The alchemical pursuit for the elusive Philosopher’s Stone may drive those who attempt to create it toward madness in Samantha Cohoe’s A Golden Fury.

Thea Hope is determined to make a name for herself as an alchemist beyond the impressive shadow her mother casts in this field. Having learned much from her mother, Thea makes a good partner as the pair work toward creating the Philosopher’s Stone in the French home of their patron; they’re close to making it a reality when Thea’s mother plunges into sudden, violent madness and destroys their progress. Sent from the revolution-rife France for England, Thea takes her mother’s notes and arrives on her father’s doorstep in Oxford, much to his surprise, as he didn’t know she existed. Despite sharing the warning of the curse associated with creating the Stone, Thea struggles to keep her father and his colleagues from suffering the same fate as her mother, forcing her to make a choice between sacrificing her sanity or her loved ones.

Women in the pursuit of creating a storied artifact amidst the backdrop of historical unrest was an entertaining premise for this tale with fantasy touches. The writing was crafted with a flow that was easy to read and created an atmosphere that was easy to envision. Thea was a relatable character, providing a strong-willed and determined female lead who is still susceptible to making naïve decisions that frustrate. The beginning of the story far outshined the last portion of the story with its quick pacing and the points of intrigue it addresses; the last part of the novel didn’t feel to quite match or balance well with what was established in the beginning, seeming to rely far more heavily on overdramatic, trite scenes and situations instead of the more substantive and interesting character struggles that were depicted earlier on in the narrative, which effortlessly drew me in.

Overall, I’d give it a 3 out of 5 stars.

*I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review as part of this blog tour.

This was a wonderful mix of historical fiction and fantasy. I loved seeing women in a scientific role in this story. This was filled with intrigue, mystery, and a search for the ever-elusive Philosopher’s Stone.

Thea is an assistant for her alchemist mother in France just before the revolution. On the verge of a breakthrough to create the Philosopher’s Stone, her mother goes quite mad and sends Thea to England to live with her father, someone she has never met. Distraught at this turn of events in her life, Thea decides to try to create the Philosopher’s Stone herself and cure her mother of her madness. As Thea gets closer to the cure, will she be able to avoid following in the footsteps of her mother?

Thea is the kind of character you can’t help but connect to. She’s headstrong, determined, and likable. There was a romance element that I didn’t care for in the second half of the book, but it didn’t detract too much from my overall enjoyment of the story.

The story itself was filled with wonderfully research historical details that kept me drawn to the story. I really enjoyed the setting in this one, and found myself wanting to read more about this time period as well as alchemy! This was definitely a twist-turny storyline that kept me wondering what was coming next! Overall, I really enjoyed it, and I look forward to what this author will come up with next!

To Read or Not To Read:
I would recommend A Golden Fury for readers that enjoy historical fiction with some fantasy elements!

I was provided a gifted copy of this book for free. I am leaving my review voluntarily.

This has been a nice read! I kind of expected more grandeur? More action? More thrill? Still, I can't deny that this was a satisfying read, especially the way everything was wrapped up in the end. I also loved the mystery that surrounded the Philosopher's Stone. I mean this Stone has always been mysterious (this is actually one of the main reasons why I got interested in this book lol), but the addition of a new mystery to it made it so intriguing. The plot was a wild one and it can get complicated (I would say that this is because it's also historical fiction), but nevertheless it was also exciting in its own way. Exact rating: 3.75

(I received an e-arc via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you Wednesday Books!)

Thank you to Wednesday Books and Netgalley for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Talk about a gorgeous cover. The teal and gold combination is beautiful and gives the book a very rich look. I also like that the gold kind of ties into the fact the book is about alchemists. My mind always springs crafting gold when I see alchemist.

I was shocked this is a debut novel as it covered a lot of genres and blended them together so smoothly.

Seventeen your old Thea struggles becoming an alchemist and following in her mother's footsteps without losing her own identity and skills. She's allowed to be good but not better. In an attempt to create the mythical Philosopher's Stone Thea is confronted with The Philosopher's Curse a madness that befalls those who try and fail to create the stone. If Thea wants to save her mother, and herself she will need to succeed in creating the stone, but even that comes with it's own set of ramifications.

Overall an interesting book. A lot of heavy topics and themes so I would recommend not reading if self harm is a trigger.

"His shame is no use to me if it doesn't change his actions"

A Golden Fury was an enthralling debut by Samantha Cohoe. The writing flowed so smoothly and the world was packaged so neatly that I was absolutely shocked when I reminded myself that this was a debut novel.

