Laura’s Review of Shadow of Night (All Souls Trilogy, #2) by Deborah Harkness

Synopsis

IT BEGAN WITH A DISCOVERY OF WITCHES.

Historian Diana Bishop, descended from a line of powerful witches, and long-lived vampire Matthew Clairmont have broken the laws dividing creatures. When Diana discovered a significant alchemical manuscript in the Bodleian Library, she sparked a struggle in which she became bound to Matthew. Now the fragile coexistence of witches, daemons, vampires and humans is dangerously threatened.

Seeking safety, Diana and Matthew travel back in time to London, 1590. But they soon realize that the past may not provide a haven. Reclaiming his former identity as poet and spy for Queen Elizabeth, the vampire falls back in with a group of radicals known as the School of Night. Many are unruly daemons, the creative minds of the age, including playwright Christopher Marlowe and mathematician Thomas Harriot.

Together Matthew and Diana scour Tudor London for the elusive manuscript Ashmole 782, and search for the witch who will teach Diana how to control her remarkable powers...

What I Loved

                Let me start by saying that this was a reread for me because I am obsessed with this series and I wanted to brush up on my Matthew and Diana knowledge before I dive right in to The Book Life.  I absolutely LOVE this series and this book has held to every expectation I had.  I tell people all the time you don’t have to like paranormal to love this series.  It’s such a detailed and smart series that if you love any books that deal with historical facts and romances then this is the series for you!

          The book begins right where Discovery of Witches leaves off, Matthew and Diana have traveled back in time to the Elizabethan era which immediately throws them into Matthew’s old world. Right away you grab onto Diana’s uncertainty and caution of what is ahead.  As I began reading I felt like a fish out of water as much as Diana did and was immediately nervous for her.  All the details in the book just enhance this story so much because they emphasize how strange the old world is to Diana, and just how strange Diana is to the old world.  Each detail about how Diana dresses, how she talks, Matthew not having facial hair, just brings home how much things have changed since 1590.  After reading all the layers that Diana had to wear in one scene I thanked the lord women don’t have to do all that everyday anymore!

          This book takes you on a glorious journey not just through Elizabethan London but back to Sept Tours, then to Prague.  You not only get to experience what England was like 1590 you get see what Europe was like.  There were so many twists and turns that I was on the edge of my seat the entire time.  Also for all you romance lovers out there like me, there are definitely some hot scenes between Matthew and Diana that I was totally anticipating after finishing Discovery of Witches. 

Not So Much

          

      There is very little that I don’t love in this book, but I will say it is very long.  Which for people who might not read as fast as I do, it’s a commitment.  Plus there are a lot of different things all happening at once, and tons of characters that at times it’s hard to remember everyone.   I definitely think a companion guide is needed for this series because there is just so much detail, and so many story lines it would be nice to have something to help keep that all organized. I will say there is like an outline of the characters and things at the end of the book which helps a lot but I would like an entire trilogy companion guide.

          I guess my one con would be that, every single obstacle that could get in Matthew and Diana’s way to finding Ashmole 782, and Diana learning more about her magic, did get in their way.  Towards the end I was starting to lose my patience’s with it.  The book was very heavily detailed and at times I got kind of bored and wanted the plot to move along a little faster. 

This Book Was…

                Amazing on so many levels.  I instantly fell for Matthew and Diana in Discovery of Witches and this book just made me love them even more.  There are so many things that happen when they go in search of Ashmole 782, but also there were so many things that happened between Matthew and Diana as well.  This book you not only get a great history lesson, you get to see Matthew and Diana kind of settle into this very new but deep relationship.  At no time did I doubt Matthew’s love for Diana, but this book showed Matthew in a new light and at times that light was very negative.  There were times that their connection might have been strained and some instances where bad things happen to them, but I do feel they come out of this experience stronger than ever, and are now more of a united team fighting against The Congregation.

          This story left me with anxiety but in the best way possible, but also with some sad details that have yet to be answered.  Throughout the story you not only follow Matthew and Diana in 1590, but you get glimpses of modern day and what is happening with many of the background characters while Matthew and Diana are away.  This series is just so magical to me, it was a series I started reading on a whim because I saw an ad in a magazine and I can’t believe just how much I have fallen for The All Souls Trilogy.  Reading The Book of Life will be very bittersweet to me, I want to see how everything will end so much but I don’t want to say goodbye to these characters as well.  I worship the ground you walk on Deborah Harkness and I cannot wait to see what stories you come up with next!