A good book. Well written with great characters and a good plot. The storyline flows and the mystery is enjoyable. I highly recommend.,

This was such a fun book!!! I really enjoyed it. I found the plot and the characters to be unique and original! This is a perfect October/halloween read!!

Zoe Faust finally has her life under control. It’s only taken a century or two. An alchemist, living in the Portland, Oregon area, with a gargoyle friend and border/chef, Dorian, she’s decided to search for her old mentor, Nicholas Flamel. Zoe believes that a local artist has the secret to finding Flamel, in a painting. But when the artist is murdered and the painting goes missing, Zoe and Dorian investigate and discover a world of art forgeries and alchemy that she never knew existed.

I have really come to like Pandian’s prose and story-telling. This, for me, is the best of the four book Accidental Alchemist series.

I admit to having a special affinity for art-themed stories, and with this book author Pandian does a remarkably good job of not only incorporating art into the story, but making it integral to the plot and bringing something new to reading journey. New? Yes. Pandian combines alchemy with art in a very unique manner.

Having Zoe see a painting of a man she strongly believes is Flamel, who, to her knowledge never sat for a painting because, as he taught her, it wasn’t good to be recognized as someone who does not age. So finding a portrait of him and trying to track him down, becomes her first mystery. Trying to understand why the artist of the painting – a contemporary of today – would be killed by drinking his paints is Zoe’s second mystery. The mysteries are intertwined, and there are some surprises along the way.

Pandian creates very real characters – not an easy feat considering some immortal (or nearly), some are gargoyles, and some are strongly rooted in the world we commonly know. These ‘real’ people are a big reason that the stories work so well, but Pandian’s plotting skills have grown remarkably over the past few years. This story is quite engrossing and I got really caught up in it. Even the jumping back and forth between centuries didn’t both me (often it does) as these moment were well placed and really did bring forth more valuable information for the story.

You don’t need to read the previous three books in the series to understand or enjoy this book, but why would’t you?

Looking for a good book? The Alchemist’s Illusion by Gigi Pandian, is the best of the four book Accidental Alchemist series, and for anyone interested in a strong mystery with a well-developed supernatural bent, this is definitely the book to read.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Gigi Pandian writes anothe accidental alchemist mystery in The Alchemist's Illusion. Zoe Faust, alchemist, is hundreds of years old and lives in Portland, Oregon, with her gargoyle Dorian.. Her peace and quiet is torn up by murders and an unusual painting which hides where Nicholas Flamel is hidden.Unusual urban fantasy.

I did not finish - I have tried reading this book on multiple occasions and just could not get into it.

The first I've read in this fun series about Zoe Faust, a 300-year old alchemist, and her French gargoyle friend Dorian. Zoe has settled in Portland, in the US Pacific Northwest, to try and start her life over again. She has a policeman boyfriend, Max, and some friends and seems content to work her online antique (bought when new) business, drink tea at the Blue Sky Cafe and help guide her friend's 15-year old teenage son to be a good kid. He's one of the only other people who knows Dorian is a gargoyle, and not just a disfigured French friend of Zoe's.

Zoe gets pulled into the murder investigation of a local artist when his wife declares that Zoe killed him. The murder seems to revolve around a portrait of her mentor, Nicholas Flamel, who has been dead (supposedly) all these years, but who had, she knows, never sat for a portrait while he was alive. When the painting disappears, she wonders if there is a connection to the dead artist. There are two storylines here, with one taking us back to 1597 and the origin of the painting.

I did (kind of guess) the murderer, and there was a lot of talk about cooking and vegan food (the author herself is vegan), and it moved along a bit more slowly than I would have liked, but I enjoyed the characters and the story enough that there were moments I found myself lost in the book. It's a clever idea and is a series I need to start at the beginning in order to discover how the relationships all started.

I was sad to hear while reading this that the publisher Midnight Ink will be closing. I hope this fine cozy series will find a new publishing home.
Zoe Faust has lived for centuries as an alchemist. But since arriving in Portland with her new housemate, Dorian the immortal gargoyle, she’s starting to put down roots, make friends and even a family is on her mind. She wants to have roots and start a new life.

