The Book of Life

Dr. Deborah Harkness is a distinguished American scholar, historian, and novelist who uses her extensive academic background in her storytelling. She holds a bachelor’s degree in English and history, a master’s degree in the History of Science and Medicine, and a PhD in History, with her doctoral thesis focused on European magical and scientific history (Harkness, Deborah. “About Deborah Harkness.” Deborah Harkness). Harkness encapsulates her life’s essence by saying, “The story of my life? It can be summed up in three words: history, books, and libraries” (Harkness).

The connection between Harkness’s studies and writing is evident in the All Souls Trilogy, where characters venture through history to unveil the hidden secrets concealed within books and libraries. Harkness’s personal experiences researching at the Bodleian and All Souls libraries at Oxford create rich setting descriptions, and her knowledge of European magical history allows her to construct a comprehensive and believable world of witchcraft and magic.

Diana Bishop’s magic, for example, is crafted from cords and knots, aligning with historical and literary magical practices. References to such “wind knots” can be found in works like Shakespeare’s Macbeth and Robert Burns’s Address to the Devil (Day, Cyrus Lawrence.