TW: Madness, Death, Self-Harm (briefly occurs during madness), Torture (mentioned, not witnessed), Mention of Suicide Attempt

Thea's story was one of a young woman trying to find her place in this world with her talents and knowledge being her own, not being manipulated or used for others benefits. She starts off being encouraged to be scholarly and pushed to her potential, as long as the potential doesn't outshine that of her mothers. This seems to be a common theme throughout the book, she can be good - but ultimately someone else wants to reap the rewards of her efforts.

It is evident that the author has done a lot of research into the philosophers stone and alchemy as a whole, due to the amount of knowledge imparted by Thea throughout the novel which is seen as an "obviously, why would you not know this".

"He's not a bad man, Thea ... You saw him at his worst" "What better time is there to know a man than at his worst?"

I don't want to delve too much into the other characters of this novel, as I don't want to inadvertently spoil anything, as the character development is an important plot progression and you want the full experience of discovering things at the same time that Thea does. I will say, that I was pleasantly surprised by two characters and disappointed in two more.

If Cohoe's debut is indicative of their future works, I will be an avid reader as I'm looking forward to seeing what other worlds I am taken to.

Thank you to NetGalley & Wednesday Books for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Set in 18th-century Paris, London and Oxford, I of course was drawn to this magical tale by Samantha! Following the alchemy induced madness of her mother, young Thea Hope flees the budding French Revolution to live with her father in Oxford. While there however, she realizes that pursuing her mother’s research on the coveted Philosopher’s Stone may be more dangerous than it seems... Will she risk her safety (and even a curse) to heal and give immortality to the ones she loves? In a tale full of historical and sciencey-magic, as well as emotionally evocative, beautiful writing, A Golden Fury has been perfect for my witchy themed October reading!

Thank you so much to the publisher for asking me to read and review this for their blog tour!

A Golden Fury by Samantha Cohoe is a very different YA fantasy book.

This book is about Thea, a 17 year old brave young woman, that has grown up with her mother and always different “supporters”.
Her mother is an alchemist and raises Thea to be one too. They both are trying to create what every alchemist is trying to create: the Philosophers Stone.

When Thea realizes that her mother has made progress without her, she finds out why her mother has been acting mad and aggressive lately. Thea needs to leave and continue the work they started to save her mother from the Alchemist’s curse. She needs to go to her father.

From there the adventure begins. New friends, old love, kidnapping and becoming mad herself, Thea must power through to make the Philosophers Stone and save not just her mother, but friends and her relationship with her father.

Very well written, I couldn’t put it down.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ebook copy in exchange for an honest review.

2020 has to be year of the cold and standoff ish mother in YA. Funnily enough all encountered in fantasy this reading year. Difficult and nuanced motherly figures, Thea Hope is the daughter of such figure, She’s the daughter of a famous alchemist who looms over her. A Golden Fury is about Thea Hope, a young alchemist, who has the knowledge to make the Philosopher’s Stone. Before finishing the Philosopher’s Stone her mother goes mad and smashes their work. Because of this and escaping her mother’s anger she travels to find her beau, Will, and to make the stone before anyone else does.

Cohoe really focused on the scientific side of SFF in A Golden Fury. The alchemy was more science based than magic based. It was all puzzle for Thea and her cohort to find out. Managing temperatures and putting in the right ingredients at the right time. Science is a real puzzle, figuring out the elements instead of cardboard pieces. It was great to see the fictional scientific methods and scenes in the lab where Thea looked at Arabic texts for instructions. The magic system was different and it's great to see different interpretations of alchemy. Cohoe really blended the alchemy in a historical setting. this book nailed the historical setting pretty darn well. Set in the backdrop of a weakened France before the revolution.

I really enjoyed the plot and I was engrossed in it from the start to the end It had a great pace and was action-packed. Cohoe used the slower parts to her advantage were she used of knowledge of the half magic – half science practice to build the world. Bit by bit. I had to page at both paces in the story, eager to see what happened next. Cohoe’s lines and phrasing is a delight to read and roll of the tongue or in my case the mental version of that.

And lastly a book is nothing without its characters. If you don’t care the characters no matter how creative or beautiful the writing, I can’t care. But you do care for Thea, how she’s treated by the people around her. Get mad how the men in her life don’t trust her or see her ingenuity. Loving Dominic so much how truly cares for her and wants the best for her. No one was that good or all that bad. Even our quick-witted lead Thea who could be selfish and have an ego at times. I loved how deeply flawed she and others were.

