Thanks to Poisoned Pen Press for the opportunity to review this book. Christmas has arrived. The Armitage family has gathered one more time to settle who inherits Endgame, the estate home. Lilliana, the recently deceased matriarch, set forth a 12 Days of Christmas themed puzzle game to determine who inherits.

Lily is returning to her childhood home for the first time since her mother's death when she was a child. She is there at her aunt's behest only. There are so many memories and hints that things were not as she always believed. Things get tense when one of them turns up dead. Can Lily solve the riddles and figure out what is going on?

A well done locked room style mystery with intrigue, family drama, and thoughtful puzzles. The characters are engrossing. Very well paced. A fun holiday read.

The Christmas Murder Game is a most unique holiday book. Not cozy by any means, this book offers the reader a chance to be interactive with the clues, riddles and anagrams. While the overall theme may seem familiar- houseguests snowed in and being murdered one by one- there is a freshness to the tale. The characters have some surprises in store for us.
The writing is well crafted and appealing. The author makes the most of the sinister atmosphere without becoming horrific. It is a Christmas tale, after all.
The mystery was solid but not totally unexpected.
Lily is warned at the beginning of the story to trust no one. Wise advice to readers.
Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for this ARC of The Christmas Murder Game.

For some people, traveling to spend the holidays with family can feel like a dangerous task. But in The Christmas Murder Game by Alexandra Benedict, a woman finds that someone is so desperate to inherit the family estate that they’ll stop at nothing—not even murder—to get their way.

Review published on NightsAndWeekends.com and aired on Shelf Discovery

4.25
The story follows Lily, who has to return to Endgame House, the place her mother died years ago. She and her cousins stay in the house for the twelve days of Christmas to fight for the title deeds.
I really enjoyed reading this book, especially with all the games that not only the cousins but also the readers had to solve. There were some minor plot twists that really managed to shock me. Unfortunately, the major plot twist was no surprise to me.

This book was so much fun and I read it in one sitting! If you’re looking for a cozy mystery, this is NOT it though. Full of murder and deceit, this locked-room mystery is a nod to Agatha Christie’s 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘞𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘕𝘰𝘯𝘦.

What makes it different is the inclusion of games for the reader! Two games are listed in the beginning to work on (if you want) while reading and the acknowledgements include a word search.

The story itself is packed with riddles for the estranged cousins to solve in order to find twelve keys, one on each of the twelve days of Christmas. The amount of thought that went into the clues alone made the read so much more fun.

Grief, acceptance, and suicide are some of the tough topics many of the characters work through during their twelve day lock-in. The only reason I gave this book 4 stars instead of 5 is because I felt the last few days of the game were more rushed than the first few. I wanted more which is a good thing! I loved this book and recommend it to anyone who is a fan of Agatha Christie and, more recently, Alice Feeney’s 𝘋𝘢𝘪𝘴𝘺 𝘋𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘦𝘳.

I received an advanced copy and all thoughts are my own.

Christmas Murder Game is an intriguing murder mystery set in an isolated locale with a closed circle of suspects.

This book reminds me of the movie Clue without the hilarity and Ready or Not without the complete destruction of everything at the end.

Our main character, Lily, returns to her childhood home for the annual Christmas game. She hasn't been back at the family home where her mother died since her death. But now that her aunt has passed and the game is not for presents but for the deed of the house, Lily feels compelled to go back. But not for the house....for the promise of discovering who killed her mother.

All that are left of the family are the cousins. Isolated in the home by a huge snow storm with no access to phones, the estranged cousins must solve the clues given on each of the 12 days of Christmas in order to get themselves closer to finding the deed to the house. But, there are people who don't plan to play fair and Lily has to fight to stay alive after the cousins start to be found dead.

This is a real who dunnit. Was it the cruel and bristling cousin, the quiet unassuming one, the one who seems so kind, or is it the housekeeper who is there overseeing the family during the game, or has someone else made it onto the grounds unbeknownst to the others?

I did have my suspicions throughout. But there were things that threw me off the trail. I did not completely figure it out, but ended up being right on a few things. I read through The Christmas Murder Game fairly quickly, it definitely kept my attention. There were a few parts that felt a little suspensful, but overall it was fairly mild. Although, in a book it takes quite a lot for it to feel really scary or suspenseful for me.

The author has hidden puzzles throughout the story, so that's a pretty fun aspect of the book. I'm no good at puzzles like that so I didn't figure any out, but it was fun to try.

