Alchemystic
Authors: Anton Strout
Tags: #Literature & Fiction, #United States, #Science Fiction & Fantasy, #Fantasy
PRAISE FOR ANTON STROUT AND
HIS SIMON CANDEROUS NOVELS
Dead Matter
“Strout’s…great sense of humor, combined with vivid characters, a complex mystery, and plenty of danger, makes for a fantastic read. Urban fantasy fans should not miss this exciting series.”
—SciFiChick.com
“Strout’s good-hearted, bat-carrying hero is once again faced with extraordinary peril from both bureaucratic paperwork and things that go bump in the night. His skillful blending of the creepy and the wacky gives his series an original appeal. Don’t miss out!”
—
RT Book Reviews
(top pick)
“Unusual urban fantasy…highly entertaining.”
—
Romance Reviews Today
Deader Still
“Such a fast-paced, engaging, entertaining book that the pages seemed to fly by far too quickly. Take the New York of
Men in Black
and
Ghostbusters
, inject the same pop-culture awareness and irreverence of
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
or
The Middleman
, toss in a little
Thomas Crown Affair
, shake and stir, and you’ve got something fairly close to this book.”
—
The Green Man Review
“It has a
Men in Black
flavor mixed with
NYPD Blue
’s more gritty realism…if you think of the detectives as working the night shift in
The
Twilight Zone
. It’s a book (and a protagonist) that is going places, and those who enjoy something fresh in urban fantasy will enjoy what they find. Strongly recommended.”
—
SFRevu
“A refreshing, exciting urban fantasy with elements of romance and horror that will appeal to fans of Jim Butcher.”
—
The Best Reviews
“A fun read…The pace moves right along, running poor Simon a little ragged in the process but providing plenty of action. If you liked
Dead to Me
, it’s a safe bet you’ll like this one even more.”
—Jim C. Hines, author of
Libriomancer
“A fun, interesting, and witty read. It is something a little different, with a male protagonist, tongue-in-cheek attitude, and interesting mystery.”
—
Urban Fantasy Land
“It has a little bit of everything for the paranormal junkie…unique from a lot of the urban fantasy genre. This is a fantastic series.”
—
Bitten by Books
(5 tombstones)
“Nice touches…There is a lot to like here.”
—
VOYA
“Clever, well-paced, and attention-grabbing.”
—
Errant Dreams
Dead to Me
“Simon Canderous is a reformed thief and a psychometrist. By turns despondent over his luck with the ladies (not always living) and his struggle with the hierarchy of his mysterious department (not always truthful), Simon’s life veers from crisis to crisis. Following Simon’s adventures is like being the pinball in an especially antic game, but it’s well worth the wear and tear.”
—Charlaine Harris, #1
New York Times
bestselling author of
Deadlocked
“Part
Ghostbusters
, part
Men in Black
, Strout’s debut is both dark and funny, with quirky characters, an eminently likable protagonist, and the comfortable, familiar voice of a close friend. His mix of (mostly) secret bureaucratic bickering and offbeat action shows New York like we’ve never seen it before. Make room on the shelf, ’cause you’re going to want to keep this one!”
—Rachel Vincent,
New York Times
bestselling author of
Before I Wake
“Urban fantasy with a wink and a nod. Anton Strout has written a good-hearted send-up of the urban fantasy genre.
Dead to Me
is a genuinely fun book with a fresh and firmly tongue-in-cheek take on the idea of paranormal police. The laughs are frequent as are the wry smiles. I’m looking forward to seeing what he does next.”
—Kelly McCullough, author of
Bared Blade
“Writ[ing] with equal parts humor and horror, Strout creates an engaging character…clever, fast-paced, and a refreshing change in the genre of urban fantasy.”
—
SFRevu
“In much the same vein as Mark Del Franco’s
Unquiet Dreams
or John Levitt’s
Dog Days
, Strout’s urban fantasy debut features plenty of self-deprecating humor, problematic special powers, and a quick pace, with the added twist of overwhelming government bureaucracy. Strout’s inventive story line raises the genre’s bar with his collection of oddly mismatched, entertaining characters and not-so-secret organizations.”
