Alchemised
#1 New York Times bestseller
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4.7 • 56 Ratings
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- $18.99
Publisher Description
In this riveting dark fantasy debut, a woman with missing memories fights to survive a war-torn world of necromancy and alchemy—and the man tasked with unearthing the deepest secrets of her past.
“What is it you think you’re protecting in that brain of yours? The war is over. Holdfast is dead. The Eternal Flame extinguished. There’s no one left for you to save.”
Once a promising alchemist, Helena Marino is now a prisoner—of war and of her own mind. Her Resistance friends and allies have been brutally murdered, her abilities suppressed, and the world she knew destroyed.
In the aftermath of a long war, Paladia’s new ruling class of corrupt guild families and depraved necromancers, whose vile undead creatures helped bring about their victory, holds Helena captive.
According to Resistance records, she was a healer of little importance within their ranks. But Helena has inexplicable memory loss of the months leading up to her capture, making her enemies wonder: Is she truly as insignificant as she appears, or are her lost memories hiding some vital piece of the Resistance’s final gambit?
To uncover the memories buried deep within her mind, Helena is sent to the High Reeve, one of the most powerful and ruthless necromancers in this new world. Trapped on his crumbling estate, Helena’s fight—to protect her lost history and to preserve the last remaining shreds of her former self—is just beginning. For her prison and captor have secrets of their own . . . secrets Helena must unearth, whatever the cost.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
This dark and twisted fantasy already has an established fan base because it’s adapted from an exceptionally popular work of fan fiction inspired by a well-known fantasy series. But even if you come into this story completely cold, you will still be magically compelled by the complex and painful bond between a torturer and his prisoner. The Resistance against the High Necromancer has been crushed, and healer Helena Marino has fallen into the hands of Kaine Ferron, the High Necromancer’s trusted lieutenant. His primary mission is to pry out the two years’ worth of memories that are alchemically locked within her brain—and as inaccessible to her as they are to everyone else. His secondary mission is to make her pregnant, as there is a shortage of alchemists. As their distorted present-day relationship progresses, Helena’s memories gradually reveal the dark secrets of their past relationship and her hidden role within the group known as the Eternal Flame. This book is the antithesis to the usual happily ever after. If you seek the flames of romance burning palely from an abyss of gore, emotional and physical torment, and the highest degree of angst you could possibly imagine, you’ll find them here.
Customer Reviews
Never cried harder than when reading this book
Just read it. Please give it a go. The story is equal parts flagellating and heartbreaking in the best and worst way possible.
It’s deep, raw, ugly, beautiful, rotten and hopeful. You will love every second of it and cry as the end approaches. It’s a complete heartbreak that leaves you with the most interesting and captivating bittersweetness on your tongue.
This book explores themes of war, love, devastation, cruelty, violence, death, devotion, longing, heartbreak, and ultimately, endless hope.
I finished it today, and my heart is still bleeding. I cry whenever I think of it, but I cannot wait to read it all over again.
Read if you want a commentary on how disgusting the world is. Read if you want to have your heart crushed by Helena and Kaine. Read it if you believe in sacrifice and love. Read it if you are ready to break and fall apart.
To the author, thank you. Thank you for giving me the privilege to be torn to pieces with the characters and stitched up all over again. You’re brilliant and breathtaking.
The end fell short
This might be an unpopular opinion, but I personally didn't enjoy the end. Things felt wrapped up far too quickly compared to the pacing of the rest of the novel. But up until the 97%, this is one of the best books I have ever read. So haunting and beautiful and complex. I cried many times through out reading it. It would have been a full 5 stars if not for the end. But again, I don't think a lot of people share my view on the ending.
If you do read, please be sure to check trigger warnings. There are a lot of horrific things that happen.