ALA Booklist (Tue Jan 03 00:00:00 CST 2023)

One day in Portland, Maine, while seeking refuge from bullies behind Halwa Heaven, the local Arab bakery, sixth-grader Shad meets the curious Kahem, bakery owner and alchemist. As Shad pieces together his family's ties with alchemy, Kahem instructs him on the mystical art d its dark side that longs for immortality. After being accepted to the Alexandria Academy, Shad finds himself learning alongside one of his former bullies. As dark necromancers get closer to him and to immortality, Shad must face unexpected enemies and truths about his family. This fast-paced middle-grade fantasy from debut author Jreije introduces an immediately likable protagonist in Shad, whose humor and love for his family resonate throughout the novel and whose interest in baking is delightful as well as useful. Even as Shad suffers grief and loss, he ongside a beloved cast of characters es the lessons he has learned from his family to overcome his fears. Readers will long to return to the Alexandria Academy.

Kirkus Reviews

Shad Hadid plans to learn everything about being an alchemist-if necromancers don't get him first.After things didn't work out with his hostile stepfather and stepsiblings, Shad left Lebanon with his father and grandparents to start over in Maine. Since his father and grandfather were killed in a car crash, it's been just him and Teta, his grandmother. Eleven-year-old Shad spends his time baking new concoctions, staring in the windows of the only Arabic bakery in town, and dodging his bully (and one-time friend), Sarah Decker, a White girl with xenophobic parents. When he stumbles into an alley behind the bakery that he shouldn't have been able to see, Shad learns that he is descended from alchemists. Eager to learn more, he enrolls in the Alexandria Academy only to find that they dismiss alchemy. Even worse, Sarah and Yakoub, his menacing stepbrother, are also students there. Clearly, it will be up to Shad to restore the alchemists to greatness and to deliver the school from the clutches of necromancers who seek to discover the key to immortality. As Shad makes friends, confronts bullies, and learns how alchemy is like both baking and science, he grows and gains confidence in himself. Alexandria Academy offers a fresh take on magic schools with dark secrets, and Shad and his friends, most of whom are Middle Eastern and North African, are engaging.A refreshing adventure featuring family, friendship, and the power of creating new recipes. (Fantasy. 8-12)

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

A baking enthusiast turned alchemist battles both necromancers and his distaste for science in this duology starter by debut author Jreije. Having left Lebanon for America five years ago, sixth grader Shad Hadid lives in Portland, Maine, with his grandmother, Teta, after his father and grandfather died in a car accident. Now, Shad faces bullying from former friend Sarah Decker, a white math and science whiz, and spends his time visiting the local Arabic bakery and cooking for Teta. Entering an alley to elude Sarah, he encounters a jungle, a necromancer, and an alchemist—and learns that he’s an alchemist, too. When he enrolls in Alexandria Academy to learn more of his craft, he finds that the school, housed in the famous Library of Alexandria, now teaches only math and science, and any mention of alchemy is forgotten by the hearer. While meeting friends and grappling with the intersections of alchemy, baking, and science, Shad uncovers a necromancers’ plot involving an immortality-granting elixir. A warm addition to the magical school genre, this duology opener foregrounds developing friendships among the mostly Arab or North African student body, Shad’s pride in his heritage and talents, and above all, his funny, sensitive voice. Ages 8–12. Agent: Jennifer Azantian, Azantian Literary. (Oct.)