—
Monsters and Critics
“A wickedly weird debut from a writer who makes being dead sexier than it’s ever been before. And who doesn’t love a debonair, divination-having, ghost-seducing, cultist-abusing detective in New York? Imagine
Law & Order
but with hot ghostly chicks, rampaging bookcases, and a laugh track.”
—Carolyn Turgeon, author of
Mermaid
“A strong debut…Seeing the world through Simon’s eyes is a funny, quirky, and occasionally scary experience. Strout’s world will be well worth revisiting.”
—
RT Book Reviews
Ace Books by Anton Strout
The Simon Canderous Novels
DEAD TO ME
DEADER STILL
DEAD MATTER
DEAD WATERS
The Spellmason Chronicles
ALCHEMYSTIC
BOOK ONE OF
The Spellmason Chronicles
Alchemystic
ANTON STROUT
THE BERKLEY PUBLISHING GROUP
Published by the Penguin Group
Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, USA
Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto, Ontario M4P 2Y3, Canada (a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.) • Penguin Books Ltd., 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England • Penguin Group Ireland, 25 St. Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2, Ireland (a division of Penguin Books Ltd.) • Penguin Group (Australia), 250 Camberwell Road, Camberwell, Victoria 3124, Australia (a division of Pearson Australia Group Pty. Ltd.) • Penguin Books India Pvt. Ltd., 11 Community Centre, Panchsheel Park, New Delhi—110 017, India • Penguin Group (NZ), 67 Apollo Drive, Rosedale, Auckland 0632, New Zealand (a division of Pearson New Zealand Ltd.) • Penguin Books (South Africa) (Pty.) Ltd., 24 Sturdee Avenue, Rosebank, Johannesburg 2196, South Africa
Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.
ALCHEMYSTIC
An Ace Book / published by arrangement with the author
PUBLISHING HISTORY
Ace mass-market edition / October 2012
Copyright © 2012 by Anton Strout.
Cover art by Blake Morrow.
Cover design by Diana Kolsky.
Back cover and spine texture © Allgusak/Shutterstock.
Interior text design by Tiffany Estreicher.
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.
For information, address: The Berkley Publishing Group,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.,
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014.
ISBN: 978-1-101-58964-9
ACE
Ace Books are published by The Berkley Publishing Group,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.,
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014.
ACE and the “A” design are trademarks of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
If you purchased this book without a cover, you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as “unsold and destroyed” to the publisher, and neither the author nor the publisher has received any payment for this “stripped book.”
ALWAYS LEARNING
PEARSON
This one’s for you, you greedy-eyed little reader, you
Welcome, dear friends, to the first book of the Spellmason Chronicles. You don’t know the strange, interesting people and creatures within this tome yet, but they’ve been dying (or undying) to meet you for quite some time. So come on in and let us enter the sacred communal weave of storyteller to storytellee.
Speaking (or writing, rather) of strange and interesting people and creatures…this series would not exist or be half as pretty as it is without the many fine people who have had a hand in bringing it from my brain meat to yours, including: everyone at Penguin Group, most notably the winged furies who inhabit the digital and paperback sales department; my editor, Jessica Wade, righter of writer wrongs (Don’t she clean me up nice?); production editor Michelle Kasper, assistant production editor Jamie Snider, and copy editor Valle Hansen; Judith Murello, Diana Kolsky, and Blake Morrow for a gorgeously creepy cover; Erica Martirano and her crack team of ad/promo people; my publicist, Rosanne Romanello, and all of the publicity department, who parade me out from time to time to interact with the public; my agent, Kristine Dahl, and Laura Neely at ICM, who take care of all the nonwriting details that would drive me mad (well, madder, anyway); the League of Reluctant Adults for continued support and stocking of the bar; Lisa Trevethan for introducing me to the word
Alchemystic
thanks to her knowledge of the band with the same name; my family, near and far; and last but certainly not least, the ever-elusive Orlycorn, who puts up with long hours of me ignoring her while bringing these books to you. She has the patience of a saint and my undying love. Oh, and you, too, dear owner of this book. You didn’t think I’d forget you now, did you?