Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Teen for providing me with a digital ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review!

Kacen Callender has been on my list of authors I want to read for awhile, so when I saw they had written a queer fantasy book featuring polyamorous characters, I was so excited to give it a try. The story takes place in a world where everyone is capable of using alchemy, but its use beyond the beginner-level is restricted to an elite few who receive a license to practice it. Ash, an 18-year-old trans man, applied to Lancaster College to study alchemy, but he was rejected. So, he is now working as a groundskeeper there and is studying alchemy in secret. One day, he is discovered by a prodigy apprentice, Ramsay Thorne, who agrees to teach Ash alchemy in exchange for help finding a powerful book. The two embark on a dangerous quest, strengthening their alchemy skills, dodging enemies, and even forming a poly relationship. This story has so many elements that I usually love in books - including many types of queer representation, intersectional themes, a unique fantasy world, and more. However, it unfortunately did not work for me. There were some interesting concepts and characters, but it truly felt like this should have been a three-part series, yet it was all shoved into one book.

My biggest issue with this novel is the pacing. It took me months to read this book, because it felt like such a chore. I would read what felt like 50+ pages in a sitting, only to look down at my screen and see I had only progressed 5%. I often got discouraged and would go read an entirely different book before picking this one up again. I think what caused this issue is that there was a lot of action thrown into the novel, but it was written in a shallow way. The entire plot takes place over approximately one month, but Ash meets and falls in love with two separate people, learns advanced levels of alchemy, adventures through many different towns and cities, and does so many more things I can't get into because of spoilers. None of the events were explained in much detail, so it was difficult to stay engaged. I never felt like I understood the characters, their motivations, or even the world or magic system.

I wish the author had divided this book's plot into multiple full-length novels. I would argue that there are three main sections of this book (Ash's time with Ramsay, Ash's time with Callum, and their time together as a group), and each of those sections could have been expanded into an entire novel. I would have loved to have spent more time watching Ash grow his relationships with Ramsay and Callum and to have learned more about the various settings. The different Houses seemed interesting, but they were extremely underutilized. Apparently there were many alchemists searching for the Book of Source, but we only saw a couple of them. If everything was slowed down and expanded upon, it would have been such a richer reading experience. Also, the magic system needed to be developed further at a steadier pace. Though Source is the main focus of this book, it is described so vaguely that I never understood what its limitations were. The main characters all naturally excelled at its use, and they could practice advanced alchemy very early on. So, it was hard to grasp the magic system when it felt like anyone could do anything with no clear rules.

Another major issue I have with Infinity Alchemist is Ash and his hot temper, He is so insufferable at many points throughout this story. He had a difficult life growing up, and I understand why he'd be so angry at the world. He is a great example of all of the issues with classism. However, the way he would go from 0 to 100 in anger and lash out at everyone was just over the top. No matter how high the stakes were, he would always be comfortable making a scene. There were countless times I physically rolled my eyes at his lack of self-awareness. He was on a journey for a greater cause, but he almost ruined it over and over again because he had to have the last word. It was difficult to read, and I have no idea how he convinced two other characters to fall in love with him.

My final big complaint about this story is the pacing of the romance. The polyamory is handled well (I'll discuss that more in a moment). However, the characters repeatedly go from hating one another to falling in love... sometimes with just a couple of chapters in between. They even have fights over major issues that are resolved immediately. I appreciated the queer and poly representation, but I had a tough time believing the romance, since it was so rushed. As with everything else in this story, if it had been slowed down so that the characters had room to grow together, it would have been so much better.

This book had a lot of potential, and I want to be sure to highlight the things it did well. The queer and poly representation here is great! I've never read a YA novel featuring polyamory, so the fact that it is included here and is done with care is amazing. There are many intersectional identities shown throughout the story, and they are also handled well. The characters are diverse in many ways (race, class, gender identity, and more), and that diversity is used to inform greater themes throughout the novel. I appreciated the focus on classism. It was also interesting to read about their society's prejudice against alchemy and think about how that could be a metaphor for prejudice in today's society. The themes felt authentic. I thought the writing was okay overall, but it shined whenever it was conveying a major theme.

