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bookishchef's review against another edition
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
This book is like Twilight.
But without the love triangle.
And somehow even more toxic.
You thought Edward stalking Bella was creepy?
Meet Matthew Clermont! He is actually mentally and physically abusive to our bland Mary Sue protagonist named Diana.
If you're Matthew, life is easy.
Diana has a panic attack? Threaten her life.
Diana is feeling scared? Threaten her life.
Diana is feeling horny? Threaten her life.
Why? Because you just cannot help yourself of course. After all, it is sooooo hot when men treat women like
A. fragile objects they're supposed to control and protect.
B. things to literally kill.
This book perpetrates the idea that men cannot help themselves from abusing, controling, and commanding women.
Worst thing is, that every time Diana goes against Matthew's wishes, she is immediately punished by the plot. Which only confirms that women are supposed to listen to the men in their lives according to this book.
I have no clue how I, the reader, was supposed to find any of this romantic. All of the scenes were either highly uncomfortable or straight up abusive.
The excuse of "he just can't help himself" is as old as time and has been used time and time again to excuse shitty behaviour from men.
And Diana, the MC, decides that this excuse is not an excuse at all. She seems to think this is actually the way the world works. She doesn't even take the horrible "I can fix him" attitude that so many romance MCs take. Instead she just completely accepts Matthew as the toxic asshole he is and gives up every part of her life to listen to him and conform to his ideas of an ideal wife.
So yeah this book stole the toxicity from Twilight and made it 10x worse.
You know what else it stole?
THE WEIRD BABY PLOTLINE
Yup, you heard me correctly.
This author really looked at Renesmee and went "wow that's such a cool plot point".
Remember how Bella wasn't supposed to be able to get pregnant because Ed was a vampire? Well, same goes for Diana in this story. For a solid 80% of the book, we hear nothing about pregnancy rates between witches and vampires. (Diana is a witch and Matthew is a vampire)
Matthew refuses to have penetrative sex because of *plot*, and Diana gets frustrated because of this. And then suddenly out of NOWHERE it is revealed that witches and vampires can't have babies together BUT Diana has *special* DNA which means she is able to conceive with Matthew. Matthew supposedly didn't know this, so his aversion to penetrative sex was completely unrelated.
Even so, this entire plotpoint seems to exist to make Matthew right once again, and to rip off Twilight.
Truly do not understand why this gets 4+ stars on Goodreads.
ALSO OMG WINE GETS MENTIONED MORE THAN THE MC'S NAME I STG
But without the love triangle.
And somehow even more toxic.
You thought Edward stalking Bella was creepy?
Meet Matthew Clermont! He is actually mentally and physically abusive to our bland Mary Sue protagonist named Diana.
If you're Matthew, life is easy.
Diana has a panic attack? Threaten her life.
Diana is feeling scared? Threaten her life.
Diana is feeling horny? Threaten her life.
Why? Because you just cannot help yourself of course. After all, it is sooooo hot when men treat women like
A. fragile objects they're supposed to control and protect.
B. things to literally kill.
This book perpetrates the idea that men cannot help themselves from abusing, controling, and commanding women.
Worst thing is, that every time Diana goes against Matthew's wishes, she is immediately punished by the plot. Which only confirms that women are supposed to listen to the men in their lives according to this book.
I have no clue how I, the reader, was supposed to find any of this romantic. All of the scenes were either highly uncomfortable or straight up abusive.
The excuse of "he just can't help himself" is as old as time and has been used time and time again to excuse shitty behaviour from men.
And Diana, the MC, decides that this excuse is not an excuse at all. She seems to think this is actually the way the world works. She doesn't even take the horrible "I can fix him" attitude that so many romance MCs take. Instead she just completely accepts Matthew as the toxic asshole he is and gives up every part of her life to listen to him and conform to his ideas of an ideal wife.
So yeah this book stole the toxicity from Twilight and made it 10x worse.
