↠ Content warnings: death, written depictions of dead bodies, child death, resurrection, murder, gore, cussing.
↠ Pages: 424
↠ My Rating: ★★★★☆


Thank you so much to Bookishfirst, and Inkyard Press for my physical arc copy. I am voluntarily leaving this review.

This book immediately interested me upon seeing the description on BookishFirst. I have never read Kylie Lee Baker before, nor asian fantasy (even though The Keeper of Night has been on my TBR for like 4 years now oops). But strangely enough, Wu Zetian and the Tang Dynasty and their ‘alchemists’ are a topic that have fascinated me as history buff for a long time. So seeing it in fiction had me HOOKED. And the author did a brilliant job satisfying the history buff part of me.

I thought this book was really good, not flawless, but exciting and interesting with a main character who is scarily clever and persistent. Zilan feels like she can keep up with all other character’s in the book, believably so. I loved her anger, I was sympathetic to it, I know that many called her unlikeable but I adored her. The girls no nonsense attitude made a LOT of sense based on the historically accurate treatment of the merchant class, and her struggle to survive. Of course she was rude, she often was in a more primal state where she didn’t know when her next meal would come. Manners are something only some people can afford to have, in Zilan’s own words. She was constantly in a state of trying to be taken advantage of and had to put her foot down to everyone before she even fully knew their intentions. Either they tried to take advantage of her or treated her badly for being a woman, being a hunxie, or being poor. She has to be one of my favorite female characters ever. Zilan’s sheer intelligence made me love the book, but then the author decides to just take away her intelligence for two scenes halfway through the book, I was so frustrated, it felt like it directly contracted all her character traits (including her paranoia and double checking) and her intellect. It came off like the author ripped it all away for a scene or two just to drive the plot forward, and I wasn’t a fan of that. And then her reaction:

There is some romance in this book as well, in regards to the prince, who seeks Zilan out initially for her powers. There is <b>NO spice</b> in this book, just basic kissing and innocent sort of fraternization. Which was cute. The prince, Li Hong, was very sweet - but I felt nothing for him as the romantic interest. Nor did I understand Zilan’s fascination with him. It developed way too fast, and was too one dimensional. It was too quick for the bare minimum info we had on the prince. He could completely be summed up as ‘cinnamon roll prince is the black sheep of his family, likes ducks, and mom wants to kill him.’ and this is the entire extent of his character. I hope the next book really expands on him despite his *ahem* predicament. 

There were so many twists, and twists rarely get me but these were very well done! It actually had me dropping my book and my jaw. The queen is FEARSOME, I was actively scared for Zilan and the prince because of how intelligent and capable she was. There is a dinner scene in this book that I won’t spoil, but had me SHOOK. She did, at times, have caricature-like attributes still. For all her imagination and wit, I hated how she had no active ability to manipulate Zilian without brutish force or threatening. She was way too clever for that, I thought at least there would be some level of manipulation that targeted Zilan’s lack of a mother figure, or that made Zilan doubt the prince’s version of things. And it never happened. This is why I gave it 4.0 stars instead of 5.

If you like:

♡ Dark Academia and Fantasy
♡ The Keeper Of Night
♡ Strong FMC’s who are angry at the world
♡ Capable villains
♡ Historical Fiction (with a lot of fantasy elements) 

I love it. It offered a perfect combination of action and pace. It didn't let you sleep. 

The characters are well written. They have significant trait that's make it bearable throughout the story. A pinch of jokes and sassines here and there. OH THE EMPRESS. I love it when woman right, but I like it even more when woman wrong. Clever, sadistic, and ten steps ahead. AND THE PRINCE HIMBO!!!! 🐣🐣🐣

Go pick up this book if you like an alternate universe of Tang dynasty, dead bodies come to life, PLOT TWIST, gripping story telling, kingdom political intrigue, with thick lines of sibling love and romance. Historical trivias here and there. Highly recommended!!!

This was such a fun book to read!! It's very dark at times, but it also has very heart warming moments. I'm
Not sure how I feel about the ending, not the decisions the lead character makes, but the way in which everything gets resolved, but it's ok and it sets us up perfectly fine for a sequel. 

thank you to @netgalley for the advance digital copy of this book!

I already knew Kylie Lee Baker would have me in my mixed race feels after loving The Keeper of the Night, but I wasn’t expecting the absolute rollercoaster that was The Scarlet Alchemist. Not only are there painful moments of not fitting in and feeling like those you love the most still don’t understand you, there was also frank commentary on poverty being a deliberate choice by the ruling class, complicated first love, and tons of political intrigue. 

