The Alchemy of Forever
Avery Williams
Release date: January 3rd, 2012
by Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers
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After spending six
hundred years on Earth, Seraphina Ames has seen it all. Eternal life
provides her with the world's riches but at a very high price: innocent
lives. Centuries ago, her boyfriend, Cyrus, discovered a method of
alchemy that allows them to take the bodies of other humans from jumping
from one vessel to the next, ending the human's life in the process. No
longer able to bear the guilt of what she's done, Sera escapes from
Cyrus and vows to never kill again.
Then sixteen-year old Kailey Morgan gets into a horrific car
accident right in front of her, and Sera accidentally takes over her
body while trying to save her. For the first time, Sera finds herself
enjoying the life of the person she's inhabiting--and falling in love
with the boy who lives next door. But Cyrus will stop at nothing until
she's him again, and every moment she stays, she's putting herself and
the people she's grown to care about in danger. Will Sera have to give
up the one thing that's eluded her for centuries: true love?
*A copy was provided by Simon & Schuster for review purposes*
Reincarnation
has always been an iffy subject for me. I'm not easily interested or
impressed with it. I can happily say that the Alchemy of Forever is by
far the best reincarnation story I have ever read (though I haven't read
that many - but still it was awesome!). In The Alchemy of Forever, when
Seraphina dies next to Cyrus, the man who was to take her hand, he
gives her a drop of Alchemy potion he's discovered, that allows
Seraphina to attach her soul to another body. She can now live forever
jumping from body to body. How cool is that?
What would you do
if one day, you were suddenly in someone else's body? Living someone
else's life. Someone you have never met, with a family and friends,
classes and hobbies. Well... fake it 'til you make it! And that's exactly
what Sera did! This premise, to me, is extremely fascinating. We've all
wondered what it would be like to live someone else's life at one point
or another. It was very interesting, and often amusing, to watch Sera go
through this. The girl has never even gone to school! And now she's
supposed to act like a normal 16 year old!? It was great! I was
completely engrossed in it from the very first page. Sera is a fabulous
protagonist who is extremely brave. I loved everything about her: her
personality, her voice, even her name - Seraphina - it's so chic, isn't it?
Trying
to get Seraphina back, Cyrus will go to great lengths. He's the
ultimate villain with the ultimate weapon: immortality. How can you
escape someone who can not only live forever, but can LOOK like
ANYONE? He can take any body he chooses. And he's the type who will do
anything to get what he wants. He kills mercilessly, and forgives no
one. No wonder Sera escaped him! But, as you can surely guess, she sees
him again.
The writing is excellent, the pacing is perfect,
the romance is wonderful, and the end is heartbreaking. There is
nothing I disliked about this book. Even the killer cliffhanger is
extremely interesting (and what's funny is I sort of expected it, but it
still shocked me!). With most books you can often guess where the story
is going to go after a cliffhanger, but this time I have absolutely no
clue what Avery is planning for us. I'm positive that it will be
gripping and surely full of emotions. However, I may not get to read it,
because I may die waiting.
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| 5 Hot Espressos |
