Shadow of Night (All Souls Trilogy, Bk 2) (All Souls Series)Hardcover

If you're expecting the same style and structure in Shadow of Night as you saw in A Discovery of Witches, you will be disappointed. A Discovery of Witches was placed entirely in the 21st-century over a period of weeks, and predominantly focused on the love-at-first-sight relationship (and negative implications thereof) of Diana Bishop and Matthew Clairmont. A Discovery of Witches set forth the issues to be addressed in the trilogy: the depth and breadth of Diana's magic, the connection between alchemical history and allegory to Matthew and Diana's relationship, the Congregation's covenant precluding relations among creatures (particularly in relation to love and procreation), and the meaning behind the allusions foretelling Diana and Matthew's relationship.

What certain reviewers of Shadow of Night seem to have focused on, with deleterious effects on the ratings for the book, are issues which no self-respecting student of history would allow credence: the issue of inconsistency in time travel theory, and excessive detail with regard to context. First of all, time travel is a plot device utilized in science fiction, and no theory in physics actually posits the potential reality of backwards time travel. It follows, therefore, that the use of time travel belongs to the realm of high speculation. As it relates to Shadow of Night, time travel is utilized only twice by the protagonists, and should have little impact on the overall flow of the book. Second, without the copious amount of detail--names, places, quotidian experiences--described in the book, the idea of traveling back to 1590 is subverted. So if, as some reviewers would prefer, anonymous names, brief descriptions, and fewer characters were substituted for the content that comprises Shadow of Night, the events that did pass might as well have occurred in the 21st-century.

So, on to Shadow of Night. The book is divided into parts, and largely follows this pattern: the bulk of each part follows Matthew and Diana's travails in 1590 Elizabethan England, France, and Prague, and near the end of each part there is a brief scene highlighting some aspect of the present, either relating to the Conventicle or the Congregation and some of their member's responses and actions relating to Matthew and Diana's time travel, or as in the case of the Congregation, relating to how they can undermine Matthew and Diana's objectives. Admittedly, the first time a present-day scene arises, it is a bit off-putting, especially as there is no date identifying the scene as occurring in the 21st-century. As the book devotes 98% of the scenes to Diana and Matthew, the other 2% of the book perhaps hints to the questions that will be answered in the third book of the trilogy, e.g. what happened to Emily Mather; what became of Peter Knox's plans to attack Sept-Tours as well as to find and recruit Matthew's errant son Benjamin on the side of the Congregation; what role have and will Phoebe or Rima play in forwarding the causes of the Congregation or the Conventicle; and who else are members of the de Clermont family and where have they been all this time?

A Shadow of Night answers some of the questions posed in A Discovery of Witches: what Diana's power really is, what the goddess Diana took in exchange for allowing Diana Bishop to save Matthew's life, whether Matthew and Diana can conceive a child, what was contained in the three missing pages of Ashmole 782 and why the book came to be broken, and (to a certain extent) how the three objects they used to travel from the 21st-century to 1590 came to be passed down through the years. Unbeknownst to Matthew and Diana, but suggested to the reader, is who has an idea of where the two other missing pages are located.

Overall, the book was very enjoyable, and I look forward to seeing some of the new characters further developed in the third book. As Phillipe de Clermont and Stephen Proctor were featured in Shadow of Night, it might not be a stretch that in the third book we'll understand more about Rebecca Bishop and Ysabeau. Also, the third book might finally explain more clearly what is meant by "It begins with absence and desire; it begins with blood and fear; it begins with a discovery of witches," for it is mentioned throughout Shadow of Night as a means to fathom the unfolding of events, but the exact meaning may not be realized until the entirety of Ashmole 782 is pieced together in the 21st-century.

Anyway, if you're looking for a book with plot and a great deal of fluff, this book is not for you. If you were excited by A Discovery of Witches, are a student of history of science or merely a person who enjoys learning, and are realistic about what building a stable and enduring relationship entails, Shadow of Night is a fantastic book to add to your collection. It is quasi-historical fiction, with a bit of romance, at its best.

Last week I was mostly MIA... Well that's thanks to the fact I had started this book. It's a hefty read just like its predecessor was, and just like the final installment will be I'm sure. Once again I was transported into a world of humans, witches, vampires, daemons and more... And once again I LOVED it.

This book picks up right where book one left off. We find Diana and Matthew at the destination of their time walking... the year 1590. Elizabethan England. I am someone who has a lot of love for anything to do with history. I love reading about past eras, whether in fact or fiction. So I was excited to follow this story and devour every single detail I could, not just about the characters but also about the setting...