You know what else it stole?
THE WEIRD BABY PLOTLINE
Yup, you heard me correctly.
This author really looked at Renesmee and went "wow that's such a cool plot point".
Remember how Bella wasn't supposed to be able to get pregnant because Ed was a vampire? Well, same goes for Diana in this story. For a solid 80% of the book, we hear nothing about pregnancy rates between witches and vampires. (Diana is a witch and Matthew is a vampire)
Matthew refuses to have penetrative sex because of *plot*, and Diana gets frustrated because of this. And then suddenly out of NOWHERE it is revealed that witches and vampires can't have babies together BUT Diana has *special* DNA which means she is able to conceive with Matthew. Matthew supposedly didn't know this, so his aversion to penetrative sex was completely unrelated.
Even so, this entire plotpoint seems to exist to make Matthew right once again, and to rip off Twilight.
Truly do not understand why this gets 4+ stars on Goodreads.
ALSO OMG WINE GETS MENTIONED MORE THAN THE MC'S NAME I STG
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Confinement, Misogyny, Torture, Grief, and Pregnancy
Minor: Child death
12dejamoo's review
dark
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
Don't think I've ever written such a long review but here goes...
I found this book pretty hard to form a clear opinion. I think that's because I didn't know by what metric to judge it. Like, is it a crummy romance? Is it a YA Twilight-esque book? Is it one of those ostensibly 'higher quality' romances that everyone on the internet loves? It's kind of all three and so it's really difficult to judge the correct level of belief suspension needed. The book opens on an interesting fantasy premise, with library girl doing library things. We love a library girl. Then we are introduced to Matthew and it's like yeah I like this guy, he's got that Edward vibe with less creepiness and more nuance. Great, now we're doing some library stuff, we're having brunch, we're doing yoga (btw what a fucking funny idea that's genius). But now, BOOM, we're deeply in love, we're running off to France, you're my wife lol. Now you've almost died 20 million times. It's like the story was both nicely slow and too quick. It was moving at a very believable pace and then all hell broke loose.
There are lots of good points to this! I like many of the characters, I like the concept of the three creatures, I like the library scenes. I like the alchemy stuff (mostly). I like the idea of many of Diana's powers and I really enjoyed reading many of the scenes of her using them. It's major Twilight vibes but Deborah Harkness clearly did more research than Smeyer so it's refreshing whilst still being comforting and familiar. Definitely a lot of good in here but there was also a lot of crap.
Diana herself is pretty likable at first. As I said, we love a library girl. There are hints that she's not like other girls, but to me it seemed like she was authentically sporty, non-makeup-wearing, and bookish rather than your classic Bella figure who reads Jane Austen because she's ~different~. However I felt like that authenticity started to chip away the further into the book we got. The place where I had to put the book down and be like no fuck that was when she suddenly announces that she has always loved horses and it's like a major part of her personality???? . Genuinely comes out of nowhere and it's so irritating. You also have your classic Bella-esque 'oh I don't care that you're a vampire because you won't hurt ME' blah blah blah. She goes out to prove this on so many occasions and like there's just no need. My least favourite scene of this is her sitting completely still on horseback for literally two hours in absolute silence whilst he prepares to hunt. No human has ever had that kind of patience I'm sorry. Her obsessive love for Matthew seems really out of character with her very no-nonsense attitude at the start. The way she's ready to just spout crap about feeling alive for the first time. Have more respect for yourself than that please. I know it's like destiny or whatever but that doesn't mean your character should do a 180 when you meet the guy. This becomes especially a problem when she starts half dying every five seconds. Like can we not write women who are just damsels in distress all the time. Like even when she does amazing power stuff and saves Matthew she STILL is the one lying in bed for hours and fainting. I also think that we as a society have moved past chosen one who has every power and ability ever trope. Like she can be special without being that special. Give her some weaknesses beyond just needing to refine her powers. Make her rely on others in a way that's more depthful than she can't breathe or whatever when Matthew is gone.