I also liked Ramsay and Callum. Ramsay's gender-fluidity was refreshing; it was cool to read about how Source came into play with it. Callum had a unique backstory - I was intrigued by his perspective of wanting to make a change but feeling tied to familial obligations. The two characters balanced each other out well. The other side characters seemed interesting, but I wish they were featured more frequently. The Houses seemed to be thought out well; I would have loved to have seen more characters appear from different Houses, as well.

There was too much going on at once for this book to work for me. I wouldn't really recommend it to fantasy readers, because the fantasy is so underdeveloped. I would probably only recommend this to "romantasy" readers who enjoy romance in a fantasy setting, but who also don't mind if the fantasy elements take a backseat to the romance. If you are purely looking for a whirlwind of a novel featuring a polyamorous relationship in a fantasy world, you might like this. However, if you want a developed fantasy world with descriptive worldbuilding, I expect you'll be disappointed by this story. It looks like this might be the start of a series. I don't think I will read a second installment if it is published, unless it is much more developed than Infinity Alchemist.

2 out of 5 stars.

This debut YA sci-fi book by Kacen Callender made me a huge fan of the genre. Calendar has published other great novels – I have a signed copy of Hurricane Child. A combination of elements make this novel work: focus on alchemy – its magic and its science (and it’s forbidden use by some), three clear main characters, normalizing queer poly love interests, and not too many characters, which can dilute a story.

In this YA fantasy, Ash, Ramsey, and Callum rely on each other’s strengths and roles in society with one goal in mind: to do the right thing. But, who defines what is right? And, who can be trusted?

Featuring trans, queer, and polyamorous characters of color, this teen novel bends the path in a very good way regarding current YA fantasy and sci-fi novel trends.

With themes of gender, parental roles, poverty, and social class, this novel addresses many large questions in the world, including, who gets to decide what is right?

Thank you #NetGalley for the ARC!

3.5/5 stars for me.

I had high hopes for this going into it. The premise sounded intriguing and queer voices in fantasy books have been needed in this category. I'll start with the good. Kacen does a fantastic job managing pronouns and identities throughout this book. Not only that but they managed to incorporate it into the world building. For example one of the passages I highlighted "People like Ramsay were thought to have lived hundreds of thousands of previous lives, experiencing so many genders that their energy felt no need to settle on only one." This is just one example of how they were able to incorporate queer identities throughout. That said, the books pacing felt off throughout and it made it hard to feel invested. At times it felt rushed such as the initial romance between two characters and then at other times I felt that I couldn't keep up. I felt that I was missing some of the depth I would like to see in some of the relationships. That said, it could also be because the target audience is for teens/young adults. I liked the ending and did not feel that there was any large cliffhanger that some books will do if they plan to do a series. If this did become a series I personally do not feel that I would need to move forward into the next entry.

2⭐️- Honestly, I liked the idea of this book, but it did not hold my attention and I almost DNF twice.

Thank you @torteen for the #gifted copy of this book!

What it’s about:

Ash is a natural born alchemist that no one knows about. He did apply to study magic however was declined by an elite school forcing him to become a groundskeeper instead. Practicing in secret he is discovered by one of the apprentices at the school named Ramsay. Thinking quick on his feet Ash positions himself to help Ramsay versus be arrested when he promises to help find the powerful Book of Source. Teamed together they also partner with Callum who is also a part of this magical world.

Thoughts: I did really enjoy the extraordinary world this author made with the alchemists. I enjoyed each character in their unique way and thought this author did a great job creating conflict within the characters as well as social class and their family histories. This book covers a lot of self discovery and diversity within each relationship which I felt made this book very unique and inventive. If you are in the mood for a more intellectual book with greater depth than the average young adult book grab this one! It will be coming out very soon!