She finds out that the mentor to her and fellow alchemist Nicholas Flamel, who she thought abandoned her. may have been imprisoned over the centuries waiting for her to rescue him. She has to rescue him and sets out on her mission and leaves her comfortable life behind.
This series is a fun relief from everyday life. It has a fun gargoyle, loyal friendships and a unique perspective for the reader on a cozy series. A good sleuth with enough clues to keep me guessing throughout. I enjoyed this read very much and look forward to the next in series.

The Alchemist’s Illusion: An Accidental Alchemist Mystery
By Gigi Pandian
Midnight Ink
January 2019

Review by Cynthia Chow

Discovering the Elixir of Life certainly has its disadvantages, and after living for over 300 years and seeing her loved ones age and die while she stayed the same, Zoe Faust thought that she would never have a family or close friends. A living gargoyle and few new acquaintances who have been trusted with their secrets have slowly changed that, but Zoe is still unable to share her greatest secret with the man she is beginning to love. Perhaps that’s why she is so stunned when she spots an art gallery portrait of her mentor Nicolas Flamel, a fellow alchemist she met in the year 1700 who never allowed his image to be painted. That it is definitely him in the painting is as great a mystery as the purported artist Logan Magnus, a man who recently poisoned himself by swallowing his own toxic paints. Zoe’s attempts to learn more about the artist and the painting are foiled when a rage-filled woman shockingly accuses Zoe of killing Logan, forcing her to flee and avoid the examination of her falsified identity by the police.

Portland, Oregon may be a town that accepts the more eccentric characters of society, but even Zoe knows that being discovered as a 340 year-old alchemist would not go over well. The food-obsessed gargoyle chef Dorian warns that as much as Zoe would be relieved to finally open up to the very rational police detective Max Liu, telling him would only destroy their relationship and risk their safety. It’s why Zoe has come to rely so much on the friendship of Tobias Freeman, another alchemist and former slave who has recently come back into her life. Along with a young teenager who accidently walked in on their secrets, Zoe and her allies investigate a case of art fraud that has spanned centuries and threatens to disrupt the peace she has finally found among her quirky family.

This is a wonderfully unique and clever mystery than often alternates timelines and explores the different realms of science and art. A mysterious artist paints under threat in 1597 Prague, while in the present day artist Logan Magnus’s family have their own fates in jeopardy. Bringing a large share of humor to the novel is of course Dorian, the gargoyle brought to life who loves baking, detective mysteries, and unfortunately making “improvements” in library cookbooks. While that last act gets Zoe banned from the public library, Dorian is her closest confident and most sympathetic supporter. The clever use of alchemy as a science worth killing over continues to be an instrumental element of this series, which only improves as its characters develop and evolve. Seeing Zoe lower her emotional barricades to Max and his family is a rewarding delight, and readers should look forward to seeing how their future plays out in this charming blend of mystery, fantasy, and science fiction. A brief mention from a character of author Gigi Pandian’s Jaya Jones Treasure Hunt series sparks hope for an entire novel uniting their characters, but the further adventures of Zoe Faust are more than enough to have readers returning to this extraordinary series.

I adored The Alchemist's Illusion, the fourth book fo the Accidental Alchemist Mystery Book. Zoe Faust and her gargoyle roommate and friend, Dorian, are settled into their home and life in Portland, Oregon. They are building lives that are satisfying and fulfilling. Then, Zoe sees a portrait in the window of a local art gallery. She is shocked - it is her dear friend and mentor, the missing Nicolas Flamel.
With the help of her long-time friend, the alchemist Tobias, Dorian, Max, and her small circle of friends, Zoe is drawn into a mystery filled with murder, deception, and art forgery.
The Alchemist's Illusion kept me up past my bedtime more than one night so that I could read one more page. I was swept into the story and taken for a great ride.
This book has it all - great characters, great plot, an engaging mystery, and Dorian - the most charming gargoyle ever.

My excitement about The Alchemist’s Illusion is very justified! Each book in this series just gets better and better though I’m not sure how since I love them all!

Life seems settled for Zoe. One of the problems she’s been dealing with since the first book is solved, her house doesn’t have a hole in the roof anymore, and life seems good. And it is good until Zoe is accused of murder! Well, she’s not arrested, but she sure is shocked when a woman walking out of an art gallery points at Zoe and says that Zoe was the one who killed the victim.

Of course, Zoe gets involved in solving the case…with the help of her friends. She has a particular interest in it after all. The painting of Nicholas Flamel! Yes, that Nicholas Flamel. He and his wife were very close to Zoe. I won’t say any more about that because it would spoil some of the earlier stuff too! You know it’s hard to do sequel reviews sometimes!

