Review is for season 1 & 2:

Season 1: Dangerous, supernatural beings with unknown agenda converge upon a mysterious, ancient book that only Diana, an accomplished alchemy scholar but an inexperienced witch, has access to. The sense of being caught in a high stakes chase changes when the story shifts into being a passionate, forbidden, cross-species romance with Matthew, a vampire.

Season 2: The fallout of season 1, where the protagonists travel through time to 16th century Elizabethan England to save their romance, as well as continue to search for the all-important book. Diana grows her witch's power while Matthew confronts his dark past, which tests (or should have tested) whether their new love can last.

When season 1 shifts gears into being a romance show, at first it was enthralling, coming from someone who read and enjoyed Twilight. However the romance scenes lasted too long, and the honeymoon phase hardly faltered in season 2, with little of the conviction each character has for each other actually changing through tests of character, hardly shrinking or expanding in any meaningful way.

Without much of her powers, Diana was a pawn in season 1, and the stakes felt high, the story suspenseful, and the creatures or the organization they had together, with centuries of experience and history, felt threatening.

However in season 2, Diana comes into her power quickly, and many of the creatures fall into the background. The dangerous historical time period and the figures there (like Queen Elizabeth, and Matthew's father, Philippe) try to replace the sense of threatening, chess piece intrigue, but soon melt to Diana's cleverness, charm, assertiveness, prettiness, and her prophesied importance.

I admit, I enjoy the wish fulfillment heroic journey story. However, part of that heroic journey usually includes loss, failure, and having mentors to guide one through.

If Diana experiences loss, it's before her story begins. We don't get to see it play out. If she experienced failure, it's mostly in season 1, and not really at all in season 2. Diana does have mentors, but again, season 1 with her aunts. In season 2, there are also mentors, but it's like she hardly needs them.

It's the short period of time, a matter of weeks or months, that really makes Diana's transition into advanced witch, politician, foster mother, honorary vampiress, chivalrous hero, just hard to accept. That coupled with her very quick, very passionate relationship with Matthew (with many intimate scenes), that makes Diana's quantum growth seem immature.

While I grew frustrated with the romance aspect and the the hero's story, I did like the visual aspects of A Discovery of Witches as well as some of the subplots and the casting of villains and secondary characters. The world building is decent and I remain interested in what exactly the Book of Life contains, which I think will be revealed in season 3.

Visual aspects: good looking cast (of course, vampires!), great costume design (especially season 2 with Tudor styles), use of color. As well as the locations of England and Italy in various lairs and palaces.

Villains and secondary characters: Season 1 Peter Knox is a mysterious and appropriately creepy villain. Satu as well has mystery. Season 2 has a cast of historical characters such as Kit (who wrote Dr Faustus) and Queen Elizabeth, etc. The actor for Kit also did very well in recent Western show The English.

England and Italy: Season 1 takes place around England's historical campuses, as Diana is a scholar. Very nice, moody architectural shots. Season 2 as previously noted.

All in all when the show works, it's brilliant. My favorite episodes are in season 2 surrounding the story of Philippe and Ysabeau. But increasingly over time, I found myself fast forwarding through repetitive romance scenes, Diana's various speeches, etc.