I love Deborah Harkness' The All Souls Trilogy. It begins with A Discovery of Witches and is one of my favorite series. It is well-written and textured and absorbing. I have read it and listened to the audio books multiple times. A companion to the trilogy, Time's Convert was released in the fall of 2018 and I was very happy to hear Harkness had continued the story of Diana and Matthew, and that she had focused more on Marcus' origins. Mostly surrounding the time of the American Revolution, we learn who Marcus was before he became a vampire and what his transformation and first decades of that life were like. Additionally, Harkness focuses on the "rebirth" process for the newest member of the de Clermont clan in the present and how difficult it can be to leave one's old life behind.
I liked this book, but somehow it felt too much like a "companion", as if it were a lengthy volume of fan fiction written by someone who just wanted more of the story. Of course all her fans want more of the story, but I just didn't feel like this was written at the same level as her previous books. It wasn't bad, but the quality wasn't there. I hate to judge too harshly and I am certain that if she releases another book I will absolutely be reading it. I love her. I love these characters. I am a fan.
My favorite line of the book occurs during one of the early battles of the Revolution when a woman, Diana Bishop's ancestor Sarah Bishop, is caring for some of the fallen soldiers:
"It took me eighteen hours to bring that boy into the world, and no time at all for some idiot with a gun to steal him away.... War is such a waste of women's time."
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