There is a lot of detail packed into these pages. For me I love a book with a heavy dose of detail as long as it adds to the story being told and in this case it was certainly warranted. There is no way the author would've been able to paint such a vivid picture of the Elizabethan era if she didn't spend the page space on building up every little detail from the clothing, the food, the buildings, the etiquette right down to the smells and strange little quirks of the period. I LOVED the detail that Deborah Harkness went into. I didn't begrudge one single sentence of her world building. It was beautifully done. I really enjoyed that the same level of care that Harkness took in the first book with describing the scientific aspects of the story was also paid to the historical aspects in this installment. For me I think what really highlighted the almost unimaginable alien feel of the time period was that we were seeing it through Diana's eyes. Through her very modern, current day eyes. For as much as she is a history buff, she is still from our way of life. Having her deposited into 1590 highlighted just how much the world has changed.

Time traveling can be a very tricky plot to both write and follow as a reader. I really enjoyed the authors take on this subject... that said, there is always going to be some threads of the story that do raise question marks and it's certainly no different here. I do wonder about the 'old' Matthew who reappears with apparently no knowledge of the events his future self participated in after Diana and 'current' Matthew return back to the current day. Think about it too hard and there are a lot of 'what if's' there. Also the creatures that are let in on the secret of the time traveling have their future completely re-written, just by the fact they know what they know. But the implications of all of this can't ever possibly be fully covered and explained.

On the other hand, the fact that the characters need to be careful about altering history is brought up quite a few times and this is actually one of the parts of the time traveling storyline I really enjoyed. How the author focused on the seemingly smallest things (the set of miniatures for example) and linked through them to chapters set in the current day was the perfect way to tie the story together and keep the pace and story going in the here and now as well as in the past. I loved that we got to check in with characters such as Marcus, Em, Sarah, Ysabeau and Sophie as well as some characters that weren't familiar from the first book but I'm sure will be by the end of the last. This last point also goes for the characters introduced in the past. I loved getting to meet the people from Matthews past that I had heard of, I loved following Matthew and watching him be able to see people that he had lost long ago. There were some very poignant reunions; the chapters spent on their visit to Sept-Tours were my absolute favorites of the whole book.

The plot-lines covering the manuscript and Diana's powers all progressed at least in part. As far as Diana's learning of her craft, even though I felt like it was a bit stop/start on the whole, I still really loved the direction this storyline ended up taking. There were some unexpected surprises and reveals about Diana and her powers and it was so satisfying that by the end of this book she had actually moved forward in learning about and managing her powers. The manuscript had a lot of writing time spent on the hunting of it. The actual acquiring of it...Not so much. But that doesn't at all reduce the shocking discovery about its nature and I'm very interested to see where this particular storyline heads next, it's gotten steadily creepier and creepier and I'm sure there's much more of that to come.

Finally...The love story. As much as this is a story about creatures, magic and time travel, it's just as much a story of a romance. The relationship between Matthew and Diana is the crux of this series. Everything comes back to them and their connection and in this book everything is taken up a few notches and we start to see exactly what is riding on this love story. Both characters develop and grow along with their relationship and I love that there is progress in this respect. Nothing drives me crazier than a love story that's stagnant. Probably my biggest hope for Diana and Matthew is that they get some form of HEA once all is said and done. I'm still unsure what that HEA will look like, but I am staying optimistic!

So yes, this is a long read. Yes, this has A LOT of detail, historical and otherwise and yes it is based on a romance. I feel that all of these aspects make it work as a brilliant second installment in this trilogy. It feels like we are hurtling towards all of these threads of stories being tied into finality and I literally cannot wait until July 15th when the final book is released... I can guarantee I won’t be sleeping much that week... I have big hopes.... huge hopes!

After first hearing about A Discovery of Witches, I embarked on a journey with Diana and Matthew that was completely a enthralling, once in a lifetime experience. I have since read ADOW 3 times and have been impatiently waiting for the second book in the trilogy to surface. After getting my hands on a borrowed ARC, I was able to skip ahead of line just a teensy bit.. Suffice to say, it was worth the wait. If you haven't yet,BUY THESE BOOKS! Shadow of Night continues that amazing journey and picks up right where ADOW leaves us, and still leaves me burning with extreme impatience (already) for the third and final book in the trilogy.

The book is a masterpiece of blending paranormal fantasy, historical fiction, and romance all into one seamless being. We are immediately sunk into Elizabethan London on the hunt for Ashmole 782, and thrown so many actual historical characters it can almost make the reader dizzy! The execution of said historical figures- Christopher Marlowe, Elizabeth I, etc and how they are presented to us within the story is both plausible and enlightening at the same time. It is clear that Ms. Harkness did significant historical research in the creation of this novel (as she is, in fact, a true historian after all) and in how these characters would integrate into the lives of Diana and Matthew. We follow the lead characters from The Old Lodge, back to Sept Tours, back to London, to Prague, and then back to London again in a truly epic historical journey. Along the way we learn, alongside Diana and Matthew when their marriage hits snags,secrets, heartbreak and lies, in addition to watching Matthew learn to forgive himself for the past and Diana learn the truth about herself as well as her parents. In addition to Diana and Matthew's journey into the past, we are given snippets of what events are unfolding in the future. For example,minor changes during their timewalking adventures (jewelry, simple journals,etc) are having immediate future effects. These brief views in the future are both sad and enlightening, giving the reader knowledge that Diana and Matthew are not privy to. Through their journey, they answer many of the questions asked in ADOW, but we are left with just as many new questions that gathered along the way. The book ends with the lead characters safely back in the present where they belong, but as this is only the second book in the trilogy, the problems are far from over with Ashmole 782 and the Congregation.

