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1484184,726 (3.79)26
Fantasy. Fiction. Mystery. Historical Fiction. HTML:A new recruit to the most powerful supernatural intelligence agency on Earth is accused of going rogue and must go on the run to clear her name.
September, 1940. Three women of the Checquy, the secret organization tasked with protecting Britain from supernatural threats, stand in the sky above London and see German aircraft approach. Forbidden by law to interfere, all they can do is watch as their city is bombed. Until Pamela, the most sensible of them, breaks all the rules and brings down a Nazi bomber with her bare hands. The three resolve to tell no one about it, but they soon learn that a crew member is missing from the downed bomber. Charred corpses are discovered in nearby houses and it becomes apparent that the women have unwittingly unleashed a monster.
 
Through a city torn by the Blitz, the friends must hunt the enemy before he kills again. Their task will take them from the tunnels of the Underground to the halls of power, where they will discover the secrets that a secret organization must keep even from itself.
 
Today. Lynette Binns, a librarian with a husband and child, is a late recruit to the Checquy, having discovered only as an adult her ability to electrify everyday objects with her touch. After completing her training, she is assigned to examine a string of brutal murders and quickly realizes that all bear the unmistakable hallmark of her own unique power. Unable to provide an alibi and determined to prove her innocence, she flees, venturing into the London underworld to find answers. But now she is prey, being tracked by her own frighteningly capable comrades.
 
As Lyn fights off powered thugs and her own vengeful colleagues, she will find that the solution to the murders and to the mystery of her own past lies in the events of World War II, and the covert actions of three young women during the Blitz.
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Showing 4 of 4
The Rook (the first in the series) was S-tier quality. The second in the series wasn't as charming or funny, and this one less so. Which I find to be superbly disappointing, because the first was so funny that I immediately listened to it a second time after listening to it a first time. Ah well.
  Tom_Wright | Oct 11, 2023 |
An interesting plot line and good characters. Unfortunately, I didn't like this third volume as much as the first two because the execution—specifically the story construction—felt contrived and a bit bloated.

An example of the former is giving us extensive background story in the form of a letter being written by one of the characters, Usha, to her parents. Of course, given the Official Secrets Act, the Unofficial Secrets Act, the Secret Officials Act, and all the other non-disclosures they abide by, Usha has absolutely zero intention of sending the letter. She's writing it simply to "get it off her chest." The whole thing comes across as a clumsy "As you know, Bob" moment where the author just wants to info-dump to the reader and doesn't put in the work to fit it into the story organically.

An example of the latter is simply the numerous times in the book that the list of "weird shit" (to use the story's term) extends to example after example after example after example after example after ... you get the idea. It does nothing to advance the story. In fact, it gives the impression that the author is unsure of his own talents at making the reader feel how odd the world of the Checquy is. He shouldn't have; the story alone gives us a wonderful picture.

All in all, a good plot entwining story lines from World War II London with the present day, and some good additions to the Checquy cast. I look forward to seeing more of them. I hope the next volume is better constructed. ( )
  TadAD | Aug 14, 2023 |
I swear to god, this one was such a drag! I had to force myself to finish it. It was decent enough ( )
  NG_YbL | Jul 12, 2023 |
DNF @ 50%

This just isn't working for me. I find my mind wandering as I read and I'm not engaged. It makes me sad because I enjoyed the first two books so much. ( )
  Narilka | Dec 31, 2022 |
Showing 4 of 4
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When a high explosive bomb falls and explodes a number of things happen. Anything very close to the explosion is likely to be destroyed, and any house which suffers a direct hit is almost sure to collapse... Other dangers of a less spectacular kind can cause far more causalities... Blast can shatter unprotected windows at considerable distance and fragments of glass can be deadly, while bomb splinters can fly and kill at a distance over half a mile if there is nothing to stop them.
-Ministry of Home Security, Your Home As an Air Raid Shelter (one of the best sellers of 1940)
The first thing which the rescue squads and firemen saw, as their torches poked through the gloom and the smoke and the bloody pit which had lately been the most chic cellar in London, was a frieze of other shadowy men, night-creatures who had scuttled within as soon as the echoes ceased, crouching over any dead or wounded woman, any soignée corpse they could find, and ripping off its necklace or earrings, or brooch: rifling its handbags, scooping up loose change.
-Nicholas Monsarrat, Breaking In, Breaking Out
Freedom is only the distance between the hunter and his prey.
-Bei Dao
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For Tim and Sandra
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The three women stood in the sky above London and waited for the Blitz to come.
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Fantasy. Fiction. Mystery. Historical Fiction. HTML:A new recruit to the most powerful supernatural intelligence agency on Earth is accused of going rogue and must go on the run to clear her name.
September, 1940. Three women of the Checquy, the secret organization tasked with protecting Britain from supernatural threats, stand in the sky above London and see German aircraft approach. Forbidden by law to interfere, all they can do is watch as their city is bombed. Until Pamela, the most sensible of them, breaks all the rules and brings down a Nazi bomber with her bare hands. The three resolve to tell no one about it, but they soon learn that a crew member is missing from the downed bomber. Charred corpses are discovered in nearby houses and it becomes apparent that the women have unwittingly unleashed a monster.
 
Through a city torn by the Blitz, the friends must hunt the enemy before he kills again. Their task will take them from the tunnels of the Underground to the halls of power, where they will discover the secrets that a secret organization must keep even from itself.
 
Today. Lynette Binns, a librarian with a husband and child, is a late recruit to the Checquy, having discovered only as an adult her ability to electrify everyday objects with her touch. After completing her training, she is assigned to examine a string of brutal murders and quickly realizes that all bear the unmistakable hallmark of her own unique power. Unable to provide an alibi and determined to prove her innocence, she flees, venturing into the London underworld to find answers. But now she is prey, being tracked by her own frighteningly capable comrades.
 
As Lyn fights off powered thugs and her own vengeful colleagues, she will find that the solution to the murders and to the mystery of her own past lies in the events of World War II, and the covert actions of three young women during the Blitz.

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