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subparcupcake's review against another edition
2.0
This was just ok for me. It sort of felt like there was something missing. I can't put my finger on exactly what, but something. It started out interesting, but just failed to hold my attention overall. By the halfway point I was just waiting for it to be over and pushing through just to get it over with. And that's not to say it was bad though... It was fine. Like I said, it just didn't hold my attention. Whenever I read it my mind would drift and instead of comprehending the words on the page I would instead be thinking about what I wanted for dinner, what I was going to do over the weekend, whether or not turkey's laid eggs and if so why we don't eat them? Side note, I googled it and it's because turkey's don't lay eggs very often. Also, if you type "why don't we eat" into google the first result is completed with "turkey eggs". So I'm not the only one ever to wonder!
This has gotten way off track. Bottom line, it was only ok and I'm glad it's over. I have nothing bad to say about the book, it just wasn't my thang.
This has gotten way off track. Bottom line, it was only ok and I'm glad it's over. I have nothing bad to say about the book, it just wasn't my thang.
emilyrandolph_epstein's review against another edition
4.0
A thouroughly enjoyable read. The characters were well developed and likable. I especially enjoyed the setting inanalternate Elizabethan England. Overall a fun read.
branch_c's review against another edition
4.0
With a unique alternate historical premise and plenty of realistic detail, this book does a fantastic job of drawing the reader into the setting. The characters are likable and interesting and the plot is creative and enjoyable to follow. Regarding Coby, who's a woman passing as a man, I'm skeptical as to whether she could really be fooling everyone as well as she seems to. But hey, what do I know. Also the title seems pretty much random - although there were certainly "souls" involved, as far as I could tell there was nothing like alchemy going on here, and even if there was, there was no one character who would have been considered the alchemist. But okay, no big deal. There were also a couple of magical sequences that seemed rather vague about what was really happening, but I think this was intentional and there's more to be explored and explained in subsequent books. This one was impressive and fun, so I'll probably keep on with the series.
bookpenguin's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.75
jaymeks's review against another edition
3.0
This was a solid 3 star book for me. The first half of the book really dragged too much to make up for the action and intrigue of the second half. I generally liked most of the characters, but feel like there was just a missing piece for me throughout the book. Not in a bad way, I just didn't gravitate immediately to the story.
leontiy's review against another edition
5.0
Review originally posted at: http://leocristea.wordpress.com/2012/06/05/the-alchemist-of-souls-by-anne-lyle-nights-masque-1/
I’ll start by saying this is the first book from this imprint I’ve read; mainly as I’d never really heard of Angry Robot Books before (shame on me!). The majority of the titles I read have been published by Orbit, Gollancz, and Tor, and since I am fairly new to alternate history fantasy, or historical fantasy (a particular flavour that seems very common to the imprint) it’s not a surprise to me that this is my first.
And what a first to begin with! I honestly haven’t had this much fun with a book since Douglas Hulick’s Among Thieves. They are very different books, but they share the same sort of cloak-and-dagger flavour.
I must begin by saying that Anne Lyle is a storyweaver of the highest calibre; her elegant prose is nothing short of beautiful. I enjoyed every single second of this book and everything from the characters and their relationships, to the exceptionally tight plotting, to the believable intrigue heralds Lyle as not just an insanely talented new writer, but also a poet and true master of words.
It might be somewhat obvious by now that The Alchemist of Souls was a hit with me. I’ll try not to gush too much hereafter…
I’m very new to real-world or alternative history fantasy—that isn’t of the urban variety—and I am woefully unused to the genre and the way it works, having only read The Fallen Blade, by Jon Courtenay Grimwood, thus far. I’d been under the impression that I might not like a fantasy of this type—that it wouldn’t be “fantasy” enough for me, being set in our real world. In the end, that didn’t matter a jot. The most magical thing about alternate or historical real world fantasy is that anything goes. I suppose that’s why it’s fantasy.
Lyle’s imagination is a vivid and colourful one, and boy does it show through. The Alchemist of Souls offers, alongside the usual life of Elizabethan England, the skraylings—creatures from the New World—and a fashion of alchemical magic and wonder that gives a whole different edge to the story.
The characters are believable and exceptionally well written; there isn’t a single member of the cast who doesn’t vie for your readerly affections—and there certainly isn’t one who doesn’t receive them. I liked everyone. I forget the last time I read a book and liked absolutely everyone. Sure enough, the characters have flaws and the way in which the other characters see them differs depending on POV—it’s interesting and builds a gentle sense of natural conflict and tension that is so very real that it brings the characters to life on a whole new level.
Maliverny Catlyn is the protagonist, and at first glance he appears to be your typical rogue-with-a-fancy-rapier. From a noble line, but down on his luck, Mal doesn’t seem to be anything special, and at first, the supporting cast—player Gabriel “Angel” Parish, scribe, Ned Faulkner, Mal’s friend and Gabriel’s lover, and Coby, a tireman for a troupe of actors with the patronage of Lord Suffolk—seem to be far more interesting and layered. Of course, there is far, far more to Mal than meets the eye—more than even he knows.
