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The Rook
The Rook: Volume One
Only one man dares to stand against the Forces of Darkness... Max Davies aka THE ROOK is driven by visions of Death and Destruction as he travels the globe on one death-defying adventure after another! In the grand Pulp-era Tradition of The Shadow and The Spider, THE ROOK is the newest Hero in an a time where the world needs all the Heroes it can get... Features a Guest Appearance by THE MOON MAN! This amazing book collects 2 Novellas and 3 Brand-New Short Stories...
Nook
First published January 12, 2008
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About the author
Barry Reese
123 books27 followersBarry Reese is one of the leading authors in the modern pulp revival. A former writer for Marvel Comics, Reese is the author of The Rook series and many other novels. His work has appeared in books published by Marvel Comics, West End Games, Wild Cat Books, Moonstone Books and Pulpwork Press. Reese's newest book, RABBIT HEART, was published in February 2010 and features his first foray into the horror genre.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
February 7, 2012
(Note: This review originally appeared on Amazon.com)
When reading new pulp novels, there is an almost unconscious tightrope act to be performed: we want to see the old pulp cliches (they're what makes the genre so distinct and fun) but we also want to see something new (not just a rehash of what's come before, unless it's a deliberate and unabashed pastiche). Barry Reese's The Rook performs the tightrope act with a great effect. The Rook is a vigilante with an occult bent, armed with special pistols, a mystical dagger with an interesting history, and evil-sensing powers of precognition.
The first thing that I noticed when I began reading this collection was how it jumped right in to the middle of the character's life: The Rook has already been established as a masked crime-fighter in the big city and is looking to retire in Atlanta. This right-to-the-action decision doesn't hurt the experience in any way, instead it helps give the feeling that we're stepping into an already-existing universe and not meeting it "from the ground up" (i.e. first story isn't an origin story, etc). The stories in this collection tie-in with each other (and with other, off-stage adventures), which further gives the feeling of stepping into a fully-realized universe. I'm a sucker for a well-developed "world", and I think I'm going to like getting to know The Rook's world in the following volumes. The fact that there are a few cameos and mentions of other pulp characters also add to the fun...
Not long after he relocates to Atlanta, Max Davies encounters otherworldly doings that force him to bring his Rook identity back out of retirement, and it's nice to see a pulp vigilante character who's not based strictly in New York city. The events in "Lucifer's Cage" also bring him into contact with B-movie actress Evelyn, the woman who becomes his crime-fighting partner and eventually his wife. It's this romance with the beautiful Evelyn, along with his relationship with his servants Josh and Nettie, that infuse the character's exploits with a certain humanity right from the start. The glimpses of the man behind the mask help to make The Rook stand out from the pack of new-pulp vigilantes. The "Lucifer's Cage" incident leads into the vampiric apolcalypse of "Kingdom of Blood", in which Barry introduces (or reintroduces) us to a character who will be a constant thorn in The Rook's side. I won't spoil the identity of this recurring villain, but I will say he's one of my favorite figures from another writer's Mythos... "The Gasping Death" features a crossover with The Moon Man from the pulps, and although I've never read any of his original adventures the pairing of the two characters is organic and doesn't feel forced. The same goes for the villain in "Abominations", who could possibly be the most famous of pulp-era villains... and he fits into the Rook's world perfectly.
My only real problem with the book came with the final story, "The Black Mass", which takes place in an alternate version of our present-day.. I didn't have a problem with the story per se, but it was a little jarring to leap forward so far after sticking mainly to the pulp-era heyday of the 30's and 40's in the rest of the book. That being said, it's a terrific glimpse into what could be an interesting future for an interesting character. I'm on board The Rook's train and looking forward to Volume 2.
When reading new pulp novels, there is an almost unconscious tightrope act to be performed: we want to see the old pulp cliches (they're what makes the genre so distinct and fun) but we also want to see something new (not just a rehash of what's come before, unless it's a deliberate and unabashed pastiche). Barry Reese's The Rook performs the tightrope act with a great effect. The Rook is a vigilante with an occult bent, armed with special pistols, a mystical dagger with an interesting history, and evil-sensing powers of precognition.
The first thing that I noticed when I began reading this collection was how it jumped right in to the middle of the character's life: The Rook has already been established as a masked crime-fighter in the big city and is looking to retire in Atlanta. This right-to-the-action decision doesn't hurt the experience in any way, instead it helps give the feeling that we're stepping into an already-existing universe and not meeting it "from the ground up" (i.e. first story isn't an origin story, etc). The stories in this collection tie-in with each other (and with other, off-stage adventures), which further gives the feeling of stepping into a fully-realized universe. I'm a sucker for a well-developed "world", and I think I'm going to like getting to know The Rook's world in the following volumes. The fact that there are a few cameos and mentions of other pulp characters also add to the fun...
