The design and UX isn't done, Rob and Abbie, okkurrrr! 😌
carolined314's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
wisecraic's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
**I was provided an electronic ARC from the publisher through NetGalley.**
Actual rating: 3.5
William Ritter returns to the world of Jackaby with the newest installment, Rook. Miss Abigail Rook has been having a bit of difficulty adjusting to her inherited magical Sight, but the magical crimes in New Fiddleham are stacking up. When multiple members of the magical community are missing and others are dead, Miss Rook can't afford to keep to the sidelines for an adjustment period. Rook and Jackaby investigate a new series of cases with Rook in the lead and face the scariest obstacle of all- Rook's parents.
This book is described as a standalone adventure in the world of Jackaby. I would argue that this is very much book 5 and would be a difficult buy-in as a standalone. The plot line is contained to this book, but the nature of the character development achieved in the Jackaby series combined with where this book picks up means that a reader would be best served by reading the Jackaby quartet before diving into Rook. I would not suggest that readers new to the world start here.
Part of what made the Jackaby series charming for me as a reader was having Jackaby himself as the lead. Having him as the supporting role in Rook was less satisfying for me personally, but gave a lot of space for Rook to come into her own.
With Rook learning the Sight and her new role as Seer combined with facing her parents, this book was aptly named as it was all about her development personally. As such, I do wish Charlie had a bigger role to play, but understand why he was predominantly sidelined. The exploration of Charlie and Rook growing into their relationship together was something that might have been valuable, but was cramped into asides to make room for the rest of the story.
Overall, I enjoyed my time with Rook and would absolutely read any further installments from Ritter in the world of Jackaby.
Actual rating: 3.5
William Ritter returns to the world of Jackaby with the newest installment, Rook. Miss Abigail Rook has been having a bit of difficulty adjusting to her inherited magical Sight, but the magical crimes in New Fiddleham are stacking up. When multiple members of the magical community are missing and others are dead, Miss Rook can't afford to keep to the sidelines for an adjustment period. Rook and Jackaby investigate a new series of cases with Rook in the lead and face the scariest obstacle of all- Rook's parents.
This book is described as a standalone adventure in the world of Jackaby. I would argue that this is very much book 5 and would be a difficult buy-in as a standalone. The plot line is contained to this book, but the nature of the character development achieved in the Jackaby series combined with where this book picks up means that a reader would be best served by reading the Jackaby quartet before diving into Rook. I would not suggest that readers new to the world start here.
Part of what made the Jackaby series charming for me as a reader was having Jackaby himself as the lead. Having him as the supporting role in Rook was less satisfying for me personally, but gave a lot of space for Rook to come into her own.
With Rook learning the Sight and her new role as Seer combined with facing her parents, this book was aptly named as it was all about her development personally. As such, I do wish Charlie had a bigger role to play, but understand why he was predominantly sidelined. The exploration of Charlie and Rook growing into their relationship together was something that might have been valuable, but was cramped into asides to make room for the rest of the story.
Overall, I enjoyed my time with Rook and would absolutely read any further installments from Ritter in the world of Jackaby.
jenglandk's review
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.0
What a wonderful addition to the beloved Jackaby series by Ritter! I read this as a standalone and while I really enjoyed elements of the tale (paranormal creatures, rich characters, laugh out loud scenes, etc.) I really wish I would have read this after reading the series it was meant to chronologically follow. I think readers who do not miss out on caring about the key relationships, and since the whole motive behind solving the mystery is rooted in preexisting relationships, those are pretty important to feel as a reader. Lastly, I echo everyone’s comps to Sherlock x Supernatural!
Thank you to NetGalley, William Ritter, and Algonquin Young Readers for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
bewareofthereader's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Audiobook Review
5 stars
Narrator: the excellent Nicola Barber
I discovered Jackaby series quite late but on the plus side, was able to gobble all four books in one go! I was so happy when I learned that William Ritter would make another book set in Jackaby’s universe: the paranormal town of New Fiddleham, New England!
Of course now that Jackaby lost his magical ability, his sight, in such dramatic fashion (you have to read the previous books to understand) just for it to be gifted to Abigail Rook, his assistant, William Ritter had to make it about Abigail!
It’s quite the role reversal as now Jackaby is, if not her assistant, her associate! It’s him now that will have to rely on his brain only to help Rook solve the crimes! And I must confess that he is not as gifted as Abigail was…
But then Abigail is not as handy as he was at using her sight to solve mysteries and catch villains either!
This is all mayhem and messy but at least Abigail is giving it her all!
I loved listening to Nicola Barber’s impeccable and very expressive narration of that story full of humor, bravery, mysteries and dangers!
People of New Fiddleham are disappearing, paranormal people that is, and Abigail is still learning to master the Sight, distinguishing auras, guessing who is lying and following trails.
But she’ll do it with gusto, helped somewhat clumsily by Jackaby who also has to find his baring and by the ever loving Charlie and the devoted Jenny, the ghost.
I read someone comparing these to the Scooby Doo gang and they are spot on!
And when her parents suddenly knock at her doorstep, matters get even more complicated as Abigail does not intend telling them the truth! What follows felt like a Vaudeville and was delightful!
What I love above all else is that William Ritter stayed true to that universe. I found the same mix of candor, humor and quirkiness in that book that I had in the previous ones. And that’s a feat!
If you loved Jackaby you are going to adore Rook!
And if you have never read or listened to that series but fancy a cozy, roguish and funny paranormal mystery, go for it, I promise you won’t be disappointed!
