Holland has always been fascinated by urban myths and the possibility of magic. When she stumbles upon a character from one of those myths, she finds herself on a mission to find a mysterious ancient object full of magic in order to save her own life.

Stephanie Garber has an incredible talent for storytelling. Her books are unlike anything I’ve ever read. Alchemy of Secrets takes place in Los Angeles with a subtle kind of magic that surrounds the myths Holland is obsessed with. I really enjoyed the Hollywood themed backdrop for the story. It was fascinating to have the story take place in LA instead of some fantasy land. The magic incorporated felt whimsical and a little nonsensical, but I thought it worked well for the mystery of this story. I had so many questions along the way but we learn about the magic alongside Holland. To me, it felt like we were right there with her.

Alchemy of Secrets was a high stakes treasure hunt full of mystery and questionable characters. Who could we trust? Who was telling the truth when they said they were on Holland’s side and only trying to protect her? I found myself just as trusting as Holland was. There were so many plot twists throughout this book and I didn’t see any of them coming. There was a lot of mystery surrounding the character’s quest for the Alchemical Heart. The cliffhanger ending left several things unresolved so I will be eagerly awaiting the release of the next book! I have no doubt Garber will wrap it all up nicely in the end.

This is Garber’s first adult novel, but I thought it was very similar to her YA books. I was worried that the content might be explicit and was happy to discover that all her books are very similar on our content rating scales (other than the single use of one F word in this book). Loved this book! I can’t wait for more to this story!