The Rook is a New Pulp character created by Barry Reese. The Rook fights crime and evil in the ’30s and ’40s (and later). He’s actually one of several New Pulp characters Barry has created, along with Lazarus Gray and Gravedigger, all of which I’ve reviewed.
In his seven Rook novels, Barry mixes in pulp hero, comic book and comic strip characters, along with occult horror/weird-menace angles, and does a good job. He also adds in a love interest who will marry him (pulp heroes usually never do that, which is different). The Rook goes up against traditional villains, super-foes and occult horrors, and is assisted by characters based on pulp heroes and comic book/comic strip characters (some original, other done as pastiches or homages to other characters).
“Tales of the Rook,” of which this is the second volume, is a little different. In this series Barry allows others to write Rook tales, though all are canonical and are usually included in Barry’s overall timeline of his characters, an updated version of which is included in the back (which strangely doesn’t include these stories). There are five stories in this volume.
Russ Anderson writes about the Rook’s encounters with a minor hero named Keystone, now dead. An interesting little story.
James Palmer‘s story is set in the future, where a new person takes up the mantle of The Rook to confront a new evil. While the “future” stories of the Rook have been told, we are also told that they could be in a different time line. So this may allow for different takes on “future Rooks.”
David White has a story set during the Rook’s earlier period in Atlanta, were he confronts a new occult evil. We are also introduced, if briefly, to a new associate. Who knows if this new associate will re-appear, or the meaning regarding what happens at the end of the story.
Sean Taylor‘s story focuses on the third Rook. the daughter of the first, as she works to rescue her friend Kayla Kaslov (daughter of Leonid Kaslov, the “Russian Doc Savage” pastiche that Reese created).
Adam Lance Garcia also has a story about the third Rook, but this is set when her brother is still the Rook and she winds up working with her father, and they both come up against an old foe of the Rook.
As a bonus, we get a script for a proposed (but not created) animated story of the Rook by Barry Reese.
Rounding out the volume is an interview with Reese.
Overall, for any fan of the Rook, another great volume. I have no idea when Reese will come out with the next volume of Rook stories, as he seems to be focused right now on the next volumes of his other characters.
