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Feb 01, 2012

Theresa rated it:

"The Rook" is basically the story of two Myfanwy Thomases. The first one we never officially meet: she exists in the letters (a suitcase full) that she writes to the second Myfanwy-- the one who wakes up with two black eyes and her memory scrubbed. The idea of having Myfawny write letters to herself is a clever device that neatly side-steppes the common predictability of a story centered around an amnesiac. Myfawny has the information she needs at hand-- If only she can read the letter More...

0 comments like (5 people liked it)

Feb 11, 2012

Jeffrey rated it:

The Rook by Daniel O’ Malley is a startingly well executed and engaging debut novel with a Jason Bourne like spy, but set in a supernatural urban fantasy setting. The spy in question, Myfawany Alice Thomas is one of several fantastical beings who guard unknowing England from supernatural and otherworldly attacks. But she has been mindwiped by one of her fellow guardians and must both discover who the traitor is and why she was targeted before it is too late. Her predecessor in body, a chief ad More...

0 comments like (5 people liked it)

Feb 13, 2012

Jeanette rated it:

Latex gloves...They're not just for proctologists anymore.

This was a promising plot idea from a decent writer who got carried away by his own cleverness. He lost me after about 100 pages.

8 comments like (2 people liked it)

Feb 14, 2012

Kathie rated it:

This book is. So. Good. I can't stop reading it, can't read it fast enough. I mean, I am in peril of not returning it in time! All those pesky things that get in the way of happy reading. This book would be delightful for a book discussion. There are so many layers and with two different perspectives, it is a nice challenge to keep up with the characters, but not at all frustrating. The premise, that the world is full of people with...abilities who must be monitored and in some cases, cont More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Feb 10, 2012

Rachel rated it:

Interesting book about a female Jason Bourne (from The Bourne Identity (the movie, I’ve never read the book)) in an adult Harry Potter-esque world. The woman, Myfanwy (rhymes with Tiffany), opens her eyes to find herself in a park, soaking wet, surrounded by dead bodies with no memory (she has no memory, although I suppose the bodies don’t either, right?). In her pocket are two letters that lead her to safety, begin her journey to figure out who she is, and lead her back to her place as ‘Rook’ More...

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Feb 08, 2012

Andrea rated it:

Almost perfect. O'Malley's main character is an amnesiac, and before she lost her memory (she knew it was going to happen), she wrote letters to herself. In the beginning of the book, that's no problem, and it's written well. But later in the book, the letters are written less like letters and more as if they were flashbacks. Too much detail to be believable as letters. In a book like this -- where the jacket also reads: "Or: Her Masjesty's Supernatural Secret Service", one naturally m More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 30, 2012

Naberius rated it:

How about this: Imaginative. Clever. Engaging. And that's just the main character! I loved this book. Loved it so much that I started recommending it to people when I was halfway through it, and when I was done, didn't want to return it to the library (but I did).

As you can see from the above summary (I love that GoodReads does all the heavy lifting so I don't have to write a summary, myself), Myfanwy (pronounced Miffany ... like Tiffany but with an M) wakes up with no recoll More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 13, 2012

Will rated it:

So the protagonist wakes up with amnesia into a complex and deadly situation. This in principle isn't different from Memento or Jason Bourne or many other situations, but there are two things that make this far more entertaining -- Myfanwy Thomas is a female bureaucrat who has no combat skills, and in her previous life, she knew that her memory would be gone and so left notes for her amnesiac self, who is none too happy to be dropped in the middle of this.

But that's the first third More...

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Jan 12, 2012

Qwill / The Qwillery rated it:

When I think of The Rook the first word that comes to mind is 'fun.' Great fun actually. But to simply say that The Rook is 'fun' would be facile on my part. The Rook is a terrific read for a lot of reasons.

Foremost The Rook is very well written. The mystery of why Myfanwy Thomas is without her memory and who did what to whom is hard to crack. As soon as I'd thought I'd figured it out, the story proved me wrong. Not because of authorial plot shenanigans, but because the unraveling of More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Jan 07, 2012

Krystal added it

Myfanwy's life is complicated. She tells her tale via letters and a body that she apparently inhabits. She discovers that she has not really lost her memory, but shifted to another body. She left herself letters detailing how to keep herself safe and is able to learn about the events that led up to this point in time. The reader will enjoy learning about Myfanwy alongside Myfanwy in possibly the best way to get to know a main character an author has ever crafted. Myfanwy is in danger, but s More...