This is probably my favorite book Kacen Callender has written to-date. Though to be fair, I haven't read all of their books. What started as a pretty generic high fantasy novel evolved into something beautiful. I absolutely adore the way they turned the love triangle trope upside-down. And this is an actual love triangle. So often in YA books person A has two potential suitors and it's called a love triangle but that's really not how triangles work. You see if person B and Person C both love person A but don't care about each other it forms a caret /\ which is a perferctly fine story point but don't call it a love triangle unless at least one of the two people in love with person A also loves their 'rival.' Sorry for the rant but seeing it done this well makes me realize how annoying I find it when the trope is done poorly. The magic system is fabulous as is the world building. Unique and diverse cast of chracters and an ending I'm sure I'll never forget.

Stunning, magical, lush queer, and passionate, the Infinity Alchemist is a sure fire win for those who love who love this authors work already.

This book had me feeling all types of ways, at first, I was slightly bored and really wanted to DNF it. That would have been a mistake. This book is a beautiful love story woven into a new and very fascinating take on schools of magic or alchemy in this case. Ash, Callum, and Ramsay have wonderful dynamics and the character growth for some of them is nothing short of impressive. This book is like a 4.25/5 for me, though ofc we can't break up our stars. This book represented the LGBTQ+ community so fully and beautifully, and not just the typical wlw or mlm romances either, this was something all completely its own.

Thank you to NetGalley and Publisher for the advanced copy!

Ash is caught practicing magic without a license by brilliant apprentice Ramsay. Instead of turning Ash in, Ramsay surprises him by making him an offer. If he helps them find the Book of Source, then they’ll teach him magic.

As they work together their feelings grow but Ash learns the mission is riskier than he thought. When they’re pitted against influential and powerful alchemists, he is forced to discover his own definition of power and how far he’ll go to seize it.

This was such an amazing read! I loved it. It was such a unique experience that I am glad I got to experience. I enjoyed being engrossed in this world of magic and intrigue for a little while with these characters. I love a book with magic, especially when it is explained well, and that is exactly what happened here.

One part of this book that I particularly enjoyed reading about was gender fluidity. The author seamlessly wove the characters gender into the story, and I wasn’t confused at all despite the gender switching often. Ash, the main character, was also diverse in that they were a trans character. Again, the author did a fantastic job writing this into the story, so it was flawlessly carried out and implemented. In the characters’ world, all of the characters were accepted no matter their orientation, and it was honestly quite refreshing to read, if only that was the world we lived in. It was really interesting for me to read how this part of the story worked because it is an area that I am working on learning more about, so I can be more cognizant and aware.

Even though this was fantasy, this wasn’t high fantasy, so the world wasn’t too abruptly different from our own, which made it easy for me to grasp. I often struggle with fantasy due to complex world building, and that was not the case here, I rather enjoyed it. I loved how the magic had a system and the system was laid out and explained nicely so I could understand it. It wasn’t all thrown at me right at the start either, so I had time to warm up to what was happening.

I was sucked into this book from the start, and I didn’t come up for air, I loved it so much. The pacing was quick, and the ending was just as quick. While this was a five star read for me, I do wish a little more care would have been taken on the ending to explain things. However, it was a satisfying ending, and I loved this book so much.

A copy of this review will be featured on my blog on or around publication day. speedreadstagram.com

Thank you so much to Tor Teen @torteen and Netgally @netgalley for this e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

I wanted to like this book, good thing it's a trilogy because the next parts may surpass this beginning. You have no idea how much I wanted to like the book, the representation, the magic system or the closeness of the author talking to me as a friend. It wasn't for this story and it's not fair because it deserves the potential, I think it was a risky idea but I didn't have the scope.

This was wonder of those YA books that I read as an adult that made me realize it's best for a different age group. That's a huge compliment. Too often I come away thinking the characters are adults masquerading as teenagers but this was one of those books where I'm like "Wow, these characters are young."

The angst that we are introduced to with Ash feels spot on. Something I would've loved when I was younger but now feel distant from. His relationships with the people around him were great as the plot unfolded. It was exciting to read a book geared toward a younger audience exploring gender and polyamory.

