Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. What were your overall impressions of A Forbidden Alchemy? Which aspect of the book—its worldbuilding, characters, or political conflict—stood out most to you?

2. How did the dual perspectives of Nina and Patrick affect your emotional connection to the story? Did one of their viewpoints feel more compelling or authentic?

3. If you have experience reading other books within the romantasy genre, how does this compare? If not, what did you like or dislike most about the genre?

Encourage readers to connect the book’s themes and characters with their personal experiences.

1. With which character do you identify with the most, and why?

2. Nina’s understanding of right and wrong shifts throughout the novel. Have you ever found yourself questioning your beliefs after seeing “both sides” of a situation?

3. Patrick tells Nina that his family is “in the business of justice,” even when that justice includes violence. How do you define justice in your own life? At what point does it become revenge?

4. Do you relate to Nina and Patrick’s love story? Which parts feel familiar to you and which do not?

5. The news and propaganda in the novel attempt to control public opinion. Can you identify moments in your own experience where media or misinformation influenced how people perceived the truth? How did it affect people’s perception of morality?

6. The ending suggests that survival sometimes requires moral compromise. Do you think you would have made the same choices Nina or Patrick did? Why or why not?

Encourage readers to connect the book’s themes and characters with their personal experiences.

1. How does the novel’s depiction of a government manipulating resources like idium and the media mirror real-world systems of control?

2. The novel explores the divide between those who work with their minds (Artisans) and those who work with their bodies (Crafters). How does this division reflect class or labor distinctions in the real world?

3. How does the book’s setting mirror the economic world of today? Consider technology, class conflict, and political control.

Dive into the book’s structure, characters, themes, and symbolism.

1. How did Nina change over the course of the book? What forces, experiences, or people sparked those changes?

2. Discuss the role of humor in the novel. Which characters tend to use it? When and how do they use it? What purpose does it serve?

3. Discuss the differences between Nina’s relationships with Patrick and Theo. How does the author communicate these differences?

4. Nearly every type of Artisan is represented in at least one character. Select a character and consider how their medium reflects their’ internal struggles or emotional states.

Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.

1. What do you think will unfold in the second book of the series? What loose ends still exist and how do you think they will be explained?

2. Imagine A Forbidden Alchemy adapted into a film or series. Who would you cast as main characters? Which scene would be the most visually striking, and how might a director use lighting or sound to enhance it?

3. Create a playlist that captures the novel’s shifting settings—from the fancy Artisan school to the claustrophobic tunnels to the fiery chaos of the raid. Discuss one or two songs you would include and how they connect to specific characters or scenes.