Please see my review for A Discovery of Witches. I really wanted to like the book more but I didn't like it enough to finish reading this series. Thank you for the opportunity to read this series.

The Book of Life is an extremely satisfying conclusion to this trilogy. It really does feel as though the previous two books have been building to the hugely dramatic events of this book, and it has a much faster pace than the previous books.

Returning to the Bishop House, as well as to Sept-Tours, felt like coming home, albeit two very different homes. I had missed a lot of the modern day characters during Shadow of Night and enjoyed being reunited with them, as well as getting to know some newer faces. That said, I had been left heartbroken at the thought of never seeing some much loved characters again after the end of Shadow of Night, and so when certain faces (I’m not saying who) put in an unexpected appearance I was over the moon – I might even have shed a tear or two.

The book of life by Deborah Harkness.
A very good read with some great characters. Although the first part was a little slow the last part were great. Liked the story. Liked Diane and Mathew. 4*.

Diana and Matthew travel back to the future in a dramatic fashion. They reunite with their family and friends at Sept-Tours. When a threat to their future is revealed they must find Ashmole 782 as soon as possible.

In this thrilling conclusion to the Discovery of Witches trilogy, we find time is running out. As with the other two books the world building and details is first class. The secondary characters have devolved in to a integral part of the story and it is the perfect ending to this great series.

This was a reread for me before the release of Time's Convert. I love the All Souls Trilogy and always recommend it to people looking for an engaging and fascinating fantasy. Hopefully, with the release of the TV adaptation, more people will buy these books and discover what all the fuss is about!

The Book Of Life is the final book in the All Souls Trilogy by Deborah Harkness. This set has had me addicted and the final book did not disappoint. Coming back from 1591, Mathew and Diana find themselves back at Sept-Tours and at the centre of tensions between the family, and have the Congregation wanting to question Diana about her powers. Their main priority is to find Ashmole 782 and the secrets it holds before anyone else does.

This book had a bit of a slower start than the previous two but when it picked up it did so at a rapid pace. Matthew and Diana are on a race against time and their quest take them from France, to America, to England and Germany. Many of the regular characters return, there are a few that made a surprise return and some new characters. The major addition to the cast was Benjamin, Matthew’s estranged son who is consumed with blood rage which makes him cruel and twisted, and after Diana. He is the dark to Matthew’s other son, Marcus’s, light, a vampire who will stop at nothing to get what he wants. There is plenty of action, suspense and thrills along the way and as with the previous books the attention to detail is admirable. The science behind the pages of Ashmole 782, which are made of the skin of the different creatures, and the methods for DNA extraction are really interesting and add to the overall reality feel of the book.

The All Souls Trilogy have made a huge impact on my reading choices. Previously I have stayed away from the fantasy genre as it didn’t really interest me, but Deborah Harkness’s books, with their engaging plot lines and amazing characters have enthralled me. I have gone on to read more books in this genre and also buy a quite a few more, which have opened up a whole new world to me. I think what makes these three books so special is Deborah Harkness’s skill as a writer. She has a masterful way with the English language making these books a pleasure to read. Her attention to detail and characterisation are just brilliant, they are what makes these books come to life.

The Book Of Life is another remarkable read from Deborah Harkness. It was the perfect conclusion to Matthew and Diana’s story, although they do make an appearance in her new book about Marcus, Times Convert, but I have to be honest and say I was bereft when I finished this book, it left me with a huge book hangover. It’s not very often that a series of books come along that have such a huge impact as these books have had on me, introducing me to a whole new literary world. I can’t recommend these books highly enough and The Book Of Life brings the trilogy to a fantastically dramatic conclusion.

I enjoyed this last installment of the All Souls trilogy as it brings all the threads of the the last two books. The world Deborah Harkness has created is magical and will stay with me. A series I will reread many times.

I loved book one and two in this series and although I enjoyed this book I was a bit lost as it’s been ages since I read the other two so I was a tad lost in parts. And having read so many books in between I didn’t get all the story. But as expected a fab read and mostly my fault I can’t remeber the story line

I haven't actually finished the book yet but I can comfortably write a review of it. I know it is several years old now but I want to keep up-to-date on my reviews. Frankly, the writing style makes me angry. It is so repetitive, overly complicated and yet, lacking in true explanations or descriptions. I am capable of remembering that Matthew is a vampire and Diana a witch from one sentence to the next. I don't need to be told what they are every time they're mentioned. Was the author trying to hit a word count target? Editors have jobs for a reason, use them.
The story is difficult to follow, not because the subject matter is complex or advanced but due to the way in which it leaps from place to place with little or no link between sentences.
I had read the first two volumes of the series when they came out and disliked them for the exact same reason. Why I continue to read this author is down to my tendency to torture myself and preference for completing stories so I know how they end.

Having read both the first and second of the series I settled down to what I thought would be an engrossing climax to the saga. Don't get me wrong, the story was OK it just fell a bit flat. Probably just too long winded a tale to find 3 missing pages of a book and it left me disappointed with the flow of the story.

This is what Twilight should have been like. The relationship hooks you from the moment you pick up this book and they are enchanting as individuals as well. Certain parts stick out for me; the yoga is simply a delightful read. The ending is a gut pull of a cliff hanger. I was so very glad the sequel was already out when i had started to read the trilogy.

Still an absolute favourite series for me, I can't wait to see the adaptation! A woman scholar, time travel, love across the ages, family secrets and adventure. What's not to love?