interesting book with maps and code and seeing images and able to do things in dream. very interesting book that dealt with religion and science. slight romance and issues with dolls

This is a good story, with many different genres mashed together. It's part thriller and part mystery, with some horror and techno science-thriller elements thrown in. I enjoyed the characters and puzzle/problem solving aspects, just maybe too many different elements to the story that didn't quite all come together and make sense.. It's an easy quick read, and if you enjoy those genres you'll probably enjoy this book.

Haven’t you always wanted to know what it would be like to have a photographic memory and be able to solve any puzzle. Mike Brink now has this ability after a football accident. Of course having a perfect memory isn’t always perfection. We see what it’s truly like to have a mind that is always at work. And when people want to use his talents to their advantage, things can get dangerous.
I really enjoyed this book. There was a lot of layers to the story that we had to unfold. The story ended up being not what I was expecting but I still enjoyed it.
3.5/5 stars

I couldn’t put this one down. I found myself reading at every opportunity and was so excited to see the ending. I really enjoyed reading this but was slightly disappointed with the ending. I wasn’t surprised by the final reveal but really wanted to be. I was sucked in the whole time so it made the ending more of a let down. I do think it’s worth the read but you have to go in knowing that there won’t be any surprises— aside from realizing that everyone talking about this being a genre mashup is correct. This was a great read and I wish I could give it more stars.

Wow!!

I went into this read not knowing anything about this author and what I got was an amazing book that was not at all what I was expecting.

Some supernatural and lots of suspense with a unique puzzle.

Mike Brink was in an accident and learned that his brain injury had resulted in an extremely rare condition called sudden acquired savant syndrome.

Jess Price was a author convicted of murder.

She’d lured him to the prison with a puzzle, drawn him closer with a cipher, and now he felt a desperate need to figure her out.

I was so engrossed in this story I literally couldn’t put it down. It was so different from anything I’ve read before and I’m so glad I stepped out of my comfort zone.

A young man who is a puzzle savant becomes involved in a murder mystery. Sounds simple, right? Nope. This is a complicated cerebral thriller. There’s a small detour into creepy doll land, but it is short and feeds the narrative. Likewise spiritual, religious, and supernatural aspects that feed the narrative. It is well written and thought out and has good character development (though he falls for the wrong woman) and I could have done with less of the schlocky Mission Impossible stumbles. Worth the read.

I requested this one because it might be an upcoming title I would like to review on my Youtube Channel. However, after reading the first several chapters I have determined that this book does not suit my tastes. So I decided to DNF this one.

The Puzzle Master by Danielle Trussini introduces us to Mike Brink whose life is altered after a football injury. He is drawn into a puzzle by Jess Price who is in prison for murder. She draws a puzzle to get Mike involved. The story is a thriller with strange events happening and effects for the future. It takes us to upstate NY, NYC, and Prague. A suspenseful read with a good pace! I recommend this one! Thank you NetGalley for letting me review this book in exchange for an honest review.

I received an ARC from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This started off okay. I liked the premise, and the storytelling was okay, although it felt a little lecture-y at times, with the dumping of a lot of information. But then it progressively got worse and worse. I could put up with fairly stereotypical characters if there's a lot of action going on. But the plot got bogged down by so much information dumping. None of the conversations sound like conversations. They sound like one character lecturing on a topic for pages and pages, before giving the other character an opportunity to ask another question. And even that, I could be okay with. But the instalove between a couple of the characters, not too mention some skeevy yet almost laughable sex scenes, and a mishmash of way too many genres all turned this into something that I just couldn't enjoy because it was all just too much. (I didn't really like any of Dan Brown's novels either, which is what this reminds me of the most, so there's that.)

It's been a long time since I have felt compelled to finish a book in one day....well, The Puzzle Master by Danielle Trussoni, is IT! Super intense and a quick read, I could not put it down. It's a page turner, a roller coaster and an incredible story. I loved this book, truly it had me on the edge of my chair! I loved all the Jewish references! Thank you to NetGalley and to Penguin Random House Publishing for the egalley of this book in return for this very honest review.
For all readers, buy it as quick as it comes out.....It is a fantastic story!

Y'all!!! This book! This book!
Imagine being in the woods and expecting to run into tigers or bears but instead running into a liopleurodon. All that to say, it will keep you on your toes.

I really am a bad guesser. I'm a bad detective. Please don't ask me to solve any crimes.

I really didn't know who to believe or who was telling the truth. It definitely was a fun ride the entire time. It was a stressful ride, but a fun one!

Seriously, don't miss this one!

Thank you to Random House for inviting me to read an early copy of this book.

THE PUZZLE MASTER works with three different timelines: 1909, 2017, and 2022 (our main one).