I enjoyed the premise of this book and that it was set during the 12 days of Christmas. If you are looking for a Christmas Murder mystery, I'd recommend this book.

honestly i loved this book i couldn't put it down at all and i plan on rereading this book big time, what caught my eye big time was the blurb and also i thought that this some what fits into the show only murders in the building. i really want more of this book because i couldn't put it down. I didn't want it to end. 5 star book and i may know a friend that might like this book big time.
highly recommend this book

A murderous Christmas game involving family secrets and riddles sounds like something I should love, but it did not work for me at all! The execution was lacking and sometimes I did not know in what time period I was meant to be, so my brain was constantly confused. The writing is very flowery and all these anagrams I am supposed to make out were too much work for my brain and pulled me out of the story. Sad I did not like it.

A brilliant whodunit. A holiday-themed mystery game with twelve riddles, a country estate, Endgame House, the Armitage family's grand seventeenth-century manor house and even a map to track all of the clues.

The main character in The Christmas Murder Game is Lily a clever and complex lass who makes her way from London to the Yorkshire Dales after opening a letter from her dead aunt, and adoptive mum, Liliana Armitage-Feathers. Lily hasn't been to Endgame House in twenty-one years not since her mum mysteriously died.

I had oodles of fun with this book though I couldn't solve the anagrams. The writing is good and the setting is really well and evocatively described. Well worth a look.

This review was written voluntarily and my rating was in no way influenced by the fact that I received a complimentary digital copy of this novel from Poisoned Pen Press via NetGalley.

Great book, the whole building up a d the mistery very well done. This book to me enwrap and I couldn’t put it down. Definitely will recommend

I picked up The Christmas Murder Game because I was intrigued with the concept of a murder mystery set at Christmas that also included puzzles to solve. The book was a solid three star read to me. It had a lot of potential and had a very strong start. The middle and the ending were predictable and most of the characters felt a little flat. The puzzles were well thought out but way above my ability.

I liked the premise of the story and the characters in general. The writing was good and I stayed interested throughout the story. It had more of a spooky ghost story vibe than a Christmas vibe for me. After Philippa died, the story started going downhill with everyone suddenly being killed off. If the characters were complete strangers the story would have had a stronger plot. It bothered me that siblings or cousins were killing off the people they loved. I also couldn't get over the fact that first cousins would be hooking up. Ewww! Isn't that illegal? Just saying! I had a feeling that the author didn't understand how family trees work. First cousins' children would not make someone an Aunt or Uncle. They would just be cousins or more specifically first cousins once removed. I did like the ending of the story.

The Christmas Murder Game is an entertaining seasonally-themed read, combining the long tradition of the snowed-in country house murder mystery, echoes of the board game "Cluedo" ("Clue" in the US) and the crime fiction trope of the deadly treasure hunt.

After the death of the family matriarch, eight cousins and in-laws converge on the Armitage family's Yorkshire mansion, Endgame House, for one last round of the traditional "Christmas Game". The stakes are high, as Aunt Liliana's will dictates that the game's winner will become the heir to Endgame House itself.

As the weather outside worsens, the various resentments, alliances and shared histories of the protagonists immediately become clear as the cousins reconnect and settle into Endgame. For our heroine, Lily Armitage the Christmas Game provides not only the opportunity to inherit Endgame, but also to solve her mother’s mysterious death 21 years previously.

It doesn't take long before events prove that someone is taking the game very, very seriously, and is prepared to kill in order to get their hands on Endgame House...

Alexandra Benedict’s narrative is structured around the traditional twelve days of Christmas, with a clue in the form of a sonnet-riddle being provided at some point on each day. Puzzle lovers like myself will delight in the liberal use of anagrams, literary and musical allusions and word association with which the participants, and by extension the reader, must contend.

Lily was well developed as a complex and sympathetic character, but the supporting cast less so. The setting, a remote Yorkshire pile isolated by snow drifts and featuring such classic settings as an icehouse, a hedge maze and a woodland chapel in its grounds is extremely well described and evocative.

In summary, The Christmas Murder Game is an enjoyably macabre Christmas romp of a read, employing many familiar and beloved tropes of the genre. I'd recommend it as a seasonal read to any reader who enjoys modern interpretations of traditional formats and cryptic puzzles sprinkled throughout their mystery reads.

My thanks to the author, Alexandra Benedict, publisher Poisoned Pen Press, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this title.

