Book Review: Folklore 517

Alchemy of Secrets by Stephanie Garber

Published: October 2025

Summary from Goodreads:

It starts with a class in an old movie theater.

Folklore 517: Local Legends and Urban Myths, taught by a woman called the Professor. Most students believe the Professor’s stories are just fiction, but Holland St. James has always been convinced that magic is real. When she tracks down a local legend named the Watch Man, who can supposedly tell you when you’ll die, the world finally makes sense. Except that the Watch Man tells her she will die at midnight tomorrow unless she finds an ancient object called the Alchemical Heart.

With the clock ticking, Holland is pulled deeper into this magical world in the heart of Los Angeles—and into the path of a magnetic stranger. Everything about him feels like a bad idea, but he promises Holland that her sister sent him to protect her. As they chase clues and stories that take them closer to the Alchemical Heart, Holland realizes everyone in this intoxicating new world is lying to her, even this stranger. And if she can’t figure out whom to trust, not even the Alchemical Heart will save her.

Confession:

This was a fantastic read that kept me guessing throughout the whole story. I loved the characters, the LA setting was great and the plot moved along at quite a good pace for most of the story. This is a another great book by this author and I am eagerly anticipating the sequel.

The story is told from Holland’s point of view, and right away you know that she is going to be someone that will be a formidable heroine. She is smart, witty and loves folklore and myths and believes in magic. She has a tragic backstory, losing her parents at a young age, but her spirit remains bright. She has a twin sister, that we hear alot about, but don’t actually meet. But it is the fact that she loves her sister that gets her into some trouble. She is quite quick to trust some of the strangers she meets, based solely on the fact that they tell her that they know her sister. This bothered me at first as it didn’t seem to go along with her personality, but it matched with what was really going on.

There are a few chapters at the start of the book that focused on the Folklore 517 classes, that Holland took. These were very interesting chapters, and I kind of wish they had continued throughout the book. I loved the focus on the myths and legends associated with places and buildings in the LA area, but mostly in Hollywood. There is a lot of talk about movies in this story, but I’m not sure if any of them were real movies.

Lots of secondary characters in this story and almost all of them had at least a small part to play. There are two men who are supposed to be protecting Holland, and both supposedly work with her sister. They are also both love interests for Holland, but I never had the feeling that this part of the story was real or important.

I don’t want to say much about the plot, you really need to go in pretty blind. It is a bit confusing at first, especially some of Holland’s reactions to the men who approach her. But if you stick with it, you will be amazed at the intricacy of the whole story. Beautifully written and the setting is almost as important to the story as the characters.

If you are a fan of this author, you don’t want to miss this one. Urban fantasy readers will especially like this one, especially if you enjoy stories set in and are about LA and movies. Highly recommend that you don’t miss this one.