Title: The Alchemist's Cell
Author: SJR0301
Rating: ? Not given
Genre: Action/adventure
DLP Category: Independent Harry
Pairing: Harry/OC, at least that's what it looks like so far. EDIT: Apparently, I was wrong and it's H/G. Sorry, this took me by surprise, as I wasn't aware of that when I started reading, but I think the quality is worth it.
Status: Complete
Summary: Harry run away from the Dursley's and discovered he couldn't enter the wizard world. New adventures await him before he can go back to Hogwarts to start his six-year and to face the challenges Voldemort set on him.
Link: http://www.oocities.org/heksie2144/sj.html (Fixed Nov/2012 -Sesc)

Truly one of the best stories I've ever set my eyes on. I haven't finished it yet, but I couldn't help myself posting it now. I read the first chapters in an ataraxic ecstasy, the true mark of great writing. Give it a shot! 5/5

 

1. There's a glaring typo in the summary. Makes me reluctant to read this.
2. All the chapters are down.

edit: On the fourth chapter now... I'll admit, this is good. Though I'll have to see how this pans out, 4.5/5 for now...

edit2: It's really annoying to finish a chapter only to learn they've all gone down again :/

I mean really, it's just text. How can there not be enough bandwitdth to support text that is loaded by a couple hundred people everyday... it feels like 1998 again, or something.

 

Urgh, that's probably geocities' annoying trafic limits
I'll look if the story is anywhere else!

 

I don't think the story is hosted anywhere else, I have looked. The site somewhat annoys me, but I couldn't find a solution. Apparently there is also a sequel. Will edit with a rating when I read some more.

 

It's pretty good so far. The story's strongest side is the writing. It's... no other word than "professional" comes to mind. If the fic's plot will live up to its writing it'll be a 5/5 without any doubt. I'll post a full-fledged review for this story in a day or two.

 

Read the first few chapters of the story till now and it really is very well written. Got hooked after the first chapter.

I liked the OC's that were introduced in the story as well. They felt very well fleshed out rather than fillers.

Was just looking for alternate sources as well and this is what i found:

http://www.amazon.com/Unauthorized-Harry-Potter-Alchemists-Cell/dp/0977742474

 

An incredible story all the way up to chapter 9, where the Weasleys n' crew unabashedly ruin it all.

Harry has, well, Harry abandons the wizarding world and he makes his first true friend – not one forced upon him, anyway. The Weasleys fret over meaningless things like school and quidditch just a day after his safe return, and yet, Harry accepts all this.

I can't empathize. If I were Harry, I'd have been content to continue as I was, even though Harry was starving most of the time, at least he was actually able to think for himself for once. Yet he's already accepting the whole situation and enjoying the return to normalcy without any token of resistance.

Ginny is a fucking bitch. Why is Harry being such a wimp all of a sudden? Why can't I tell if this story is H/G or not?

edit: Oh, I see your edit, Mordac. Thanks for that :/. This is H/G? Really?

edit: I checked the last chapter. It's H/G.

The first 9 chapters~ are great. The author is adept at writing "Harry on the lam" but the rest of the story is convoluted and wracked with so many cliches (Dumbledore giving secret lessons, bullshit-Occlumency crap, OC Muggle-loving DDA teacher, Snape-loving [well, the author defends Snape's attitude towards Harry]) and inexplicable bullshit (Harry's sudden 180°'s in situations; the fact that he actually likes Ginny, who is undeniably a bitch in this story) that I can no longer give this anything but a 0/5.

Massive faliure. What a waste of time.

Anyone else who's read up to chapter 12 want to explain to me why Harry falls for Ginny? I can't wrap my mind around it at all. First she spreads lies about him. Then she's a general nobody who can't keep her nose out of Harry's business. Then she lies and says she's Harry's girlfriend, making his peers dislike him (and generally causing a mess) et cetera, and yet Harry's smiling and blushing like he's been swooned by some hot Veela chick. I'm genuinely baffled.

 

Yea, this is true, there was a bit of a slump after chapter 9, and I wish the author had taken another path than he had from there. I haven't finished it yet, but I feel that after that I may hae to downgrade the fic to 4.5/5. Still, it's better than 99.5% of the stuff you read--I think it's the style that ensnares me so.

 

It's down on Geocities (again!) but Google has it cached and it's probably in the WayBackMachine.

