Wow. I was sucked in right from the beginning. This would have been a 4 star but I didn’t like the ending.

Duncan Ralston has a wild imagination! When the book first started, it reminded me of The Westing Game with a group of seemingly unrelated people coming together to figure out a puzzle after the death of a rich guy. Puzzle House is far more dangerous, however! The characters were interesting and I enjoyed learning their secrets and connections as the book progressed. I couldn't wait to see what terrible thing was waiting for them through the next door. I was invested in the story from early on all the way through to the end. Great read!

I enjoyed this so much, I read it in one sitting! The new world that was started during the last chapter was phenomenal and totally scary! I need to know what happens next. Does Henry get to see his wife again? Does he get his money?

Puzzle House is a fun horror novel.
Six strangers are invited to the reading of an eccentric billionaire's will. Only one of them actually knew the man-Joy Reese, his ex-wife. It quickly becomes obvious that this billionaire doesn't intend to just hand over his fortune. He intends to make them earn it, through proving their wits through a series of puzzles.
This book is entertaining and fast-paced. There are lots of twists in the plot, not just in the types of puzzles they're forced to solve, but also in the reveals of each of the characters' dark secrets. The puzzles were clever, and the consequences of failing to solve them in time were quite severe.

I’ve read a few other books by this author and I couldn’t really get into them but this one I was completely drew in from the very beginning. I highly recommend this book to anyone that loves a good Horror book!

Thank you Netgalley, Duncan Ralston, and Wicked House Publishing for allowing me to read this ARC due to be published September 15th 2023.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC.

i was really excited to read this book and found the premise really intriguing and right up my alley. Sadly, it fell flat on the execution.
The writing felt really amateur, and the pacing was too fast, so you never got to really get to know any of the characters. The different POV's didnt help with that either. Yet it lingered and gave so many unnecessary information that didn't further the plot (f. ex. how often Oscar poops each day.. like why?)
The puzzles were underwhelming and the motivations behind each sacrifice made little sense, like doing an organ removal on an alive person instead of using one of the 4 dead bodies.
The motives behind the puzzle master made just as little sense as the so-called cult that was introduced.
All in all, good idea, just needed a lot more work

This one was a lot of fun.

Know that it gets very gruesome, and some of our characters are kind of ick, but it’s horrifying in all the best ways.

Now, the reason behind everything was unusual – I’m not sure I 100% love the why of everything, but I did love how it all played out.

The ending isn’t quite as concrete as I prefer, but it leave thins open for more and I’m really hoping the author continues to expand this world.

Definitely enjoyed this!

• ARC via Publisher

Saw meets National Treasure in this thrilling new escape room novel.

Six strangers are summoned inside a deceased millionaire's mansion to get the inheritance of this famous puzzle maker. However none of them are ready for all the puzzles they will have to solve to be the last one standing and get the money.

The six strangers are introduced at the beginning of the book so that we get the chance to get to know them a little better before they are thrown into the deadly games. This allows the reader to get a grasp on who they are and get attached to them.

From the beginning I found the story and characters very engaging and as soon as the puzzle rooms started I was hooked. It was such a fun and fast paced read that will be a great choice for people that, like me, love stories about escape rooms and deadly traps.

Even though the rooms were not like these super high tech complicated escape rooms, I truly enjoyed that they were more realistic and the story was much darker than expected.

Honestly I had a really fun time reading this and it even made me care for a specific character and we all know that not all of them were going to make it out alive. This was a short but intense story that also has a human side and shows how we can react when put in a life or death situation. We all know the best and the worst of us comes out.

If you like the Escape Room or Saw movies, this is the book for you. It has all of the elements that make those movies so interesting -- puzzles, tough decisions, and ultimately brutal deaths. I found this one a lot of fun, and it felt familiar without feeling like a copy. There are some unique choices that make this story shine.

Thank you, NetGalley, the publisher and author.
What a story and intrigue. It was like watching an action-packed movie with gore.
The chapters were long but the adventures in every chapter were mind-blowing.
It kept me interested and I was rooting for the underdog.