People that love Historical fiction where magic doesn’t over power the story. Where the SF of SFF comes to play and a story with a flawed but human girl tries to be recognized for her talents. They for surely will enjoy A Golden Fury

I enjoyed my time reading A Golden Fury. I enjoyed Thea as a female lead character. She is resilient, brave, and head strong. I liked that the plot of the book moved swiftly and we got to carry on through the book by traveling to places. I wish we could have gotten to see more of the alchemy of the story. And Thea learning that from her mom. The alchemist curse proved for an interesting turn of events. Samantha has a very easy flowing writing style. It book flows very effortlessly. If you like alchemy, historical fiction, and strong female lead I recommend.

A Golden Fury is a novel that I have somewhat mixed feelings about. Though I overall enjoyed it quite a lot, my opinions on the specific, key components of any story are dramatically different from each other. This has caused me a bit of confusion when it comes to sorting out all my thoughts on it. However, it has also made me continue to think and examine the story at length, and that’s something I always enjoy. I’ll do my best to convey my thoughts about those components as clearly as I can. There is one thing that is completely clear to me though: I had an incredibly fun time reading this.

In this novel, we follow a young woman named Thea. The child of two well-respected alchemists, Thea was set down that same path by her mother from a very early age and has become a very skilled alchemist in her own right. She works under the iron fist of her mother, living life always in her shadow and under her control. Together, the pair have come within the final stages of achieving the dream of every alchemist—creating the Philosopher’s Stone, which is said to cure all sickness and turn any metal into gold.

However, things take a turn when Thea’s mother succumbs to a madness that has gradually taken over her during the process of creating the Stone, destroying it right before it’s finished. Thea flees to Oxford and, upon arriving on the doorstep of a father who knew nothing of her, is thrown into a world of scientific competition where she holds the information that many would kill to have. For a person with her knowledge of the Stone, there is nowhere truly safe to run to. And soon, she is faced with a dilemma—one that will cause the great loss of either those she loves or her own mind.

The plotline is my absolute favorite part of this novel—I really enjoyed it. I ended up finishing this book in only a couple of sittings because I was so engrossed in it. I found the narrative to be very fast-paced and filled with action. The breaks in it where the story slowed were still filled with plenty of interesting displays of knowledge, secrecy, and deception. In those moments, I continued to fly through the story—I always felt very eager to see what would happen next and how every plot point already in progress would play out.

My favorite aspects of it were the alchemical activities and psychological intrigue connected to the Stone. Cohoe’s depictions of the madness that consumes the alchemists that attempted to create the Stone were absolutely brilliant. Unusual sounds. The slight oddities at the corner of the eye. The colored clouds of smoke, only visible to the afflicted alchemist. The looming shadows that appear human but aren’t quite. The rapid spiraling into the dark pit at the heart of the madness. It was all so captivating.

The only hang-up I had was with the ending. It felt like things were solved very abruptly, and each loose thread was either too perfectly wrapped up or too severely lacked an explanation. Mainly, I was disappointed by some missing details about the Stone that I thought really needed to be filled in. The effectiveness of the conclusion of the novel suffered due to that absence of information—without that crucial explanation, it made the events come across as just a means to get to the ending. That being said, up until those last few chapters, the story remained very solid.

On the completely opposite side of the scale, we have the characters. I have to be honest, I really struggled with the characters here, only liking maybe two at most. Dominic was the only character I loved all the way through the novel. I went back and forth with Thea—she irritated me frequently, but I appreciated her strength and intelligence. She made some reckless decisions and blindly placed far too much trust. And while, from the perspective of the reader, the red flags are all over, that behavior completely fits a person in their mid-to-late teens. Stopping and looking back at myself ten or so years ago, those are very relatable behaviors.

The other characters fell very flat for me. They needed to be fleshed out a bit more—needed some more dimension and development. I found Valentin very interesting and wished there had been more to his personal story as well as his involvement in the main plotline. Overall, there was so much bitterness, resentment, and hostility between everyone and, while it proved to be understandable in some situations, it overwhelmed the plot in many others. A couple of side characters displayed a change in their attitude toward Thea and each other, but I would have loved to see it be more widespread and dynamic in nature.

