Shadow of Night

By: Deborah Harkness

Narrated by: Jennifer Ikeda

Length: 24 hrs and 21 mins

Publisher's Summary

It began with A Discovery of Witches. Historian Diana Bishop, descended from a line of powerful witches, and long-lived vampire Matthew Clairmont have broken the laws dividing creatures. When Diana discovered a significant alchemical manuscript in the Bodleian Library, she sparked a struggle in which she became bound to Matthew. Now the fragile coexistence of witches, daemons, vampires and humans is dangerously threatened. Seeking safety, Diana and Matthew travel back in time to London, 1590. But they soon realise that the past may not provide a haven. Reclaiming his former identity as poet and spy for Queen Elizabeth, the vampire falls back in with a group of radicals known as the School of the Night. Many are unruly daemons, the creative minds of the age, including playwright Christopher Marlowe and mathematician Thomas Harriot.

Together Matthew and Diana scour Tudor London for the elusive manuscript Ashmole 782, and search for the witch who will teach Diana how to control her remarkable powers....

Fall under the spell of Diana and Matthew once more in this stunning, richly imagined, epic tale.

©2012 Deborah Harkness (P)2012 Headline Digital

Critic Reviews

"Intelligent and off-the-wall, it will be irresistable to Twilight fans." ( The Sunday Times)

"A bubbling cauldron of illicit desire...all the ingredients for an assured saga that blends romance with fantasy." ( Daily Mail)

"A romp through magical academia." ( Guardian)

History plus fantasy and damned fine writing!

Would you listen to Shadow of Night again? Why?

Read it twice so far, and won't be deleting it in a hurry. It was a joy to have such a thoroughly well-researched novel from a writer who obviously loves her subject. So many other historically based offerings fall down badly with their jarring ignorance of the social mores of the time, but this one actually generates an interest to learn more.

What other book might you compare Shadow of Night to and why?

Diana Gabaldon's time-travelling series come close.

Have you listened to any of Jennifer Ikeda’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have only heard this reader's performance for the first of this (All Souls) series.
She does an excellent job of reading and although there are a few mispronunciations, she has very good breath control and the ability to recognise punctuation and it's purpose . Overall she captures the personalities of the characters and draws the listener into the story. I would listen to her again with pleasure

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

There were too many moving passages to list here but Diana's jeopardy in the tilt-yard at Greenwich, at the hands of Marlowe and Louisa had high tension, and the bitter-sweet homecoming to Sept Tours left me thirsting for more details.

Any additional comments?

I'm really looking forward to the third volume in this series, please make it soon!

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Great book, fantastic characters

Would you recommend Shadow of Night to your friends? Why or why not?

A great witch/vampire novel....not the same soppy love story that is becoming all too popular. Great depth of characters and well researched historically.

What does Jennifer Ikeda bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Wonderful accents, well done.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes, I couldn't wait to get back into the car to listen more.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Great sequel

I thoroughly enjoyed this sequel to "A Discovery of Witches." Harkness writes fantasy and supernatural with depth and enough weight in character and plot to satisfy. This book was almost historical fiction with a supernatural twist and I enjoyed meeting the numerous historical figures in this setting. I will never read "Dr Faustus" the same way again. Although others complained that the book is too long, has too many characters, or goes into too much detail, these aspects of it were its strengths for me. I just enjoyed being immersed in this world. Harkness writes well and obviously has researched in detail, making this fantasy for grown-ups. It is a meaty and satisfying book and long enough to be great value. The narrator is excellent.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Great sequel

I thoroughly enjoyed this sequel to "A Discovery of Witches." Harkness writes fantasy and supernatural with depth and enough weight in character and plot to satisfy. This book was almost historical fiction with a supernatural twist and I enjoyed meeting the numerous historical figures in this setting. I will never read "Dr Faustus" the same way again. Although others complained that the book is too long, has too many characters, or goes into too much detail, these aspects of it were its strengths for me. I just enjoyed being immersed in this world. Harkness writes well and obviously has researched in detail, making this fantasy for grown-ups. It is a meaty and satisfying book and long enough to be great value. The narrator is excellent.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Exciting & Absorbing Book

Would you listen to Shadow of Night again? Why?

Absolutely. Partly because the story is a little complex (though in a very good way!) and partly because I enjoyed Jennifer Ikeda's reading so much. It's part two of A Discovery of Witches and I highly recommend both of these titles if you are looking for a good listen that will keep you engaged and excited.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Diana the heroine, she's intelligent, fiesty and she's got many, many unusual talents. Who wouldn't want to be her? Second would have to be Isabeau - the vampire matriarch, brought to glorious life by Jennifer Ikeda's amazing characterisation.

Have you listened to any of Jennifer Ikeda’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No but honestly, I would listen to any other performances of hers. She is absolutely amazing. To carry so many different characters, male and female, young and old, to change accents too - really brilliant reading and characterisation. Highly recommend her, she really made the story come to life for me.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Absolutely.

Any additional comments?

Brilliant books, excellently read. Very well worth your time.

Excellent

really enjoyed this book as i just had to know what happened to Diana and Matthew... cannot wait for the next book

Disappointed with the second book of the series

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

The relationship between Matthew and Diana lost the fire and passion from the first book. It needed this to continue and grow and the storyline to move faster.

What was most disappointing about Deborah Harkness’s story?

It was to long the pace needed to be picked up. To much history lessons and not enough story and where had the Passion gone.

How could the performance have been better?

Needed a much farster pace and the story line to maybe for Diana's magic to move at a greater rate it seamed for Diana to take forever to get anywhere as the story went along.and along....