The Christmas Murder Game
Alexandra Benedict


First things first...I am a huge Christie fan! This story is in her traditional English style of writing, a mystery in the Dales. Is this a Christie book, no absolutely not. But it is a wonderful mystery written in a style I find greatly enjoyable. It is also ready for a featured book club position, with diagrams, multiple mini-mysteries, and a word search.

Our main character is Lily Armitage. Lily’s mother Mariana is believed to have committed suicide by most. Aunt Liliana is a former professor and Lily’s adopted mother. She sets a Christmas game to be played after her passing. By successfully completing the game and claiming the keys will Endgame House be bequeathed and a murderer unmasked! Lily and the other contestants will remain at the estate without any links to the outside world. Mrs. Castle, aunt Liliana’s longtime companion and housekeeper will also remain to care for the house and its guests. A surprise for Lily comes in the form of Isabelle, her childhood friend, and crush. Isabelle is aunt Liliana’s attorney and the executor of her estate. She does her job, setting the game in motion.

12 clues, 12 days, and 12 keys. Are you ready for the game?!

4****


Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the ARC.

Rating: 1.5

I liked the beginning, but it got boring quickly and I didn't care about the plot or the characters.

It started out as a nice murder mystery with even some extra puzzles for the reader. But unfortunately it ended up pretty predictable and the story felt repetitive. I also found the way everyone dealt with the murders unrealistic. I mean there is a murderer in the house and they continue with the game like nothing happened.

I got this arc in exchange for an honest review.

3.5*
This was such a fun holiday “whodunit” book mixed with with interesting family dynamics! I will say that some of the reveals were very predictable and not very surprising but I loved the vibes of this book, It was set during christmas and I think that helped with the overall enjoyment of this. It was so fun for to watch Lily work out the clues each day and eventually find out how and why her mom was murdered.

Overall I think it was a fun Christmas time mystery but I don’t think it’s anything too outstanding!

This was pretty fun for me! I liked the Christmas details and the little mysteries sprinkled in that the characters were solving. The big mystery was also good and the setting and characters gave me a bit of an old school mystery vibe.

A Christmas murder mystery? Okay, I'm in! This had a little bit of Knives Out vibes, with a family all wanting to inherit a mansion and some willing to kill for it. There's one reluctant person, Lily, who's mom tragically died there years ago and would rather have nothing to do with the games. She gets pulled in by her aunt's last request and things turn south quickly.

I thought this had pretty good pacing and the anagrams and clues were fun. The family members all had secrets and I love uncovering them. Lily could be a bit too passive and I wanted her to play to win and tell Sara to shove it. Sometimes you have to stand up for yourself.

This was a fun read and I'm glad I checked it out.

I voluntarily read and reviewed this book. All opinions are my own. Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for the copy

The Christmas Murder Game is a great locked room mystery with the feeling of a classic Agatha Christie novel.

In The Christmas Murder Game, we meet Lily, a young dress designer who is called back to her childhood home by the wishes of her recently deceased Aunt. Lily finds her self snowed in with her cousins and their spouses trying to solve clues in order to locate keys and, ultimately, a hidden room within the old mansion. The game begins on Christmas day and one clue to locate a key is given each day for twelve days (the Twelve Days of Christmas). Lily's motive for being at the house, however, is to solve her mother's murder. As the days go on, Lily's cousins and their spouses begin disappearing and dying. The killer must be one of them, but Lily doesn't know who to trust anymore. Can she live to solve the final clue and find her mother's killer?

There was a LOT going on in this book. We have three really big plot points from the get go. The first: Solve the clues, find the secret room, win the house. The second: Solve the clues to find out who murdered Mariana. The third: figure out who is murdering the cousins. There are also a bunch of subplots: Lily coming to terms with being in the house where her mom died, Lily wanting a family and hoping desperately to bond with her cousins, Lily's bean.... THEN we also have the puzzles the author has laid out for us! Despite everything, Alexandra Benedict did a fantastic job organizing everything and keeping the story line straight.

I really loved her descriptions of the house and grounds. I had such a vivid picture in my mind of how the house looked and found that even as we entered rooms later in the book that had only been entered once previously, I still held original picture solidly in my mind.

I will admit - the clues in iambic pentameter and sonnets were COMPLETELY over my head, but I also didn't spend much time on them as I was so quickly trying to finish the book and figure out who the murderer was!

This book was a lot of fun and a very enjoyable Christmas Mystery! 4 Stars from me.