Customer Reviews

Soul Stealer (Alchemist's Son)

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Martin Booth's teenage alchemist returns in "Soul Stealer: The Alchemist's Son Part II," a somewhat shaky but somewhat stronger fantasy thriller. It's a more entertaining, creepy adventure, though the "alchemist's son" of the title is the book's biggest weakness.

Tim and Pip are about to start at their new school, which would seem normal if Sebastian had not given her an "evil detector" pendant. The two of them soon discover that not all is well at their school: One of the teachers, Yoland, is an evil magician who helped kill his father, and the local bully Guy Scrotton is an undead wodewose ("wild man").

So Pip and Guy take their riskiest step yet: Enrolling Sebastian in a modern high school. The three teenagers begin searching for Yoland's master plan, while trying to keep the savage Scrotton from ripping them to shreds. Then they learn that his plot may have something to do with their upcoming field trip... to a nuclear plant.

"Soul Stealer" has something of the same general plot as "Doctor Illuminatus" -- teen heroes, cameo by Satan, megalomaniacal sorcerers, beast-men, sheep with fangs, computer hacking, and some creepy medieval alchemy. It wouldn't take much more than that to make a really entertaining fantasy thriller.

And to some degree, the book is more engaging than its predecessor. It has a strong unifying plot, more descriptive prose and fewer brand names. Booth has obviously gotten a handle on his storytelling, now that he has introduced the main characters. What's more, he has some truly chilling villains, especially the savage wodewose Scrotton.

Sebastian the teenage alchemist is the biggest problem of the book. He comes across as rigid and humourless, useful mainly for historical background. Putting him in a typical school setting could have given the book some much-needed humour, and shown Sebastian in a more human light, but it never happens. Worse, Booth uses Sebastian to spout bits of historical minutiae that aren't really relevant.

The "alchemist's son" is a major weakness, but the "Soul Stealer" is a stronger second installment in Martin Booth's series. Flawed, but worth reading.

Soul Stealer, the sequel to Alchemist's Son is a wonderful book. It brings that touch of fantasy in without going over the board and tipping it into a different world. The setting is in England and although you occassionally forget that, the author is very good at reminding you. I would rate it five stars but for one thing. These books were obviously supposed to be part of series, unfortunately the author died the year after publishing Soul Stealer. So while any good book leaves you wanting more, this one leaves you wanting just a bit too much more.

Martin Booth's teenage alchemist returns in "Soul Stealer: The Alchemist's Son Part II," a somewhat shaky but somewhat stronger fantasy thriller. It's a more entertaining, creepy adventure, though the "alchemist's son" of the title is the book's biggest weakness.

Tim and Pip are about to start at their new school, which would seem normal if Sebastian had not given her an "evil detector" pendant. The two of them soon discover that not all is well at their school: One of the teachers, Yoland, is an evil magician who helped kill his father, and the local bully Guy Scrotton is an undead wodewose ("wild man").

So Pip and Guy take their riskiest step yet: Enrolling Sebastian in a modern high school. The three teenagers begin searching for Yoland's master plan, while trying to keep the savage Scrotton from ripping them to shreds. Then they learn that his plot may have something to do with their upcoming field trip... to a nuclear plant.

"Soul Stealer" has something of the same general plot as "Doctor Illuminatus" -- teen heroes, cameo by Satan himself, megalomaniacal sorcerers bent on ruling us all, beast-men, sheep with fangs, computer hacking, and some creepy medieval alchemy. It wouldn't take much more than that to make a really entertaining fantasy thriller.

And to some degree, the book is more engaging than its predecessor. It has a strong unifying plot, more descriptive prose and fewer brand names. Booth has obviously gotten a handle on his storytelling, now that he has introduced the main characters. What's more, he has some truly chilling villains, especially the savage wodewose Scrotton.

Sebastian the teenage alchemist is the biggest problem of the book. He comes across as rigid and humourless, useful mainly for historical background. Putting him in a typical school setting could have given the book some much-needed humour, and shown Sebastian in a more human light, but it never happens. Worse, Booth uses Sebastian to spout bits of historical minutiae that aren't really relevant.

The "alchemist's son" is a major weakness in the plot, but the "Soul Stealer" is a stronger second installment in Martin Booth's series. Flawed, but worth reading for those seeking something a little different.

My granddaughter introduced me to this book and its predecessor. The story is creative and captivating while still delivering positive messages. I highly recommend it for the 11-13 year old group.

Twin siblings Pip and Tim have recently moved from the city to the countryside manor house of Rawne Barton with their parents. The move was a bit of a culture-shock for the city-slickers, but that was nothing compared to finding a young boy named Sebastian who had been in a magical state of hibernation for the last six hundred years. Struggling to cope with the 21st century, Sebastian's gifts as a powerful alchemist also had to be put to good use in the struggle against evil sorcerers who have also emerged in the present-day.

All this happened in "Doctor Illuminatus", the first book of the proposed "Alchemist's Son" trilogy, a pleasant though hardly memorable read. At the conclusion of my review for this previous book I wrote: "Despite all my complaints I was intrigued by the story, and I will track down the next installment `Soul Stealer.' Eventually."

This I have done, but I must confess that my search for the third book in this series will be even more lethargic than the search for this one. Despite a strong beginning, and excellent use of real history and alchemical knowledge in the shaping of his story, Booth continually fumbles in his melding of ancient and contemporary times.

First, the good components: Booth creates a beautiful setting for his characters; an English countryside full of "autumn leaves, mist over the river, and red antlered stags". In fact, it reminded me a little of the utterly fantastic "Children of Green Knowe" series by Lucy Boston, in its dark and dreamy feel. Likewise, though the twins are still a little bland, Pip has made a big improvement in becoming a strong female character (in the previous book she was simply a foil to the boys' adventures), and Sebastian is as interesting as ever in the failsafe story-plot of an innocent outside his comfort zone.

Likewise, the villains are more interesting this time around; still a little two-dimensional, but with intriguing quirks and motivations: Yoland who is described as "an evil psychiatrist" (and is the soul stealer of the title), and Scrotten, a `wodewose' (a wild boy living feral in the woods) - both of whom are acting undercover in the twins' new school as teacher and student.

But from this strong beginning come several weaknesses. Booth has always had trouble combining ancient and modern elements, which here results in several weak plot points. One minor issue is the twins enrolling Sebastian in school, somehow undermining the school's entire registration process, but mostly it is the climax of the story that involves a fieldtrip to a nuclear power plant which sadly makes no sense at all. Characters behave and situations change in whichever way is convenient for the story, resulting in an overblown evil plot that involves nothing less than the devil himself. It's all a bit much, and does not have the right build-up or basic logic to be carried off.

For me, "Soul Stealer" was altogether weaker than "Doctor Illuminatus", due to this illogical ending. Booth is strongest when he's dealing with the more intimate interactions between Sebastian, the twins and the various forces of evil; not comic-bookish evil plans. I'm intensely interested by the information that he slides into his story concerning English history and belief, and the basic premise of the story is also intriguing and certainly a lot darker than anything in "Harry Potter".

What's next for the Alchemist's Son? I'll find out...eventually.