I've just started reading this book but I'm already loving it! ( )

Good story. Lots of action. Very good character development. Will probably read the rest of the series. ( )

The Alchemyst tells the story of the legendary Nicholas Flamel who - along with two teenage siblings that happen to stumble into his world - is forced to flee from the evil beings that have taken his love and the precious secrets of history that he guards.

One of the first things you’ll notice when reading The Alchemyst is the incredible amount of research that went into creating this series. It’s extremely impressive – every character in the book (with the exception of the two teens) is an actual character from history/mythology. This lends an incredible aura of believability to the story because it’s so easy to imagine that all these great characters exist as we’ve heard of them all before. Along with the vast amounts research, it’s also clear that an incredible amount of planning went into this book and the series that follows. The imagery in The Alchemyst is beautifully written in such a manner that you can clearly picture the surroundings, but are never bored with long descriptive passages that don’t add to the overall story.

Filled with wonderful characters, natural dialogue, and a gripping plot, this first book in The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel series does a wonderful job of laying out a complex and intricate world, while drawing the reader into a fascinating adventure. While directed at the YA audience, I think The Alchemyst will appeal to adults as well, and I for one am absolutely loving it. So much so, that I’m already well into book 2, The Magician. ( )

Promising but ultimately unsatisfying fantasy pastiche, with underdeveloped characters (the twin boy is especially one-dimensional and annoying) and a surfeit of mythological characters tossed into what is basically one big chase and fight scene. ( )

Sophie and Josh, fraternal twins living in California for the summer, walk in on a magical fight between none other than Nicholas Flamel and Dr. John Dee. Flamel is the keeper of a book called the Codex, which Dee has been trying to steal for his master, one of the Dark Elders, for ages - literally. Now, Dee has the book and Nick's wife, and Sophie and Josh suddenly find themselves in a world where magic exists and legends live.

Definitely a fun read, pretty fast-paced except when a few pages of explication were thrown in, with all sorts of creatures and myths re-imagined. Set in modern-day U.S., my only real complaint is that often references to "modern" stuff is thrown in - Wiki (I think he meant Wikipedia?), movies - that sometimes seemed to me to miss the mark. But that's a small complaint about an overall enjoyable story. ( )