Thanks to NetGalley and the author, I was able to read this spooky book! I wanted to love this book but I did not care for the ending. It left me kind of confused and wanting to know more on how the characters story ended.

Puzzle House is like the book version Saw mixed with cult vibes, and I absolutely loved it!

After the death of the wealthy puzzle master, Alexei Vasiliev, six strangers are brought together to take part in his last ever game, but little did they know that it may be their last, too.

With the chance to win $150m, Alexei's estranged wife and 5 other strangers are invited to his home for the reading of his will, but there's a catch. All of the invitees must take part in his final puzzle - the escape rooms he has created.

This book gets very dark, very quickly. It's filled with violence and uncomfortable situations which really keep you on edge. It's a short read, making it easy to binge in one sitting which is always quite refreshing. The ending definitely takes a wild spin which I really didn't expect!

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in return for an honest review.

A murderer, actress, anthropologist, doctor, senator and dean of admissions are ordered to a will reading. Unsure of what that means for them, they go. What happens after is not like any will reading I would EVER want to go to. A written version of the SAW movies but with more meaning. When you feel bad for a murderer you know the writing is good. My heart broke throughout the whole book. And while graphic, it wasn't nausea indusing graphic. Everything that was disturbing was truly needed to make this story the story it became. Duncan Ralston did a fantastic job at capturing my heart. The reason why those 6 were chosen still wasn't 100% answered, it was mentioned, I wish it was explained a little more but I think that kept the mystery of it.

I hope there's a sequel because I need to know what happens next. I kept flipping the pages going there has to be more. I need to know more!

Puzzle House: A novel is just another example of how well-rounded Ralston is as an author. I mean, for christ sake, this is the same man who brought us Woom! Don't get me wrong, Puzzle House has some fairly unique death scenes, but this isn't going to be a book that turns your stomach.

Absolutely phenomenal world building and character development. I loved the creepy "Saw" meets Escape room from hell vibe from the setting. I was on edge reading about the various puzzles, I would have died... no joke.

To be honest, at the beginning of the book, I saw it going in one direction, and then, by the middle, it was apparent things were headed in a completely opposite direction! This book will definitely keep you engaged and on your toes.

Puzzle House is fast-paced, decently gruesome, and overall, it's just a bloody good time. The only reason I am giving it 4 and not 5 stars is that the ending irked me. It left me with so many questions...Ralston, I can not be alone in thinking that we want a sequel, sir!!!

There is more than I could say, but I don't want to give too much away just yet. Perhaps I'll be back closer to release day!

As always, thank you to the publisher and netgalley for providing me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

I had high hopes for this. At the beginning it feels like someone created a novel of the Escape Room movies, with a Saw twist and I really dug it. Ludicrous puzzles, big reward at the end, cast of characters who all have a dark past? Sign me up. However as the story progresses it starts to get muddled fast, and takes a lot of big twists and turns that did nothing for me. The ending left me feeling like I had wasted time too sadly.

I will grant it that it's a breezy read. Took me about 3-4 days to finish.

I had some high hopes for this one after hearing it compared as Saw meets Escape Room, two franchises I adore. I must’ve set the bar a little too high because I couldn’t help but be a tad disappointed. The book is short and had too many characters that we don’t really get to touch on in a meaningful way. I will say it is very fast-paced and has no shortage of shocking moments. There were some really great death scenes, too, which is not always easy to do. I also loved all the history and background information about rituals. I just wanted to spend more time with this characters in a terrible situation. Had I loved the ending a bit more, this probably would’ve been a 4 star read. I’m not sure but there might be a sequel? It was definitely set up for one. Die-hard horror fans will probably have fun with this one but I think it could’ve been a little better.

Okay, so I'm struggling to find the words to explain how much I loved this book

It had so much to love, escape rooms, saw vibes, ancient Gods, body horror.
The way Duncan manages to make you connect with characters so quickly has become one of my favourite things about his writing.
It was honestly one of my favourite short reads I've read in a long time. The ending was so far from what I was expecting. It's less than 200 pages so it's a great short, fast paced read.

I really enjoyed this book! The characters were well developed and the story was engaging. I recommend that others try this book as well. Well done!

Just a fun time and very reminiscent of The haunting of Hill House circa 1999! Highly recommend if you're a fan of Cube and Alice in Borderland!

Talk about starting out as one thing and changing to another!

It's hard to talk about this without spoiling it, but I was expecting something like The Inheritance Games or maybe Savage Island - scaled up for adults, of course, but something close to those. This is very very different.

I did enjoy the story, and I didn't guess where it was going in the end. The escape rooms were very inventive, really well thought out and clever. I would have been in big trouble in most of them!

As far as I can tell this is a one off, which makes the ending irritating to me - I'd have liked to know what happened next (I always want to know what happens next, so take that as you like). It's definitely put Duncan on my radar, though, and I'll be watching out for more by him. I think he's only going to get better from here.

I loved one of this author’s previous works, Woom, but I really didn’t like this.