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Feb 12, 2012

Fantasynibbles rated it:

I’ve heard a lot of good things about this one. And it doesn’t disappoint…much…well, maybe just little bit. It’s a fun read, a paranormal ‘whodunnit’, with an unusual narrative style and a hugely imaginative concept behind it. There’s a likeable protagonist, and an intelligent and engaging plot. So why am I not raving about it? I think if I’d read this before any Ben Aaronovitch I would have been a bit more Wowed by it. It’s entertaining, but there are an awful lot of borrowed ideas in there. More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 27, 2012

Jeff rated it:

I'll put this out there immediately - this is likely to be a front runner for my favorite book of 2012. I've not been able to get into urban fantasy, but this book may have changed my mind on the genre on a whole. It's that good.

The book benefits by not wasting much time at all. Myfawny Thomas wakes up with a bunch of bodies littered around her and no recollection of who she is, what happened, or how she got there. There is, however, a note in her pocket that starts to explain th More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Feb 06, 2012

J. rated it:

A high-ranking operative in the organization protecting Britain from supernatural threats knows that she is going to lose her memory; scratch that, she will have her memory stolen, by a traitor. She's not going to be able to stop it. Even if it weren't oracularly inevitable, she's not much of a fighter. But she certainly is a planner. And she's going to do everything she can to ensure that, after she loses every memory, every scrap of experience that makes her who she is, the person who opens u More...

3 comments like

Feb 22, 2012

Julia rated it:

I'm being critical here but I hate the main characters name.

Good book so far though, I like how the author tries to make you part of the book. I'm sure that will change later on but so far it's great.

I haven't been lost at all and everything makes sense and is well thought out and relayed to the reader. Which I wasn't really expecting.

Page 127 and I feel like nothings happened yet. It's interesting but interesting because of all the information that Myfanwy is needing to process. But nothings More...

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Jan 28, 2012

Misty rated it:

I don't remember how this book popped onto my radar, but I ended up with the sample on my Nook and was intrigued enough to want more. The story starts a bit slowly at first because the world and situation is being processed not only by a reader who knows nothing but also the protagonist who wakes into this world surrounded by gloved dead bodies in the rain and no memory of who she is or what has happened. Once the plot does start moving though it doesn't slow down and continues to hold your atte More...

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Jan 18, 2012

Andrew rated it:

The Rook: A Novel by Daniel O’Malley (New York: Little Brown and Company, 2012. 482pp.) This review is also available at wherepenmeetspaper.blogspot.com - Check it out for more reviews

Daniel O’Malley is a first-time author. He works for the Australian government, managing media relations for the agency that investigates transportation accidents. He also holds a master’s degree in medieval history from Ohio State University.

Ghostbusters!

Though I sometimes hate to ad More...

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Jan 12, 2012

Becky rated it:

Myfanwy Thomas opens her eyes to see a ring of bodies surrounding her and finds a letter in her pocket explaining what must be done next. She has no memory of who she is, what she does, or how she ended up in this place. The letter leads her to a safe place where she is given a choice, adopt the life she seems to have taken over, or run. Though her choice might be clear, extenuating circumstances force her to become Rook Thomas. As she reads the old Thomas's notes, explaining the organization sh More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 25, 2012

TheBookSmugglers rated it:

Originally reviewed on The Book Smugglers

Myfanwy Thomas - pronounced "Miff-uh-nee" like Tiffany - awakens in the rain, with no memory of who she is or why she is surrounded by a bunch of dead people all of whom are wearing latex gloves. The only clue she finds are two envelopes in her jacket pocket (numbered "1" and "2"), and when she opens "1" she finds a letter addressed to her...from her.

Dear You, The body you are wearing used t More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jan 29, 2012

Erika rated it:

I just finished reading this book and find myself wishing it was longer, or that I had a 2nd book in the series to pick up (hopefully there will be another).

I LOVED this book! The best description I can come up with is that this is a mix of the Bourne Identity and X-Men. It was totally enjoyable and the author is very witty and humorous. I loved the dialogue.

So the story starts with the main character, Myfanwy Thomas (pronounced Miffany), wakes up with no memory of who she More...

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Jan 23, 2012

Laura rated it:

4.5 stars

My Top 10 Reasons for liking The Rook:

10) It's a good thriller, with secret agents, characters with questionable loyalties, and multiple action sequences. Myfanwy (she explains that it rhymes with Tiffany) can really kick butt!

9) The world building was very complete, and although the basic concept isn't at all new (people among us with special powers, and a secret branch of government to deal with the problems among them), I did feel like this More...

