A Discovery of Witches – Deborah Harkness

"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."

I had every intention of finishing this before Halloween, but before I knew it - November was here. The last month has been one of the most life-altering for me, and so I haven’t really had the time or the focus to read or update my blog.  

A Discovery of Witches came at the right time – a birthday gift from my cousin.  Both she and my aunt read it and have decided to move on to Shadow of the Night. They are both speedy readers and have inspired me to pick up the pace a little ;)

So...the book: 

Diana Bishop is a historian of alchemy. This, the Oxford setting, and the ancient magical book, was all I needed to get and keep me interested.  Then, romance entered the scene and the story took off in a different direction. At first I wasn’t sure about the element of love (what about the book, Ashmole 782!?), but vampire, Matthew Clairmont started to grow on me. Mostly after he told the story about how in the past courtship involved going in a closet or room with your beloved to just talk, all night long, to better understand each other. Diana and Matthew’s romance is traditional yet modern and made me yearn for these simple customs that made our ancestors so happy.  Their relationship is connected to Ashmole 782.

I enjoyed the last few chapters when DNA of vampires, witches, and demons, got discussed, as well as how evolution will include the merging of different lineages, allowing offspring to carry favourable traits for the future. And, I loved how vampires, demons and witches (typical enemies) hang out together in a (really imaginative) haunted house, trying to make sense of the past and future.

Diana’s parents were brutally murdered and this reminded me of Harry Potter. The seven-year theme also showed up, as age seven is when Diana’s witch powers started to develop. I actually decided that I will finish Harry Potter (book seven) next because of this, and also because my cousin’s two boys threw on the last movie when I was visiting.  I simply can’t wait any longer!

I would recommend this novel. I only wish I hadn’t been so distracted because there are lots of references – books, elements, etc. that I found fascinating and would like to have researched further as I read.  In attempt to do this later, I visited a local library and found a book called Magic and Alchemy by Rosemary Ellen Guiley. In this encyclopedia, I discovered a few photos that reminded me of the manuscript pages Diana found. One of the photos was Robert Fludd’s rose with seven petals.

I look forward to Shadow of the Night and diving further into the topics of alchemy and time travel, as well as exploring some of the author's other works!