Gabriel and Ned begin the story apart, with Ned mooning over an uninterested Mal—but that doesn’t stop Ned hoping—with Gabriel readying himself within his group of players, Suffolk’s Men, headed by Master Naismith for a playing contest, whilst Mal is conveyed to the Tower of London in questionable circumstances, for reasons contrary to his expectations. Meanwhile Coby—Jacob Hendricks—is a young Dutch boy fending for himself whilst holding a treacherous secret to his chest. The events of the story all intertwine and pull the characters closer together, with unexpected revelations and circumstances along the way.
Not one character is under- or overdone and when the viewpoint skips from one to another, there is no sense of lost pace or momentum. All the characters are equally entertaining and with equally riveting plot arcs of their own.
I particularly enjoyed the way Lyle handles homosexuality and gay sex. Since she’s a woman, I’m certain it’s something she’s never experienced, but instead of treating it as something alien, she appears to write simply as though she were writing love/sex scenes between any two characters that share lust or love for one another. And the prose is all the richer for it. I haven’t read many gay sex scenes in fantasy. In fact, the only character I’ve read who is homosexual is The Legends of the Red Sun’s (Mark Charan Newton) Brynd Lathraea. There was something more to the relationships between Lyle’s men, something far more passionate and real.
As a bisexual male, I definitely appreciated a break from swooning maidens and heroes with their eyes agog at the heroine’s fine, fine cleavage. It was a refreshing change, and a fantastic reminder of how much closer men used to be with one another, in light of the role women played, historically, in Lyle’s chosen time-setting. If we’re not mincing words; I bloody loved it.
There are more twists, plots, and subtle machinations in The Alchemist of Souls than you can shake a pointy thing at—and damn does Lyle write every second, every detail, every thread so impeccably well that you’d think she’s been writing books for centuries. Yes, she’s that good.
It has been a long time since I encountered an author whose work I would describe as poetry also. Anne Lyle is one such author. The Alchemist of Souls, as a work of elegant fantasy prose, should be considered alongside Rothfuss’ The Name of the Wind and (by my favour) Elspeth Cooper’s Songs of the Earth.
Anne Lyle’s writing is beautiful, elegant and gripping; be prepared to be swept away to a rich and colourful depiction of a different Elizabethan England, where treachery and danger abound.
I’ll start by saying this is the first book from this imprint I’ve read; mainly as I’d never really heard of Angry Robot Books before (shame on me!). The majority of the titles I read have been published by Orbit, Gollancz, and Tor, and since I am fairly new to alternate history fantasy, or historical fantasy (a particular flavour that seems very common to the imprint) it’s not a surprise to me that this is my first.
And what a first to begin with! I honestly haven’t had this much fun with a book since Douglas Hulick’s Among Thieves. They are very different books, but they share the same sort of cloak-and-dagger flavour.
I must begin by saying that Anne Lyle is a storyweaver of the highest calibre; her elegant prose is nothing short of beautiful. I enjoyed every single second of this book and everything from the characters and their relationships, to the exceptionally tight plotting, to the believable intrigue heralds Lyle as not just an insanely talented new writer, but also a poet and true master of words.
It might be somewhat obvious by now that The Alchemist of Souls was a hit with me. I’ll try not to gush too much hereafter…
I’m very new to real-world or alternative history fantasy—that isn’t of the urban variety—and I am woefully unused to the genre and the way it works, having only read The Fallen Blade, by Jon Courtenay Grimwood, thus far. I’d been under the impression that I might not like a fantasy of this type—that it wouldn’t be “fantasy” enough for me, being set in our real world. In the end, that didn’t matter a jot. The most magical thing about alternate or historical real world fantasy is that anything goes. I suppose that’s why it’s fantasy.
Lyle’s imagination is a vivid and colourful one, and boy does it show through. The Alchemist of Souls offers, alongside the usual life of Elizabethan England, the skraylings—creatures from the New World—and a fashion of alchemical magic and wonder that gives a whole different edge to the story.
The characters are believable and exceptionally well written; there isn’t a single member of the cast who doesn’t vie for your readerly affections—and there certainly isn’t one who doesn’t receive them. I liked everyone. I forget the last time I read a book and liked absolutely everyone. Sure enough, the characters have flaws and the way in which the other characters see them differs depending on POV—it’s interesting and builds a gentle sense of natural conflict and tension that is so very real that it brings the characters to life on a whole new level.
Maliverny Catlyn is the protagonist, and at first glance he appears to be your typical rogue-with-a-fancy-rapier. From a noble line, but down on his luck, Mal doesn’t seem to be anything special, and at first, the supporting cast—player Gabriel “Angel” Parish, scribe, Ned Faulkner, Mal’s friend and Gabriel’s lover, and Coby, a tireman for a troupe of actors with the patronage of Lord Suffolk—seem to be far more interesting and layered. Of course, there is far, far more to Mal than meets the eye—more than even he knows.