Through mainly Ash we learn about alchemy and the world that he lives in, which can be overwhelming at times. The book starts big and only grows bigger not allowing a lot of time for the reader to settle into the narrative. But that's ok. Ash is learning and so are way, it really helps amplify some of the moments.

While this book was not for me, I do love coming away from a book and being like this is perfect for the teens in my life. One that I'd recommend to libraries, parents, and teachers looking for something for their teens to better connect with. It's a fun fast paced fantasy book oozing with teen angst. I would've never dreamt of reading such a queer book a few years ago and am happy to have this in the world.

Kacen Callender is a big deal if the fantasy world, so I was stoked to read this book!
There was nothing wrong with this book. The writing was descriptive and crisp, and I loved the creative magic system. The LGBTQ+ representation was wonderful.
Sadly, I just couldn't get into it. Maybe I was too hyped, or maybe it's burn out from YA fantasy. I'm going to take a breather, and return to this story with the fresh eyes it deserves.

I had to dnf this after the first several chapters because the main character and their everything just was literally putting me in a bad mood.

So, I just did not like the constant thought process of the main character feeling like the poorest person because they did not get into this school. They do work at the school as a grounds keeper/gardener. But, the rich students are really rude to them, which yeah I get that... but the whole time Ash is feeling sorry for themself, they also feel like everyone else is incredibly stupid. Which, I personally just don't like reading this point of view. The thing is, I totally get this feeling, which may be why it's so annoying to read about. Because feeling like this is not helpful and usually makes any situation worse for me personally so I associate this vibe with just feeling negative. Anyways, I really do apologize, but I had to put this one down.

This is just my opinion and I really appreciate receiving this review copy from Netgalley and the Publisher.

Infinity Alchemist is a YA fantasy novel featuring queer and trans characters caught up in a polyamorous love affair while hunting down a magical book that could bring down the end of their world as they know it.
Thank you to NetGalley and Tor for the opportunity to read and review this book. I have read several other books by this author and was delighted to hear that they were venturing into fantasy.
This world has an intriguing magical system and three very likable main character. While I didn’t necessarily care about the actual “we need to stop this person, we need to find this book, save the world” portion of the book, I did enjoy it and I’m giving it 3.5⭐️/5.
The pacing of this book felt a bit off at times and by the time the big battle ending came about I didn’t have much invested into it. Where this book excelled was in the character development of the three leads. Ash, Ramsey and Callum were my favorite parts of this book and the relationships they shared/ love they all felt for each other while simultaneously not trusting each other. The conclusion was a bit rushed but ultimately satisfactory and I would have liked to see more of their life together at the end. I will definitely be featuring this book on my social media closer to its release date.

I really wanted to love this more, but this dragged and fell flat for me almost beyond endurance. The pacing and the tone was just off. Things just seemed to be happening with a clinical plot inertia and zero spark or emotional depth to the interpersonal relationships. The writing was just so wooden that it's almost difficult to believe the author already has multiple well-lauded books out already. Even the world-building felt like it was almost an afterthought when not just infodump about very specific arenas. It's frustrating perhaps because there were so many elements to love in this -- the interesting handling of gender identities, the poly relationship at the heart of this, the exploration of trauma rooted in parental abuse, the magical system -- all of which could have been leveraged to tell the same story in a more emotionally engaging way. As it stands, it was painfully inert, and yet, the story feels complete enough that I am not super invested in checking out the barely dangled potential sequel.

I received a free eBook ARC via NetGalley for an honest review.

Infinity Alchemist offers a fun YA fantasy read with LGBT and Poly representation. However, the beginning feels both rushed and slow-paced, setting up world-building elements that don't immediately matter, making things initially feel disjointed. Additionally, the characters can sometimes feel a bit flat and have the same voice. Despite this, it remains an overall fast, enjoyable, and simple read.

Tor Teen does it again, but I am not surprised. Kacen Callendar is great, and Infinity Alchemist hits it out of the park. I love seeing the queer representation and the characters are a true delight. I can't wait to see what else comes from this series.

