THE ALCHEMIST OF LOST SOULS by Mary Lawrence

THE ALCHEMIST OF LOST SOULS

by

Mary Lawrence

            The fourth book in Mary Lawrence’s Bianca Goddard series, The Alchemist of Lost Souls, will be released on April 30, 2019. I have been a long time fan of these historical fiction books (see prior reviews*: The Alchemist’s Daughter, March 24, 2015; The Death of An Alchemist, January 4, 2016; and, Death at St. Vedast, December 24, 2016), and this new book does not disappoint.

            In The Alchemist of Lost Souls, Bianca’s mother and father, Malva and Albern, play a prominent role. As we know from prior installments in the series, Albern is a disgraced alchemist and Malva is a white witch. Albern has created a new glowing element that he hopes will get him back in favor with the king. When the element is stolen, and Albern suspects Malva is involved, he asks Bianca for help in retrieving it. When the element is apparently involved in a murder, Constable Patch asks Bianca for help in the investigation. Meanwhile, Bianca is already struggling with the facts that she is pregnant and that John is conscripted into Henry’s army. In this installment, we also learn more about the Rat Man, the mysterious character who has inhabited the shadows in the series.

            As with the other Bianca Goddard books, The Alchemist of Lost Souls is a well-written and seemingly realistic portrayal of life in the sixteenth century. Lawrence’s writing is wonderful and appears to improve with each book, becoming freer and more natural. At the same time, her plots continue to evolve as well, becoming more complex, detailed, and pleasantly convoluted.

The book includes an Author’s Note, and reading it feels like discovering a hidden gem after the book has ended. My one wish is that Lawrence would expand this note, including more explanation about the sixteenth century issues contained within the book and about how/why she decided to deal with those topics in the manner that she did in an effort to recreate/maintain the historicity of the book.

The Alchemist of Lost Souls is a brilliant addition to the Bianca Goddard series, and I continue to look forward to more adventures with Bianca.

*These reviews were posted to the IMO Book Reviews blog, http://imobookreviews.blogspot.com/