I have been reading a lot this year, and nearly all the books I have read have had me thinking about being used and being of use. Daniel O’Malley’s excellent Stiletto, which revisits the Checquy and it’s collection of supernatural government servants, fits right into this pattern. For those who have not read The Rook, the background here is that Britain has a entire government agency made up of agents with mysterious powers, ranging from people who increase the fertility of those who surround them […]
A successful sequel that needs a bit of a haircut.
I liked this, even though it is pretty different from The Rook. Maybe because it’s different? Nobody likes a re-tread. Spoilers for The Rook to follow, though, so don’t read if you’re planning on starting this series. Myfanwy, the main character from The Rook, is here, and she even gets some POV, but the majority of narrative real estate belongs to Felicity and Odette. Felicity Clements is a Pawn from the Checquy, and Odette Lelefield is a Grafter. We see the story from both their […]
Stiletto is easily the best book you’ll read this year with a lead character trapped in a blowhole.
Hundreds of books ago (way back in CBR4), I jumped on The Rook bandwagon. I adored the story of the bizarre supernatural government bureau, the crazy powers that its members and employees have, and its high-ranking official who wakes up one day surrounded by dead bodies and no clue where — or who — she is. When I hear that the sequel, Stiletto, was FINALLY coming out, I realized that I desperately needed to do a re-read of The Rook. It was so full of amazing details and characters, […]
An interesting letdown
This book has quite literally been at the top of my TBR list for two and a half years. I gobbled up The Rook at the very end of 2013 and proceeded to fall madly in love with Myfanwy Thomas and the secret magical world of The Checquy (basically England’s bureau of magical law enforcement). I always knew whatever direction the sequel took, it would have to be pretty different from The Rook. You can only have your main character lose her memory once. Stiletto […]