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Susan Rooke

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The Space Between: The Prophecy of Faeries (The Space Between Series Book 1) Kindle Edition

by Susan Rooke (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

4.2 129 ratings

Book 1 of 3: The Space Between Series

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2018 Shelf Unbound Best Indie Book, Notable

“With a mixture of fantasy and all things Heaven and Earth, this tale combines the stories of several characters into an intricate, twisting plot.” — Tonja Drecker, author and book reviewer

Mellis, a courageous and resourceful young woman, is kidnapped from the human world and taken to the Space Between by a tribe of faeries called the Penitents. Because of guilt over an ancient sin committed by their angel ancestors against the Maker, the Penitents have cursed themselves with grotesque physical disfigurements. Mellis can help them reunite with the Maker and find their way back to redemption, but she would need to give up the life she's always known to remain in the Space Between. As she struggles with this heart-wrenching decision, one of the Penitents, bent on revenge, commits a gruesome attack against the tribe, and they learn he has taken Satan--the Maker's greatest enemy--as his ally. All in the Space Between are facing grave danger. Will a long-awaited act of vengeance save them?

Weaving together parallel storylines from the Space Between and the Realm Below for a climactic finish, Susan Rooke builds a rich and fantastical world of angels and demons, monsters, faeries and dragons. Abounding with spirituality and humanity, this faery tale for adults has a cast of vivid characters you won't soon forget.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"I was too intrigued to put it down. I was sucked into Mellis' story and was falling in love at the same time she was."
-Leels Loves Books

"With a mixture of fantasy and all things Heaven and Earth, this tale combines the stories of several characters into an intricate, twisting plot.

[Rooke] does an amazing job at bringing every single person and creature to life with its own personality and tale, while keeping the plot running along. There are unexpected twists, plenty of them. These aren't thrown in with generic style but sail right in as if they truly belong, while adding layers of complexity."
-Tonja Drecker, author and book reviewer

"The world building and story were just brilliant and the imagery that Rooke conjures up left me feeling I was right there along with Mellis."
-Fee, eBook Addicts Blogger

"...a fresh take on angels and demons. It is the start of a series and one that I am curious to see where it is going from here."
-J Bronder Book Reviews

"The characters are unique and described so well that I could picture each one as I read. Everyone has their own interesting story."
-Dawn, Bound For Escape Blog

"An epic fantasy full of magical and mythical creatures that simply take your breath away. This book really hooked me in from the very start."
-Kati, To Be Read Blog

"The story structured within the pages is fascinating; the descriptions were so vivid that I could actually visualise them."
-Poesy In Chrysalis Blog

"The characters are vivid and well defined. The writing is done very well, and it is a gripping tale."
-Teresa Noel, Blogger

"Susan Rooke masterfully builds her worlds with rich detailed descriptions. The reader feels as if they are there in The Space Between and the surrounding realms. Our protagonist, a young woman named Mellis, experiences sudden and unexpected visits to the realms where she encounters a rich array of talking animals, and unusual characters and situations that bring to mind an adult version of Alice in Wonderland. The Space Between offers fast-moving adventure and a fresh portrayal of faeries!"
-Salina B Baker, author of Angels & Patriots
"The writing is superb and the storyline is so unique...I gobbled it up in no time flat!" -Summer's Opus Blog
"Rooke is a deft writer. Her prose in this, her first novel, is graceful, poetic, and readable. The plot is well-arranged, compelling, and surprising. For such a complex story, the world-building is not cumbersome, a difficult feat to pull off. Another strength of this book is its unique amalgamation of Christian narratives and faerie folklore. It's an exciting idea, and Rooke weaves them together so that it seems natural. Her novel is imaginative, well-written, and well-plotted."-The Future Fire

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B074Q4Y6PQ
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Amazon Digital Services (September 12, 2017)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ September 12, 2017
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 3339 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 454 pages
Page numbers source ISBN ‏ : ‎ 0999087207

Best Sellers Rank: #459,289 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #1,895 in Mythology & Folk Tales (Kindle Store)
- #3,316 in Fairy Tale Fantasy (Kindle Store)
- #4,257 in Dark Fantasy Horror

Customer Reviews:
4.2 129 ratings

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Susan Rooke

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Susan Rooke is a multiple Pushcart nominee, Best of the Net and Dwarf Stars nominee, and author of the Space Between series. Her poems and short stories have appeared in publications such as The Christian Science Monitor and The Twilight Zone Magazine, among many others. She and her husband live surrounded by cows on a square of green, peaceful country in Central Texas. When she's not writing speculative fiction and poetry, she blogs fortnightly about real life, food and cocktails at SusanRooke.net

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4.2 out of 5

129 global ratings

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Stephanie Nelson

Just amazing

Reviewed in the United States on December 3, 2023

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I loved this book. It was fantastically written and so well detailed. I was drawn into the story right off the bat.