Gabriel and Ned begin the story apart, with Ned mooning over an uninterested Mal—but that doesn’t stop Ned hoping—with Gabriel readying himself within his group of players, Suffolk’s Men, headed by Master Naismith for a playing contest, whilst Mal is conveyed to the Tower of London in questionable circumstances, for reasons contrary to his expectations. Meanwhile Coby—Jacob Hendricks—is a young Dutch boy fending for himself whilst holding a treacherous secret to his chest. The events of the story all intertwine and pull the characters closer together, with unexpected revelations and circumstances along the way.
Not one character is under- or overdone and when the viewpoint skips from one to another, there is no sense of lost pace or momentum. All the characters are equally entertaining and with equally riveting plot arcs of their own.
I particularly enjoyed the way Lyle handles homosexuality and gay sex. Since she’s a woman, I’m certain it’s something she’s never experienced, but instead of treating it as something alien, she appears to write simply as though she were writing love/sex scenes between any two characters that share lust or love for one another. And the prose is all the richer for it. I haven’t read many gay sex scenes in fantasy. In fact, the only character I’ve read who is homosexual is The Legends of the Red Sun’s (Mark Charan Newton) Brynd Lathraea. There was something more to the relationships between Lyle’s men, something far more passionate and real.
As a bisexual male, I definitely appreciated a break from swooning maidens and heroes with their eyes agog at the heroine’s fine, fine cleavage. It was a refreshing change, and a fantastic reminder of how much closer men used to be with one another, in light of the role women played, historically, in Lyle’s chosen time-setting. If we’re not mincing words; I bloody loved it.
There are more twists, plots, and subtle machinations in The Alchemist of Souls than you can shake a pointy thing at—and damn does Lyle write every second, every detail, every thread so impeccably well that you’d think she’s been writing books for centuries. Yes, she’s that good.
It has been a long time since I encountered an author whose work I would describe as poetry also. Anne Lyle is one such author. The Alchemist of Souls, as a work of elegant fantasy prose, should be considered alongside Rothfuss’ The Name of the Wind and (by my favour) Elspeth Cooper’s Songs of the Earth.
Anne Lyle’s writing is beautiful, elegant and gripping; be prepared to be swept away to a rich and colourful depiction of a different Elizabethan England, where treachery and danger abound.
lilacwire's review against another edition
2.0
I admit, I'm surprised so many other people really liked this book. I struggled to make connections with any of the characters and thought that some of the magic came out of nowhere. The book didn't link together as well as I would have liked.
wilmaknickersfit's review against another edition
4.0
I'm not going to repeat the Goodreads summary of this book.
I loved The Alchemist of Souls because it was different and will be reading the second book in the series straight away. I can't wait to find out where the story of Mal and Coby, et al. goes next.
It is a slow burner and then you are gripped as the story takes twist after twist, whist building each character.
I was a bit worried that the alternative history aspect would dominate the plot, but it doesn't. The extra characters are just like any other characters in a book and leave scope for future story lines.
The sexuality of the each character is tastefully handled and a great example of how a person cannot help with whom they fall in love.
One problem for this book is categorising its genres because it covers so many. For me the main genre for this book would be would be fantasy and alternative history. It is set in Elizabethan England where Elizabeth is widowed with two adult sons. The fantasy aspect dwells around the skills of a humanoid species from the New World called Skraylings.
The Skraylings send an ambassador to England and the main character Mal is appointed as body guard to the ambassador...and the story goes from here.
This is another series to be added of my list of authors I wait with baited breath for the next chapter in the saga.
I loved The Alchemist of Souls because it was different and will be reading the second book in the series straight away. I can't wait to find out where the story of Mal and Coby, et al. goes next.
It is a slow burner and then you are gripped as the story takes twist after twist, whist building each character.
I was a bit worried that the alternative history aspect would dominate the plot, but it doesn't. The extra characters are just like any other characters in a book and leave scope for future story lines.
The sexuality of the each character is tastefully handled and a great example of how a person cannot help with whom they fall in love.
One problem for this book is categorising its genres because it covers so many. For me the main genre for this book would be would be fantasy and alternative history. It is set in Elizabethan England where Elizabeth is widowed with two adult sons. The fantasy aspect dwells around the skills of a humanoid species from the New World called Skraylings.
The Skraylings send an ambassador to England and the main character Mal is appointed as body guard to the ambassador...and the story goes from here.
This is another series to be added of my list of authors I wait with baited breath for the next chapter in the saga.
woolfardis's review against another edition
1.0
A good idea with a nice setting but extremely slow and often the writing was poor. Characters mildly annoying in a 2D-way and far too many of them. The only interesting part were the Skraylings, but they did not turn up quick enough.
annasirius's review against another edition
3.0
The language use in this book drew me in from the start. Sometimes I know from page 1 that I'll enjoy a novel. The author has a playful stance to language, which includes the use of old-fashioned words such as 'whilst' and 'whence', which I found charming. I also liked the various characters, although the sole female character very much fit the fantasy role stereotype (young virgin falling for the pretty fighter).
The plot was not as well executed; especially the 'climax' left me wanting.
The plot was not as well executed; especially the 'climax' left me wanting.