Not really for me. It felt rushed at times and I honestly just could not get into it. Overall, eh. The characters were one dimensional and the story just did not live up to its potential

Can we just take a moment to appreciate that stunning cover? I love the colors on it and honestly it made me want to read this book even more than the premise!

This is one of those books that you devour in a day.

This book totally started out strong. You meet Thea and automatically know she is not happy with her mother. Her mother comes off as horrendous and cruel right from the start and you are rooting for Thea to get away from her. I mean, she is keeping Thea away from the only person who has every encouraged and cherished her the way she deserves... he just happened to be the apprentice of her alchemist mother. They have been writing letters back and forth and she knows she will see him again.

But Thea is more mad about the fact she and her mother were so close to creating the legendary Philosopher's Stone when her mother locked her out of the laboratory! She did this to take all the credit for herself when she KNOWS she was a key player in the creating of it as well! Little does Theta know that creating such a whispered-about item takes more than just smarts, but it also might take your sanity.

I really enjoyed reading from the perspective of Thea. She is strong, worried about herself and doesn't take no for an answer. She makes some pretty questionable decisions. As I mentioned before, the story started out super strong, but then it started to linger. The romance felt a little forced to me, and towards the end you find out why but the journey there wasn't for me. She felt a little love-struck with Will and I all I felt between them was her worry and desperation to be with him.

Dominic on the other hand, was a breath of fresh air. I loved that he kept trying to get Thea to see the bright side of things, even when there was basically nothing bright to see. Thea just... she just got on my nerves in a few parts. Which, she is a flawed character so that is to be expected, you know?

The writing was absolutely lyrical. I am not usually a big fan of historical fiction, but Cohoe makes me want to try more with her descriptions and the way she weaves sentences together

This is my first book read of this author so I’m not familiar with her writing style. I totally fell into her written prose for it’s truly magical lit storytelling. Unfortunately some of the elements of the book I couldn’t really connect with: the love triangle and the rape. I think the romances took away the beautiful backdrop and the main storyline. It’s still a great read for definitely with check out the authors other novel.

This book provides a fresh perspective on the Philosopher's Stone and alchemy, with a beautiful, lyrical narrative. I particularly appreciated Thea's strong main character perspective. It was an interesting read with a well balanced combination of historical reality and fantasy intrigue. It is certainly an exciting book with some good characters.

I did feel like after the first half of the book the dynamic changed and it felt a little slower in terms of pace, but it was still a very enjoyable read. There are some fantastic subplots running through the book with lots of family drama, betrayal, and that's without the curse of insanity should anyone try to make the Philosopher's Stone!

I wanted to like this story a lot more than I did! It was interesting at times but ultimately just not for me.

This book was really good. It exceeded my expectations. I loved the character development we saw and definitely think it deserves more hype

Thank you to the publisher for an early copy of A Golden Fury by, Samantha Cohoe. I gave this book a 3/5 stars. I overall really enjoyed the story, it was quickly paced and the magic system was unique. For a while I personally have been feeling estranged from YA fantasy, and thats why this is a middle of the road book for me. It has all the same trops that all YA fantasy have, but the core of the story was quite fun! It was a quick read and I will continue to read more from this author.

This is one that I was so so excited for! The historical fantasy aspect was great, there was definitely a lot of atmosphere in this. But....the writing. It didn't feel like it had much depth? It read kind of young, which is fine, but wasn't what I was looking for. The characters too, didn't feel all that real. It was ok, but not a favorite.

This was a lovely book.

I dont mean that to sound light, but it was very basic. It was lovely in that way. I think it would be great for lower YA readers as an introduction to the YA fantasy genre, but to someone who has been reading YA for a few years this may feel repetitive.

That aside, I think it will appeal to anyone who admires steampunk and steampunk adjacent storylines, it just has that vibe. It's also contains strong themes of girl power and navigating your own strength.

Its a fine addition to any fan of historical feeling fantasy.

Oh, whoops, I read this back in December and never reviewed it here. Sorry! I was waiting to see if our teen librarian would be ordering it (orders cut down due to Interesting Times) Um, let's see, I do remember enjoying it. Thank you very much for the ARC, and apologies again!