The writing is where my thoughts and feelings even out. I liked Cohoe’s writing and felt that it was fairly easy to get caught up in. The novel would have benefitted from a little more worldbuilding—what is there is well-done and vividly set the tone and atmosphere, as well as the backdrop for the events of the plot. Cohoe has a strong voice and a nice, natural flow to her words. She balanced the pacing of the narrative well throughout most of it, the very ending being the only part where things felt rushed.

As you can probably tell, my opinion is all over the map when it comes to this story, but I want to stress again how much I enjoyed reading it. It is a truly engaging read in more ways than one, and I not only loved it for its captivating plot but also the way that it has left me examining it and thinking about it long after finishing. I got wholly lost in both the fast-paced action and the slower moments of intrigue—and, at times, delightful eeriness—encompassed in this narrative. A Golden Fury is a very solid debut from a promising new author, and it is a book that I would definitely recommend giving a go.

A Golden Fury was a fun and gripping historical fantasy.

Thea is an alchemist working to create the Philosopher’s Stone. She and her mother are very close to making it until her mother “goes mad” and destroys it. The story truly begins from there when Thea is sent to her father in Oxford. Once in Oxford, things go wrong and she has to run away once again.

A Golden Fury started off pretty slow, until about 50% into the book. The pacing felt rushed too, it was as if the characters were going from scene to scene just following the motions, but at the same time, it felt like nothing was happening. The pacing got better around the 60% mark when Thea started making the stone on her own and losing her mind.

The writing in this was beautiful with stunning descriptions.

Thea was a good main character, she was naive and made very questionable decisions, but she was overall likable. She seemed too trusting of some people but too wary of others. I did not understand why she cared for Will so much. Thea’s overall development was great to see, it was a minimal change, but she felt stronger as a person by the end.

The side characters were good, but I wish we had seen them more of them; as it was, they did not feel fleshed out enough. Dominic, Valentin, Rahel, and Thea’s father should all have been developed more. The most developed side character was Will, he seemed shady from the beginning, and I was not surprised when it was revealed what type of person he really is.

Overall, it was a good book, and definitely something you should pick up if you like historical fantasy or the premise sounds interesting.

I love YA books but I tend to get frustrated with ones that follow the exact same types of formulas. So, I was excited to see that while “A Golden Fury” has some steadfast and true YA elements, it does take interesting turns away from standard YA tropes.

The fantasy novel follows Thea Hope, a 17-year-old French girl living in the 18th century. She’s a trained alchemist (like her mother), and the book starts right off with an exciting bang when Thea’s mother appears to go mad after working in her lab. As she goes off the deep end, Thea escapes to visit her father in Oxford, England – even though the two have never met. The characters of Thea’s mother and father were both really uniquely written (nearly all of their actions felt surprising to me). The rest of the story follows Thea’s quest to make the Philosopher’s Stone – an alchemic element that is said to have ultimate healing powers. The only problem is that Thea’s mother’s illness is directly linked to her working on the stone. So, will Thea also go mad while trying to make the stone and save the people around her?

I felt like the pacing of “A Golden Fury” was perfect. The frequent change in setting made it feel like new dangers and conflicts were present after each couple of chapters. I also loved that the traditional love triangle so present in YA books was there, but had several unique and fresh twists so that the theme didn’t feel stale at all.

I enjoyed the ending of the novel as well – all loose ends were tied up and it felt satisfying to find out where each character ended up. The best part is that there were still sad yet realistic conclusions for each of the characters – it felt more genuine instead of the author trying to wrap up everyone’s story with an unnecessary happy ending.

The writing style is really strong with a great flow to it, but there was an element of cohesion that felt like it was missing at times. Otherwise, I’d happily recommend this to YA fantasy lovers! Thea is a heroine who fights for what she wants and is still willing to sacrifice her best interests to help others – a perfect YA protagonist!

This one is kinda hard for me to rate. I had really high hopes especially with such a pretty cover.
Unfortunately it didn’t work out for me. There were alchemist, philosopher stone, a clever girl... Basically reminded me of a certain "philosopher stone" book. (Harry Potter, anyone?)
Sadly this book was too slow for me. The starting was really good but after 60/70 pages it felt flat and well..boring. I didn’t feel anything for the characters. Didn’t even feel the need to finish the book. I just wanted to get over with it. This is not how you supposed to be feel for a book.
I guess I was hoping for more mystery and romance.
The author has great potential I believe since this is her debut. I hope her next books are gonna be better than this one.


Thanks to netgalley and the publishers for providing me an arc in exchange for an honest review.