Matthew was also likable at first. Mysterious vampire love interest. This is why we're here. We also love a hint of danger which at first Diana seems to genuinely feel. What did get very old was him knowing literally every historical figure of note. Like he did not need to do that. How boring. Also can we STOP describing how love interests smell in terms of some complex selection of herbs, spices, and flowers. Nobody smells like those things unless they are wearing aritificial fragrances or they've just walked out of a rose garden like seriously stop describing Matthew's smell as 'spicy' it drives me insane.I also hate his secretive blah vampire blah knights crap. Just stop it's boring he does not need to have his finger in every pie.
There were definitely some weird writing moments. Exposition was delivered so weirdly at times. Special mention goes to when Baldwin and Matthew explain to each other the history of their father as if they both don't know it. Like they're both adding details like they're explaining it to someone else but no they're literally just recounting the events to each other. Also, you can definitely tell this was written by an American. Like the definition of the word 'fresher' as a Cambridge term for freshmen. It's literally just a British term, Cambridge isn't special. This is also evident when Diana describes a British intensive care hospital wing. Are they different in America? I've only ever seen them on American TV and ngl they look exactly like what you're describing I'm so confused. Definition of a person who did their year abroad/gap year/placement etc in another country and takes it on as their entire personality.
I really hate the trope in any media where their family is just this annoying burden who they seem to hate? Like your aunts aren't stopping you from being with this man they are just giving you very sensible thinking points and trying to have a discussion and you just have to act like they're so annoying and stupid and 'just don't get it'. Diana has no reason to dislike her aunts but her descriptions of them are often so dismissive and subtly cruel I never get why media insists on doing this.
Further important points are: we love Ysabeau. She gives me Rosalie vibes and this can only be a good thing. Also the way I cringe so hard every time Matthew and Diana refer to each other as 'husband' or 'wife' ewwww. It's not marriage that's a problem it's the way the relationship went from 0 to 1 to 2 to 3 to 100 and it's like what where why when?
"Matthew swung me onto his back like a child and walked through the twilight' SORRY nooo that HAS to be a reference
I found this book pretty hard to form a clear opinion. I think that's because I didn't know by what metric to judge it. Like, is it a crummy romance? Is it a YA Twilight-esque book? Is it one of those ostensibly 'higher quality' romances that everyone on the internet loves? It's kind of all three and so it's really difficult to judge the correct level of belief suspension needed. The book opens on an interesting fantasy premise, with library girl doing library things. We love a library girl. Then we are introduced to Matthew and it's like yeah I like this guy, he's got that Edward vibe with less creepiness and more nuance. Great, now we're doing some library stuff, we're having brunch, we're doing yoga (btw what a fucking funny idea that's genius). But now,
There are lots of good points to this! I like many of the characters, I like the concept of the three creatures, I like the library scenes. I like the alchemy stuff (mostly). I like the idea of many of Diana's powers and I really enjoyed reading many of the scenes of her using them. It's major Twilight vibes but Deborah Harkness clearly did more research than Smeyer so it's refreshing whilst still being comforting and familiar. Definitely a lot of good in here but there was also a lot of crap.
Diana herself is pretty likable at first. As I said, we love a library girl. There are hints that she's not like other girls, but to me it seemed like she was authentically sporty, non-makeup-wearing, and bookish rather than your classic Bella figure who reads Jane Austen because she's ~different~. However I felt like that authenticity started to chip away the further into the book we got. The place where I had to put the book down and be like no fuck that was when she suddenly announces that she
Matthew was also likable at first. Mysterious vampire love interest. This is why we're here. We also love a hint of danger which at first Diana seems to genuinely feel. What did get very old was him knowing literally every historical figure of note. Like he did not need to do that. How boring. Also can we STOP describing how love interests smell in terms of some complex selection of herbs, spices, and flowers. Nobody smells like those things unless they are wearing aritificial fragrances or they've just walked out of a rose garden like seriously stop describing Matthew's smell as 'spicy' it drives me insane.
