A DISCOVERY OF WITCHES by Deborah Harkness is a novel of magic, adventure and romance. Matthew Clairmont is an enigmatic vampire, a scientist, very intellectual, and although his initial interest is in an enchanted alchemical manuscript, now he can't seem to resist Diana Bishop, a young scholar and historian.

Diana is a powerful witch in denial of her own powers. And she is the one who could unlock the secrets of the ancient manuscript Matthew has his eyes on.

I’m on vacation and brought along with me A DISCOVERY OF WITCHES by Deborah Harkness. This post is about a series of passages in the novel that caught me by surprise and got me teary-eyed. They're from page 135 when Matthew is playing chess with his gay but brilliant-genius daemon friend Hamish. — Matthew let out his breath and sat back in his chair, staring at the chessboard. His queen stood encircled by his own pieces - pawns, a knight, and a rook. Across the board his king was checked by a lowly black pawn. The game was over, and he had lost. […]