Alchemised
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3.8 • 4 Ratings
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- $26.99
Publisher Description
Brought to you by Penguin.
***The record-breaking debut and instant Sunday Times Bestseller***
In a world ruled by necromancers, a woman with missing memories threatens the dark order that keeps her captive - and the man sent to break her. Gothic in tone, epic in scope - this debut is destined to become a modern classic.
Once a promising alchemist, Helena Marino is now a prisoner – of war and of her own fractured mind. The Resistance is crushed, her allies dead, her abilities suppressed.
The world she knew is gone.
Paladia’s corrupt guild families and their necromancer overlords, aided by vile undead creatures now rule - and hold Helena captive.
Resistance records claim she was a healer of little importance. Yet, Helena’s inexplicable memory loss makes her enemies wonder: Is she truly insignificant, or do her missing memories conceal the Resistance’s final secret?
To uncover the truth, Helena is delivered into the hands of the High Reeve – Paladia’s most feared and merciless necromancer.
Trapped on his crumbling estate, she must fight to protect what remains of herself and unearth the secrets buried in her mind, her prison, and her captor . . . whatever the cost.
‘A work of quite staggering ambition. Detailed world-building, intricate plot, Gothic claustrophobia, wraps the readers in its dark embrace’ Daily Mail
‘A superb dark fantasy novel set in a war torn world of black magic and alchemy’ Sun
© Forest Rain Inc 2025 (P) Penguin Audio 2025
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
It takes a special kind of audiobook to keep readers locked in for over 36 hours—and Alchemised is one. US author SenLinYu began her career writing fan fiction, now she’s delivered a debut novel that’s a masterclass in atmospheric world-building and nuanced characterisation. A dystopian fantasy, it’s set in the kingdom of Paladia in the aftermath of a brutal war that’s been won by a corrupt cohort of necromancers. Protagonist Helena, an alchemist and a member of the resistance, wakes up with no memory to find herself a prisoner of that war. She’s now faced with uncovering her past in order to face the future, while navigating what becomes a complicated relationship with her captor Ferron. This is definitely fantasy for grown-ups—it’s brutal and bleak at times—but you’ll put your life on pause for this listening marathon.
Customer Reviews
Book 1 (2026)
Bringing in the new year, with a new catalog of readings comes the 1,024 page, 2025 dark fantasy debut giant - ‘Alchemised’ by SinLinYu.
Originally written as fan fiction to the Harry Potter series following a darker alternative adventure under the name ‘Manacled’, SinLinYu returned to their works, rewrote the magic system, the places, and names of the characters to bring us their debut novel that I thought I wouldn’t read in the first instance - but it was everywhere, and I mean everywhere - social media and plastered across all good bookstores, so naturally it peaked my interest and here it is, opening by 2026 reads.
‘Alchemised’ follows the alchemist and healer, Helena Marino and the High Reeve, Kaine Farron, during the war between the Order of the Eternal Flame and the Undying - a league of necromancers, ruled by the High Necromancer, who wants to control Paladia. However in Paladia, the power, the magic or ‘resonance’ of necromancy is seen as a plague which must be scorched from the earth in any means necessary, and it is believed to be the divine purpose of the Eternal Flame to carry out this work.
‘Alchemised’ is split into three parts across its thousand pages, a “this is our story with many questions”, to “four years prior to those events with many answers”, to “immediately following what happened in the beginning of the story you read and where that story goes now”.
The novel sat at a comfortable 4 ✨ during this read, through - with the occasional chapters jumping to 5 ✨ which had me grinning from one side of my face to the other. There aren’t many fight sequences in this novel, but when they do appear far and between, it reminded me of Vin from Mistborn, and I was there for it. The magic system was something I kept scratching my head over but the story as dark as it was kept me going.
As the first novel of 2026, I’m happy to label it a 4 ✨ read. 🌶️