There were definitely some weird writing moments. Exposition was delivered so weirdly at times. Special mention goes to when Baldwin and Matthew explain to each other the history of their father as if they both don't know it. Like they're both adding details like they're explaining it to someone else but no they're literally just recounting the events to each other. Also, you can definitely tell this was written by an American. Like the definition of the word 'fresher' as a Cambridge term for freshmen. It's literally just a British term, Cambridge isn't special. This is also evident when Diana describes a British intensive care hospital wing. Are they different in America? I've only ever seen them on American TV and ngl they look exactly like what you're describing I'm so confused. Definition of a person who did their year abroad/gap year/placement etc in another country and takes it on as their entire personality.
I really hate the trope in any media where their family is just this annoying burden who they seem to hate? Like your aunts aren't stopping you from being with this man they are just giving you very sensible thinking points and trying to have a discussion and you just have to act like they're so annoying and stupid and 'just don't get it'. Diana has no reason to dislike her aunts but her descriptions of them are often so dismissive and subtly cruel I never get why media insists on doing this.
Further important points are: we love Ysabeau. She gives me Rosalie vibes and this can only be a good thing. Also
"Matthew swung me onto his back like a child and walked through the twilight' SORRY nooo that HAS to be a reference
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Blood, and Death of parent
Moderate: Confinement, Death, Kidnapping, Grief, and Alcohol
Minor: Sexual content, Abortion, Pregnancy, and War
elizlizabeth's review
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
This book's pacing is all over the place and it's long. I would recommend it if you're a fan of romance, but definitely not for anyone else, as the plot doesn't even resolve by the end of the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Panic attacks/disorders, Torture, and Blood
marylinaris's review
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.5
I took several pages of notes while reading but I genuinely can’t put them into a succinct review, so bullet points got to do.
Things I liked:
• the worldbuilding
• the plot hooked me from the beginning and kept me intrigued till the end
• that Diana has grown up knowing about the magical things in the world and her not knowing specific things that were later revealed gets a good explanation
• descriptions part 1 - this book had some very flowery prose and did a great job describing the general settings; it very much gave the sense that the author has lived these places, sports and activities
Things I didn’t like:
• describing the only two WoC by comparing their skin to the color of beverages
• the short timeline when it comes to the romantic relationship (I didn’t mind their instalove but their speedrun from strangers to lover to married in one month was a little too much)
• both main characters, but especially Diana, are way too dramatic (this goes hand in hand with the short timeline but I couldn’t take her seriously when she swore undying love and devotion to Matthew after knowing him for half a month –– not to say Matthew wasn’t dramatic, that man has an emotional breakdown at his friends place about how much he loved Diana... THREE DAYS AFTER THEY MET)
• descriptions part 2 - overall too much! While nicely written most of it was just not needed for the plot or setting up the scene. The way we were told about just every outfit Diana put on very much gives ‘this was written by a teenager on wattpad in 2013 who thinks it is necessary to describe every single item of clothing the mc ever wears’. We don’t need to hear about every single food group Diana eats when they have a meal? So much of it has no plot relevancy and I, personally, do not need the author to hold my hand through the book and give me this much detail when it comes to just about everything. I can believe the line ‘She had a quick breakfast and brushed her teeth before heading out’ and do not need every single step that goes into these actions written out in detail to follow the story - truly it was more hindering than helpful
Random other things:
• at some point I just wrote down that it feels like the entirety of Oxford is just made up of non-human creatures because there were like three human side characters and the rest of the town was filled with vampires, witches and daemons
• I’ve heard about how possessive Matthew was going to be before I picked up the book, so I wasn’t really bothered by it for most of the book tbh (the only way it got a little annoying in was when he tried to keep Diana save, she wouldn’t listen, stayed and couldn’t even really defend herself)
• this book was published in 2011 and you can tell, surprisingly it refrained from the ‘not like other girls’ trope for the most part
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Confinement, Death, Torture, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, and Murder
Minor: War
fireside_reads's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
An addictive story with secrets, vampires, and magic.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent and Murder
Minor: Confinement and Torture
linesiunderline's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Sometimes you just want a good story to really sink into. Sometimes that story will have vampires and witches and romance and Oxford in it, and there will be parts of it you don’t really get but whatever, you won’t be mad about it, even if it is a teensy bit overwritten in places.
