The Black Alchemists

10 Stars!! This is a outstanding title. This book introduces to the series my favorite character... Calvin "Freakin" James. The Black bad ass from the south side of Chicago. Definitely one of my favorite characters in the Bolan Universe. Calvin definitely brings some swagger to the team. This book has great action, great villans And a great send off to a great character. To bad about Keio. He died a warriors death, and he will be missed. I can go on and on about this book. If you havnt read this title yet, go out and get it. You wont be disappointed. Again 10 stars.

Solid book. The loss of KO is wonderfully done. When the series first started I always felt KO was an odd character. It seemed like the writers didn't know what to do with him, so he always came across as a bit odd and, at times, useless. It wasn't until Fieldhouse came along that KO really came to life and became a great member of the team in my opinion. In this book they give him a wonderful send off. The introduction of James is also nice to see and definitely a nice transition. Overall a pretty solid book in the series.

How good is this? It is very very good. Firstly the enemy is not your bog standard Arab terrorists with stolen nuclear weapons on the rampage but Zombies. ? Well sort of Haitian military commanders of the feared Ton Ton Macout of the Papa Doc Duvalier regime who got kicked out of the country when his son took over have gathered themselves an army and have brainwashed some of them etc. The introduction of Calvin James is some of the best reading going around in any of these series and when Mr. Green and Mr. Brown make their introductions in the office tower where terrorists are holding hostages and the following action scenes which result you get that chill up your spine as you have barely started the title that this is going to be good. So this is going to score 5 stars minimum I'm thinking and continued on. It's non stop action here folks you barely finish reading an action scene and take a breath when you are plunged into yet another BUT this is not non stop senseless crap it actually continues on the story and plot line. Calvin slips in seamlessly and after an admonishment from Katz regarding a personal objective during one raid he is fantastic. (And remains so to today one of my favourite characters). So it gets an eight I'm thinking but having reread the Keio scenes over again a few times and whilst he was not my favourite character I actually felt more than I did when Katz bites the dust this writing is exceptional I dare you to read it and not be moved if you are familiar with the characters and have not read this yet. I thought this was an excellent read and would highly recommend it to you.

Upon reading this again, it was so focused on Calvin it was kinda strange, I guess they wanted to set up the end a little better - but I would of preferred KO to have bigger role in his last novel. But that is my only complaint with this book. Overall it truly kicked ass, non stop PF at its best. Eh Kay says do not miss this one !

“The Black Alchemists” marks Phoenix Force’s first mission in the continental United States. It’s very rare for this team not to travel internationally. This time they are after The Black Alchemist terrorist group who performs terror through product tampering. This mission has several milestones that would permanently change Phoenix Force. This introduces Calvin James. It also kills off one of their original members, Keio Ohara. To kill of the main characters, Phoenix Force seperates itself from Executioner and Able Team adventures. Their members can be killed off and they continue to die off. And be hurt or crippled. Encizo here still suffers from the effects of being shot in the ankle. As of this writing, Phoenix Force looks remarkably different that the team that started out. They are dynamic in many ways. Ohara was memorable. So was his death. This is a must-read installment of the Phoenix Force series.

In the wake of Warrior's Requiem, I couldn't help but think of this book, the novel where Phoenix Force lost one of its own for the first time, the noble young samurai, Keio Ohara. I started reading these books around the time of Keio's death, but because I read them in order, Keio's death was a huge shock to me. I didn't expect it and from that point on, I had to wonder who would be the next to fall. This book also features the first appearance of Calvin James, who fit in perfectly with Phoenix Force and quickly became one of my favorites.....I'm not sure what that means, exactly, since I love all of these characters just about equally, though if I had to pick just one as my favorite, it would definitely be Katz. The Black Alchemists was a great read with a shocking ending. Keio's final scene was powerful and he went out like a true warrior. This book is a must-read for any Phoenix Force fan. Along with Day Of Mourning, it radically changed my perceptions and expectations of the Bolanverse and upped the stakes in the most incredibly shocking fashion possible.

This was a moving book. You knew from the start that someone was going to die but the action kept you from jumping ahead to see who. Keio's death was quite a blow as I really liked him but it was well done and he died in a fashion that would have made his ancestor's proud. Calvin's addition to this day was a good move.

"The Black Alchemists" are terrorist assholes trying to extort money from the U.S. through poisoning consumer goods. They have to be stopped and Phoenix Force is handed the assignment. For this mission there is a new member joining the team, Calvin James. He's an American SWAT cop in San Francisco when Manning and McCarter recruit him after observing his work in a hostage situation. Calvin is an excellent character and fits nicely into the group, especially since he is a medical specialist. I'm looking forward to reading more adventures with him on the team. The action in this story is excellent and there is a lot of it. Phoenix takes out several terrorist locations including the climactic assault on the mountaintop HQ. The story is very good and well paced, bringing us to each action set piece with good storytelling. And what a story! From the back cover there is no secret that Phoenix loses a member on this mission. The death of the Phoenix warrior is classic action at its best. But the last chapter, seeing how the Phoenix survivors deal with the loss of their frienc is also incredible. I never thought I'd get a lump in my throat reading a Phoenix Force book but I sure did during this one! Great action, an awesome story and lots of drama make this the best of the Phoenix Force stories so far in the series. It's a solid 10 star book.

Just when I was really liking Ohara more and more, he gets killed , but at least he went out in awesome warrior fashion. This book is 7 star quality, but I'm giving it an extra star for adding badass Calvin James to the team. He's a real cool dude!

An amazing chapter in the Phoenix Force saga, excellent action and heart stopping tragedy, An over all gem of a book, but I still can't believe that they killed Kieo, the series wasn't very old, being only 12 books in and they blasted one of the most interesting members of Pheonix to oblivion. But I must say he was one tough mother, being shot, stabbed and beaten and still killing all of his attackers before dying. Rest in Peace Kieo O'Hara.

One of my favorite books in the series. good action scenes.

This is a must-read in the Phoenix series. The villains are nasty and Keio goes out in true warrior fashion.

This was, oddly enough, the first Phoenix Force novel I'd ever read, so I basically jumped right into the middle of the series. I love this book -- there is a good mix between action, suspense, humor, realism and characterization that makes this one not only a personal favorite, but also a highly recommended one.

This book has it all. It is a must read book and should be done in one sitting. Action, plot, characterization, and the loss of the most peaceful of the warriors. It will live in my mind forever as one of the best.

I still have visions of Keio's death scene going through my mind. It was like a death waltz or something. To date, this is the only Ohara story I have read. My only recollections of Keio are this story and the reflections from later stories. I recently acquired the first 11 books and will begin reading ASAP.