Alot of people think that the paranormal/urban fantasy/vampire genre is getting old, or has been over done. I have to agree that I have become very picky about the books that I read in these genres at this point. There are several series that I continue to read and enjoy, but as for new material, it is getting more difficult to find something fresh and different. This book, however, had everything that I love, history, magic, paranormal characters, a little romance.....The author gave us a wonderful story and great characters that really stood out. As I read it, I found myself feeling that it was a cross between several other books that I have read in this genre. I can't help feeling, though, that by combining all the elements of the other books, Deborah Harkness really got it right. While Matthew Clairmont is a vampire in love with a "warm blood", he has none of the more annoying characteristics that Edward exhibits in Twilight (which, by the way, I loved, but this book is definitely less fairy tale and more adult). Diana Bishop is a witch with a famous lineage, but she is not quite like any witch I have read about in other stories. There is a secret manuscript and a mystery, but the story surrounding them in complex and complicated, too different things. And there will be time travel, but approached in a new and different way. As for the author, Ms. Harkness is a history professor at a major university, and a lover of science. Both of these loves come across in this book. Her historical references are spot on and show her extensive understanding of history. In addition, Edward Clairmont is a geneticist, and with such a character, she is able to show her love of science., but without being so detailed as to lose the reader. In fact, both science and magic blend well in this book.
I also loved where it ended. For the first book of a trilogy, it did not tie up all the loose ends, but it did not leave you hanging at an inappropriate place either.
To sum it up, at 700 pages, this book was a real page turner, and read fairly quickly. I am really looking forward to the next book, but I hear it is a long way away :(
