REVIEW: The Alchemists Of Loom by Elise Kova

Title: The Alchemists Of Loom

Series: Loom Saga (#1)

Author: Kova, Elise

Format: eBook ARC (Advance Readers Copy) by Keymaster Press

Edition: English

Publication: January 10th, 2017

Pages: 380

Goodreads Blurb: 

"Her vengeance. His vision.

Ari lost everything she once loved when the Five Guilds’ resistance fell to the Dragon King. Now, she uses her unparalleled gift for clockwork machinery in tandem with notoriously unscrupulous morals to contribute to a thriving underground organ market. There isn’t a place on Loom that is secure from the engineer turned thief, and her magical talents are sold to the highest bidder as long as the job defies their Dragon oppressors.

Cvareh would do anything to see his sister usurp the Dragon King and sit on the throne. His family’s house has endured the shame of being the lowest rung in the Dragons’ society for far too long. The Alchemist Guild, down on Loom, may just hold the key to putting his kin in power, if Cvareh can get to them before the Dragon King’s assassins.

When Ari stumbles upon a wounded Cvareh, she sees an opportunity to slaughter an enemy and make a profit off his corpse. But the Dragon sees an opportunity to navigate Loom with the best person to get him where he wants to go.

He offers her the one thing Ari can’t refuse: A wish of her greatest desire, if she brings him to the Alchemists of Loom."

My Rating: ✿✿✿✿✿

My Review:

Where do I start from, with this incredible book?

Do you enjoy reading about dragons (especially a unique and original take in them), steampunk (with all the technology and dress style that comes hand in hand with the term) and amazing, strong, independent and mysterious heroes?

Then, look no further!

The first installment in the brand new series written by the author of Air Awakens, Elise Kova, has all those elements and so many more!

The story started with so much action right away, and I found myself trying to get a hold of everything happening, and attempting to understand exactly who the narrator is!

But, as soon as I got into the vibe, I fell right in love with all this action and the strong heroine.

The plot was very interesting. In a land of loom, where Fenthri (the "grey" equivalent of the common humans - who really have different shades of grey skins!) have to live below the clouds and suffer the will of the Dragon King. But, the interesting fact, is that the dragons (and their King) are not the typical 4-legged, winged and colorful creatures. While they are indeed colorful, the similarities end there! The dragons are 2-legged human(or, rather, Fenthri)-like creatures that can fly by using very advanced technology.

But, apart from Dragons and Fenthri, there is also another creature (that doesn't go bump only in the night)! Chimaeras are a combination of the two. They are Fenthri, who have acquired (with maybe not so legal ways) Dragon blood, organs and body part.

Our heroine, Ari is a Chimaera herself.

And, that is all that we actually know about her. Her whole previous life remains a mystery almost to the end of the book!

All we know is that she lives with Florence, since the latter abandoned her home in the Ravens Guild in order to pursue a life as Revolver.

Because there are 5 Guilds, and each Fenthri has (according to the law of the Dragon King) to belong in one of them and demonstrate it through a facial tattoo!

So much information. I know, and yet just the essential for you to get just a glimpse of this complex world created by Kova.

As for the characters, I liked Ari and I liked Florence. Each for different reasons.

Ari was strong and independent and brave and everything most people would want to be.

But, Flor was strong, too! In her own ways! And, while it didn't get proven until the second hald of the book, I still felt a little more love towards her then!

I liked Cvareh, too! He is a Dragon, and while it was a little difficult for me to picture him as colorful as he was, I loved his personality and the way he handled things.

He is a man in a mission and I loved his concentration and deep will to execute his mission!

The writing style was flawless, and the fact that everything started so seemingly sudden, I loved every single part of this book!

It makes me crave the release of the rest of the books in the series so bad!

All in all, 5 stars for a greatly executed novel, which revolves around 

a complex world, with its own intricate rules, 

brave and strong characters and lots of interesting new creatures!