You do get multiple points of views and yes at the beginning some of them are awkward and seem odd. But they add to the story. Some of them are behind the pages scenes added to the book. I loved it. It took me awhile but as the story progressed, I easily identified who's side story I was reading.
This was my first Heaven and hell retelling. Like I said I loved it. You get to read about fallen angels and what they suffered through and what they are still were suffering with.
The surprise turn of events with Mellis's mother. Loved.
Also, there was great detail in the grotesque scenes. Which to me I have read way worse. This was mild. I was actually really impressed with what this author came up with for this book.

I cannot wait to start the second book.

Helpful

Kimber

The misty shadow that dances along the edge of your vision might be more real than you believe

Reviewed in the United States on February 4, 2020

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The misty shadow that dances along the edge of your vision might be more real than you believe. Be mindful of ‘The Space Between.’

One beautiful day, while relaxing in a park, Mellis and her dog, Orlando, are spirited away only to wake in a strange land surrounded by inhuman beings. The young woman has inadvertently entered the realm of the faeries: only this isn’t a place teeming with the beautiful winged nymphs of her imagination. Instead, our dear Mellis comes face-to-face with some of the most intriguingly grotesque creatures one could envisage. She naturally struggles to come to terms with her new predicament but is unable to find a way to return home; a quandary reminiscent of Dorothy's in 'The Wizard of Oz'.

Despite kidnapping Mellis, these otherworldly captors heap gifts aplenty on our very confused heroine. But why? After all, nothing is given for free...

Susan Rooke’s inventive mind took me to an unearthly locale, unlike any I’ve dared to dream.
Climb aboard the roller coaster of twists and turns as our protagonist discovers a mystical land that boasts more than just oddities; it might also offer salvation. 'The Space Between' is a thrilling read!

3 people found this helpful

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Biminiroxy

Quick read but confusing POV structure

Reviewed in the United States on February 26, 2019

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Quick read. The world building was imaginative & the idea of the story was extremely interesting though it needed more character development for a few key characters. The only reason I couldn’t give a full star review, and I absolutely hate to not give a full star review, but was that it was hard to get invested in the story. It flip flopped between two separate stories for the first twenty chapters or so which almost made me set it down but I had high hopes so I kept reading... that structure never stopped but I did become invested in what happened with the main character Mellis. The other reason was for the Christian slant in the novel- it might be my fault, maybe I missed something when choosing it by the description but in my opinion it was holding back the relationship aspect: Melli’s and Adrian could have been a fantastic love story to me but it fell flat- while his character depth & their feelings were not built as it could have been and their relationship if you can call it that was at height a kiss on her hand and a few conversations. I was just left wishing for more. If I had approached it not expecting a deeper & more founded romance perhaps I would have found it full star worthy.

12 people found this helpful

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lucyblue

weird & gory

Reviewed in the United States on May 26, 2020

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parts of this i loved, parts i really disliked - it was WAY too graphic in places, gory & disgusting for pages, and the POV jumped around with no rhyme or reason, mixing up past & present so one didn't know WHEN it was happening. I found the story line fascinating but the main character's actions were ridiculous in the beginning (not objecting to being kidnapped? willingly sacrificing herself for her kidnappers? that's crazy) & not explained & not the least believable until almost the end when suddenly it almost made sense. I disliked her intensely for most of the book. So i'm going to be generous and give this 3 stars instead of 1 or 2 because the writing is good even tho i didn't care for most of it and the editing was decent.

7 people found this helpful

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Michelle Horn-Ames

At last something different!

Reviewed in the United States on December 18, 2018

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Picked this book out on a whim. I AM SO GLAD I DID! I wanted a book that had more meat to it and was different than all the other cookie cutter Fairy/Love stories ..You know the ones.
I was a little surprised that God, and the Devil are mixed into the story. But it was done well! Along with Dragons, talking Cats and other oddities. Some of the gore might be too much (for some people) around the second half of the book. But I had no problem. Some complained about the side stories, that it got confusing. Well they must not have finished book. Because it all made sense in the end. It was relevant character information. Anyway... I've reserved my copy of book number two already, and I'm looking forward to it!! Thank you Susan Rooke for the escape from the mundane.

6 people found this helpful

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Mary Ellen Branan

Thank Goodness

Reviewed in the United States on December 6, 2017

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Susan Rooke and I met and became close friends through the Austin Poetry Society. She was a leader in our club, served as the newsletter editor, and wrote contest-winning poems regularly. But a novel (both meanings) idea drew her away to prose and she began The Space Between. She let me see only the first scene. But now published, I found it to be a page-turner, unique in its conception, delving into the larger myth of Satan and the Creator and angels, Good vs. Evil, but one couldn’t say it is within the Christian novel genre. It’s adventure and love story and weird. She offers memorable characters, suspenseful pacing, and horror scenes galore. On the last page, you’ll not be ready to give up its unearthly locale and the human heroine, so Rooke is slated to continue into a trilogy, thank Goodness.

