What do you get when a veteran academic with specializations in Renaissance history, alchemy and medieval science turns her hand to fiction? The "All Souls Trilogy" by Deborah Harkness is a work of romantic fantasy fiction for those whose tastes turn more toward the intellectual. Harkness is a professor of European and science history at University of Southern California in Los Angeles but has taught various subjects at multiple prestigious universities.
Each book in the series is lengthy, with plenty of plot twists and turns. Tidbits and factoids spanning the breadths of Harkness' learning are liberally injected into the story. At times, these additions make the plot seem convoluted, but if one has a bent toward historical trivia as this reviewer does, it will send the reader running to the library stacks in search of corroborative nonfiction titles. Each book builds on the previous, with the plot becoming denser and more satisfying with each addition. All in all, the series was an excellent read, at once dark and humorous, romantic yet mentally stimulating.
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