3.83 AVERAGE

adventurous hopeful mysterious
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Excellent story! Well written, I couldn't turn the pages fast enough!!
adventurous emotional mysterious fast-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

I don’t know how I feel about this one. I didn’t dislike it, but I didn’t love it. It felt long. I’m interested, but idk if I’m interested enough to keep reading. I’m debating just watching the show. lol
adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-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: Complicated

I didn’t think I was going to get into this book as hard as I did!

I loved the subtlety of magic and vampires in the beginning. The characters were built and then the occult was added. Instead, like many other stories, the occult is used to provide characters with personality.

Can’t wait to start reading the second book.
adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced
adventurous challenging dark emotional informative mysterious tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Not read this yet, just watched season one of the Netflix show.

*The Discovery of Witches* had all the makings of a great novel, but it ultimately fell short due to several issues. While the premise was intriguing, the story suffered from long-winded, unnecessary prose that bogged down the pacing. Deborah Harkness, as a first-time author, made several rookie mistakes, including an over-reliance on exposition and a tendency to mix too many genres—magical, historical, fantasy, and scientific—into a confusing blend. The book often felt like a drawn-out setup for the next installment rather than a cohesive story in its own right. The central point of the narrative didn't become clear until two-thirds of the way through, leaving the first portion of the book feeling aimless. Additionally, the action scenes, particularly the battles, were disappointingly brief, especially when compared to the overly detailed descriptions of sunrises. While there were moments of potential, they were overshadowed by the novel’s many flaws.