5 people found this helpful

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Top reviews from other countries

HM Holten

High-Fantasy with a Biblical Theme

Reviewed in Germany on August 8, 2021

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Lucifer falls and the world splits into fractions. Humans still live on the earth, but there is a realm between hell and the earth. Assuredly, there is also a heaven above. This is the premise for Susan Rooke’s fantasy novel, and she takes the reader to dark places where dragons dwell and into the lush world where the faeries live – apparently in safety. Humans too have everything to fear it seems, especially young women of beauty and integrity.
Mellis is such a one. She loves her dog and her mother. That doesn’t stop two humanoid creatures from abducting her to that realm where faeries live. Time slows down for Mellis, who eventually learns to care for her abductors and her new world.
Ms Rooke presents her readers with a complex maze of angels, faeries, and humans. Not only that, but she also weaves in a medieval inferno, the seven deadly sins, as well as the sons of God who desired the daughters of man. This is a satisfying read that makes you think about more than you might expect in a high fantasy novel. This is an experience of staggering dimensions.

Sherrie

A different world

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 9, 2021

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I have known this author on Twitter for some years and retweeted this book but it wasn't until I heard her read a short extract that my interest sparked. She has a lovely reading voice and chose just the right part to read for me, where Mellis meets Satan.

Satan is a complex character and this story shows his two sides, the softer side with his feelings for a Penitent and the cruel side that tortures and kills those who displease him. I have often wondered what Lucifer did that was so bad that he was cast from heaven and stripped of his beauty but onto this story. Mellis is minding her own business walking her dog in the park when she becomes aware of two men. The next thing she knows is that she is in a strange world with opulent surroundings, she and Orlando her dog, where the people are very kind but all have some kind of deformity. There is a purpose to her kidnap but she isn't aware of it until later in the story. There are lots of twists and surprises and throughout it all Mellis despairs of ever seeing her mother again. My favourite character was Kindle, the ageing talking cat who is so wise he seems to know everything that is going on and that Mellis is drawn to. She is also drawn to Adrian and I wanted those two to get together but that wasn't the purpose that she was brought there for. All the details tie in well at the end but there is a sequel, The Realm Below, Satan's domain and I wanted to find out what went on there and how it affected those in The Space Between so I downloaded it ready to read.

By getting to know fellow authors on Twitter I have read and enjoyed different genres that I possibly wouldn't have read before and can thoroughly recommend this book as an entertaining, well written, well crafted read with wonderful imagery and descriptions.

maureen turner-books by maureen

A Devilishly riveting tale.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 18, 2018

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I first saw The Space Between on Twitter and after viewing a free sample decided to buy the e book copy. It was a good decision. Ms Rooke is an excellent writer and her novel about how a group of fallen angels desperately try to regain their place in Heaven is indeed intriguing. The novel is actually three stories in one and each chapter flips back and forth until the reader appreciates that they all fit together as one story. Mellis is a young 'normal' woman who is suddenly and inexplicably kidnapped whilst walking her dog in the local park. Both she and her dog now enter a strange world of deformed humanoid creatures who see her as the main character in a long held prophecy. As she learns more about these strange but kindly creatures she accepts that her old life is just a memory and she feels compelled to help them in their quest. Thus begins a tale involving all manner of strangeness including talking animals, faeries, and penitents - fallen angels who want nothing more than to return to their Heavenly abode. There are surprises aplenty as the story unfolds and we learn more about this peculiar world known as the space between. Some readers may balk at the horror and gore inflicted by Satan who knows no bounds in his evil intent to thwart the penitents aim. Although not a lover of horror myself Ms Rooke chooses her words carefully and her descriptions of his depraved deeds comes across clearly. I look forward to reading the sequel when it is published. I have no hesitation in awarding this a worthy FIVE STARS.

Kevin

Falling for 'The Space Between'.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 16, 2017

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Twenty-three-year-old Mellis, along with her dog, Orlando, is kidnapped in a park by two near-humanoids and, in the blink of an eye, wakes up naked in a Tardis-like interior.
Thus begins a high-fantasy, galaxy-spanning story that I found to be both immersive and enchanting.
There is initially something of an ‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’ vibe to the narrative and author Susan Rooke led me down a dark rabbit hole, replete with a mélange of outlandish characters and fantastical otherworlds.
Mellis is the heroine we are all rooting for. Equally as compassionate as she is brave, she encounters enough demons, dwarfs, faeries, vultures and lobster-clawed angels to keep the most ardent ‘Lord of the Rings’ fans happy.
Aloof love interest comes in the form of hunky stranger, Adrian (Mr Darcy to her Elizabeth Bennet) while, back on Earth, time passes demonstrably faster, and Mellis’s poor mother has, in the same timeframe, spent years mourning her loss.
The story has an allegorical feel, with themes of penitence and forgiveness, love and loss. Demonic evil lurks in the shadows, so be prepared for vengeful wrath and gore aplenty!
Without giving anything away, my vote for favourite protagonist goes to a character named Kindle, whose Yoda-like sagacity is sure to delight readers of this book!
Rooke has an imagination to rival Neil Gaiman’s and her extraordinary characters appeared vividly and cinematically in my mind’s eye.
Her audacious, wondrous story held my attention throughout and I’m already keenly anticipating the sequel!

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The Space Between: The Prophecy of Faeries (The Space Between Series Book 1) Kindle Edition

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