Alchemised by SenLinYu

My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

I had prepared to come out of this experience yelling, “Leave ‘Dead Dove: Do Not Eat’ Dramione fanfiction on AO3, FF.net, and Wattpad where it belongs!”* But then I actually liked it, so I guess the joke is on me. 🥲

I was willing to forgive many issues here (e.g., infodumping galore, way too much telling instead of showing, dozens of pages worth of tedious repetition, etc.) because I was so into the complexities of the main characters. Their dynamic and the tragically doomed nature of their relationship compelled me, although the side characters and the misery circus surrounding them did not. It is extremely hard to get Helena and Kaine out of your head once you let them in.

I can understand why some people adore Alchemised and why others can’t stand it. I’m more of a fence-sitter for this one.

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* Regarding leaving fanfiction where it “belongs”: I read the author chose to pursue traditional publishing due to unauthorized monetization by fans to an extent that put them in a precarious legal situation. That’s not cool, and I fully support the decision to benefit financially from the popularity of their own work. Also, this was WORLDS better than another book I read recently that originated on Wattpad before getting trad published, so it was a refreshing read in that regard.

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𝓟.𝓢. This review was crossposted from Goodreads because it contains actual thoughts rather than a typically facetious single-sentence remark. View all my book ratings and pointless takes on Goodreads or The StoryGraph.