I think what I love about Baker’s writing is that it is distinctly YA, with young protagonists grappling with what it means to be a person in the world, feeling insecure, making stupid choices, and saying things they don’t mean, but she also doesn’t shy away from deep world-building, complicated moral dilemmas, and some truly disturbing body horror and violence. 

I had so much fun reading this book: I gasped, I shouted, I grimaced, I gagged, and I teared up. If you love being dragged through the expanse of human emotions, morally gray mixed-race women, fake dating [concubinage], alternate Chinese historical periods, and amazing / complicated sibling dynamics, then boy. Have I got a recommendation for you. 

disclaimer: I don’t really give starred reviews because I don’t like leaving them. I enjoy most books for what they are, & I extract lessons from them all. Everyone’s reading experiences are subjective, so I hope my reviews provide enough information to let you know if a book is for you or not, regardless of the lack of stars. Find me on Instagram: @bookish.millennial or tiktok: @bookishmillennial

Wow, this was such a wild historical fantasy adventure! Zilan is a young alchemist (the future "Scarlet Alchemist" of the royal family) from the impoverished South, who travels to the capital to take the imperial exams in order to become a royal alchemist and pull her family (aunt, uncle, cousins-but-she-calls-them-sister-and-brother Yufei and Wenshu) out of poverty. When Zilan was young, her parents passed away so her aunt and uncle took her in as one of their own.

Zilan, Yufei & Wenshu practice an illegal form of alchemy, bringing back the dead (look, it pays the bills!), and this dark reputation spoils her chances of having a fair shot in the imperial exams. The crown prince Li Hong goes to Zilan to ask her for a favor, but she turns him away, and then runs into him at the capital Chang'an, where the odds and the judges are stacked against her! Fun fact: in the capital, the royals eat magical gems (like gold and pearls) to live forever. Ah, the price of youth. WILD! COULD NOT BE ME! SEE YA IN HELL! 

This book moves fast, and the constant twists and turns kept me at the edge of my seat until the very end! I had to remind myself to let out a breath I didn't know I was holding (I finally understand this phrase in books now hahaha). Kylie Lee Baker did a phenomenal job of building up tension & mystery, shocking and horrifying readers, and then providing a glimmer of hope in rooting for Zilan to succeed! The political power plays at the palace (omg this alliteration is so annoying, I'm sorry) begin to unnerve Zilan, who also begins spending more time with Hong, and unraveling the inner workings of the palace history. It's DARK, and it's uncomfortable.

I really enjoyed Zilan as our main character - her tenacity, determination, and ability to investigate and troubleshoot make her a millennial dream even though she's not one hahaha. I also loved the dynamics between her and her cousins, who you could tell she cared for so deeply! I love this representation of a close-knit extended family! Zilan's dynamic with the Moon Alchemist was a fun mentor x mentee relationship to watch grow too.

The villain in the story was so fascinating - we have seen variations of the woman in power who remains obsessed with youth and maintaining her position of power before; it's a huge part of history, especially with empress consorts and queen mothers! Though this character felt familiar, I didn't think it was too derivative! Plus, she was modeled after a real empress in Chinese history. (Though remember, this is not historical fiction - it may be loosely inspired, but it's fantasy and an alternative history if you will!)

This is my first read by Kylie Lee Baker and I will absolutely be looking more into her backlist because this was a wild ride! 

First, Thank you to Netgalley and Inkyard Press for sending me an ARC of this book in exchange for this honest review!

This beautiful masterpiece destroyed me. That stayed up of night to finish it kind of destroyed. The good kind of destroyed that makes you dream about it for a week after. The Scarlet Alchemist excels across the board. It has phenomenal worldbuilding, an intense writing style, complex characters, and a plot that leaves you glued to the pages.

The Scarlet Alchemist is a high fantasy deeply rooted in Chinese history with a backdrop of romance. Our main character, Fan Zilan, is a dirt-poor half-Chinese, half-White merchant set on her path to becoming a royal alchemist. However, consequences have a habit of always catching up to you, especially when you dabble in illegal resurrections. Zilan and her two cousins, who are taking the civil service exam, make it to the capital city, Chang'an, in hopes of a better life. Life as a royal alchemist is not as rewarding as it would seem. As a reader, you will be kept on your toes by the fast-moving plot and unveiled secrets. This book also has a fair amount of terror, suspense, gore, and body horror. Overall, an astonishing 5-star read!

P.S. I have become a champion for Kylie Lee Baker. I will follow her in whatever direction she may go, and I would kill to see this on the big screen.

LOVED this one! It does lag a bit in the middle, but holy cow does it pack a punch. Zilan is a total badass! Trigger warnings for a lot of body horror.