Book Review: The Alchemist by Donna Boyd

Immortality Comes at a Price

This book is sweeping in that it covers the story, a personal account, of one man's life as an immortal. He unburdens himself of his history in present time, to a psychiatrist in Manhattan, confessing to a murder that has shook the world.

Sontime traces his life back to the training as a Practitioner at the House of Ra in Egypt, with two other children who find a way to bind themselves together to practice magic. Together they are more powerful than the sum of their parts and they soon question the rules in place and dabble in things that are forbidden.

Through a series of events, they destroy the world they live in and then try to use their powers to create a Utopian world for the masses. Balance is important and the three of them are often too cocky to realize the flaws in their magic, that may appear to be perfect but often unravel once the illusions are put into practice.

Sontime evolves from a young boy who is sure of himself and only regards his personal interests, to a man who is often tormented by a life that is so long that it is impossible to appreciate the small moments or have bonds with the people around him. After 3000+ years he is weary.

This is a wonderful book that is very descriptive in both its descriptions of the world of Ancient Egypt but also about the magic. What is so interesting is hearing the perspective of a man who has come from a world without technology to present time, where science and machines often mimic the magic he once had to use for simple things like lights and refrigeration.

This really is a wonderful story. Highly recommend.