The Alchemist’s Illusion was so good, and I love that Zoe may have made a new friend in this book. I think she (or he…not gonna tell you) will make a nice addition to the cast of characters. The former characters are still in this book, and they are still great! I love the humor that weaves its way through this series.

I definitely recommend this book as well as the first 3! Don't read them out of order!

How can you dislike a book that has a lovable gargoyle that enjoys baking. I would categorize the book as an adult fairy tale. An alchemist take on painters and their paintings. Appearances can be deceiving, all may not be all as it appears, there are many twists and turns before the true history of a painting is finally revealed. "The heart of alchemy capturing the true essence of a person (the elixir of life)...". Some of the people in the book are real and are detailed in the author's interesting afterward. I now have a new awareness that there may be more in a painting then is obvious at first viewing.

Guys, I love absolutely everything about Gigi Pandian's Accidental Alchemist mysteries. The books are filled with characters I want to spend a lot more time with. The historical elements woven through the books are absolutely fascinating. And did I mention that there's a living gargoyle? Just in case the alchemy wasn't enough of a hook to get you reading there's Dorian, a gargoyle who was originally carved for Notre-Dame and is now an extraordinary chef.



Zoe Faust has taken great pains to conceal her true age and to hide in plain sight. Most recently that's in Portland, Oregon. When she finds herself face to face with a painting of her mentor, Nicolas Flamel, then the painting and records of its existence are stolen, Zoe fears the worst. Could he actually be imprisoned in the painting itself? She finds herself in a web of murder and art forgery and it becomes increasingly hard to keep her secrets out of the official police investigation.

Having read the Alchemist stories about Nicholas Flamel to my kids I was very eager to read book #4 of the Accidental Alchemist.. This was my first Zoe Faust book and I was rewarded with an enjoyable couple of days as I devoured the story and hope to see that #5 will be published soon. The story flowed and followed the already established story about Nicholas and his wife. I like that Zoe is trying to live in the here and now complete with a love interest. All of the aspects of a cozy mystery were in the story as well. The usual death or rather an unusual death takes place and an unusual villain. I was able to figure out half of the twisting plot but not the whole before the end of the story. Excellent read!

Alchemist Zoe Faust is stunned when she sees a portrait painting in the gallery of late local artist Logan Magnus of her old mentor Nicolas Flamel. Zoe had believed Nicolas had abandoned her hundreds of years ago. But a cryptic letter from Nicholas hints that he is still alive, in trouble and needs Zoe's help to save him. In order to save Nicolas, Zoe, her French gargoyle chef friend Dorian and fellow alchemist Tobias need to get access to the painting which has vanished. Logan's widow Isabella and daughter Cleo refuse to help so Zoe has to do her own research using other means. The trail leads to alchemic art which can cause a transformative process with sinister consequences, the works of 16th-century artist Philippe Hayden and an art forgery ring in modern day Portland.

This was another fascinating, complex and enjoyable story in the Accidental Alchemist mystery series.

I received an eARC via Netgalley and Midnight Ink with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book and provided this review.

THE ALCHEMIST'S ILLUSION by Gigi Pandian
The Fourth Accidental Alchemist Mystery

A glimpse at a painting momentarily transports Zoe Faust to the past. Eyes never lie and Zoe knows that the man in the painting is none other than Nicolas Flamel. But how could that be as he'd never sit for a painting? With dawning realization that her mentor is imprisoned, Zoe will look for clues that lead her to look into a local painters death and recent art forgeries in Portland. Dorian, the gargoyle, and her old friend Tobias, will help Zoe discover the truth about the painting, the murder, and the future, as well as the past.

Gigi Pandian seamlessly blends the past and the present as she tells the tale of Zoe Faust. In THE ALCHEMIST'S ILLUSION we not only read about Zoe and the painting that triggers a link to her past, but the very past itself. We get to travel to the late 1500s and see the origins, not only of the painting, but the very mystery itself. I love not only the rich historical detail, but the melding of historical fact with fiction.

I'm always delighted to read more about Dorian and was thrilled with his latest accomplishments and his appropriated crime solving techniques, along with his ability to make me drool with his cooking skills. I wish he could come and stay with me for a bit! But, as in real life, along with the humor, there's also the pathos.

