*Spoiler free*
1792 With Europe in the throes of revolution, a teenage alchemist is on the verge of a discovery that will change the course of history. But the cost may be her own mind….
Even though I knew next to nothing about this book, I knew I wanted to read it. A teenage alchemist working to change the course of history, but under the threat of losing her own mind. Not knowing if it’s science or magic or power or possession. It sounded fascinating and something that I would absolutely want to try.
This book wasn’t what I expected it to be at all. I was expecting something big, explosive, and expansive. But, this is a small book. It’s contained and I want to use the word quaint to. That isn’t to say that it’s a bad book, because it the smallness works very well with what the book is trying to do and what it is.
This is very hard to describe and I hope I make at least a little bit of sense, but this book has a really cool feel to it. It feels like alchemy and that line between magic and science. I dunno, I just like the feel of it.
I kind of felt like I was dropped into the middle of the beginning of this book. It somehow moved too fast and too slow at the same time. There were things that developed before the book started that I would have liked to happen within the time frame of the book. These things gave the feeling that I was missing out on something and I couldn’t quite connect with certain characters fully, which made it kind of hard to care about the things they were going through. On the other hand, it felt like there were things that dragged. It took awhile to get the serious plot, with all the creepy alchemy and science. I wanted a bit more out of the overarching plot, for things to be dug into deeper and for certain aspects to be more intricate.
Speaking of intricate, I felt like this book sort of walked in a straight line. I felt like I walked through it. Sure things happen and plans change, but I felt like it was kind of straightforward. I wanted more out of the mystery, I wanted more out of the curse, I wanted more out of the stone.
There was also a bit too much “I’m NoT lIkE oThEr GiRlS” for me. It is challenged toward the end, but it’s more of a throwaway line. It just didn’t feel necessary and didn’t contribute anything. Plus, it’s just kind of a pet peeve of mine haha.
There was also a lot of emphasis on giving second chances, even after a person is kind of really sucky? I didn’t quite get that whole thing and it didn’t feel like it was a big enough aspect for it be included so much.
Gosh, I know it seems like I hated this book, but I promise I didn’t. Thea was a really cool main character. I liked her morals, I liked her strength, I loved how she wanted to own and shout from the rooftops about what she earned. She wanted to credit and she knew what she could do. That was brilliant. I also really liked Dominic, a friend Thea makes. I think he could have been more involved, but he was such a sweet dude.
I was also very happy where this book took the romantic relationships. I’m holding myself back from saying anything, but just know I would like to scream about it. And I’m very much holding myself back from saying more. But just know that it was very good.
While I would have liked more out the alchemy and mind losing, it was still fascinating.
I wasn’t sure how this book was going to wrap up, but it did so in the best possible way. It’s hard to explain, when something is done so well. It fits the characters so well and it encompasses their journey amazingly. And it’s done so in just a few lines. It fills the characters up and it sets them on their future. It’s just so great.
This book wasn’t what I was expecting, but I still enjoyed reading it. I might not have loved some parts of it, I still loved others. It has a great feel to it, a great main character, alchemy, a curse, and a great romantic relationship, but not in the way you think.
A Golden Fury comes out October 2020! You can add it on Goodreads or pre-order a copy in the meantime!
Thank you for reading!
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