This was not at all what I was expecting!

A Golden Fury is a thoroughly enjoyable read for fans of magical realism in a historical setting. We follow Theosebeia, a brave young alchemist who gets tangled in a huge mess regarding her mother who goes mad, her father who doesn't know she exists, her lover and the Philosopher's Stone.
The conflict was fascinating and brilliantly resolved, I must say I was very worried the ending would be unsatisfactory, but it was truly perfect.
The only criticism that I have is that the pacing could have been faster, it took me a while to get into the story and there were some more hiccups along the way where I just felt like nothing was happening.

I recommend this to everybody who likes new twists on old tropes and a historical setting!

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I absolutely love learning about alchemy and this book was stuffed full of alchemical details and musings and so, it was right up my alley. The historical setting was well done, as far as I can tell, and the main character was compelling. Unfortunately, something kept this one from becoming a new favorite but if you are looking for a tale of alchemy with a ton of twists, I definitely recommend this one!

Trigger Warnings,
Self harm
A potential rape scene
Mental illness/madness

To me this was a good read. Really loved the fantasy elements. The background or history that was present I enjoyed it. The only thing I didn't enjoy was the pacing. It was to slow for my liking.

Samantha Cohoe's A Golden Fury is a wonderfully written piece of literature. The prose is engaging, a majority of the characters are developed enough to make the reader feel compelled to find out what happens to them, the fantastical/supernatural elements are done in a way that pulls the reader in and keeps them guessing as to what is really happening. The pace of the story arc is well thought out and unlike many stories that try to do the same, doesn't lag just for the sake of words.

Overall, this is a very quick read with a compelling plot, protagonist, and multiple antagonists that make this a wonderful book.

I hate I somehow let this review slip past me and did not post it sooner.
Thank you Netgalley and publisher for the eARC of this work.

This one was just alright for me. I didn't feel super excited and felt it was more of a chore to read then actually push through.

I loved this intriguing story of Thea who is a super determined, strong and likeable MC! I especially loved the dark academia vibes of the novel and the history elements (I secretly want to live in the 18th century).
I was filled with excitement throughout the whole novel and rooting for Thea to not only save the day, but to discover what her mother has left behind and with this finding her true purpose!

When I read the synopsis and it mentioned the philosopher's stone I thought the book would be wizardly and magical, after reading books like Harry Potter. I was delighted to see it was different, scientific and scholarly. Also I loved that the protagonist was a young lady doing something that was highly unusual for women in her day.

I just reviewed A Golden Fury by Samantha Cohoe. #NetGalley

This read was a bit slow for me. I am usually all into alchemy but it wasn't do it for me in this book. I'm not sure what else it needed. Maybe more romance? I think that may have helped me getting into it more. The last 10-15% were really great, just wish it occurred earlier on in the book.

Ohhhh I really liked this book! My only knowledge of the philosophers stone has been because of Harry Potter, so it was exciting to see it through a new light. I loved that mash up of science and magic within the book and also everyone facing their morals when it came to their intentions with the stone. I felt like the character development was strong and we actually got to see people grow throughout the book. I’ll definitely be checking out more of her books in the future!

A Golden Fury is a story about Thea, whose brilliant alchemist mother came close to making the Philosopher's Stone before madness took her. Thea, now sent to live with the father she never knew may be the only one who can make it now but it would come at the cost of her own sanity.
Reading books like this just tells me that I apparently don't like stories where people are miserable nearly the whole time. It's like if the whole story feels like the main character is on the struggle bus without a pause I'm just not gonna have a good time. Now, that doesn't mean it's a bad story! It really doesn't! it was well written and interesting and had great characters but as a deeply empathetic person, this is just one of those books that just feels Very Stressful to read.
However, chances are you aren't as feely as I am and you will quite like this, so let's do a little check, Do you like stories witch smart, interesting ladies? Do you like historical settings? Do you find alchemy really cool? Do you like having more than one love interest to choose from? Do you enjoy reading complicated family dynamics? If you answered yes to at least two of these, you probably will quite enjoy this interesting and original book, it just wasn't for me.