What a fun thrill ride. I felt like I got on a roller coaster and enjoyed the ride. This is a cinematic story expertly told. The characters are so real and fully fleshed. I can’t recommend this book enough. I don’t think there was a misstep in this book. Every scene propels the story forward. I read a NetGalley version of this and beg you to go right now and buy, preorder and jump into this book.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

This book was very bland. The parts that tried to be cool and interesting fell really flat for me. The ending, for instance, didn’t fit very well with the rest of the story. Everything just seemed very thrown together. It was an okay read.

Six strangers arrive at the home of puzzle master Alexei Vasiliev for the reading of his will. The potential beneficiaries will split his fortune if they participate in his last great work. The choice is leave the house with nothing or continue in the hope of solving the six interconnecting escape rooms within this house. Once there, the participants soon discover Puzzle House is far deadlier than it appears with their lives on the line, they are forced to wonder, is it all just a deadly game created by a gleeful sadist, or something far more sinister?

This was a high stakes escape room with creative puzzles alongside the horror and Gore what more could you want ! Really enjoyed this and just flew through it. I did not see that ending coming and hope that Duncan Ralston has plans to continue this story !

Thank you to Netgalley, Wicked House Publishing and Duncan Ralston for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I did received Puzzle House: A Novel by Duncan Ralston free for review on NetGalley. Thats why it pains me to say.. I didn't love this one. I'm sorry Ducan!
It just reminded me a little too much of a handful of movies in this same vein. There was a lot of repeated dialog between characters and the twist was just, silly. I love puzzles in all forms and I am easily scared so I was hopeful this one would get me good but it just wasn't for me I guess. Great idea, decent writing but relied a little too much on stories we've already seen or read before.
#PuzzleHouse
#NetGalley

I’d seen quite a few 5-star reviews for this novella but unfortunately it wasn’t for me.

The premise sounded fun: six strangers are mysteriously in a dead millionaire’s will, and must complete escape rooms in order to inherit his money. The escape rooms turn out to be deadly.

I do love books with puzzles, but this wasn’t the kind of book where the reader got to solve the puzzles along with the characters.  I didn’t have a great sense of place in any of the rooms, and the puzzles didn’t have much logic to them — or at least the clues weren’t provided to the reader.

I’m someone who loves horror with complex characters and themes, and Puzzle House just wasn’t that kind of book.  The characters are very shallowly drawn and I’m not sure that the book had anything to say.

I also am easily turned off when a male character’s story arc is based around the rape and murder of a wife or daughter.  

Overall, this felt like a very masculine horror novel, which is fine, but not my thing.  The ending was fun, and it was a very quick, easy read, even if it didn’t suck me in.  I think it will find plenty of fans.

Thank you to Netgalley and Wicked House Publishing for my review copy of this book.

2⭐️

I was so excited for this book and the beginning chapters had me hooked.

But only giving background to three characters automatically told me which three wouldn’t survive. There’s no reason on why any of them were chosen; no real information on how they’re linked to each other. There’s obscure information about each one’s background, but not enough to give a reason why these 6 were chosen.

And the ending. What was that? It answered nothing, nor did it give any closure at all. What started out as a great book just left me feeling overall frustrated at the lack of information and a lack of an ending.

I’m giving it 2⭐️‘s because in the beginning I was hooked, and because I loved the references to ancient mythology (even though none of it was explained whatsoever).

Thank you to NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was pretty much exactly what I wanted it to be - ridiculous, gory and just a really fun time. With a definite touch of the Saw film franchise and a not so subtle nod to Indiana Jones, the puzzle rooms got more and more cryptic as the story progressed and the stakes got higher. Yes, you do have to suspend your disbelief a lot here and yes, people do seem to know an awful lot about Mesopotamian and Mayan mythology randomly, but overall, this was a compelling and exciting read and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Puzzle House by Duncan Ralston is a fun and fast action thriller with echoes of (a darker) Goonies as well as other movies with twisted puzzle masters like Cube and Saw. I hate when authors review a book as "very readable", but I actually see it as something you could say about this book. The action kept on coming, more puzzles kept arriving, and more blood kept flowing. The characters are maybe a bit generic at times, but this was also a short book so there wasn't a lot of time for character development. Henry's backstory was super interesting. There was also a bit of cheese in some of the dialog and the action sequences, but overall it was a fun time and the parting scene was extra cool. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4. This was my first Ralston but it will not be my last. Thank you #netgalley for my free preview of Puzzle House.

