Scott, M. (2007). The alchemyst. New York, NY: Delacorte Press.
Interest Level: YA
Reading Level: 6.4
Genre: Fantasy
Subjects: Nicholas Flamel, John Dee, Alchemists, Magic, Supernatural, Brothers and sisters, Twins, San Francisco (Calif.), Occult, Paranormal.
The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel:
1 – The Alchemyst
2- The Magician
3 – The Sorceress
4 – The Necromancer
5 – The Warlock
6 – The Enchantress
He holds the secret that can end the world
The story begins in The Alchemyst with an attack on a bookstore in San Francisco by Dr. John Dee and there gollums, creatures he created. They steal the Book of Mage from the store, which was being protected by Nicolas Flamel, the alchemist. During this battle for the book, Josh, an employee in the store, holds on to the last two pages of the book, which he tears out keeps in his procession. These pages are critical for the intent of Dee and his employer, the Dark Guardian Morrigan. During this, Flamel’s wife is taken hostage by Dee and his being held in ransom for those last pages. Sophie, Josh’s twin sister, is also there when this occurs. Flamel takes the twins to see Scathach, a second generation Elder, for her assistance to rescue Perenelle. They are again attacked by Dee and his gollums, and escape once again. They go to Marin County and see Hektate, an Elder who lives in an alternate realm from the one the twins are familiar with. Her powers are rooted in a giant tree that she lives in, that is filled with many rooms. She takes them in, and shows Sophie her aura, the root of her powers. In the Book of Mage, it is talked about twins, one with gold and one with a silver aura that will have great power and influence on events of the future. Before she has time to bring Josh’s aura out, her realm is attacked, by Morrigan and her forces, including Dee. Her tree is destroyed, and with it, she dies. Flamel, Scathach, and the twins escape, and drive to Ojai, where they go to see the Witch of Endor. The Witch is one of a few that can awaken Josh’s aura and teach both he and Sophie how to use their powers. Before that can happen, Dee finds them and awakens all the dead in the area with is necromancer skills. They go after Flamel and group, but they escape to Paris via a leygate, a means to travel immediately from one location to another. They escape in time, and leave the Witch to destroy the dead and survive the attack.
Nicolas Flamel, is also known as Nick Fleming, a bookstore owner who, unbeknownst to the student that works for him, is an alchemist and immortal, born in France in 1330. Flamel is the keeper of the Book of Mage. His immortality comes from a spell in the book that needs to be done each month to maintain immortality. Nicolas has become a master alchemist, able to turn metals to gold and other such changes. Perenelle Flamel, Nicolas’ wife, is also immortal, who is captured by the evil forces of the story and held captive. She has the power to communicate with ghosts and other spirits. She also has studied more of the magic of the book, and is very adept at those arts. Josh and Sophie, twins that become a part of the story as Josh works for Nick in his bookstore and Sophie works with Perenelle in the coffee shop across the street. When the first confrontation with the evil forces begins, Josh and Sophie are swept up into the battle and later discover that they may be the twins spoken of in the Book of Mage.
Dr. John Dee, also an immortal, desires the Book of Mage for himself and those he works for. He can create creatures such as gollums, creatures of mud and slime, and is a practiced necromancer, one that can raise the dead. Scathach, also known as Scatty is known in mythology as the Warrior Maid, the King Maker, the Daemon Slayer, she is a second generation Elder, a being older than man. She is asked by Nicolas, to assist in the rescue of his wife, Perenelle. Morrigan, a first generation Dark Elder, very powerful, who has hired Dee to work for her in gaining the Book of Mage, which would allow her to control humankind. She was once known as the Crow Goddess and the Goddess of Death and Destruction. She is able to summon birds and flying animals to do her bidding. Hektate: Also a first generation Elder, but not from the Dark side. She has a kingdom in an alternate realm, in the center of which is a tree that sustains her. At the start of the day, she is a very young girl; as the day wears on, she ages, until at night, she is an old woman. Her powers are great and she awakens the magic, the aura, in Sophie but does not have time to do so in Josh, before attacked by Morrigan and Dr. Dee. The Witch of Endor, a witch, living in Ojai, California, who the group goes to for hiding and she provides a gate for them to escape to, to Paris, Nicholas’ birthplace.
This is the first book in the Secrets of Immortal Nicholas Flamel series (The Magician, The Sorceress, The Necromancer, The Warlock, The Enchantress). It is well written, entrancing and draws the reader in. After finishing, most readers will immediately want to get the second book of the series due to the first intense cliffhanging conclusion. And, as the character Perenelle states at the end of the book, “On the contrary, it is now only just beginning.” Those who have read novels by Rick Riordan (Percy Jackson & The Olympians or Kane Chronicles), Philip Kerr’s Children of the Lamp series, and J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series will most likely enjoy this slightly more mature tale as Michael Scott combines modernism with various aspects of mythology and legends throughout the span of time. This is an amazingly enthralling story, filled with mythological gods, vampires, werewolves, and even the elixir of life. The Alchemyst is a fabulous read, as is the entire Secret of Immortal Nicholas Flamel series.
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