The Scarlet Alchemist is a triumph, a beautifully rendered blend of historical fiction and fantasy that had me from the first page to the ending, which is really just a pause until the next book comes out.

Fan Zilan is an alchemist who can do the most forbidden of tricks, resurrect the dead. It's not a neat art, and she relies on her two cousins both to do her work and to survive the dreariness of merchant life in Southern China. The three cousins want to go to the city and take exams that will allow them to have better lives.

The journey is full of dangers, which only grow when they arrive and Zilan attracts the attention of the Empress. She has already attracted the attention of the Crown Prince, and neither is a good thing. Notoriety brings envy and mortal peril, and soon Zilan finds herself at the center of a much larger set of circumstances.

I loved the alchemy as presented, it fits into the story in so many ways, but it is Zilan who truly transforms the most throughout the book. The next book should close out all the threads, and I can't wait find out what it brings to the three cousins.