The Accidental Alchemist (Accidental Alchemist Mysteries)

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And a ninja whose murderous intentions in present-day Japan connect the deeds of a long-dead trader who was much more than he seemed… Though the world of Pandian’s new series may not sound any more appealing than Zoe’s vegan recipes, it’s just as satisfying in the end. Mysterious, captivating, and infused with the rich history of the Northwest...fantastic."--Portland Book Review

Lastly, and as an admittedly pedantic point, a gargoyle is designed as a waterspout, having a trough for water to flow through. I don't believe Dorian is meant to have one. It's never mentioned in his description. Thus, wouldn't he be a chimera or a boss? You know one good way go tell if a story is all about telling and nothing about showing? When 95% of the sentences start with the word I. I am also not a fan of the immediate love thing. She has known the gargoyle only an hour or two, but she really likes him and trust him. She eats only one meal cooked by him and no one else can hold a candle to his cooking. We know that she is an outcast because she says, "I am an outcast".I assume I'm not the only person who has that one friend who is a health nut and constantly trying to convert his/her (in my case her) friends to 'the lifestyle.' Zoe is this friend and I liked finding her in a book I was reading for fun even less than having soy milk, non-caff, chai lattes with my own real life fad eater friend.

When interior decorator Madison Night crosses the country to distance herself from a recent breakup, she learns it's harder to escape her past than she thought, and diamonds are rarely a girl's best friend. the thing that made this a reluctant DNF was the character behaviour--namely, Zoe is a complete pushover, and the other characters shamelessly take advantage of her all the time. if this was a book where part of the character arc was Zoe learning to stand up to that, i would have found it okay. it doesn't feel like it's that. it just feels like everyone is allowed to use and abuse Zoe, while she just...takes it all? i find that too reminiscent of life and a real downer, so this has to be a DNF--for now. i may gather more patience later. Up to that, I really, REALLY was intrigued. Combination of an alchemist, a gargoyle, and dead body?!? Well, that was a recipe for an intriguing paranormal mystery, wasn't it? Well, unfortunately, the only 'good' recipe here was all those cooking that Dorian did (or those foods Zoe seemed to enjoy). Because after that, there wasn't much that happened, especially in solving the mystery of the dead body and the missing book! Zoe seemed to just run around doing errands and other unnecessary things -- except talking about cooking and recipes. Sometimes I wondered if the book was about an alchemist or about a cook... In the second book of Jaya Jones Treasure Hunt Series, a typical day in the office ends with an exciting treasure hunt. This happens when Steven Healy passes by Jaya Jones office requesting for assistance regarding a map and her relationship to Anand Paravar. Jaya is fascinated especially when Healy accuses Jaya’s great uncle Anand Paravar of having some connection with the disappearance of treasure. Jaya’s has always heard good things about her great uncle; could this be a false accusation? The character isn't militant about her diet, but between references to it in her narration and the countless number of scenes book-ended by descriptions of vegan food the book treads dangerously close to the line of being that vegan friend who won't shut up about how awesome their diet it. Given that the you could cut out all the stuff about veganism and not really lose the plot, some people will find it to be too much, and I wouldn't blame for you it.All in all, I can't recommend this. It's lighthearted, but also thin. If you're a vegan tired of reading about heroes eating steak, this may be the book for you - the frequent mentions of food are mouth-watering. But if you're reading for the story, you're probably in the wrong place. There are some teens. There is a quirky tea shop. There's a detective who is taken off the case. They are all fine, though I still question what kind of an adult would let a 14 year old serve alcohol at a party. Anyway.