An enjoyable read best suited for a YA audience, but still appealing for adults. Some of the characters were a bit more idiotic (adults, mostly) than necessary, but there were many humorous moments. I hope we will learn more about uncle Tad in the sequel! ( )

While it did take me a bit to read I did enjoy this story. Learning about the characters, their quirks, and just following the story as it progressed made this book good for me. I would say the general audience for this book would be somewhere between preteens and people who still believe in a bit of magic in the world. After all there is still magic around if one chooses to see it.

Overall, 4 stars and a possible reread :) ( )

Secrets of the Alchemist was a fun read overall; I have always liked books with time travel as their premise. Combine that with a fun plot and some alchemy, and you've got a winner.

The dialogs sometimes sounded somewhat unnatural, and characters not as quick of mind as I'd like them to. This is one of the problems of children's literature: it's difficult to balance pace with making sure that everyone follows along. Here, it would have been nicer to have more realistic characters who thought and spoke like natural people. ( )

Well, the story is pretty good, but I do notice this trend...

Seems each time adult speaks I almost cringe. Like they were all have been hit by idiot stick in least once. By 2/3 of book, it seemed like every adult has been seriously beaten and hospitalized by idiot stick.

It was hard to ignore that. But nevertheless it was pretty good read. ( )

Interesting time traveling tale for kids- it seemed it would be appropriate for 10-13 year olds. It definitely held my interest in terms of the plot. The main reason I gave it 3 instead of 4 stars was the lack of character development. Even the protagonists seemed one dimensional. There was not enough of a backstory to make me feel invested in the characters. I felt there was potential, but it was not developed. Perhaps since this was the first in a series, the author is saving that for future books; however, I needed more so I could care about what happened to Nora, Tomik, and Henry. The villains were especially predictable and almost caricatures...except for a dwarf named Jepp.
The story line is intriguing without resorting to an over dose of magic, relying instead on impressive developments in technology that would dazzle those living 400 years ago. Even though I haven't read it in years, I kept thinking of A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court. There was not an exchange, but the book had that feel to it for me, which is a good thing.
A copy of the book was provided in exchange for an honest review. ( )