0 comments like (4 people liked it)

Jan 23, 2012

Kristin rated it:

You may also read my review here: http://www.mybookishways.com/2012/01/rev...

The Rook was another pleasant surprise for me this year. When I started, I wasn’t sure what to expect, but very quickly became absorbed in Myfanwy’s story. It gets off to a fairly creepy start with Myfanwy (rhymes with Tiffany) Thomas coming to, in a park in London, surrounded by a gaggle of dead bodies wearing latex gloves. Intriguing, yes? Oh yes. Soon Myfanwy realizes she’s part of a super secret organizati More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jan 31, 2012

Jay rated it:

A woman wakes up in the middle of a park surrounded by dead bodies with no memory of who she is or how she got there. She finds a not in her jacket from her pre-amnesiac self that explains that she has been betrayed by a member of the secret agency to which she belongs and she now has a choice to flee or stay and find out the identity of the traitor. So naturally she proceeds to go on a rampage and discover who was behind this treachery right?

Well not exactly.

First she goes More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Feb 19, 2012

Kevin rated it:

You guys will enjoy this. I was recommended the title by a friend of mine in the League of Reluctant Adults, author Jaye Wells. She wrote a blurb for it, which you'll see on the back cover. It was quite enjoyable, and I found myself wanting to know even more about the world. I do hope he'll write another book with the further adventures of Rook Thomas.

Basically, this is about a paranormal Secret Service in Britain. There's an American counterpart that split off from the Brits after th More...

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Feb 20, 2012

Alice rated it:

3 and a half stars. This was a very fun read and I will definitely read the sequel. The premise is fantastic: Myfanwy Thomas comes to life in the rain in a field surrounded by corpses. Having completely lost her memory, she is guided by letters left to her from her former self. Oh, and she's also a super high-up muckety muck in a paranormal MI-5 with superpowers. The Rook tells how this new Myfanwy handles taking on the role of her former self, while trying to ferret out a traitor in the ranks, More...

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Jan 26, 2012

Kai rated it:

In the Rook, the character Myfanwy Thomas woke up with several dead bodies around her. She has no idea of who she is or where she is. She found a little on her and from there, she had to absorb who she is and whether if she could trust the letter. Thinking she was safe, she went to the bank and defended herself against an attack against her. She could have gone and made a different life for herself but due to the attack, she went to find out who has destroy her former life. She emerged a st More...

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Jan 13, 2012

Rachell rated it:

Warning: Don't start this book if you have to get anything done within, say, the next two days (depending on your reading speed).

Without giving any of its delicious secrets away, I will say that The Rook is expertly plotted, with a fast-paced mystery that will engross you, sharply drawn characters that will engage you (including a believable heroine that you can't help rooting for, something of a rarity in genre novels), a fascinatingly strange (yet familiar) world that will suck you More...

1 comment like (2 people liked it)

Feb 01, 2012

Vicky rated it:

This is a very good paranormal dramedy. It starts with a woman awakening in a park in the pouring rain surrounded by a lot of dead people wearing surgical gloves. No idea who she is and why she's there. She finds a note in the pocket of her jacket from the former occupant of her body telling her that this was expected and where to go to and what to do initially.
The former occupant was a high-level administrator in a secret agency that handles paranormal occurances in Great Britain. So the More...

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Jan 15, 2012

Cheryl rated it:

I just finished The Rook and I began to worry about writing a review that would due the rating I plan to give this book some justice. I started making notes about my impressions before I was even a quarter through the book. It made such an impression on me that I went to find the author's website so that I could follow him on Twitter. I started feeding my thoughts into Goodreads as I got through different parts of the book, which is something I never do. I typically post Twitter updates but this More...

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Feb 15, 2012

Chad rated it:

I wanted to like this book more, but it's rough around the edges. The letter portions, supposedly written by a main character in first person, are very awkwardly constructed. Nobody writes letters in the form of dialog and narrative like that. A central conceit of the story (that Myfanwy must convince everyone else she hasn't lost her memory) also seems simply abandoned by the middle of the book. It's rarely mentioned again, and that fascinating element should have been explored more. Myfan More...

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Feb 17, 2012

Kara-karina rated it:

Egalley thanks to Little, brown & Co
What a clever, clever book! Without any doubts it's going to be one of the most memorable reads of this year for me the likes of Daughter of Smoke and Bone and The Night Circus.

In short, if you like Men in Black and Hellboy, this is British version of it, and a delightful at that, with self-deprecating humour and snarky personal assistants.

Myfanwy Thomas (pronounced like Tiffany with M) loses all her memories in a botched attempt More...

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