What would you do if your father sent you a key that could unlock the
most powerful secret of the ancient world? Would you get involved, at
the risk of bringing its terrible magic back to life? In this novel that
pits Good, Love, and Nature against Evil, Hate and Artifice, two
teenagers, Jake and Helen, meet as contestants at a literary festival in
Florence, Italy. When Helen's father, an art dealer, leaves her a
mysterious note asking her to recover a key, she and Jake find
themselves in this very dilemma. The Secret of the Alchemist weaves
magic, literature and the exhilarating power of friendship into a story
unlike any other.