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A Discovery of Witches  By  cover art

A Discovery of Witches

By: Deborah Harkness
Narrated by: Jennifer Ikeda
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Publisher's summary

Book one of the New York Times best-selling All Souls Series—"a wonderfully imaginative grown-up fantasy with all the magic of Harry Potter and Twilight” (People).

Now “[a] hot show that’s like Twilight meets Outlander” (Thrillist) airing on AMC and BBC America, as well as streaming on Sundance Now and Shudder.

Deborah Harkness’s sparkling debut, A Discovery of Witches, has brought her into the spotlight and galvanized fans around the world. In this tale of passion and obsession, Diana Bishop, a young scholar and a descendant of witches, discovers a long-lost and enchanted alchemical manuscript, Ashmole 782, deep in Oxford's Bodleian Library. Its reappearance summons a fantastical underworld, which she navigates with her leading man, vampire geneticist Matthew Clairmont.

Harkness has created a universe to rival those of Anne Rice, Diana Gabaldon, and Elizabeth Kostova, and she adds a scholar's depth to this riveting tale of magic and suspense. The story continues in book two, Shadow of Night, book three, The Book of Life, and the fourth in the series, Time’s Convert.

©2011 Deborah Harkness (P)2011 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

“A wonderfully imaginative grown-up fantasy with all the magic of Harry Potter or Twilight.... An irresistible tale of wizardry, science and forbidden love.” (People)

“Romantic, erudite, and suspenseful.... Harkness attends to every scholarly and emotional detail with whimsy, sensuality, and humor.” (O, The Oprah Magazine)

“A thoroughly grown-up novel packed with gorgeous historical detail and a gutsy, brainy heroine to match.... Harkness writes with thrilling gusto about the magical world.” (Entertainment Weekly)

Featured Article: 25 of the Best Witchy Listens to Cast a Spell for Halloween


Spooky season is upon us, and it's the perfect time of the year to sink into some wonderful witchy listens—although to be honest, we don't need an excuse to enjoy great stories about the fascinating world of witches. Whether you're into fantastical fiction tales of magic, the more practical informational guides on how to practice witchcraft, or historical tales about the real lives of famous witches, we've rounded up some of the very best witch audiobooks.

What listeners say about A Discovery of Witches

Average customer ratings
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My Favorite Author

I love this author!
I've read this book about 2 dozen times already 😍😍 fantastic!

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  • Overall
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Fantastic Fantasy Read

So surprised at how much I liked this book. I'm not very keen on fantasy but this was amazing. I'd liken it to a very grown up version of Twilight with a better plot, details, and background. I so enjoyed the narrator as well! She did a fantastic job.

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Amazing!!!

A beautifully written masterpiece. The poems, the history, the intriguing story, etc... all of it keeps you wanting to know what's going to happen, you want nothing but a happily ever after but we know that heartbreak and sadness is coming.
The narration is exquisite, one of the best I've heard and all I do is listen to books.
I can't wait to start the next book and I understand why they made a show based on these books but I sure hope they did a good job at capturing the beauty of her writing and the chemistry between the characters.

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Excellent!!

Wow! The best series I’ve listened to yet. Love the rich story line, characters, and the wonderful love story. The narrator is top notch - accents, different voices for each character, very engaging to listen to.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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Twilight but grown adults

Just finished the twilight series, and I was looking for something similarly fantastical and not very heavy. This book was the perfect choice for that. Just steamy enough for the story.
Diana is truly a “not-like-other-girls” type, but i did not find that annoying at all. After all a witch with a phd and who loves rowing is unusual.
I’m gonna start the next book now, see ya!

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Twilight Goes to College

Loved it. Can't wait to start the sequel. Well written. Excellent audio performance. A few reviewers said they were bored or couldn't finish it. Although Fantasy genre, this series isn't meant to be read by the Tween crowd like Twilight was. The story includes complex historical, medical and scientific plotlines that may be difficult to understand for some readers. College graduates would be the target audience.

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Performance was magnificent!

The performance was absolutely the best read book I’ve ever listened to and I listen to at least 2 a month for years.

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  • 01-04-22

Witches come alive!

Absolutely loved this book. Narration was wonderful as well. I had not been hooked on a witchy story for a good while, but this one made me want to bring my cauldron out and put my hat on.
witches rejoice!❤

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Great Vampire Book

Story is similar to others is some ways but with a few twists and still great! Classic vampire love story. Sundance made a TV show from this book actually and its great but the book has so much more important detail.

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This book was excellent!

This book, what I heard of it on walks with my dog and the end, were really well done. I thought Jennifer Ikeda did a fabulous job performing this story! I really enjoyed it and I'll have to try listening to the whole book someday. Instead, I read it when at home and listened to it when on walks, all except for the end, which I read along with the audio. I loved this story! I'm going to have to read the next two books soon!

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