What character would you cut from Shadow of Night?

To many of political historical characters

Any additional comments?

I loved the first book like everyone i looked forward to the second but was disappointed this is not to say i will not read the 3rd book. I missed some of the original characters from the first book mainly Diana's family. I hope we can get some of the fast pace and story line again and Matthew becomes again the strong leading man in the 3rd book

Will this night never end?

Would you try another book from Deborah Harkness and/or Jennifer Ikeda?

No more Deborah Harkness. Ever.

Would you ever listen to anything by Deborah Harkness again?

NO

Did Jennifer Ikeda do a good job differentiating all the characters? How?

It didn't really matter, it all just became a meandering blur.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from Shadow of Night?

At least half of the book.

Any additional comments?

The first book was not too bad so I had hopes that this one would be paced about the same, slow but ok. This sequel was just tedious. I stuck it out but it took months, on and off. The descriptions and historical detail were impressively researched (thus the two stars not one) but it was all tied up in what is basically an endless affirmation of the infinite love between the main characters. Yawn.

0 of 1 people found this review helpful

No were good as the first book

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

I can not even finish this book. I so enjoyed the first in this series but this book did not develop the same interest and keep you wanting to listen. Disappointing.

0 of 1 people found this review helpful

Excellent

The story and character evolve and become richer in Shadow of Night. Diana matures mentally and emotionally, as she learns more about her magic. In Shadow of Night, Diana becomes a strong woman, as she recognises Matthew's decisions are repeatedly bad. It amuses me how she diplomatically lets him know he needs to respect her decisions. Matthew is good for strength/protection and sex. As this becomes more clear, I'm hoping anyone who compares this series with Twilight changes their opinion. The characters are vastly different, Deborah Harkness' story has richness, depth and intelligence. Her knowledge of the more sophisticated occult lore, combined with history adds enormously to my enjoyment of this story.



I listen to audio books as I work (I'm an artist), which may mean 8 hrs a day - in light of this, it's fair for me to say Jennifer Ikeda is an excellent narrator. Her ability to depict different characters' voices is amazing. Easy to listen to.

4 of 4 people found this review helpful

Superceeds its prequel

Deborah Harkenss's first novel was sort of a guilty pleasure. This squeal however is something much better written and less about a love story than personal grows and development. It transports you into a time in England of Shakespeare, Marlow and Sir Walter Raleigh. I was taken in to the world of 16th England... and very much enjoyed the journey...

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

A fascinating insight into the past

This second book takes you to the 1590's a fascinating time. I have never really been a lover of history but Deborah Harkness take on it is enlightening, thoughtful and leaves you wanting more. In this book you meet Phillip, Mathews father and what a formidable character he is. I feel that this could be a book in itself. However the character I love the most is Jack, he does not play a big part, but for such a small role he makes huge impact.

For such a long book it is an easy listen and a great follow on from part 1.

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

A trully enjoyable experience

I have put of reading this series I think because of the brief description and cover (silly I know) but I was at a loss on what to download for my holidays so downloaded the Discovery of Witches and this book. I am so very please I did. It has been a very long time since I have enjoyed a book this much.

The story line is strong easy to follow and not disapointing, the characters are very well formed and play equally stron parts through the novel.

You do need to read the books in order as they would be very confusing as stand alone novels.

I cannot wait for the final part of the series to be published.

Jennifer Ikeda the narrator does an amazing job of helping create the characters with differt accents, inflections and historical inflection.

Deborah harkness must have done considerable amount of research into Elizabethan England, France and Spain because the detail was excellent and factually correct.

Lastly I have read that this series is to be adapted to film, whilst very excited I really hope they are able to capture the heart and soul of this series.



Please Please read this series you will not be disappointed

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

Fantastic Continuation of the Trilogy

Love the way historic London is described, makes it so tangible. and how Diana and Matthew's relationship deepens and grows as they learn to read each other and grow as a couple, also how historical figures are weaved into the story.

Too romantic for me.

I like the possibilities of the story, but it is too romantic, and Diana is to submissive with her husband. She already forgot about her carrier and get life.

Get on with it!

Having read that the author studied Elizabethan England, it is not hard to see where much of the book came from. Pity it did nothing to forward the story of Diana and Mathew.

Too many passages could have been left out to progress the action. In the end it was.,. Ok, but it would take too long to find that out.

I found myself screaming at my phone too many times “who cares” to ever make me want to hear it again. Ever. I’ll listen to the next book for closure but thank god for the return policy to save credits.

Lovely story

I enjoyed this book, it’s quite gentle and easy to listen to. The narrator has a nice voice and does well although I do wish someone would help her English pronunciation of words, even when trying to sound English she butchers some words with americanisms. Otherwise I can’t really fault her, the best sort of narrator is one who’s voice isn’t the focus but you concentrate on the story and don’t notice the reading of it and she does achieve this except for the odd jarring mispronunciation.

Captivating couldn’t switch it off

The narrator continues to draw you into this tale , always leaving you wanting more. Loved how the story continued and only grew in strength from the first book, I’m looking forward to the next one . Thoroughly enjoyed this one , loved how the characters grew , just brilliant , thanks again

Very very slow.

An editor should have struck out a good 3/4 of the book. I like the premise but its sad that a woman who starts off so intelligent and strong spends 24 hours of reading worth fawning over a man and achieving very little. I stuck it out because reviews are good but the book is complete filler for the series. I find myself disliking characters I loved just because I am so bored of listening to them doing mundane useless actions. Read the wiki page and save your time and credits.