Gr 9 Up—In an alternate Tang dynasty China, aspiring royal alchemist Zilan takes the imperial exams—and secretly
raises the dead. Pulled into court politics, she connects with the Crown Prince as the Empress seizes power. An
inventive, competition-based plot and exceptional worldbuilding will propel readers.

"Alchemists are forged from pain."

I’m just gonna start by saying I really adored this book. One of my favorite parts was the author note at the beginning it made me chuckle. The story is really awesome. I honestly couldn’t think of a single thing I disliked about it. The pacing was really good, it started with a bang… and it just kept going. I adored all the characters and honestly, I forgot I was reading a YA story.
I think all the characters were incredibly mature for the most part. Zilan honestly gave me Jude from FoTA vibes for most of the book. I liked the alchemy concept because it was fascinating and a different take on things that I hadn’t really read before. The political dynamic was enough of the story but not so much that it felt overwhelming. I liked so much of this book it’s hard to talk about things without spoilers haha.
It has secrets, conspiracy, death, magic, bringing people back from the dead and even a little romance built in. Most of all those it’s about Zilan coming to accept herself for who she is and I must admit that I did not foresee the book ending the way it did. I think it was super clever and the action scenes were great. The book didn’t overdo elements and the fantasy was easy to understand. Mostly, I need a second book because I am dying… I’m hooked on this story… ( )

The Scarlet Alchemist is a fast paced, dark ya fantasy, that I would recommend over and over again. This book was beautifully written and I never found a dull moment or felt bored. I loved the take they had on alchemy it was very different then any other fantasy’s book I have read in the past that was about the subject. I love retellings and imaginings of past Chinese and Chinese customs and this book did not disappoint. I would reread this book that’s how much I enjoyed it. I also enjoyed the tests and trials the main character went through to prove herself. She proved herself to her enemies and naysayers and also her self. The story was also gory which I was not expecting but it was a nice surprise I enjoyed very much.I also liked how the author brought in realism to the story like racism, classism and of course the infamous sexism. I also enjoyed the Cantonese and mandarin words that were sprinkled in throughout the story . I like seeing that in Chinese inspired novels. I loved this book it was interesting til the end and I highly recommend it to everyone. ( )

Dark historical fantasy

Both the cover and the premise made me want to read this book. The first person point of view immediately connected me to Fan Zilan and I loved her intelligence, sarcastic wit, and loyalty to family.

The world building is lush and felt three dimensional and Zilan's talent as an alchemist was completely believable for me. I enjoyed her desire to achieve greatness and rise above the poverty status in which her family lived.

I rooted for Zilan as she and her siblings traveled to the capitol to take their exams and the danger along the way kept me riveted to the pages. Then the Alchemist tests, though very dark, also raised deeper social issues that I felt apply to current society.

The relationship between the Prince and Zilan was fun and I enjoyed their banter up until the what felt like insta-love romance started. Before this part of the novel, I was thinking this was going to be a top read for me of the year.

The ending felt lacking to me and didn't build up enough suspense. The events seemed almost too easy and didn't make me want to care enough about the characters to continue on their journey in the sequel. ( )

The setting of an alt-history China with alchemy stood out to me. It was interesting to see how the author adapted real historical figures to fit this universe and story.

The characters were enjoyable to read about as well. Zilan was easy to root for and she had some steady character growth, while still leaving room for more in the sequel.

For the most part, the pacing and the twists were handled well. Some aspects of the ending did feel too easy or convenient, but I’m still interested to see where it goes from here.

It’s always the romance where YA fantasy/sci-fi lose me. This time I thought Zilan and the Prince were compelling characters and I even liked the beginnings of their relationship, but it got ahead of itself. Zilan’s narration starts talking about how the Prince understands her more deeply and completely than anyone has at a point in the story when she’s just finished spending a good chunk of time thinking their lives are too different and he doesn’t understand her at all. She can and should change her mind as their relationship develops, of course, but I couldn’t see why she made such a complete 180 when she did. ( )