCE. The pages are filled with rich, historical details and as a semi-secretive history buff, I was in heaven.....especially in "Shadow of Night," where the majority of the story takes place in Elizabethan England. ELIZABETHAN. ENGLAND. A guaranteed good time...at least for a medieval studies minor like myself :P.

So, if you couldn't already tell, this series has quickly risen to a very high spot on my favorites list. If you're looking for a solid, pleasant read, I highly recommend it. The only complaint that I have is that the third book hasn't been published yet so I am stuck with a horrible book hangover and no means to remedy it!

Seriously....go read it!


Oh, yeah, and four days until departure! Cue the stomach jitters!

Have a great weekend! xo