From the beginning, I thought that if the book’s execution worked out, then this was going to be really good. I’ve read Danielle Trussoni’s ANGELOLOGY series so I was familiar with her writing style and it comes across here. Yes, this book is classified as Historical Fiction and Mystery & Thrillers (according to NetGalley’s rubric), but there’s a lot more going on here. There’s an investigation of privacy, quantum mechanics, Jewish mysticism, and a few others as well.

(A note about the Jewish mysticism mentioned above: I’m not Jewish so I’m not sure if this was taken with any sort of care. There were a few things that felt suspect, but I can’t speak with any authority about whether or not it was done in poor taste.)

This is a dense book. There’s a lot going on and you can really tell the author did her research on every topic; the characters go on long monologues to demonstrate this. This information does pay off but it feels like it’s bogged down in parts. While I’m one who can tolerate this, I know there are those who won’t.

In the end, basically, everything is not what it seems and I liked going into reading it knowing that there was going to be a sequel.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for a readers copy of this title. My reviews never contain spoilers and are freely given.
This book is a fast paced, with action start to finish. There are stories within the story, a doll maker, a diary of an accused murderer. Add in golems, a puzzle called The Eye of God, and a cool little dachshund. Overall a perfectly balanced read.

The Puzzle Master is a fast-paced ride. The book is built around Mike Brink, who, after an accident in high school, can understand shapes and patterns like no one else. He’s a likable character who doesn’t always know how to navigate the world around him.

He finds himself inside a centuries-old mystery that involved Jewish mysticism combined with a tech genius who hopes to move the world to the next age of AI. Sound confusing? It is. But it is a well-spun yarn that keeps you guessing. Kudos to the author for all the research she did. I enjoyed it, but I don’t think it is for everyone.

If you enjoyed The Davinci Code, this book is right up your alley!

This was a face paced and keep you on the edge book. I really enjoyed it based on the synopsis I was ready to go in and found there was so much more to this book than I expected. It ended on a cliff hanger and await a sequel and most definitely will read it!

3.5:5

Despite the delicious and savory intricacies of the story, this book ended up being bland for me. It needs just a bit more spice and possibly different ingredients. Overall it satiated but didn’t satisfy.

(2.5 rounded up.) The Puzzle Master was a book about a lot of subjects: puzzles, the supernatural, religion, technology, art, history, medicine. There was a lot going on; perhaps, too much for one book.

While I thought it was fairly successful as thriller, adding so many other elements from different genres tended to distract from, rather than enhance, the overall story. I’m sure there are people who like the mash up of genres, but I think you need to be careful which ones you mix together. A lot of people enjoy thrillers with puzzles but hate anything supernatural.

I also thought the writing was a little uneven. I’m a fan of fast pacing, but sometimes I thought it was a little too fast. I had to go back a couple of times and reread things to make sure I hadn’t missed something. Plus, there were a few things I didn’t miss, they just weren’t addressed. I was also glad I had the dictionary feature on my Kindle for this book.

My copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thanks to the the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review it.

One word. Amazing.

This book follows a man with a unique ability to create and solve almost any puzzle that comes his way. When he receives a request to solve a puzzle from an inmate at a state prison, he has no idea what kind of adventure he is about to start.

This book is part thriller, part horror, part historical fiction and so much more. I loved how this delved into the history and mystery of well know wonders like Porcelain while weaving it seamlessly into the twisty and engaging story.

It is hard to truly write a review for The Puzzle Master by Danielle Trussoni that captures all the emotions that this book sparked.

The Puzzle master was an incredibly different type of book. Puzzles AND murder!? Yes, thank you very much!

The Puzzle Master is one of the most weirdly uneven novels I’ve ever read. It reads to me like an unedited first draft. There are flashes of brilliance--there’s a legitimately spooky haunted house sequence that had me up past my bedtime and frantically texting my boyfriend. However, unfortunately this book is just spread too thin to be effective at any one of the seven things it’s trying to do.

It’s trying to be about technology, and mysticism, and puzzles, and trauma, and possession, and it’s a gothic Dan Brown thriller historical mystery mash up. Even a modern day Shakespeare might blanch at trying to accomplish all that. And this author is not Shakespeare. The convoluted plot is hung like an albatross around the shoulders of characters that barely have space to breathe let alone develop into anything other than one dimensional stereotypes. The prose is workmanlike. I think the author has potential if she could get a better editor and maybe stop trying so hard to be Dan Brown, and instead cultivate her own voice.

In the end, when you put together seven half-baked ideas, you just end up with a mess. The ending also left me somewhat skeeved out about questions of how consensual some of the sex was.

I was given an advance copy by the publisher in exchange for this (perhaps overly) honest review.