Did I think I would really enjoy this one so much, to the point that I put the second audiobook on hold before I finished the first? I did not. But Vampire Matthew has quite a presence. So does Oxford and all of the witchy atmospheric business. I’m all in.
If you are an Outlander fan, this one is for you. I have to go watch the TV series now.
Did I think I would really enjoy this one so much, to the point that I put the second audiobook on hold before I finished the first? I did not. But Vampire Matthew has quite a presence. So does Oxford and all of the witchy atmospheric business. I’m all in.
If you are an Outlander fan, this one is for you. I have to go watch the TV series now.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Confinement, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol
Moderate: Misogyny, Sexual content, Violence, Xenophobia, Stalking, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail
readwithde's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
I want to rate this book higher, because I love the premise and story, but there are pacing issues that make this nearly 600 page book hard to relish.
This is a book of 3 stories, really: first, Diana and Matthew finding each other and choosing love over the rules of the Congregation. This is the primary plot and takes the most space, as it should. We do get early POV chapters from Matthew that glimpse his secrets, but as a reader, I didn't appreciate being kept in the dark so much, especially as he tends to keep literally everything a secret.
The romance is interesting at first, then picks up and becomes intense and truly lovely, with the pinnacle being their "marriage" when Matthew returns to Sept-Tours at the midway part of the book. The action sequence of Diana's kidnapping and torture changes the romance, and it becomes very needy, desperate, and codependent with the only excuse being, "that's just how vampires are." A bit disappointing
The second story is about Diana's parents and their choice to get married and have a family despite the Congregation's wishes; this includes their decision to spellbind Diana to keep her from accessing her full magic as they seem to knowingly go to their deaths. With her father's ability to timewalk paired with her mother's divination, they set up a path for Diana, essentially leading her to Matthew and Ashmole 782.
This story is revealed in bursts, and is often confusing to follow. While I find it interesting and evocative, it leaves quite a few plotholes that are never directly answered. In fact, many important rules about magic and powers are handed out nonchalantly, making it easy to be confused if you don't pay close attention.
Finally the third story involves Ashmole 782 and the people who want to use it, namely the Congregation and Matthew's Lazarus Order. Apparently it has something to do with the maintaining and evolution of daemons, vampires, and witches, along with how they first came to be, but it is never explained why this knowledge is hidden. If maintaining the species is necessary, why is it not public knowledge in the magical community? Why is it a dangerous, hidden secret?
The whole series seems to be centered on this book, but it is never explained why it is so dangerous, vital, or anything else other than what it may contain in an alchemical sense. It makes it hard for me to care who wants it or why when no one knows what is inside or why it's dangerous. A definite problem that is only obvious when not distracted by Diana and Matthew's romance or some disgruntled friend, ally, or enemy.
Overall, I love the concept, but it didn't need to be so detailed, so cerebral, or so lengthy. Likewise, the final 50 pages add two brand new characters from out of nowhere; they end up causing upheaval to the entire plan and structure. Some better pacing could fix many of these issues and smooth out the extra plotlines.
This is a book of 3 stories, really: first, Diana and Matthew finding each other and choosing love over the rules of the Congregation. This is the primary plot and takes the most space, as it should. We do get early POV chapters from Matthew that glimpse his secrets, but as a reader, I didn't appreciate being kept in the dark so much, especially as he tends to keep literally everything a secret.
