Puzzle House

There were so many unnecessary sentences and details and I wasn't a fan of them. For me when writers use them they're trying to show how good of a writer they are but it rarely works. I also didn't like any of the characters, their personalities, their dialogue – all played a part in my reason to dnf.

Why? Why? Why Why? Why Why Why? Why Why Why Why Why? Why Why Why Why Why Why Why Why?

This single word echoed in my head with every single new plot point like the world’s most annoying Fibonacci Sequence.

From the get-go the reader is promised a fun little romp where a bunch of strangers vie for a dead millionaire’s fortune and things immediately go south. It’s a dumb but entertaining flip from Escape Room to the Saw movies as one could probably guess. Quickly, the author shoves the hook away and apparently starts slamming his fist on the keyboard. By the second escape room, the silliness snowballs into an incomprehensible mess.

I figured, by the way the book started, that the plot would slowly unfold into some huge interconnected web where everything came together. Well, that’s not so much what happened. The one-dimensional characters remained in 1D World. They made silly decisions. The world’s greatest puzzle maker made shitty puzzles. Stuff just sort of happened with no rhyme or reason. Attempts at humor fell flat. Plot twists happen that will make you scratch your head. Honestly, I’m not certain Dan Brown didn’t ghost write this. That’s how bad it was.

This was an alright read, in the beginning it was a little slow, then it speeds up and gets interesting but by the time you get to end it feels a little bit unbelievable, still enjoyable over all though and an interesting take on the escape room/death game genre.

This reminded me of the movie Escape Room. I thought it was fun, the deaths were creative, and I liked how the rooms connected to the people. I didn't like the ending, but I usually don't like that trope. not a fan of rituals and cult-like corporations making a sacrifice and that reminded me of Cabin in the Woods

Puzzle House follows six strangers who arrive at the home of a renounced Puzzle Master for the reading of his will, only to discover that they are now apart of a puzzle themselves. The prize? Their life.

I went into this book with the hopes that it'll be like the horror movies that surround escape rooms. The book wasn't exactly what I was hoping for but I still got all the great horror elements that make it a fantastic read.

This was a fast-paced and entertaining read. There were so many twists and turns that left me hanging onto the next page. The puzzles in the house were not the only ones that the characters needed to solve as their pasts and secrets were entwined with the house too. I loved that the atmosphere of the book made me feel as if I were one of the people in the house.

This is a great book to pick up if you want to get out of a slump or if you want to try to get more into the genre.

Thank you to NetGalley and Wicked House Publishing for providing me with this ARC. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I just finished Puzzle House, a Novel by Duncan Ralston and here is my review.

When Alexei Vasiliev dies, his $150 million dollar fortune is left to 6 individuals. Five of whom had never met the man. The only catch is to get their share of his fortune... They have to complete six interconnecting escape rooms.

Seems easy enough until the participants realize that the rooms are far deadlier than meets the eye. Every room gets more intense and the time limits make things even more hair-raising. Someone has eyes on every choice they make and every life that is lost.

Someone has been keeping tabs on them in the real world as well, making each person turn on the next. Can they make it out alive? What kind of a person creates a deadly game and what will they find at the end?

OK this book could have been 100 pages longer and I would have been all over that! GUHHHH the ending! I have sooooo many questions!! I hope there is a sequel and I need answers.

Why these 6 people? A couple you can guess but the others..... Tying up loose ends but what are the loose ends!!! I loved all the occult stuff. LOVED IT. I really enjoyed how the whole story came together. Why did they pick Hall? This I never really understood hence why I hope we get a sequel. I need to know more about the book and all the ancient lore. I could fall down one heck of a rabbit hole.

I liked the build up and all the puzzles. It was really a great book! The writing was exceptional and detailed, it was obviously well researched.

I'm going to find more of the authors work as I love their style and the attention to detail that went into this Saw meets escape room...

Out now so grab this horror-rific masterpiece today.

4.5 stars.

Thank you @netgalley and #wickedhousepublishing for my gifted copy

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