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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)

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What listeners say about A Discovery of Witches

Average customer ratings
Overall
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Awesome

Thoroughly enjoy this book Cannot wait to get the next Wish wish wish I had found it sooner Narrator Is very good in this book

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Great story

Loved the characters the drops of truth and the writing.
There were scenes I felt was drawn in- loved it

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  • Overall
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Brilliant and captivating

This trilogy is one of my favorites. Deborah has a clever way of combining history with fantasy and I get lost in this story every time. I reread this trilogy every autumn and I always pick up something new. I can’t wait to see what the new few books have in store.

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Great book

I enjoyed the characters and the story very much! The narrator was amazing. Looking forward to the next book in the series!!

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A uniquely great story

Listening to this story narrated by Jennifer Ikeda (one of my favorite narrators) for the umpteenth time, it still resonates deeply. The characters are deep, moving, and constantly evolving on their personal roadway. Add to this vampires, witches and alchemy, time travel, magic, and what not, with history threaded throughout, and you have a story that will keep you on the tip of your toes.
And after reading the book as many times as listening to it, I am still in its thralls.
Superb storytelling!
And as usual, Jennifer Ikeda is fantastic!!

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  • Overall
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Loved it

I loved this story. The narrator did an excellent job conveying the story and the characters.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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Pleasant surprise!

I enjoyed this book much more than I was expecting. I agree with other reviews that describe it as reminiscent of Twilight, but more mature & sophisticated. I enjoyed the interactions between Diana and Matthew and how their characters and relationships developed and grew throughout the book. The last nearly third of the book was basically a setup for the sequel - definitely not a standalone story. I plan to read the second book in the series.

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Charming

I enjoyed this listen quite thoroughly. The narrator's voice is soothing and the story is delightful. I enjoy the relationship between the two protagonists most of all! ^_^

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Detail

I love how the author did her research i like history and I like that I would find my self Googling periods in time.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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Good Storyline

It was a pretty good storyline with some parts that were super engaging and interesting. But there were some parts that seemed to get bogged down with lots of detail that really was not germane to the storyline and slowed the progression down a bit. The actress did a fairly decent job with changing accents and voices but with so many characters, it was obviously a challenge. 

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