This comic is confusing, not only because of the story and philosophical aspect, but because I can't decide wether I liked it or not. It has a lot going for it, including the drawing style and artistic execution. There are many beautiful pages and the artist really knows how to divide the panels and tell a story just with images. The book is also filled with symbols, which is understandable since alchemy is part of the plot.
The story features queer rep with a trans fluid/masculine bisexual character, a bisexual woman and a bisexual man, all of whom where together at one point and now ultimately enter an polyamurous relationship. I use the word relationship loosely here because this book is not like an ordinary romance.

Through alchemy, the author explores how love, loneliness, trauma and society affect us and how these people seek freedom from pain and suffering. No character is without flaws and they all have charasteristics that make you dislike them: Camille (the trans man) is manipulative, Sarah is incredibly co-dependent with a martyr complex and Aniss is filled with constant rage and very violent. But they also have good aspects to them and bring up excellent points when discussing topics.
Now, if you think they're just sitting around discussing their love life and their mistakes, you'd be dead wrong because Camille's goal is to fuse their bodies into a new immortal being, which is triggered by a seemingly cataclysmic event, a solar flare. They each must unite their seperate identities into one being. Then all three must fuse their essence and bodies to become a new collective being.

The story can be read either literally or metaphorically and depending on your perspective you either have a utopia and the beginning of a happy ending at hand or the unfolding of a cosmic horror story. The truth is probably somewhere in the middle.
It's certainly an interesting exploration of the human psyche and the pains we carry within ourselves and honestly I liked reading how each of them confront their pain and are honest about where their trauma came from, how they are victims of things outside their control but also how in turn, they hurt others.

Somehow, this bizarre story with metaphysical elements, fusing alchemy with astronomy and magic and psychology and utopian horrors is very queer but also strangely repulsive (not because of the queerness) in its mixed messages.

This is something to read when you're in the right mindset because it's quite a long, sophisticated story with complex characters, confusing plot and a lot of philosophical conversations, sometimes bordering on convoluted and bloated. Even self-aggrandising. Not a light and quick read, so if you want to check it out, be sure to be prepared for some visual and narrative fuckery.

Strange, winding, and lofty, Our Alchemical Bodies is a story of modern love that will leave you reeling with questions. Great for anyone who loves tales of alchemy, the divine, or endless love.

The story was interesting, but a lot of it when over my head. Also, this was incredibly difficult to read on a phone as the text was incredibly small. Even zoomed in, it was difficult to read. Not something I'd pick up once it's in print.

The art is unique and visually intriguing. This is the most striking feature of the book. The story itself is secondary, and could have used a polish to make this a more robust reading experience. Suggested for mature audiences.

2 stars (published July 21)

**Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.**
#OurAlchemicalBodies #NetGalley

Pros
+ French translation
+ rep: trans man, depression, bisexual/pansexual
+ Camille: trans man (underwent top surgery and has scars, both of which are illustrated on-page) who is leading an alchemical/body experiment
+ Aniss: ex-boyfriend of Camille, who suffers from depression and rage
+ Sarah: ex-girlfriend of Camille, who is the glue/empathetic one of the group
+ some truly terrifying body horror illustrations

Neutral
/ the art style wasn't particularly to my taste, but that's massively subjective

Cons
- the alchemical premise was more of a threesome/manipulation of the exes by Camille, which was seriously NOT it (urging the two exes who are suffering deep depression to "transform" which leads them to drowning and blinding themselves...NOT FINE)
- deliberate misgendering of Camille by Aniss THE ENTIRE WAY THROUGH
- the theme of coming together/unity/physical intertwinement is undermined by Camille's mental manipulation to serve his experimental purposes

TW: general partner abuse, mental abuse by a partner, attempted murder by a partner, depression, suicide attempts, attempted drowning, self-blinding, gore, body horror, deliberate misgendering, top surgery

I have absolutely no idea how to review this.
This graphic novel was somehow everything and nothing at the same time.

I'll start by saying that the art work was beautiful. Some of the illustrations in here are haunting and it might be some of my favourite art work to date.

The characters themselves were very well written and you did get to know quite a bit about all of them considering how short the novel itself is. It's a beautiful story of self acceptance and inner journeys and the journey of human and nature together. It had some amazing points to make and I honestly think I will be thinking about this for a long time.

However it felt somehow rushed yet slow at the same time? I wanted more information, more insight into the people themselves. I realise this is a graphic novel and not a full book and that there isn't as much time to fully 'flesh out' a story and it's characters as there usually would be but I was left wanting a bit more. I think the meaning and the journey the characters take would have resignated with me more if I was more invested in the people involved.
For example, during the moment of 'unity' both Camille and Sarah delved deep into their back stories and their trauma, but we didn't get to see Aniss'? He is constantly describes as this flame and fire and I wanted to see where that had come from. He was the character I was the most invested in but I just feel like he was left behind in the writing.

I finished reading this 24 hours ago and I still haven't fully managed to figure out my thoughts on it. It could be my favourite thing ever or I could hate it. My mind keeps flipping between the 2 and that's all I ever want from a story.

Read this!
(Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read this)
This review is also on goodreads and Amazon.

Well, at least I liked the cover of this book. That and the art was crafted tolerably at times. This is one of the most pretentious, meaningless books I've read in a very long time. A pretentious attempt at meaning steeped in esoteric poetry and arcane imagery. I'm left confused by 'Our Alchemical Bodies'...who is this intended for? On the surface it feels like the makings of an art-house A24 film that I'd expect to hear about at a film festival. Underneath the esotericism is...an allegory for love? Pantheism? Identity?
Don't get me wrong, I love a good allegory, but this book is so reliant on the mysticism and esoteric language that it loses any value of meaning one could take away. While the art was enjoyable at times, I could not wait for this book to be over. It started out well enough, but took so many turns in various directions that I could not enjoy it. I wanted to love it, but was utterly disappointed.

Thanks Thomas Gilbert and Europe Comics for the ARC.

This is a story of madness and obsession between three lovers who re-unite for an experiment in...I'm not sure. Immortality or unity or both. That by itself is fine, if the story felt like it were going somewhere.

I'm not a hipster so maybe I'm just not in the right demographic for this. I'm sure that many people enjoy this type of story. This book includes attempted murder, attempted suicide, sex, and for some creepy reason, is rated as ages 12 and up on Amazon. That's the biggest reason to not want to finish it.

So I stopped about halfway through. Sorry. I always try to finish ARC's, but there are sometimes reasons when I refuse. I skimmed to the end and it doesn't seem like I'm missing much.