Shadow of Night, Book 2 of All Souls Triology / Deborah Harkness / 592 pages / 20 dics

In the second book of Deborah Harkness's All Souls Trilogy, the reader finds Matthew and Diana back in Elizabethan England due to a risky time-walking spell Diana performed.  During their time in the past, Matthew and Diana encounter several famous historical figures such as Sir Walter Raleigh, Charles Marlowe, and Queen Elizabeth as well as travel to France and the Austrian portion of the Holy Roman Empire.  All of this is done for two reasons: to continue to search for the lost alchemical manuscript, Ashmole 782 which may contain the lineage of creatures, and second, to help Diana learn to control and tap into her magic.  During their journey, Matthew and Diana learn many things about each other one can only learn by encountering the secret pieces of  one's past.