This was far from what I expected but in the best way possible. Though reminiscent of the Saw franchise, this book touches more so on the phycological thriller side of things versus the gore. Death does play a part in the puzzles the characters face but it does spare you the sticky details.
Each character was wonderfully written and I loved having a glimpse at their lives and backstories. This is a perfect book for those who enjoy escape room-esque tropes!
Hoping to have a second book, that ending sent me reeling and I honestly need more! Though, at the same time, if it is kept as it, I can deal with that. The ending was delicious!

Puzzle House reminded me of Saw but also another movie (which if I say it will be a spoiler I think) but I love the movie and it's a weird one (because of the ending) and this book ending too. This took a turn at the end, like it was predictable but also not. It's hard to talk about it without giving too much away because it's so short.
You will have to read to find out.
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This I would highly recommend to people who love escape room puzzle type books or shows. It was fun, it did get a bit too specific in the medical field for me (that kinda just went over my head to be honest) but I had a fun time with this.
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It's short, fast paced, entertaining, and a lot of deaths in an interesting way.
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Puzzle House by Duncan Ralston
3.5⭐

I was not expecting this one to be as frightful and detail-loaded for every gore-filled moment as it was. It honestly made me quiet scared and afraid as I got deeper into the story.

Six individuals are contacted by a lawyer of a wealthy man who went by the name Alexei Vasiliev to come to his hearing for his will wherein they will inherit some of his fortune, splitting 150 million dollars. Other than Alexei's wife, Joy, a famous celebrity, the five other people have never met him. He is a complete stranger to them. Still, they are to inherit a part of his fortune as he has passed away only if all six of them agree to play along with his wishes and solve six puzzles in six different escape rooms together in his great Puzzle House. Either they do that, or walk away with nothing. But who can deny a big fortune from a wealthy man?

This novel doesn't take much time in building up the world or it's characters. The author gives a bit of an insight into the three main characters: Henry, Joy and Oscar as they have their own POVs while we have zero idea of what goes on in the heads of the other strangers that are trapped with them in the house. However, the lack of that building up doesn't effect the plot line or the novel badly in any way. I actually liked that it hit off right at the beginning.

The writing is amazing. It's intricate with details and the author does a fabulous job at describing the appearance of every escape room the prisoners enter. I didn't expect this to be as scary as it was. The details were too vivid and awful at times with how terrifying they were. So this is a pretty good horror for horror-lovers such as myself.

I did not expect that ending too. I wasn't really expecting anything good, honestly, I didn't have any time to think of the ending as the happenings in the novel always kept me on my toes. Twist after another, the characters just couldn't catch a break. As it is, some of the characters were a little annoying and at times, it was difficult to follow with what's being referred to regarding the mythologies in this book. So I couldn't enjoy it as much as I wanted to. But it was still a really good read.

Thankyou to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for the free e-book of this novel for my honest opinion.

At first, I loved this! It was so creepy and I loved the idea of the escape room element that it had. At first I didn't mind how much of the "old Gods" stuff there was in each puzzle. I thought it was a different element to incorporate into the story and I enjoyed learning about some of the Gods. However, the ending for me completely went off the rails. It just got too weird and too out there for me to really enjoy it anymore. I also thought the ending was very abrupt and didn't provide enough answers after everything that had happened. I thought this one was just okay, although the ending brought down the rating for me significantly. Also, this isn't the author's fault but the formatting in the kindle version was awful, to the point of it being distracting.