As stated before, I may be a little biased about these books. I am a historian of science, as well as a huge book/romance/paranormal sap. But it confuses and concerns me to read other reviews that state the book has no plot. Certainly, not everyone will enjoy every single book they come across, or not like the story, or the historical aspects, or the characters.. but clearly, how anyone can even read 3 chapters into the book and state the book has no plot is simply ridiculous in my opinion.

Ultimately, huge congratulations to Ms. Harkness on continuing this amazing story in epic form. Sometimes, the second book in the series can be weak. But, with a Shadow of Night, I was not disappointed at all. The worst part in all of this is I know I will have to wait just as long if not longer for book 3! For me, these books rank right up there with Harry Potter. This is a story to be enjoyed over and over, with new things to learn each time and lessons that we can all learn from and apply to our daily lives in some fashion. Thank you, again, Ms. Harkness!

I highly recommend this book series. This is the second book of the Discovery of Witches series. This book mainly takes place in the past where the protagonist Diane Bishop (a powerful witch with time weaver abilities) and her love interest Matthew (a vampire) take a trip through time to Elizabethan London. They are plunged into a world of spies, magic, and Matthew’s old friends from the School of Night. They escape the danger in their present, to find the missing Ashmole 782 that came to her unexpectedly, and are desperate to find it again. All eyes are on her as she is the only person who has brought that book back since its disappearance hundreds of years ago.

Diana seeks a witch to tutor her in magic as she struggles to wield it on her own. Matthew’s past tightens around them, and they embark on a different and vastly more dangerous journey than they had anticipated. She needs to learn to control her magic and find the Book of Life before others who have devious plans to use the knowledge within.

Diana and Matthew timewalk to 1590 in search of witches who can teach Diana about her magic; they also hunt for an elusive book; strengthen their relationships with each other, their fathers, and the various creatures they spend time with; and, though they thought it impossible, Diana becomes pregnant.

(Though reviews are inherently subjective, I prefer to provide some organization to my opinions through the use of a personal rubric. The following notes may contain spoilers.)

Plot and Setting: 4.4 -- Plot is engaging from start to finish. Has many unique elements, no major holes, and a sense of focus. Major plot points are dropped or not resolved (cliffhanger). Setting is clear and believable. Timeline may be a bit hard to follow. A unique element here is that we basically have 2 simultaneous timelines. Not only are Matthew and Diana learning more about themselves and each other, there are also complicating factors and dangerous predicaments in both the 16th and the 21st centuries. The main focus is the past, but scattered scenes from the present keep reminding us that time is passing there, too. There are so many different elements at play, but, amazingly, it holds together well. The timeline is harder to follow here than in book 1, mainly because it's spread over a longer period of time. There's at least one spot where things don't seem to line up, but the landmarks of different festivals and feast days help maintain clarity.

Characters: 5 -- Relatable, realistic, interesting, dynamic characters. Even minor characters have depth, as do the relationships between characters. While all the characters from the first book are continuing their own stories, we only get glimpses of the 'present,' and get introduced to a whole new cast of characters in the past. There's really no overlap beyond Matthew and Diana, and all the new characters we meet are at least as vivid and fascinating as those we met before. The depictions of actual historical figures have that additional interesting element of fiction representing, at least a little, historical truth. Some very powerful (and complicated!) family relationships, especially as Diana and Matthew relate to Philippe, Stephen, and Jack and Annie.

Mechanics and Writing: 5 -- Few, if any, typos, punctuation issues, or word errors. (<3/100pgs) Intelligent use of POV. Skillful writing that adds to the story. Errors include: mild punctuation or formatting issues, some small inconsistencies. POV is mainly 1st-person Diana, with some scenes (all or almost all when Diana is not present to narrate) in a sort of universal 3rd-person narrative, dipping into the thoughts of whoever is needed to tell the important details.

Redeeming Value: 3.2 -- Partially focused uplifting themes or lessons. Drugs, alcohol, violence, etc, are not glorified, though there is definitely shaky ground. Several mildly explicit sex scenes. Implied moral guidelines for behavior. More of the kind of vampire morality that involves bloodshed and power plays. The added element of blood rage, which takes a vampire even further into unreasoning violence. A few scenes involving characters high on opium, though this is not looked on with approval. Diana and Matthew are married, and they have sex. It's described in more detail than I would prefer, but really the focus each time is on how sex plays into their overall relationship. In other words, it's fairly explicit, but not gratuitous. Some great themes about second chances, reconciliation, forgiveness, family, and love.

Personal Enjoyment: 4.5 -- I loved it. Highly enjoyable and very entertaining, with perhaps an issue or two that tempered my pleasure. I’d enjoy reading it again.