Dark Alchemy

Starred review from January 26, 2015
This fun adventure in modern-day Wyoming introduces Petra Dee, a geologist looking for her missing father and trying to make peace with her past. What she finds is a small town where the law enforcement answers to the local cattle baron, and a meth dealer is an alchemist determined to recover the magical secrets of the town’s founders. When Petra stumbles across an artifact that could be key to those secrets, she catches the alchemist’s attention. Then her attempt to save a ranch hand from a vicious beating brings her to the attention of the Hanged Men, the local undead. Armed with a coyote familiar and a stubborn sense of justice, Petra doesn’t back down, especially when she realizes that the alchemist might be the only one who can help her find her father. Bickle (Rogue Oracle) adds a dash of romance to the charming adventure, wrapped up with a perfect ending. Agent: Rebecca Stumpf, Prospect Agency.