The romance is interesting at first, then picks up and becomes intense and truly lovely,
The second story is about Diana's parents and their choice to get married and have a family
This story is revealed in bursts, and is often confusing to follow. While I find it interesting and evocative, it leaves quite a few plotholes that are never directly answered. In fact, many important rules about magic and powers are handed out nonchalantly, making it easy to be confused if you don't pay close attention.
Finally the third story involves Ashmole 782 and the people who want to use it,
The whole series seems to be centered on this book, but it is never explained why it is so dangerous, vital, or anything else other than what it may contain in an alchemical sense. It makes it hard for me to care who wants it or why when no one knows what is inside or why it's dangerous. A definite problem that is only obvious when not distracted by Diana and Matthew's romance or some disgruntled friend, ally, or enemy.
Overall, I love the concept, but it didn't need to be so detailed, so cerebral, or so lengthy. Likewise, the final 50 pages add two brand new characters from out of nowhere; they end up causing upheaval to the entire plan and structure. Some better pacing could fix many of these issues and smooth out the extra plotlines.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Body horror, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, and Alcohol
Minor: Animal death, Confinement, Death, Blood, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, and Pregnancy
meganpbennett's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I am not sure what I think of A Discovery of Witches. It took a very long time to build up into an interesting book, and I'm not sure I like Matthew, and I found his relationship with Diane highly questionable. I didn't like the ending - I think Harkness took the wrong page out of Gabaldon's books with that decision.
A Discovery of Witches had a witch scholar of alchemy find a rare alchemical text, and - unaware of the significance of the text - return it to the spell that kept it safe for centuries. Almost immediately, the Vampires, Daemons, and more witches show up.
The book take a long time to change from 'academic scholar researching old manuscripts' to the paranormal suspense novel it is, with vampires, daemons, and witches. And it's rarely "suspenseful" in the strictest sense, where you have to know what happens next. It's just mildly interesting. I'm not completely sold on a lot of things in the novel - from how Matthew behaves to how it ends - but maybe the (longer) second one will be more interesting.
A Discovery of Witches had a witch scholar of alchemy find a rare alchemical text, and - unaware of the significance of the text - return it to the spell that kept it safe for centuries. Almost immediately, the Vampires, Daemons, and more witches show up.
The book take a long time to change from 'academic scholar researching old manuscripts' to the paranormal suspense novel it is, with vampires, daemons, and witches. And it's rarely "suspenseful" in the strictest sense, where you have to know what happens next. It's just mildly interesting. I'm not completely sold on a lot of things in the novel - from how Matthew behaves to how it ends - but maybe the (longer) second one will be more interesting.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
lilifane's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I know I know I know, there are a lot of flaws in the book, especially with the romance plot, but I just adore the world building and the atmosphere and the characters and the magic and the science and the books and the history. I should care more about the fact that the romance is highly problematic and annoying and is also a major part of the plot. And yes, I hate that part of the book with all my heart. It does not help that the problematic issues are actually addressed... and just ignored by the characters because loooove. But ... the rest is just too good?
The vampire and witch lore is so fascinating in this book. And I love that it's actually rooted in science. The academic setting at the beginning is so nice. And the found family aspects are just wholesome. And I'm in love with the Bishop house. And the thing that happens at the end... I'm just a huge fan of this kind of plot, okay?
So yeah, not a fan of the romance but a big fan of the world.
I'm very curious how the story will unfold, but I'm also prepared to hate it at the end. So we'll see.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Confinement, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol
marisabenn's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I love this book so much. I read it at least once a year. I love the characters, their strengths, their weaknesses, all of it. I think it's a great mixture of fantasy and real life. Even though you're reading about witches and vampires, they seem real. I'll always root for a strong female lead, especially if she's Diana Bishop.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Confinement, Panic attacks/disorders, Kidnapping, and Death of parent