The Miraculous Life of Rupert Rocket by Mark Salzwedel

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I received this book in return for an honest review.

Two-Sentence Summary

A brilliant fantasy realism book. The diverse characters will have your reading well past your bedtime.

Synopsis

In 1942, Rupert Rocket’s grandmother was cursed by an Irish fairy, the Pooka, to end her bloodline.

But the Pooka's sister, the Grogoch, blessed the boy to counteract the curse.

As a young gay man, Rupert’s life spins wildly between the competing spells through adventures as a dancer, a model, an actor, and a spy…

But what will happen when the blessing runs out?

Impressions

Many book lovers will say you should never judge a book by its cover, and despite all knowing this, most of us do. That was my first impression of this book, and I was worried I would not enjoy it as the cover did not speak to me. Boy, was I wrong because I love this book. 

As a side note, having read the book, the cover now makes sense; I would still say it doesn’t grab me. 

What I loved about this book was the range of characters and how well they were written. Having read 50 pages, I felt like I was invested in every one of their lives. The lead character, Rupert, is no exception. He is well-written and flawed, with an equal sprinkling of loveability. 

Rupert is surrounded by diverse characters, each of whom is as likeable as him. The book has short chapters which keep you reading through, and I read the whole thing in two days, but I could not put it down. 

The book deals with 911, which may trigger some readers, but the story is well written. If I had one criticism of the book, I would say that it comes across as overly political in places, and it is clear what the author’s view is regarding some aspects of American politics, but this could be a criticism of many books. 

Overall, this is a brilliant fantasy realism book, and I look forward to reading more from this author.

Don't you ever feel like getting too much good luck is oppressive?