A Discovery of Witches by Deborah HarknessMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Grade: B+
A Discovery of Witches starts off promisingly - the academic Dr. Bishop is the last descendent from a famous line of Bishop witches (One of her Bishop ancestors was the first witch executed in the Salem witch trials).
However, after her parents died when she was a child, Dr. Bishop refused to use or study magic anymore, and instead chose History as her field of specialization. She stumbles across an ancient tome during some research - one that was lost for over a hundred years. Soon, the other creatures - Daemons, Witches and Vampires, start stalking her, hoping to discover how Dr. Bishop found this magickal manuscript.
The story is really fresh and interesting, but had several unnecessary digressions. I enjoyed all the scenes where we meet Dr. Diana Bishop's family, her kooky house in the States, the ghosts. Good world building, and a pretty awesome ending!
What's not to Like, You ask?:
*sigh* A fantastic opportunity to talk about an academic approach to magic analysis, rules was laid aside in favor of some soppy romance with a brooding vampire (Matthew). Harkness goes into a very tired vampire storyline, and I had a tough time swallowing how this strong woman was saying lines like: "When I pulled the door open, Matthew stood outside looking like the prince in a fairy tale, tall and straight."
Good stuff: Plenty of info on famous historical books, and 15th-18th century goings on. I'm a nerd, so I found this cool, but ended up a little irked that Matthew seemed to have met everyone while accumulating a dozen degrees.
View all my reviews
I hate when characters think or say something that doesn't seem in their character. But this book sounds interesting if only for the magic and historical aspects. Good, honest review!
ReplyDeleteJade -Despite all the hiccups, it was definitely interesting, and I am looking forward to the rest of the series :)
ReplyDeleteDespite the minor qualms, it sounds like an interesting read. I haven't read too many magic oriented books outside of the Harry Potter series, but I think I'd find the references to historical books really interesting. I'll have to check it out.
ReplyDeleteI am excited to read this one - it is at my library waiting for me to pick it up!
ReplyDeleteLoved the review and you should try The Map of Time - Palma: it's due this month and WOW plenty of historical references to great writers of late 19th century. EG: H G Wells, Bram Stoker, Henry James, etc. I got goose bumps at the cameo appearances of these people. Impressive and 600 plus page translation from original spanish. WOW seriously amazing.
ReplyDeleteYou have to read The Emerald Atlas : Children fantasy. WOW!
Adding A Discovery of Witches now to my TBR list. :)