I have read the first two installments of the All Souls Trilogy and am eagerly awaiting the as-yet-unnamed third installment. As Ms Harkness states on her website..."I’m not finished. Creativity is not a linear process. It requires inspiration. It doesn’t adhere to schedules..."
Hey there, Deborah...I can wait because genius takes time. I don't want a cookie cutter book-per-year trilogy like a lot of authors produce. The first two installments are so good that I know you won't disappoint me with this 3rd book...so...I can wait.
I have found the first two books, A Discovery of Witches and Shadow of Night, to be excellent in taking me out of reality and into the world that the author created. I rate the books that I read on a scale of 1 to 5 stars based solely on the author's ability to transport me and ensnare me in another world of existence. The great Stephen King, along with other authors of his type, basically captured my imagination one book at a time (usually from 700 to over 1000 pages in length). Deborah Harkness, as does other great contemporary authors, has her saga flow from one book to the next. Both authors, of different genres, are favorites of mine for those reasons.
I love getting background information on authors that I find interesting and Deborah Harkness is definitely interesting. Writing in the Historical Romance genre, Ms Harkness certainly is at home. She holds several degrees in history, including a Ph.D. She teaches European history and the history of science at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. She previously wrote 2 non-fiction history books but the All Souls Trilogy is her first foray into fiction. Although I am not a fan of "period" novels, this particular trilogy is done expertly. Deborah writes what she knows.
Now about the trilogy...
In a nutshell...The All Souls Trilogy follows the story of Diana Bishop, a historian and
reluctant witch, as she solves the mystery of Ashmole 782, falls in
love with a mysterious vampire named Matthew Clairmont, and learns how
powerful it can be to accept who you are.
Since I don't do spoilers, that should be enough to whet your appetite. If you obtain these two books, you won't be disappointed.
