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4.61 AVERAGE
4.61 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I wish I could give this more stars. Absolutely the book of the year.
Alchemised is a beautifully written gothic fantasy about the lengths one will go to, to save those they care about. Interwoven in the story is commentary about the horrors of war, the dangers of blind devotion, ethics of necromancy, and the unseen labour of women. The world is entirely engrossing and immersive, and I was drawn into the mystery of Helena's circumstances from the get-go.
If you think you know what's going to happen because of reading the original work, think again. If you think you can 1:1 every character in comparing the two, think again. SenLinYu has absolutely broken my heart even worse with Alchemised and I'm thanking them for the opportunity. I finished the book and I would realise things days later that absolutely made me scream. There was a one word sentence a character says that made me burst out crying.
With that said, I wanted to answer some questions that have been asked about the book. Slight spoilers ahead:
About that plot element:Alchemised does not have the Handmaid's Tale aspect as a major part of the story. The focus is on Helena's lost/hidden memories.
Regarding potential trigger warnings, here is the TW page at the beginning of the book:
This is a work of fiction which explores many of the darker aspects of war and survival. Reader discretion is advised. For more details, please see the back of the book for content notes.
Then in the back:
Alchemised is a work of dark fantasy containing wartime violence, religious abuse, depictions of complex trauma, suicidal ideation, self-harm, human experimentation, medical torture, eugenics, cannibalism, sexual assault, rape, and allusions to necrophilia. Please remember that depiction is not authorial endorsement. Because Alchemised is told in third-person limited point of view, it necessarily involves some distortions of vision as well as missed or misconstrued events. Reader discretion is advised.
A more detailed review to come. I cannot wait for the world to read this masterpiece.
Alchemised is a beautifully written gothic fantasy about the lengths one will go to, to save those they care about. Interwoven in the story is commentary about the horrors of war, the dangers of blind devotion, ethics of necromancy, and the unseen labour of women. The world is entirely engrossing and immersive, and I was drawn into the mystery of Helena's circumstances from the get-go.
If you think you know what's going to happen because of reading the original work, think again. If you think you can 1:1 every character in comparing the two, think again. SenLinYu has absolutely broken my heart even worse with Alchemised and I'm thanking them for the opportunity. I finished the book and I would realise things days later that absolutely made me scream. There was a one word sentence a character says that made me burst out crying.
With that said, I wanted to answer some questions that have been asked about the book. Slight spoilers ahead:
About that plot element:
Regarding potential trigger warnings, here is the TW page at the beginning of the book:
Then in the back:
A more detailed review to come. I cannot wait for the world to read this masterpiece.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Medical content
Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Cannibalism
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
man. MAN. senlinyu you’re a genius. thank u for your service. worldbuilding excellent, changes were perfect, I came to love and care for these characters independent of my reading of Manacled. Will add more in Sept.
We don't support Harry Potter here, especially published fanfics.
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Pido perdon por la persona en la que me voy a convertir cuando salga este libro.
Manacled me DESTRUYÓ, por que no me lo volvería a leer
Manacled me DESTRUYÓ, por que no me lo volvería a leer
dark
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The premise of this book is… really dark which intimidated me initially, but EVERYONE kept raving about it, not just the dark romance girlies so I decided to give it a try…
and BOY WAS IT WORTH IT!
•
I was VERY confused about how the author would redeem our MMC bc he’s a mass murderer and our FMC’s racist captor and r*pist…. it’s really a trust the process moment because about 1/3 of the way through the book I realized what was going on and it totally flipped everything on its head.
•
I ADORE the author’s writing style, as soon as I picked up the book my eyes would glaze over as if I were watching a film!
I kept procrastinating reading it because I just wanted the experience of reading it for the first time to last forever!
•
This book was VERY heavy at points to where I felt I couldn’t draw full breaths I was so anxious, so PLEASE HEED THE TRIGGER WARNINGS! (they’re there for a reason)
•
Was I in emotional turmoil for most of this book? Yes.
Did I enjoy every second of it? YES!
Did I love the ending? Also yes which is VERY important because I intentionally avoid books with sad endings.
and BOY WAS IT WORTH IT!
•
I was VERY confused about how the author would redeem our MMC bc he’s a mass murderer and our FMC’s racist captor and r*pist…. it’s really a trust the process moment because about 1/3 of the way through the book I realized what was going on and it totally flipped everything on its head.
•
I ADORE the author’s writing style, as soon as I picked up the book my eyes would glaze over as if I were watching a film!
I kept procrastinating reading it because I just wanted the experience of reading it for the first time to last forever!
•
This book was VERY heavy at points to where I felt I couldn’t draw full breaths I was so anxious, so PLEASE HEED THE TRIGGER WARNINGS! (they’re there for a reason)
•
Was I in emotional turmoil for most of this book? Yes.
Did I enjoy every second of it? YES!
Did I love the ending? Also yes which is VERY important because I intentionally avoid books with sad endings.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
Consider this my review for Manacled, since it's disabled on GoodReads now. THIS BOOK. It was one of the most addicting, captivating, and soul-wrenching stories I’ve ever read. I loved the last 2/3rds with all my heart. Two people finding each other in the darkest of times and loving each other despite their trauma and grief and dark twisty hidden parts…I’ll never get over it. The ultimate enemies-to-lovers. The High Reeve is my morally grey KING.
Listennnnnn I love yearning and UST and I willlllll be reading the real version of this when it’s out