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November 13, 2013

Blog Tour: Review & Giveaway ~ Rook by Monica MacDonald


Hey guys! Welcome to my stop on the Rook Blog Tour hosted by CBB Book Promotions. Click here to follow along with the full blog tour schedule! :D


Title: Rook
Series: Timeless Games #1
Author: Monica MacDonald
Publication date: November 1st 2013
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Romance
Source: Review copy

Blog Tour organized by: CBB Book Promotions


~ Synopsis ~

Could you be the monster to save who you love?

Two women, separated by generations, must leave what they know to start a new life. Seventeen-year-old Kate's senior year is ruined when she's moved from the only home she's ever known. After an isolating month alone in her apartment, school starts, but neither her classmates nor her teacher are who they seem. Kali, a single mother living in the nineteenth century wilds of Montana, is stalked by a malicious past. She fights to keep her daughter safe while her freedom is threatened by her less than benevolent benefactor. Both find love, and with it hope, but that is quickly ripped away as one woman must learn the lessons of the other - before it's too late to save either.

~ My Thoughts ~ 

My Rating: 3.5 / 5 

In Rook, Kate and Kali alternate in telling their stories. At first, I wasn't sure what they had in common and liked trying to figure out the connection between them. They're two different ages in two different times - Kate is a senior in high school, while Kali is raising a young daughter. I couldn't find any similarities between them until I dug a little more into their stories. 

Kate's grandmother has passed away and willed her house to Kate's mother. Kate doesn't know much about her grandmother because her mom doesn't usually want to talk about her. Right away, strange and scary things start happening to Kate, and I kept wanting her to tell someone even if that person wouldn't believe her. I don't know how she stayed in that apartment by herself!    

Kali is a character who has a quiet strength. After her husband died, she does her best raising their daughter alone. The financial responsibility of taking care of a child as a single mother, especially in Kali's time, leads her to rely on someone who uses that to his advantage. She is fierce about protecting her daughter and keeping the two of them together. 

The way these two characters are connected surprised me. It took several chapters to get to some answers, but it was worth it. I never would have been able to guess where the story took me in a million years! Once I had a clearer idea of what was happening and why, I raced through the rest of the book, desperate to find out what was going to happen next. I couldn't sleep, thinking about how I needed to read just one more chapter even though I really really needed to go to sleep! 

I enjoyed Rook although it had a slow start for me. Once I got into the story, I didn't want the momentum to stop. I needed to find out what was going to happen next, and my Kindle was glued to my hands. The way Kate and Kali's stories are related was a refreshing surprise and different than anything I've read in a long time. If you're a fan of thrillers, mysteries, or the fantasy genre (or all three!), then I recommend you read Rook. I'm looking forward to the next installment!   
   
~ Purchase Link ~ 


~ About the Author: Monica MacDonald ~ 

 

Monica is a married graduate student with three boys. Utah is home right now, but the need to wander has extended beyond the fantasy world of writing and into real life. She's lived all around the US and even into the Middle East. The world is really a small place, only made bigger through imagination. 

~ Social Links ~





10 comments:

  1. Rook sounds pretty good, Jennifer. I like the sound of trying to figure out how the two stories relate. Thanks for introducing me to a new author and for sharing a great review. :)

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    1. I hope you enjoy it, Brandee! :D Thanks for the comment love! :D

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  2. Glad you liked it! Thanks so much for hosting me!

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    1. You're welcome, Monica! I loved the guest post you did for one of the other stops on preparing for a zombie apocalypse. It was so much fun to read that! :D

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  3. Yay, I'm so glad you liked it! Thanks so much for hosting a tour stop!

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    1. You're welcome, Candace! Thanks for introducing me to a great new author! :D

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  4. This book does sound interesting. And that's why I try to keep going with books, because some of the best ones I read were slow moving in the beginning. Great review!

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    1. I know what you mean. It wasn't slow for very long, and I can be an impatient reader sometimes, lol. Thanks so much for stopping by, Christy! :D

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  5. The cover is amazing. I just love it and the title. I've never read a story like this one, but two different times is intriguing especially the singer mother's POV. It is so cool to read your reviews because you talk about how you couldn't stop reading, but you had to sleep, but you had to read. And I know you have the little ones to contend with and without sleep, forget about it!

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    1. I love the cover, too! Thanks so much, Robyn, I'm blushing, lol. The last two or three nights, I've gotten three or four hours of sleep because I can't stop reading. Like literally can't stop. Because if I try, I just lie there in bed unable to sleep anyway because I can't stop thinking about the book and what's going to happen next. I'm the kind of person who needs at least six hours to function, so I'm surprised I haven't been a bear the last few days. ;D

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