I really liked what this book was doing. It had a lot to say about power and rage, but there was also a strong feeling of compassion that really worked to elevate this book from something I liked and would recommend to something I loved and want to read again. I highlighted more quotes while reading this than I have in a while, in fact.

I loved the characters, as well as their relationships with each other. I thought the book did a really good job emphasizing the differences between them and still managing to make me feel equally invested in all of them. I genuinely couldn't pick a favorite, which, of course, is the point.

I thought the magic system was interesting and well-done, but in all honesty, I am never particularly invested in magic systems, so I'm sure other people can speak to that more. What I particularly liked was the detail that everyone can recognize people's correct gender identity through Source, including always being able to tell what pronouns are correct at any given time for genderfluid people like Ramsay. (Also loved seeing a major character who is genderfluid in a traditionally published YA fantasy novel! My teen self is positively <i>vibrating</i> with excitement.)

This was my first Kacen Callender book, but it will certainly not be my last. I can't wait for the next book in this series, but I will almost certainly be checking out their backlist now as well.

Thank you to Tor Teen for the ARC!

Infinity Alchemist is a gripping, imaginative fantasy novel that will have you on the edge of your seat. It takes place in a world where magic is real and know as alchemy. The novel follows three teens through harrowing adventure, romance, and self-discovery. It explores family dynamic and trauma with the balance of the world hanging in the outcome.

The LGBTQIA+ rep in Infinity Alchemist is amazing. While integral to who the characters were as people, it wasn’t who they are or the entire plot, it simply was. Callum, Ramasy,and Ash are the most adorable pollicule and show and amazing ability to communicate thoughtfully and truthfully. I sincerely hope for a second book, between them and the state the world was in when left, I have a strong desire to see what is in store for them next.

I received an ARC and am leaving a review of my own volition.

Infinity Alchemist is the kind of book I wish I could have read when I was in high school. I thought the descriptions of the characters' sexualities and exploration of polyamory were excellent. It's a very complex conversation, and having these characters explore that together in a loving and trusting way is important. Even if you are not queer or interested in polyamory, reading books like this can broaden your understanding of other communities, even if it makes you uncomfortable.

Ashen Woods is an unlicensed alchemist, which is a crime. He practices his alchemy in secret and works hard not to get caught. One day while cleaning the office of alchemy professor Ramsey Thorne, Ash spies interesting writings on the Book of Source. He can't help but glance through the notes and becomes inspired to use alchemy to create one of the symbols drawn in Ramsey's notes. Of course, Ramsey chooses that moment to return to their office and catches Ash in the act. Instead of turning Ash in, Ramsey offers a bargain. Help them find the Book of Source and learn alchemy from Ramsey, or be turned in. Obviously, Ash helps Ramsey.

This is where the story takes off as we learn more about Ash and Ramsey. Ramsey is a genderfluid character whose parents committed mass murder in the search for the Book of Source. Ash is a trans man whose mother passed away a few years ago, and whose father is a prominent advisor to a top house. Of course, his father doesn't know he exists. Further on in the story, we're also introduced to Callum, who is Ramsey's ex-boyfriend and a member of the Redguard (the police).

I did think this was a wonderful, complex story that deals with class and barriers to education/wealth. So often in the story, people of the higher class will tell Ash that if he wants something, then he simply has to work hard for it. Ash tries to point out barriers to entry and other systemic issues, but most of the time the ruling class's response is "tough luck kid, try harder." This type of rhetoric is so common, and I think it can be helpful for younger readers to read these arguments.

The thing I didn't love about the book was that the main storyline dragged for me. I found the personal relationships way more interesting than the search for the book. None of it was very engaging, and the description of how alchemy worked was so confusing. I felt like the author could have easily added about an extra chapter of information about how alchemy worked and the levels. In the front of the book, there is a breakdown of the houses, and I felt like they could have easily included a list of alchemy levels.

This is a good book, but I don't think I'll read the next in the series.

Thanks NetGalley and Tor for the ARC.