A Discovery of Witches [Hardcover]

 

 

Create your own review

I have to admit that this book surprised me. I selected it because of the Oxford connection - it is always interesting to see how authors interpret the place where I live. It was an additional surprise to see that the central character had rooms in my old college (the ironically named New College - founded in 1379!)

I haven't attempted to read a vampire-related tale since I tried the Lestat novels of Anne Rice - and I found this a much more enjoyable piece of writing. There is a flow to the narrative which does prove engaging from the very first page. Given that it is not a short book, finding a way to keep the reader hooked throghout is quite an achievement for a debut novelist.

Dianna is a strong central figure - neatly drawn and not at all weak and compliant as she could easily have been made. She is well matched by the suave Matthew. There is an instant spark to their relationship - which is well sustained and not in a predictable way.

As is essential with novels in this particular genre, Harkness is very precise about the way she creates a world where vampires, witches and daemons are able to exist seemlessly with mere mortals - everything is remarkably plausible and coherent.

After all this praise, why not the full five stars? It comes down to the Oxford setting. It is probably my own detailed knowledge of the city that makes all the excessive detail given over to evoking the city feel more like a travel guide than something more real. There are a few factual slips that slightly undermine the setting. It is clear that the author does know Oxford but not, perhaps, as well as she might think. A minor flaw - but given the way Oxford is such a popular setting for a wide range of books, it is one that would have benefitted from the attentions of an editor who could have help Harkenss refine this element slightly. Readers who are not as closely connected to the city will probably not notice any of this!

I must admit that I would be tempted to read any further books that follow from this strong debut.

I really, really wanted to like this book.

I thought Twilight was utterly appalling, so when I saw the review on the cover of this book that said something along the lines of "The thinking person's Twilight", I thought, hurray!! An intelligent, well-plotted, well-characterised fantasy with elements of a supernatural romance - just the thing for cold evenings by the fire. Sadly, I don't feel that the book really delivered on any of these fronts. The premise seemed interesting - a mysterious manuscript that supernatural creatures want to get their hands on is called up by the novel's heroine, a witch named Diana. A dishy vampire - the hero, Matthew - sees the danger she is in and decides to get involved. The location (Oxford) is well-described, and the reader gets a nice sense of settling in for a meaty read.

Sadly, nothing much really happens. Diana spends a lot of her time going running and rowing on the river while Matthew eyes her beadily from the banks. At this point, he starts to tell her how extraordinarily brave she is to be carrying on as though there were no danger. He continues to be amazed by her courage throughout the book. I get the impression that we, the readers, are supposed to think that Diana is terribly brave too, though really it's more like she's just oblivious to the strange turn her life is taking.

She drinks enormous amounts of tea. Every time she puts on the kettle (and spoons the tea into a pot and warms her hands on the hot mug and sips at the soothing, fragrant brew), the experience is lovingly detailed for us. I began to think that tea was going to turn out to be a major plot-device, and that perhaps the action would centre around some sort of ancient tea-leaf feud, but no.

Then there is the yoga. I'm not sure why I found this so jarring. I tried to accept that, within the world of this novel, yoga would be be a perfectly normal hobby for witches, daemons and vampires but it just seemed odd. Diana is being threatened by a host of other-worldly creatures, and strong, mysterious Matthew is deeply concerned for her safety so, to relax, the two of them put their yoga mats into Matthew's car and drive off to an "inclusive" yoga class, in which other-worldly creatures put aside their differences and fold themselves into downward-facing-dogs and sun salutations (quite lengthy descriptions of the various postures and movements, and how it felt to do them, are given). I recognise that authors may create their worlds as they wish but this still felt incongruous to me.

Then there is the fact that we are told, time and time again, that Diana is brave, that she is strong, that she is a capable, independent woman. Sadly, and very like Bella in Twilight, once the alpha-male vampire appears on the scene, she is reduced to someone that just needs to be protected. Matthew is constantly ordering her to go to bed, carrying her up the stairs, wrapping her in blankets, propping her up before the fire and telling her exactly what she may or may not do. When she is not drinking tea, in fact, she seems to be permanently in a state of exhaustion - sometimes only a couple of hours after an enormous sleep, she's worn out again - and this seems to be used as a vehicle for her man literally to sweep her off her feet and tuck her into bed again, while looking adoringly at her and telling her what a feisty, strong and stubborn creature she is. I don't really understand what their deep and abiding love is based on, either. There is no sexual tension or chemistry to speak of. The fact that Matthew treats Diana more like a sickly child than anything else doesn't help. There is kissing, but not as much as there is sleeping, enfolded in manly arms, soothed by a strong and manly presence.

