Review : The Rook by Daniel O’Malley

Posted by on September 17, 2012 8:44 am in 3 stars reads | 7 comments

The Rook by Daniel O’Malley
Pages : 486
Genre : Urban Fantasy
Stand Alone
My Rating : 3/5

What it’s about :

When Myfanwy wakes up in a London park, she has no idea who she is or what happened to her. All that she knows is that she is surrounded by dead bodies wearing gloves, and a letter in her pocket in giving her specific information on what do to next.

Quickly, Myfanwy is overwhelmed with new information : she’s part of a secret organization working with and against supernatural beings, has a special talent of her own and, most importantly, someone is plotting against her life. Hopefully, she can find the truth before she loses everything for good.

My thoughts :

Oh The Rook, The Rook; what to say about you?

It’s not that you were bad; you had, in fact, all the necessary elements to make me fall in love with you. A great setting (I can’t resist an undercover supernatural governmental organisation!). A intriguing main character. A fantastic cast of secondary characters. A complex mystery with a detailed plot. Really, I should have fallen in love with you. But I didn’t.

I want to believe it is a case of the wrong book at the wrong time. Had we met earlier or later in life, I probably would have enjoyed our time together much more. I won’t lie, there were some great moments there. I thought Myfanwy was clever and fun to be around. I loved how the superpowers worked, and how original they were. It felt fresh and new and very different from all the urban fantasy books I have read in the past. It created great scenes, too, whether it was in a “simple” interrogatory or an action sequence. Also, very, very creepy villains!

Myfanwy was a great character, being herself one of the book’s mysteries. I liked that the Myfanwy from before the incident had left all these instructions to the memory-less Myfanwy. It was a bit like reading the biography of an unknown yet important woman, but the Checquy’s organization is so huge and intricate that it kept me interested.

But there were also moments where I just felt myself struggling through the pages. I would sit down for ten minutes, and not manage to turn a page. I got bored in places, even though the story kept on revealing new details and offering new mysteries. I still can’t pinpoint why, exactly. Maybe the abundance of details was a bit much to take as I was getting ready to get back to university? If I compare you, dear The Rook, to other novels of a similar nature I have had the opportunity to read, I have to admit that you were a bit much to take in.

I really wish I could give you a more positive review. Still, three stars isn’t bad. I can recognize that you had strong qualities, aspects that distinguish you from other books and make you more difficult to categorize. I’m even willing to keep you on my shelf, in case I feel like giving you another try later in life. For now though, I can’t really do much more than say you were okay.

But I swear to you : it’s not you, it’s me. I’m pretty sure of that.

7 Comments

  1. Oh, I am sorry that you didn’t love this one as much as I did! I thought it was a really interesting audiobook, and my husband liked it a lot too. It did take some time to get rolling, but I enjoyed it. Not to worry though, not every book is for every reader!

    • I usually don’t mind books that take some time rolling, but I had a hard time with it. I’m wondering if I wouldn’t have appreciated it more in audiobook?

  2. Oh, no! I had a lot of fun with this book and couldn’t put it down! The only complaint I had was that in would occasionally shift perspectives and it would throw me off, but other than that, I loved it! But as Heather mentions above, not every book is for everyone! On to the next one!

    • Aww, well, I’m glad you guys liked it. It had SO many interesting and innovative aspects. I’ll still be recommending it to readers looking for something fantastical and original!

  3. I love how you let the book down gently, lol. I’ve been meaning to read this. It looks like a story I would like, but for some reason the summary doesn’t quite snag me. I think I might end up agreeing with your limbo assessment, we shall see. Great review!

    • Aww, but I don’t like to write negative reviews, and this book I did like in parts. It’s hard to translate your emotions when a book leaves you kind of a “meh” feeling. But yes, do try it. I think I could have loved it at another time. There are very original elements in it too!

  4. Dude, I totally had the EXACT same response to this one. It had all the elements that would make up a book I should love, and yet I wound up getting bored with and just couldn’t finish it. I felt like it got very heavy-handed with the world-building and the backstory, and I really didn’t appreciate that at all. I wound up feeling like the plot stalled way too much and I just stopped caring!

    So I will say that it is not just you but that The Rook may have a great premise but falter in its execution!

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