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�On the eve of the French Revolution, a teenaged alchemist is on the verge of a great discovery. But its cost may be her mind.�

That�s the one-line pitch that alumna author Samantha (McCall �06) Cohoe makes for her newly released young-adult novel, (Wednesday Books). The historical fantasy (�more historical than fantasy,� she explains) follows the perilous adventure of protagonist Theosebeia Hope as she risks her life and her sanity in an always brave, sometimes foolhardy, and occasionally terrifying pursuit of alchemy�s greatest prize: the Philosopher�s Stone.

�The goals of alchemy always seemed like they were worthy of having a fantasy story written about,� reflects Mrs. Cohoe. �The boldness of thinking that, if you get everything right, you can scientifically create eternal life and turn lead into gold, seemed promising as a setup.� The result is a quick-paced, entertaining read that gently touches upon worthwhile questions about natural law, human dignity, pride, parenthood, ambition, and loving one�s enemies.

There are encounters with evil along the way, but none, the author insists, that need give parents concern. �My characters believe that alchemy is a science and pursue it as such, but yes, they do run into some supernatural stuff,� she says. �Without spoiling too much of the plot, I would reassure parents that any child who comes away from the book with a heightened curiosity in dark magic would have had to misread the book very badly. I would also add that any book can depict evil without endorsing it, as readers of great books know.�

Throughout A Golden Fury one can find several hints of the author�s liberal education, including smatterings of Latin and references to Rousseau. �To write historical fantasy, you have to do a lot of research,� notes Mrs. Cohoe, who credits the College�s Great Books curriculum with helping her to better understand history�s would-be alchemists as well as the characters she brings to life. �Reading primary sources and really getting into the minds of the writers in that time � and seeing the coherence of their world views, rather than just judging them from a modern perspective � helps me to write better historical fiction.�

Mrs. Cohoe lives with her husband, Caleb (�06), a philosophy professor at Metropolitan State University of Denver, and their three children in Colorado. Previously a Latin teacher at a classical Christian school, she left the classroom earlier this year to dedicate more time to her writing. Her next work, Bright Ruined Things � which she likens to �The Tempest meets The Great Gatsby� � is due to be released in fall 2021.