Not long after he relocates to Atlanta, Max Davies encounters otherworldly doings that force him to bring his Rook identity back out of retirement, and it's nice to see a pulp vigilante character who's not based strictly in New York city. The events in "Lucifer's Cage" also bring him into contact with B-movie actress Evelyn, the woman who becomes his crime-fighting partner and eventually his wife. It's this romance with the beautiful Evelyn, along with his relationship with his servants Josh and Nettie, that infuse the character's exploits with a certain humanity right from the start. The glimpses of the man behind the mask help to make The Rook stand out from the pack of new-pulp vigilantes. The "Lucifer's Cage" incident leads into the vampiric apolcalypse of "Kingdom of Blood", in which Barry introduces (or reintroduces) us to a character who will be a constant thorn in The Rook's side. I won't spoil the identity of this recurring villain, but I will say he's one of my favorite figures from another writer's Mythos... "The Gasping Death" features a crossover with The Moon Man from the pulps, and although I've never read any of his original adventures the pairing of the two characters is organic and doesn't feel forced. The same goes for the villain in "Abominations", who could possibly be the most famous of pulp-era villains... and he fits into the Rook's world perfectly.
My only real problem with the book came with the final story, "The Black Mass", which takes place in an alternate version of our present-day.. I didn't have a problem with the story per se, but it was a little jarring to leap forward so far after sticking mainly to the pulp-era heyday of the 30's and 40's in the rest of the book. That being said, it's a terrific glimpse into what could be an interesting future for an interesting character. I'm on board The Rook's train and looking forward to Volume 2.
July 3, 2012
Few names are as synonymous with the New Pulp movement as Barry Reese. Reese started writing new pulp way back in 2006 with Conquerors of Shadow.
It wasn’t until two years later that he created arguably the most famous of the New Pulp heroes: The Rook.
The Rook Volume One is a strange little book. Its design seems to be a facsimile of the recent Shadow and Doc Savage collections, i.e. about the size of a conventional graphic novel. Inside, the book is formatted in to two columns, again it seems to imitate the pulps.
Despite those odd stylistic choices, the words are pretty dang good. The first volume contains five stories of Max Davies, a young man literally haunted by his dead father. As the Rook, he is compelled to fight crime, often with the help of his fiancée/wife Evelyn.
While the stories are all self-contained, they are linked by a common threat (either in full force or lurking behind the scenes). The tales span a few years, even stretching into a strange version of modern day London. The first four give a full pulp adventure from start to finish, always featuring fiendish villains and a few supernatural twists. Reese peppers the stories with allusions to other pulp characters and even has a public domain hero, the Moon Man, guest star in one tale. Each story builds upon the last; this helps the stories to never to feel repetitive.
I found only one bit of the writing irksome, and that was Barry’s need to fill in the back story of the Rook in almost every tale. Now, Wild Cat Books may have presented these stories in other forms before their collection (though no note is made of it on the copyright page). Even so, when put together it seems clear that some introductory exposition in the later stories could be left on the cutting room floor.
That one minor snafu isn’t nearly enough to bring the collections of stories down. This isn’t just good new pulp. It’s straight up good storytelling, well worth a read by anyone that enjoys adventure fiction.
The Rook Volume One comes Highly Recommended.
It wasn’t until two years later that he created arguably the most famous of the New Pulp heroes: The Rook.
The Rook Volume One is a strange little book. Its design seems to be a facsimile of the recent Shadow and Doc Savage collections, i.e. about the size of a conventional graphic novel. Inside, the book is formatted in to two columns, again it seems to imitate the pulps.
Despite those odd stylistic choices, the words are pretty dang good. The first volume contains five stories of Max Davies, a young man literally haunted by his dead father. As the Rook, he is compelled to fight crime, often with the help of his fiancée/wife Evelyn.
While the stories are all self-contained, they are linked by a common threat (either in full force or lurking behind the scenes). The tales span a few years, even stretching into a strange version of modern day London. The first four give a full pulp adventure from start to finish, always featuring fiendish villains and a few supernatural twists. Reese peppers the stories with allusions to other pulp characters and even has a public domain hero, the Moon Man, guest star in one tale. Each story builds upon the last; this helps the stories to never to feel repetitive.
I found only one bit of the writing irksome, and that was Barry’s need to fill in the back story of the Rook in almost every tale. Now, Wild Cat Books may have presented these stories in other forms before their collection (though no note is made of it on the copyright page). Even so, when put together it seems clear that some introductory exposition in the later stories could be left on the cutting room floor.
That one minor snafu isn’t nearly enough to bring the collections of stories down. This isn’t just good new pulp. It’s straight up good storytelling, well worth a read by anyone that enjoys adventure fiction.
The Rook Volume One comes Highly Recommended.
October 15, 2010
So far only read the first story Lucifer's Cage. Enjoyed it and sees potential for even more interesting stories. I will read more!
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews