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Rook: A Novel
Meet Curtis Rook, a 27-year-old son of divorced parents. He lives in Lochville, a cold, gray city beset by a seemingly unstoppable serial killer who cuts a thumb off the hand of each victim. Curtis, haunted by a series of mysterious hallucinations, senses that nothing can save him from a doom that is coming for him. His life changes, however, when he meets a girl named Carmen who is on the hunt for an evil car prowling the streets. Together, they embark on a series of adventures that will lead them somewhere truly extraordinary, a place where they must face their ultimate fears.
Rook is a darkly comic novel with offbeat characters feeling the effects of America's epidemic of loneliness. It's a story about isolation, guilt, redemption and, in its own way, love.
Rook is a darkly comic novel with offbeat characters feeling the effects of America's epidemic of loneliness. It's a story about isolation, guilt, redemption and, in its own way, love.
184 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 1, 2025
3 people are currently reading
1 person want to read
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
October 22, 2025
The prose is as uncomfortable as what it describes. And what it describes is people (one person, in particular) uncomfortable in life, uncomfortable about doing anything to improve that discomfort. Sometimes it leads to awkward interactions, sometimes to petty crime.
Despite being identified as 27 years old, there is an immaturity about main character Curtis that makes the book feel like a young adult novel at times. His estimations of ‘evil’, ‘neutral’, ‘moral good’, etc are simplistic or, in some cases, twisted in on themselves.
More bothersome, though, is that the awkwardness of the prose makes it difficult to empathize with either Rook or those with whom he interacts. All seem vaguely broken, but only one (Carmen) for any reason that’s communicated clearly.
Even the internal dialogue or letter/journal passages, which would typically be provided by an author to build sympathy for a character, fail to do anything but make Curtis seem less comprehensible.
One of the blurbs describes this book as surreal. Instead it feels undercooked, in need of editorial input, with ‘surreal’ acting as a shield.
Despite being identified as 27 years old, there is an immaturity about main character Curtis that makes the book feel like a young adult novel at times. His estimations of ‘evil’, ‘neutral’, ‘moral good’, etc are simplistic or, in some cases, twisted in on themselves.
More bothersome, though, is that the awkwardness of the prose makes it difficult to empathize with either Rook or those with whom he interacts. All seem vaguely broken, but only one (Carmen) for any reason that’s communicated clearly.
Even the internal dialogue or letter/journal passages, which would typically be provided by an author to build sympathy for a character, fail to do anything but make Curtis seem less comprehensible.
One of the blurbs describes this book as surreal. Instead it feels undercooked, in need of editorial input, with ‘surreal’ acting as a shield.
July 2, 2025
It's like Holden Caulfield got dropped in Dante's Inferno (not one of the lower levels, but a top circle where everything is gray and no one can remember how they got there).
That sounds artsy and sad, but it was actually a really accessible read that has a hopeful thread running through it. I'll be thinking about this one for a while.
That sounds artsy and sad, but it was actually a really accessible read that has a hopeful thread running through it. I'll be thinking about this one for a while.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews