ARC Review: Red City by Marie Lu

 


Title: Red City

By: Marie Lu

Genre: Fantasy

Pages: 432

Release Date: October 14th, 2025

Rating: ★★★★☆

 

Summary from Goodreads:

The Godfather meets The Magicians in the sweeping adult debut from #1 New York Times bestselling author Marie Lu. Perfect for fans of V.E. Schwab, Red City is a dark and deadly contemporary fantasy of magical warfare, star-crossed ambition, and the pursuit of perfection at any cost, set in a glittering alternate Los Angeles.

Alchemy is the hidden art of transformation. An exclusive power wielded by crime syndicates that market it to the world’s elites in the form of sanda drug that enhances those who take it into a more perfect version of more beautiful, more charismatic, simply more.

Among the gleaming skyscrapers and rolling foothills of Angel City, alchemy is controlled by two rival syndicates. For years, Grand Central and Lumines have been balanced on a razor’s edge between polite negotiation and outright violence. But when two childhood friends step into that delicate equation, the city—and the paths of their lives—will be irrevocably transformed.

The daughter of a poor single mother, Sam would do anything to claw her way into the ranks of Grand Central in search of a better life. Plucked away from his family as a boy to become a Lumines apprentice, Ari is one of the syndicates' brightest rising stars. Once, they might have loved each other. But as the two alchemists face off across opposite sides of an ever-escalating conflict, ambition becomes power, loyalty becomes lies, and no transformation may be perfect enough for them both to survive the coming war.

At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

 

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Review:

Red City is a fast paced, alchemy laced adventure that showcases Marie Lu’s signature world building and character depth. I was especially drawn to the intricacies of the alchemy system and how well the characters’ backstories were woven into the plot. The momentum of the story kept me engaged from start to finish. However, the romantic subplot didn’t quite land for me. It felt underdeveloped and lacked the emotional spark I was hoping for. Still, this is a solid read with plenty to love for fans of dystopian fantasy.

Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review. 

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