Royal Gambit: A new supernatural adventure from the popular author of THE ROOK, STILETTO and BLITZ
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4.4 • 9 Ratings
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- $16.99
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- $16.99
Publisher Description
The long-awaited fourth instalment in the acclaimed Checquy Files, Royal Gambit is O'Malley at his brilliant best. Perfect for fans of The Umbrella Academy and The Dresden Files.
Alexandra 'Alix' Dennis‑Palmer‑Hudson‑Gilmore‑Garnsey, the twelfth Lady Mondegreen, has never had any control of her life. Her supernatural ability to shatter bones with a touch made her the automatic property of the Checquy, the secret British government agency that deals with the supernatural. Her aristocratic ancestry made Alix the perfect asset for the Checquy to deploy close to the royal family.
Since childhood, Alix has been coached to befriend Princess Louise, second in line to the throne, but despite all machinations, the two have never been close. Now an adult and a full Pawn of the Checquy, Alix is a skilled investigator unravelling supernatural manifestations for the security of the nation.
Everything changes when Louise's brother, the Prince of Wales, dies abruptly, and all signs point to an unnatural assassination. To protect Louise, the new and unwilling heir apparent, Alix is assigned to be her lady‑in‑waiting. Thrust into the limelight overnight - both in the everyday world and in the underground world of the Checquy - Alix must juggle her responsibilities and her loyalties as she attempts to unravel the murder, keep Louise safe, and learn how to smile graciously while eerie threats loom around every corner.
'It is extremely difficult to explain just how thrilling, entertaining, witty, and jawdroppingly original the Checquy novels are. O'Malley's world-building is astonishing: he's created a version of our world that is simultaneously wildly different and comfortably familiar, and he's populated it with characters who, even with unusual powers, are abundantly human. For anyone who enjoys a good supernatural fantasy, Royal Gambit is required reading' Booklist
'Clever, complex, and fast-paced' Kirkus
'An entertaining blend of fantasy and humor ... As always, O'Malley imbues his imagined world with realistic details and finds plentiful humor in the clash of the supernatural and the bureaucratic. Series fans will be delighted' Publishers Weekly
Praise for Daniel O'Malley and the Checquy novels:
'Endlessly imaginative and stupendously diverting' Australian Women's Weekly
'You know you have written a remarkable debut novel when two of the biggest-selling queens of the fantasy genre - Charlaine Harris and Stephenie Meyer - embrace your work' Courier Mail
'Complex, funny and fascinating. I love this book!' Charlaine Harris on The Rook
'Utterly convincing and engrossing - totally thought-through and frequently hilarious' Lev Grossman
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
O'Malley's fourth thriller featuring the Checquy Group, "a covert agency within the British government that dealt with, and was partially staffed by, the supernatural" (after 2022's Blitz), offers an entertaining blend of fantasy and humor. The Group's oddball missions—like botanist Alix's investigation into "a pot of malevolent nasturtiums in Cumbria that had been directing bees to swarm people and also steal their credit card details"—are interrupted when Edmund, the Prince of Wales, dies suddenly of unknown causes. Suspicions that Edmund was assassinated make identifying the cause a Checquy priority. Those fears intensify after Odette Leliefeld, an alchemist and Checquy ally, discovers a small pyramid emerging from the prince's brain during an autopsy, a bizarre symptom also seen eight years earlier in an American college student. Alix and Odette team up to solve the mystery. As always, O'Malley imbues his imagined world with realistic details and finds plentiful humor in the clash of the supernatural and the bureaucratic. ("For all its astounding capabilities, the Checquy was still a government agency, which meant there were never enough funds or staff for a project.") Series fans will be delighted.
Customer Reviews
Best since the OG
This is the best Rook series book since the original (still one of my all time favs). Loved reading this, virtually inhaled. Great new characters and original story in the Checquy universe.