A Golden Fury by Samantha Cohoe is a YA adventure with fantasy elements set against the backdrop of the French Revolution. Thea Hope is a prospective alchemist who has trained with her mother , the infamous Marguerite Hope, from a very young age. She knows that she has the skills and knowledge to be as good as Marguerite, if not even better but now her mother has started to shut her out of their lab and is acting very strangely. Together they had come very close to creating the legendary Philosopher's Stone which not only has the ability to turn base metals into gold, but will also confer immortality and has healing powers , but now Marguerite has become secretive and aggressive. When Thea manages to catch a glimpse of her mother's notes she learns that a curse on the stone will cause madness in those who try to create it. Forced by her mother's madness to flee France in search of the father she has never met , Thea ends up at Oxford and soon finds herself caught up in another attempt to create the Stone despite her warnings about the Curse and its effects. When things take a turn for the worse Thea finds herself on the run with a new companion, ending up in the slums of London where more danger awaits and Thea will have to make a very difficult choice.
This was a fun blend of adventure and fantasy, and I enjoyed the small touches of history that grounded the story in a sense of reality. Thea is a really good character, strong and determined but not without flaws, most notably her naivete. I thought the complicated nature of her relationships with both parents was well handled. I also appreciated that romance did not dominate the story, while it did have a part to play it was not overwhelming . It was also good to see Thea develop a friendship with another male character without any hint of a love triangle. this is something I would like to see more of in YA fiction.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the Publisher, all opinions are my own.

Thank you Wednesday Books for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I would have easily read A Golden Fury in one sitting if I didn’t have classes in the morning (I also had a chemistry class during which I kept thinking about this book and alchemy)! The story is so captivating and the writing style is so good that I couldn’t put this book down.

I loved the setting. I’ll admit that I was expecting the French Revolution to have a bigger role in this book but it hasn’t disappointed me at all. I love historical fiction and some of my favourite settings include Oxford, London and France… so this book was perfect for me.

Thea is definitely my favourite character. She’s strong and determined and I loved her motivation, even though some of her decisions are pretty questionable… but they are part of her character development. I also really liked Dominic, the boy who helped Thea’s father in his laboratory. He is so precious and must be protected at all costs!

There is almost no romance in this book. Normally I love romance in books but the lack of it in “A Golden Fury” hasn’t bothered me at all, on the contrary I really appreciated it.

It was my first time reading a book in which alchemy played a big role and I loved this mix of magic and science.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone who’s intrigued by alchemy, loves historical fiction and determined female characters! I would also say that it’s a perfect book to read in Fall thanks to its dark and mysterious atmosphere.

A Golden Fury is one of those books that you read in one sitting. You start and before you know it, you've reached the last page !

First of all, I loved the plot. Thea is a young alchemist working on the Philosopher's Stone with her mother. However, soon, before her mother finishes it, she is hit with a violent illness that seems to be affecting everyone who tries to create the Stone... To cure her mother, Thea embarks on an adventure to try and finish the Stone herself. But who to trust when you wield such a potential power ? Add to that the fact that the Stone almost seems... alive, and you're in for a fabulous book !

Alchemy set in the late 1780's makes for quite an atmospheric read, and I loved the mood created by the author ! It could have been tricky to write, but Samantha Cohoe did a fantastic job talking about alchemy and keeping the story interesting.

Character-wise, we have Thea, main character who's quite brave and feelings-driven (except when it come to alchemy). She's quite loveable, but she wasn't my favorite character. Many side ones are much more interesting, for they're not all good or all bad. Many of the people who know about Thea's potential ability to finish the Stone evolve a lot around Thea and reveal different personalities. I loved seeing some characters' ambivalence. There were some morally grey characters and it made for an edgier mood in the plot. You never really know if you can trust everyone and I loved being surprised by some plot twists !

If you didn't understand with all that, let me sum it up : I really loved the book. It's fast-paced, has numerous interesting characters, the plot is really cool. The only little thing I regret is that we never really get the answer to some questions I had. Maybe in the next book ? I know I'll definitely read it :)

