by Deborah Harkness
"A reluctant witch. A 1500-year-old vampire. A mysterious manuscript
known as Ashmole 782. The story begins with a discovery of witches..." (www.deborahharkness.com)
The All-Souls Trilogy is a beguiling and compelling read. I could compare it to Twilight but for grown-ups. It would be unfair to say that it is on the level of Twilight, however, as this trilogy is so, so much more than just the Romeo and Juliet of creatures. The All-Souls Trilogy surpasses Twilight in every aspect (Sorry Twilight fans!). It is intellectually stimulating, sensual, sexy, and just generally deep. The humor and references are really quite intelligent, and if you are not a widely-read adult, you won't really get them. Of course, as the characters are both erudite, you would expect no less. I love how Deborah Harkness captured that.
The love story between Diana Bishop and Matthew Clairmont starts out aversely, with her being initially wary, then exasperated with him for stalking her. Matthew Clairmont, in his defense, was only doing his best to protect her from creatures that want to harm her. This develops as they both spend more time together, out of necessity. It is good to see an adult romance that does not start with them hopping into bed together. Instead, their intellectual compatibility draws them to each other while they tread softly over their burgeoning feelings. The suspense of how the romance will progress resonates on a very real level, and that is one of the reasons why I love this trilogy. It is also noteworthy to say that this is not a tawdry romance, with them going at it all the time. The few love scenes portrayed are key to the storyline, and they are not described in explicit detail. What is explicit is how they feel about each other as they make love.
Deborah Harkness seamlessly introduces her readers to a whole new world of alchemy and magic, history and genetics. She captivates her reader into plunging head-first into the world she wove and makes us want to stay.
For those who seek adventure, The All-Souls Trilogy is a must-read. You will learn about creatures (vampires, witches, and daemons), time-walk to the Renaissance era, get intimate with royalty and historical behemoths, and experience the otherworldly love of a vampire and a witch.
Let's start with the first book, A Discovery of Witches:
A Discovery of Witches starts with historian Diana Bishop unearthing Ashmole 782, an alchemical manuscript, from the Bodleian Library in Oxford. Unknown to her, this ancient manuscript has been bewitched so that only she may find it. This discovery sets off a series of events that throws her in danger and into the arms of geneticist Dr. Matthew Clairmont.
Diana, who is orphaned of both her parents in childhood, was raised by her aunt and her partner, who are both witches. Being a sub-par witch herself (she later discovers she was spellbound), Diana immersed herself in a successful career as a historian. So imagine her bewilderment when Dr. Clairmont explains creatures to her and the relevance of Ashmole 782 to all of them. Humans, unknowingly, live alongside creatures for ages. These are almost-immortal vampires, powerful witches, and creative/ destructive daemons. Ashmole 782 holds the key to the beginnings and the future of all creatures.
Matthew Clairmont gently eases Diana into their world, as their growing awareness and regard for each other deepens. What also escalates is the threat to Diana's life as other creatures go to desperate measures to get their hands on the elusive manuscript. As she frees herself from being spellbound (her parents locked her powers so she won't be killed by their murderers), Diana discovers a wealth of extraordinary powers that she inherited from her parents.
The book sees Diana and Matthew time-walking to Elizabethan London to find her a teacher and to elude capture from their enemies. Will they make it there?
Stay tuned to next Wednesday's review of Shadow of Night (Book 2 of The All Souls Trilogy).
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