Zoe longs to put down roots and has started to do so in Portland, making a family of friends she's gathered. Indeed this family is the strength that supports everyone as they deal with this current mystery. As her relationship deepens with Max, she broaches the one thing she's been keeping from him. But what will be the ramifications of telling Max the truth about who she really is?

THE ALCHEMIST'S ILLUSION is a captivating mystery that brings the richness of art and history to Portland, Oregon. An exquisitely plotted modern mystery filled with such unique characters make this novel stand out.

Imagine two of the most unforgettable characters in cozy mystery fiction are an immortal alchemist and her companion, a gargoyle accidentally brought to life over 150 years ago. Gigi Pandian’s powerful writing creates captivating adventures that follow alchemist Zoe Faust and gargoyle Dorian through their lives in today’s Portland, OR.

In Alchemist’s Illusion, when Zoe sees a painting of her mentor, Nicholas Flamel, that she knows he did not pose for, she begins a relentless search for the now missing painting to discover who painted it and when. Chapters in the book transition between current time and the late 1500’s when Flamel was a well-known alchemist. Zoe makes money through her website, Elixir, where she sells antiques acquired over the years as an immortal along with being the front person for Dorian, the gargoyle chef who makes delicious pastries for Blue Sky Teas, a local tea shop.

This mystery is well crafted and finely layered involving other alchemists, the murder of a famous artist and Zoe’s search for the painting of Flamel. In the middle of it all is Dorian, a talented chef and charming character who loves to watch soap operas and read mysteries. Zoe also has a boyfriend, Max, who is a local policeman.

Gigi Pandian transforms her ideas into fascinating stories about alchemy and its practitioners with bits of historical context included. Ms. Pandian’s Accidental Alchemist series is literary alchemy at its most amazing.

The Accidental Alchemist series is addictive. The characters are convincing and engaging, the adventures intriguing and the pace gripping. Ms. Pandian makes it easy to suspend disbelief and enjoy the world she so deftly fabricates.

I have a certain fondness for this series I can’t really explain. I know that seems a weird thing to say, but to me it makes perfect sense. Anyway, this latest in the series finds Zoe trying to save her mentor who she thinks is hiding somewhere or has been kidnapped. In the middle of that, there has been a murder, and she is drawn into because the painting that has clues that might help her find mentor Nicholas is owned by the family of the victim. I do love all the characters in this book, especially Dorian. Who doesn’t love the fun gargoyle?! This one was, as always, well-written and interesting. I found a couple of the elements of the crime to be a little too coincidental and convoluted, but I could look past that. I’m looking forward to what’s going to happen next. I recommend this book and series! I was provided the e-book which I voluntarily reviewed.

Zoe Faust is an alchemist. She has been around for several hundred years. She lives in Portland with best friend Dorian, a Gargoyle chef. Between gardening and working on her house, she spends time with her boyfriend, Max.  She is walking by an art gallery when she sees a painting of her ex mentor, Nicolas Flamel. She realizes that Nicolas Flamel has been imprisoned. Before she can talk to the artist, he has been killed and the painting stolen. Zoe also is seen wearing a necklace that the artist was wearing when he was killed. Is she now a suspect? Art forgery. hidden messages and a bad guy going down. I loved Zoe but Dorian is my favorite. Some recipes included. I received this book from Net Galley and Midnight Ink for a honest review. The opinions are my own.

This had a great plot and great characters! I felt immediately drawn into the story and totally think this will be a big selling hit when it is released! I cannot wait for other works by this author and recommend this wholeheartedly!

This is the first book in the series that I have read, but that did not interfere with my ability to enjoy it. Although I appreciated the reminders of events from previous novels I often found myself wishing there had just been a summary of them at the beginning because the references never quite fit into the current story and seemed to slow down the narrative. I also thought the detailed descriptions of the food being made didn't quite fit with the tone of the rest of the story. The book is at its best when focused on the murder mystery and the relationships between all the different characters. Zoe is an easy character to like and root for and Dorian added just the right amount of levity to what could be a very dark story. The transitions between the past and present were well done and I found myself equally interested in the events in both timelines. The villain is well crafted, but I would have liked a little more about what led him to his actions. I'm definitely going to be reading the earlier novels and any future stories in the series!

I would recommend this book to students who are interested in historical fiction and/or alchemy/magic.