Alchemy of a Blackbird, Claire McMillan
Alchemy of a Blackbird, Claire McMillan
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Alchemy of a Blackbird

Author: Claire McMillan

Narrator: Aida Reluzco, Zac Aleman, Raquel Beattie, Carlotta Brentan, Erin deWard, Ella Lynch

Unabridged: 8 hr 38 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 07/11/2023


Synopsis

Named a Best Book of 2023 by Book Riot

For fans of The Age of Light and Z comes a “beguiling novel of artistic ambition, perseverance, and friendship” (Katy Hays, New York Times bestselling author) based on the true story of the 20th-century painters and tarot devotees Remedios Varo and Leonora Carrington.

In this “unforgettable adventure, and one you don’t want to miss” (Patti Callahan Henry, New York Times bestselling author), painter Remedios Varo and her lover, poet Benjamin Peret escape the Nazis by fleeing Paris and arriving at a safe house for artists on the Rivieria.

Along with Max Ernst, Peggy Guggenheim, and others, the two anxiously wait for exit papers.

As the months pass, Remedios begins to sense that the others don’t see her as a fellow artist; they have cast her in the stifling role of a surrealist ideal: the beautiful innocent. She finds refuge in a mysterious bookshop, where she stumbles into a world of occult learning and intensifies an esoteric practice in the tarot that helps her light the bright fire of her creative genius.

When travel documents come through, Remedios and Benjamin flee to Mexico where she is reunited with friend and fellow painter Leonora Carrington. Together, the women tap into their creativity, stake their independence, and each find their true loves. But it is the tarot that enables them to access the transcendent that lies on the other side of consciousness and to become the truest Surrealists of all.

About Claire McMillan

Claire McMillan is the author of Alchemy of a Blackbird, Gilded Age, and The Necklace. She was the 2017–2018 Cuyahoga County Writer-in-Residence and currently serves as a member of the board of trustees of The Mount, Edith Wharton’s home in Lenox, Massachusetts. She practiced law until 2003 and then received her MFA in creative writing from Bennington College. She grew up in Pasadena, California, and now lives on her husband’s family farm outside of Cleveland, Ohio, with their two children.


Reviews

Goodreads review by s.penkevich on April 01, 2025

'The set of pictures in the Tarot cards were distantly descended from archetypes of transformation.' —Carl Jung While the popularity of the surrealists tends to minimize the achievements of women in the movement, painters Remedios Varo and Leonora Carrington have long been my favorite artists and left......more

Goodreads review by Annette on May 22, 2023

This historical novel is based on the true story of the painters and occultists Remedios Varo and Leonora Carrington. Both women had to break away from their famous partners in order to become icons in their own right. What connected them were the tarot cards, which are the driven force in this stor......more

Goodreads review by Moonkiszt on September 11, 2024

Claire McMillan's book Alchemy of a Blackbird sweeps a reader around the world - from Paris to the Riviera, to Mexico in the wake of Remedios Varo and Leonora Carrington, two non-fictional beings who lived and breathed at a critical moment in history. Their friendship was the connection that bound t......more

Goodreads review by Michelle on June 18, 2023

DISCLAIMER: I acquired an ARC edition of this novel from my employer (I work at a bookstore) for free and am reviewing the ARC version - not the final sale copy. My acquisition of this ARC does not impact my review at all. — This is an excellent historical fiction novel with a very engaging format. E......more

Goodreads review by Caitlin on July 16, 2023

Thanks to Atria for the free book. This is a character driven story about Remedios Varo, a painter from the surrealism movement. I liked getting a glimpse into how this movement was interrupted by WWII and how these artists chose to cope and continue their work. I also found the parts about the tarot......more


Quotes

"Six narrators add unique layers to this well-researched novel featuring Surrealist artist Remedios Varo, a refugee who is fleeing Europe during WWII. Each narrator takes on a different point of view. With her warm tone and rich timbre, Aida Reluzco sets a captivating mood in the chapters involving Remedios. Between each chapter, Erin deWard delivers a mesmerizing Tarot card reading that introduces the upcoming principal character. The narrators adopt the native accents of the various expatriate painters and art collectors who make up the novel. The overall effect of the Tarot card readings, myriad perspectives, and accents, along with Reluzco’s rendering of Remedios, is positively entrancing."