A Golden Fury

CAWPILE Breakdown:
Characters: 9
Atmosphere: 8
Writing: 6
Plot: 7
Intrigue: 8
Logic: 8
Enjoyment: 7

This was a very refreshing read. I loved all the alchemy aspects. There were definitely some Stalking Jack the Ripper vibes to this book so if you enjoyed that one I would definitely have this on your radar. I did however appreciate that there was little to no romance in this book. Fantasy books lately always have romance and sometimes I just want the plot and the story no side romance also going on.

I liked this book. Though the ending wasn't as great as the beginning (seems I am on a similar page to many other reviewers in this aspect), I found Thea and the others to be a well-written character, and I especially appreciated the magical realism aspect of the book (fantasy et. real world are my fav types of books). I love the idea of women alchemists and darkness that ensues, and all in all Cohoe executed the book well. If the ending had been stronger in terms of events and character choices, I would not hesitate to give this one a 5/5.

2020 has to be year of the cold and standoff ish mother in YA. Funnily enough all encountered in fantasy this reading year. Difficult and nuanced motherly figures, Thea Hope is the daughter of such figure, She???s the daughter of a famous alchemist who looms over her. A Golden Fury is about Thea Hope, a young alchemist, who has the knowledge to make the Philosopher???s Stone. Before finishing the Philosopher???s Stone her mother goes mad and smashes their work. Because of this and escaping her mother???s anger she travels to find her beau, Will, and to make the stone before anyone else does. Cohoe really focused on the scientific side of SFF in A Golden Fury. The alchemy was more science based than magic based. It was all puzzle for Thea and her cohort to find out. Managing temperatures and putting in the right ingredients at the right time. Science is a real puzzle, figuring out the elements instead of cardboard pieces. It was great to see the fictional scientific methods and scenes in the lab where Thea looked at Arabic texts for instructions. The magic system was different and it's great to see different interpretations of alchemy. Cohoe really blended the alchemy in a historical setting. this book nailed the historical setting pretty darn well. Set in the backdrop of a weakened France before the revolution. I really enjoyed the plot and I was engrossed in it from the start to the end It had a great pace and was action-packed. Cohoe used the slower parts to her advantage were she used of knowledge of the half magic ??? half science practice to build the world. Bit by bit. I had to page at both paces in the story, eager to see what happened next. Cohoe???s lines and phrasing is a delight to read and roll of the tongue or in my case the mental version of that. And lastly a book is nothing without its characters. If you don???t care the characters no matter how creative or beautiful the writing, I can???t care. But you do care for Thea, how she???s treated by the people around her. Get mad how the men in her life don???t trust her or see her ingenuity. Loving Dominic so much how truly cares for her and wants the best for her. No one was that good or all that bad. Even our quick-witted lead Thea who could be selfish and have an ego at times. I loved how deeply flawed she and others were. People that love Historical fiction where magic doesn???t over power the story. Where the SF of SFF comes to play and a story with a flawed but human girl tries to be recognized for her talents. They for surely will enjoy A Golden Fury