Edit after I read.

Edit: I haven't got to Hogwarts yet, and this is great so far. We'll have to see. I lol'd at the names of the bar patrons in Chapter 6.

Edit again: IT ENDS, CHAPTER 9. EVERYTHING AFTER THE PLAY IS TOTAL SHIT. (but feel free to read the first part, which is great - 4/5 at least. Harry gets a yelling at from the Weasley witches and reverts to his pussy self. Chapters 9.5 - 15 are horrible, so I gave up. If anyone got to thirty and things started looking up, tell us so I can skip ahead; I really liked the beginning)

Before chapter 9 1/2:
After chapter 9 1/2:

Overall score:

Mordac, if you can still edit your first post, can you throw in a warning about chapter 9 where it switches from good Harry/OC to pussy Harry/fiery Ginny?

 

It was excellent, interesting writing style, few errors and fascinating original characters. Harry was interesting and developing and new things were happening, all was going well.

Then the Weasleys showed up and it all went to hell. I think I made it to about chapter 16 or 17 before I gave up in disgust. Harry learns nothing, acts exactly like he did in canon - screaming and sulking and wanting to stay a child. No driving force, no interest in learning or improving himself, nothing.

Character development after the Weasleys steps back, falling into old routines and repeated over and over again. Ginny falls into the old stereotype of shouting at him when he's being childish to make him grow up and his friends all support her rather than him.

In short - Pre-Hogwarts stuff was well written and interesting, 4/5, possibly even 5/5.
After he sees the Weasleys, possibly 2/5 maximum for the decent writing style and the remaining OC sections. The rest of it - plot and character wise just made me cringe.

 

Know what, y'all are right. If I had finished reading it before posting it here, well, I wouldn't have posted it. I was just enthused by the first chapters, before I knew it was H/G. I'll keep reading it, but then again i think I have a better tolerance to it than most here--after all, I can enjoy the Grey Maiden series and NoFP. Sorry for that. Maybe someone should ask the writer's premission to write a spinoff....

Though I do think giving the story a one or two is over the top--it clearly doesn't deserve it.

 

Well, it's wonderful and it gets your hopes up - and then it tears your heart out and throws it to the ground and stomps on it until you die.

The second two-thirds wouldn't be so bad if the first third weren't so good.

 

Well, I've finally finished reading this fic and sequels--which, in the whole, are still a WIP.
I'm a bagful of mixed feelings over this fic. I think it is 50% genius and 50% crap. The crap is obviously what was complained about here--I thoroughly agree. I have no idea why the author let the same old tired Harry/Ginny cliches creep into this story and ruining it. There were times I felt like giving up and forgetting about this, but I had to see where it led. The author deserves praise for being the best OC-maker in the history of Harry Potter fanfiction--never have I seen someone whose OCs I cared for more than the canon characters--which is not difficult given Ginsult's characterization. I could have stomached the H/G if it weren't for the Big Happy Weasley Family stuff, which the Grey Maiden series manages to avoid and thus becomes one of the H/G stories people here like. It also doesn't help that many of my favorite characters are used for pathos purposes early on, and thus are absent from most of the series, leaving only the hated ones. Though I have to say, if this person ever writers original fiction, I'm reading it!
The story improves in quality after Voldemort bites it--there's another perfect OC there(literarily perfect of course, not perfect in a Mary Sue way)--until the last moment before the story 'runs out', when the author introduces a plot twist to the story that's so over the top that it blew my suspension of disbelief out of the water. I won't say what it is, not only not to spoil it for anyone out there who might still be reading it, but because it is so preposterous and insane that I can't even describe it here, out of context, or your eyes would burst into flame and your brain would shrivel to the size of a raisin. It seems the author thought he bit off more than he could chew too, because the story hasn't been updated in a long while.
I can't help thinking what would have been if the author had taken another direction at chapter 9--probably the best Harry Potter fic in the history of fandom, is what would have happened.
3.4/5, for the wasted potential.

 

Please tell me this got into the archives before the Geocities wipeout!

 

If it didn't, here ya go: http://web.archive.org/web/*/http://www.geocities.com/heksie2144/alc.html

 

The wayback machine contains chapters 1, 2, 4, 7 and maybe a few others. Also, apparently the sequel is called The Heart of Gryffindor.

I liked the story, from what little there was--is there any other place to find the rest of it?