What would you do if offered the choice to live forever? Fourteen-year-old Seraphina didn’t think when her life slipped away, and was saved by the handsome Cyrus. A kind gesture at the moment but even a crush from the 1400’s eventually evolves over six hundred years. Cyrus may have the answer to eternal life but the price becomes too high for Sera. Their routines for survival are flawless, but Sera longs for the next stage in the afterlife.

After an attempt to escape Cyrus’ clutches go awry, Sera finds herself being a teenager with a normal family. Being sixteen with best friends, a secret neighbour boyfriend and parents all over her, Sera settles into this life she accidently stole. But Cyrus isn’t like any ex-boyfriend. He’s looking for Sera and will do anything and everything in his power to find her to bring her back to the fold…

The Alchemy of Forever is an unusual take on YA paranormal romance. Mixed with fantasy and urban magic, I was pleasantly surprised to learn this book is the first in a series. Seraphina gets an opportunity most people long to experience, living forever. It’s refreshing to see her take the side of being tired of having been there and done that. Sera is such a delightful character, a strange mix of naïve teenager and wise old voodoo priestess. Although living through her pasts could have been more prominent to give Sera a deeper sense of character. I hope this issue is further explored in the next book.

As Sera evolves into Kailey and discovers love, perhaps a true love for the first time in six hundred years, she’ll do anything to remain hidden from Cyrus. You can’t help but hope that Sera will find a way to be rid of him, or accept her fate and kill herself for real. The book finishes on such a cliffhanger that I was mad it had ended! With Goodreads showing it’s a series I can’t wait for the next book to be published next year. It’ll be interesting to see if this series will go the Twilight route, meaning focusing on obsessive love or if can dig a little deeper into this idea of living forever. Relevant and in the know it’s a quick read for young teens of today.