Every trial kills a few alchemists. Luckily, he's only pretending to be one.
Were it not for a series of unfortunate circumstances, Munir al-Muhtaal would be on top of the world: rich, well-fed, and respected, with a wife on one arm and his best friend, Sammar, at his side.
The fact that some of those circumstances were his own doing is beside the point.
Instead, Munir lives in a smelly jeweler’s shop he runs with Sammar under the nose of their drunk master. They’ve been scraping by, but thanks to Munir’s stunning sales techniques (and the fact they’ve been using alchemy to enchant the jewelry) customers are flocking to the store and things are looking up.
After an alchemical incident results in a death, they are forced to abandon the shop and go into hiding. When a mysterious woman invites them to compete in her master’s alchemical trials, they see the fantastical prize as their only hope of reclaiming their livelihoods and saving their lives.
Surrounded by talented and dangerous alchemists from across the known world, Munir and Sammar are outmatched, outclassed, and out of options. The dark caves beneath Granada hide ancient secrets, and they quickly learn that the stakes in this game are life and death.