A Golden Fury was a delicious cocktail of genres that delivered a satisfying and robust story. The historical setting, which was beautifully showcased and well researched, created the perfect backdrop for Thea's journey. We see her at the beginning as a dedicated pupil in the study of alchemy under her esteemed, and demanding mother's tutelage. Their tireless, and almost finished, work towards creating the alchemist's ultimate goal, The Philosopher's Stone, comes to a staggering halt when her mother falls into a state of insanity and destroys their progress. Thea soon discovers that there is an ancient curse that will send anyone who attempts to create The Stone into madness. This concept was fascinating and the mystery of it really propelled the action forward. While the plot isn't the most fast-paced, it has a strong driving force that kept me invested and wanting to know more. Thea was a strong-willed, whip-smart, and likable heroine. She has some difficult decisions to make, and seeing her struggle through them brought her to life in a very real way. The supporting characters were all complex, and I loved not knowing who to trust. Her father, another gifted alchemist, was especially difficult to figure out, as well as her childhood crush and confidant, Will. There was just the right hint of romance underlying the events of the story, without overwhelming the other elements. Overall, A Golden Fury is a wonderful, dark, historical fantasy that is an ideal read to get lost in this Fall.

3.5 Stars

Look at how pretty the cover is! I do really like this cover and I think it will look great on my shelf next to my Stalking Jack the Ripper series! I love the golden tones and how it puts a spin on the ever-so-popular "girl in a pretty dress".

Thea, Dominic, Will, and Valentin (as I believe these to be the most central characters of the book) were very well done. I think Thea and Valentin had a great deal of character growth and through that growth, we were able to pull some morality into the story. It was very well done.

I'm honestly not sure what to categorize this book as. It's not quite a fantasy, not quite a romance, not quite anything really. It's got bits of pieces of a few different genre's but nothing really stuck. Other than it's historical fiction but even that is marred by the magical aspects of it? I felt like the front half of the book was very well done, but maybe the author struggled with finding the right conclusion? It felt over-dramatic and forced for a few chapters in the last third of the book and I'm just not sure where we were going.

I did like the atmosphere and the settings. I think those were very well done. It's not often that I feel like an author has fully immersed me into a story down to the sense of smell, but Cohoe was able to do that.

Overall, I think if you enjoy historical fiction with a smidge of magic/alchemy, you'll probably enjoy this story. I will definitely be looking out for more from this author in the future.

I was instantly drawn to this stunning book as the cover design is easily one of the most beautiful pieces I have seen this year. I am often not one to read the synopsis but it caught my attention and I quickly found myself entangled in this unique world.

Throughout A Golden Fury we follow Thea, daughter to the infamous alchemist Marguerite Hope. The dream of being the first to successfully create the legendary Philosopher's Stone is within reach when Marguerite is thrown into an unexplained fit of madness and destroys everything they've worked towards. Thea finds herself ushered to England begrudgingly to live with a father she has never known as the French Revolution turns dangerous for the English. Once there she sets out to create her own Philosopher's Stone with the hope of curing her mother. The story unfolds from here as Thea navigates a male dominated world where her skills as an alchemist are both coveted and scorned by society...

The thing I loved about this book was that so many pieces were familiar to me as a fantasy reader and yet, everything felt new. This story was unlike any I've read before and I adored it for that reason alone. I immediately became enthralled in all facets of the character dynamics and every time a new character was introduced I found myself excited to learn just how they tied into this magically dark tale.

A couple of things to note is that the romance is minimal, and the pacing is quite slow. I had hoped for a stronger ending that allowed for closure and more character connection but overall I thoroughly enjoyed it!

I would recommend this book for anyone who loves strong female main characters, revolutionary Europe, and science!

"If alchemy was our religion, then we were its priests. We held the power, and we would reap the rewards, but the burdens were ours alone. No one could take them form us."

A huge thank you to NetGalley and Wednesdays Books for providing me with an e-arc in exchange for an honest review and for giving me the opportunity to participate in the blog tour. You can find my post at www.instagram.com/tlclark13

A Golden Fury by Samantha Cohoe is a standalone YA book about a young alchemist, Thea Hope who tries to get out of the shadow of her mother and the mental abuse that she is subjected to by her. She longs to create the legendary Philosopher’s Stone and be a famous alchemist. But upon creating the stone, her mother goes mad, and ships Thea off to be with her father, a man she's never known. Thea decides to create her own Philosopher's Stone and use it to cure her mother but soon realizes that the stone is cursed, and anyone who tries to make it to goes insane. Now with other alchemists on her tail to try to learn how to make the stone, she must run before anyone else gets hurt.

I loved Thea's character and the plot had lots of threads: family dynamic, betrayals, politics and for the most part held my interest. But somewhere in the middle, the threads started to spiral for me and I found myself no longer connecting to the story as much and struggling to finish the story. And the ending was ok but I felt like I wanted more out of Thea and her mother. All in all, not a bad read.