Review: The Scarlet Alchemist (The Scarlet Alchemist #1) by Kylie Lee Baker

*I received an advance reading copy of this book from Frenzy Books in exchange for an honest review.

The Scarlet Alchemist

(The Scarlet Alchemist #1)

by Kylie Lee Baker 

October 3, 2023

Goodreads Summary:

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.

Review

The Scarlet Alchemist is my first novel by Kylie Lee Baker. The visceral plot told a remarkably dark tale. This story full of desperation tested limits and pushed its characters to the brink.

For a YA novel, the writing in in The Scarlet Alchemist was surprisingly visual. The author did not shy away from descriptions of blood and guts. Especially when it came to life alchemy. The author presented a fascinating approach. The ultimate achievement was worth all the sacrifices (of others). Though I find it a bit crazy to be physically eating gold (no matter if said gold were in an edible state), its consumption to maintain immortality has a poetic sense given its importance.

Zilan's life was full of hardship but her cousins made it tolerable. No one was more precious to her than Wenshu and Yufei who were really siblings to her. They shielded each other as much as they could. Despite some heavy bickering and disapprovals, I really felt the love they had for each other.

Li Hong was a refreshing love interest. His good intentions warmed me but as a prince, he was so clueless. To Zilan, Li Hong was an annoying presence at first. However, with his sincerity and innocence, he managed to squeeze himself into her heart. It saddened me to see how he ended up. But I have hopes!

The Scarlet Alchemist was foreboding and raw. Even though the story felt slow at times, certain plot twists made things more exciting and raised the stakes even higher. Give me more surprises in the next book please!

*I received an advance reading copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and not affected in any way. Any quotes included in my review were taken from the copy I received.