I hope we’ll get other books in that series!
avidreaderandgeekgirl's review against another edition
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Rook is now the seer and it's up to her to solve the mysteries. When magical creatures and people start to go missing and weird occurrences become more frequent, she's forced to finally start her job as the seer to stop the crimes. But you can't trust everyone you think you can. Where are these creatures, how are they vanishing and why?
I enjoyed this but found it more predictable than the previous Jackaby books. I don't know if that's because this was the first one I listened to the audiobook of, or because I'm reading mystery/thrillers more frequently now.
I found the culprit pretty obvious though they weren't doing it for the reason I thought. Overall, it was still enjoyable, just too predictable.
Extra ratings: Fluff- NA Heartfelt- 3/5 Helpful-NA Horror- 0.5/5 Inspiration-NA Love- 1/5 Mystery-3.5/5 Predictability- 3.5/5 Spice- 0/5 Suspense- 3/5 Tear- 1.5/5 Thrill- 2.5/5 Humor- 3/5
I found the culprit pretty obvious though they weren't doing it for the reason I thought. Overall, it was still enjoyable, just too predictable.
Extra ratings: Fluff- NA Heartfelt- 3/5 Helpful-NA Horror- 0.5/5 Inspiration-NA Love- 1/5 Mystery-3.5/5 Predictability- 3.5/5 Spice- 0/5 Suspense- 3/5 Tear- 1.5/5 Thrill- 2.5/5 Humor- 3/5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, and Death
Moderate: Blood, Classism, Animal cruelty, and Kidnapping
Minor: Confinement
minipanda's review
3.0
Sherlock Holmes cross with Supernatural.
*Read as standalone.*
Abigail Rook's power of Sight grants her the extraordinary ability to discern and comprehend auras, including those of both human and nonhuman origin. While she's still learning this new ability, she's assisting Jackaby in his investigations of the disappearances of magical creatures and beings.
Even though I like the idea and concept, I did not find anything that particularly caught my attention. Overall, an okay read. Would still recommend it to fans of Sherlock Holmes and the Jackaby series.
*Although the author stated that this novel can be read as a standalone, I recommend reading it as part of the series. I think the story will be more enjoyable if you're already acquainted with these characters. *
*** Thank you to NetGalley, William Ritter, and Algonquin Young Readers for graciously sending me a copy of the novel to review. As always, all thoughts are my own.***
*Read as standalone.*
Abigail Rook's power of Sight grants her the extraordinary ability to discern and comprehend auras, including those of both human and nonhuman origin. While she's still learning this new ability, she's assisting Jackaby in his investigations of the disappearances of magical creatures and beings.
Even though I like the idea and concept, I did not find anything that particularly caught my attention. Overall, an okay read. Would still recommend it to fans of Sherlock Holmes and the Jackaby series.
*Although the author stated that this novel can be read as a standalone, I recommend reading it as part of the series. I think the story will be more enjoyable if you're already acquainted with these characters. *
*** Thank you to NetGalley, William Ritter, and Algonquin Young Readers for graciously sending me a copy of the novel to review. As always, all thoughts are my own.***
lyddo's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
moonytoast's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.5
Thank you to Netgalley and Algonquin Young Reader's for providing me with a digital ARC of this book!
William Ritter’s Rook is a blessed return to form with its quirky, mystery-solving duo of Abigail Rook and R.F. Jackaby that demonstrates the true strength of the original Jackaby series. This novel picks up several months after the previous book, where an inter-dimensional war was waged, the veil between New Fiddleham and the other side was left partially open, and Abigail Rook inherited the title of the Seer from Jackaby. While it does essentially operate as a “standalone mystery” within the world Ritter has created, my first attempt at reading Rook—having only read the first book in the series—felt like jumping into a television series at the halfway point, i.e. watching Teen Wolf for the first time but starting with season 3B.
William Ritter’s Rook is a blessed return to form with its quirky, mystery-solving duo of Abigail Rook and R.F. Jackaby that demonstrates the true strength of the original Jackaby series. This novel picks up several months after the previous book, where an inter-dimensional war was waged, the veil between New Fiddleham and the other side was left partially open, and Abigail Rook inherited the title of the Seer from Jackaby. While it does essentially operate as a “standalone mystery” within the world Ritter has created, my first attempt at reading Rook—having only read the first book in the series—felt like jumping into a television series at the halfway point, i.e. watching Teen Wolf for the first time but starting with season 3B.
After holing herself up in 929 Augur Lane for months trying to understand and test her new powers, Abigail Rook returns to her role as a detective and is shocked to find how much supernatural chaos has been happening on the streets of New Fiddleham. Tasked with a new case, it is up to Abigail herself to solve a string of homicides and missing persons cases that threatens the new, tenuous dynamic between humans and the supernatural world.
I truly enjoyed seeing the way in which Abigail is struggling to adjust to her new role as the Seer and the shift in dynamic between her and Jackaby, now that he has lost the sight. (The Watson has become the Holmes, if you will.) Their different personalities and manners of investigating have been a fun draw to this series for me and I appreciated that the change in the role of Seer did not completely alter their dynamic and, frankly, further enhanced their friendship.
The original four books in the Jackaby series have their highs and lows and, while this may not technically be the fifth installment, I would consider it among the highs of the world Ritter created. These books shine when focused on the nitty-gritty of investigating odd supernatural mysteries, the dynamic between Rook and Jackaby, and their complicated love of the city of New Fiddleham and people—and creatures—who have made their home there.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Violence
Moderate: Murder and Kidnapping