Book Review: The Scarlet Alchemist by Kylie Lee Baker

Zilan dreams of becoming a royal alchemist, of providing for her family by making alchemical gold and gems for the wealthy to eat in order to stay young forever. But for now, she’s trapped in her impoverished village in southern China, practicing an illegal form of alchemy to keep food on the table—resurrecting the dead, for a price.

When Zilan finally has the chance to complete her imperial exams, she ventures to the capital to compete against the best alchemists in the country in tasks she’ll be lucky to survive, let alone pass. On top of that, her reputation for raising the dead has followed her to the capital, and the Crown Prince himself seeks out her help, suspecting a coming assassination attempt.
The more Zilan succeeds in her alchemy, the more she gets caught in the dangerous political games of the royal family. There are monsters lurking within the palace walls, and it’s only a matter of time before they—and secrets of Zilan’s past—catch up with her.

Rating: 5 Stars

A vivid and unputdownable novel filled with blood, gold and alchemy magic, THE SCARLET ALCHEMIST follows 17 year old Fan Zilan, a poor girl from the South of China during the reign of Empress Wu. As this story is set in an alternate timeline, it is a fictitious rendering of what Empress Wu’s reign might have been. Using real history and making it her own, the author used dialects and standard mandarin to enable ease of reading.

I loved the main character Zilan and how she felt split into two different worlds. As Zilan is a person of mixed descent (she’s half white and Chinese) she always felt different compared to those around her.

She is also an extremely gifted Alchemist who also practices secret and illegal resurrections to fend for herself and her family. The story gets even better once she entered the place to become a Royal Alchemist (her life’s goal for the longest time)

In the Palace, she undergoes a huge challenges and character developments, learning the secrets hidden within and in her past. This book drew me in like a moth to a flame and I could not put it down. Zilan is a character I admire as she is a strong-minded character with unique gifts and capabilities. The introduction to the Chinese culture, particularly in the early century was fascinating to read about.

THE SCARLET ALCHEMIST was spectacular with its twists and turns. The magic system was easy to read about and had wickedly-sharp writing. I liked the love interest Li Hong and Zilan’s cousins, furthermore the explanations of certain words found in Mandarin Chinese or a dialect was so clearly written and explained.

I can’t wait for the next book in this duology and will certainly check out Kylie Lee Baker’s other books.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for sending me a copy of THE SCARLET ALCHEMIST in exchange for an honest review.