Despite all of this, and somewhat to my own surprise, I didn't hate this book.

This is probably only because, truth be told, I rather like descriptions of food and drink and gothic places (luckily, in this case), so I didn't find the novel quite as tedious as its lack of action deserved. Nothing much happens and I really don't like either of the main characters much, but the cosy images of meals and fires and old castles and quirky houses were enough to get me through to the end - just about. Ideally, the food et al would be coupled with some real plotting and interesting personalities, a female lead who isn't a droopy-drawers and a male lead who isn't an aggressive, over-protective know-all. In this day and age, are we really supposed to be into this image of how relationships should be?

I'm torn between giving two stars and three for this book, so I'll err on the side of generosity! I won't be buying the sequel, though.

I picked up this book on recommendation and have been sorely disappointed. I truly feel that the success of 'Twilight' has simply lowered the bar for vampire fiction, and from now on female protagonists will be pretty but fragile things waiting on their Edward, or in the case of this book, Matthew. In my opinion this book draws very heavily from both the Twilight and Harry Potter franchises and while the basic premise started out promising enough the entire novel de-evolved into almost unreadable shlock. This is only compounded once one realises just how much of that shlock there is to get through. The entire thing is unnecessarily long, with the author drawing on the same phrases over and over again (I was quite tempted to mark each time that hair was drawn behind an ear, or the female lead commented on the smell of cloves) making the reader feel incredibly frustrated as the plot plods at a snail's pace. With only a few bright points in the story, the characters Ysabeau and Marthe being one, by the middle of the book one feels alienated from the story entirely, or unable to care what happens to the weak, predictable characters.

Unless a serious reworking of the next novel and its characters is forthcoming, I have no personal interest in a sequel and I do hope that the author considers putting aside all the regurgitation of other works so that something new and original can emerge.

Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review

› See all 243 customer reviews on Amazon.co.uk

 

5.0 out of 5 stars Didn't expect it
I was bought this book and didnt look at any reviews before i picked it up.
Once i started reading though i could not put it down. Read more

Published 2 days ago by V. M. Parry

1.0 out of 5 stars The literary equivalent of valium
"Westerly or northwesterly 5 to 7, backing southwesterly 6 to gale 8, perhaps severe gale 9 later." Said Diana Bishop. Read more

Published 3 days ago by R. Greenyer

4.0 out of 5 stars Looking forward to the next instalment.
The story centres around a witch, Diana, that refuses to use her powers.

When Diana finds an enchanted book it brings the attention of a number of powerful creatures... Read more

Published 3 days ago by Lucy

5.0 out of 5 stars A sumptuous feast of fantasy, science and romance
Absolutely loved this book. Highly captivating with exquisite detail, Harkness deftly builds a sumptuous universe for the reader to get lost in. Read more

Published 5 days ago by MessieJessie

5.0 out of 5 stars Twilight fans will love this!
A must for any Twilight fan - I loved this book - found it easy to read, loved the characters cannot wait for the next book in July.A Discovery of Witches (All Souls Trilogy 1)

Published 6 days ago by butterbee

3.0 out of 5 stars Twilight for grown-ups?
Hmm. I did manage to get to the end but it was a bit of a plod at times.
For anyone who's read the Twilight novels then the basic concept will seem a bit familiar - only big... Read more

Published 6 days ago by Ben Langford

1.0 out of 5 stars Frustratingly banal
I too bought the hype and waded into A Discovery of Witches expecting great things.

I loved the ideas given on the back cover and imagined a feisty heroine who would... Read more

Published 7 days ago by ScarlettWebb

5.0 out of 5 stars A thoroughly enjoyable read
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, it has many elements that I find exciting in modern fiction, Vampires, Witches, other-worldly creatures, a love story, a mystery.... Read more

Published 8 days ago by J Clulow

1.0 out of 5 stars if i could give it half a star, i would...
i saw this some time ago at the bookstore, and between being bombarded with it on every shelf and seeing all the great reviews in big bold letters, i decided to get it... Read more

Published 8 days ago by klutzfrommars

4.0 out of 5 stars A good Long read!
First time i have read anything by Deborah Harkness and i have to say i was pleasantly surprised. Very detailed world building and i loved the details about Oxford. Read more

Published 9 days ago by RiotKitten

Search Customer Reviews
Only search this product's reviews

› See all 243 customer reviews on Amazon.co.uk

Search Listmania!