I won’t recount the synopsis, but I found it intriguing. What didn’t work for me is the execution. The story is fast paced, but shallow. There is NO character development, which can be less of an issue for a plot-driven reader like me. Even for me, though, this lacked substance. Nobody’s motivations made any sense, the Saw+Knives Out+Cabin in the Woods premise didn’t come through, and the hodgepodge cast of characters’ “knowledge” of a myriad of topics required to solve the puzzles came across as laughable. The story ratcheted up to a wildly scaled-up finale on very little foundation, and I was honestly just glad it was over. Plenty of people seem to really love this one, but it wasn’t for me.

i was excited to start this one, the premise is one of my favorite concepts. it’s hill house meets saw. but unfortunately i couldn’t get passed chapter three. the character introductions and story setting moved a little slow for my taste. i’ve read other reviews and most seemed to enjoy this book, so i would still recommend to someone who wants something that isn’t necessarily horror heavy, but who is also up for the slow burn. i just wasnt.

thank you netgalley for this ARK!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this eARC.

Horror is one of my favorite genres and I went into this expecting mild, escape room challenges with a twist. This delivered so much more!

I was so intrigued that I finished it in one sitting. This has gruesome elements and the ending provided a twist I wasn’t quite expecting!

If you like escape rooms and the movie Saw, then this book is for you. I thought this book was really good.

Six strangers who seemingly have nothing in common come together to attend a formal reading of the Last Will and Testament of deceased Alexei Vasiliev AKA “world’s foremost puzzle master”. Puzzle House starts off easy by introducing a few of the main characters, revealing bits and pieces of their backstory. The real fun begins when the cast comes together and quickly realize nothing is as it seems. Once the action starts, it never stops to let you catch your breath.

This book is fast paced and there are quite a few heart racing moments. I never felt like I was waiting for something interesting to happen because there was always new information provided and new puzzles being introduced into the scenario. Obviously being a book about puzzles and an escape room I assumed there would be some twists, but I truly did not see the final twist coming. This book went in an unexpected direction and the rather abrupt ending left me wanting more of an explanation. Puzzle House leaves off on a bit of a cliffhanger so I would love to read a sequel in the future.

If you love escape rooms and are looking for a quick one sitting type of read, I recommend giving Puzzle House a try! Thank you to Wicked House Publishing for providing an eARC via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Popcorn fiction at its finest, Puzzle House delivers chills and horror of the highest degree. Not suitable for the easily impressionable, it tells the story of 6 strangers called to read the will of a millionaire. Only one knows him and his ex-wife doesn’t have much good to say about him. They all have dirty secrets and take part in one last puzzle for different reasons, either money, curiosity or nothing to lose. The mansion is a series of escape rooms that offer horrific experiences and the losers won’t be laughing about missing the clues. Despite not being too well defined, the characters are likable. Even a really mean one was funny. The ending was not what I expected. I thought it was brilliant but it significantly changed things. The plot is addictive and makes for a fast read. It feels like watching a movie… a very, very creepy one. If Doctor Who hadn’t made me fear mannequins enough, Puzzle House will have me running out screaming next time I’m at the store. Enjoyable!
I chose to read this book and all opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased. Thank you, #NetGalley/#Wicked House Publishing!

This book right was an escape room on steroids! I have read others by this author and have to say he is constantly bringing such unique stories to the horror genre. In this particular one he brought some mythology along with his way of horror. Yet again the gore is on point and paired well with the psychological aspects. Think of Saw and Indianna Jones, a perfect pair!

Saw meets Escape Room meets Cabin in the Woods meets The House on Haunted Hill in this fast paced horror adventure through deceased puzzle maker Alexi’s Puzzle House.

Six strangers compete to beat a series of escape rooms with the hopes of splitting the eccentric man’s fortune. Who are they to him? Are they connected to each other? What’s the real end game here? The setup begs a lot of questions. Unfortunately, the answers are ambiguous at best.

The novel starts off promisingly. I expected it to be derivative from the flap copy but horror tropes are successfully recycled all the time. I wanted that to be the case here. The rooms are clever. I felt the pressure of diminishing time and the thrill of whether the participants could beat the clock. The mythological aspect was a nice touch.

My first hint that something wasn’t going to feel satisfyingly plotted was Oscar’s room. Surrounded by a host of corpses, his hasty decision to self-mutilate begs the question: If a human bladder was key, why not take one of theirs or at least try to, first? When Joy later checks for a safety being off on the side of a Glock 22, I sighed. You don’t have to be a firearms expert, but Glocks do not have a thumb switch-type safety to check. There’s an article about their safety features here:

https://crimefictionbook.com/2016/02/04/do-glocks-have-safeties/#:~:text=This%20is%20a%20boo%2Dboo,.%E2%80%9D%20That's%20actually%20not%20true.

Many people won’t know the difference, but that doesn’t mean the author should get a pass.

I was still hooked through about eighty percent of the novel. I was even okay with the unlikable characters. Again, that horror trope. Unpleasant people feel more expendable, hence the Saw series of transgressors meeting awful fates. Hill having turned out to be a pawn villainized one of the few I found sympathetic. No one in the rooms seem to have been innocent.

The apocalyptic ending sealed the deal on this book earning a three-star review from me when it started out as a solid five. I felt let down. Like things weren’t really pulled together. Even in speculative fiction, there needs to be sufficient world-building to pull off such a bizarre final act. I really wish there was more development done on this one because the escape room portions of the book are so good. Thank you to Duncan Ralston, Wicked House Publishing, and NetGalley for the ARC of Puzzle House: A Novel.

This was...disappointing. I expected a little more extreme horror from this and got a recycled Saw plot, essentially, but somehow toned down. Our characters just happen to know some sort of mythology to solve the puzzles rather than actual clever solutions. I didn't like the direction it went at the end as well, it just felt too mystical.

I randomly ran into this book while browsing NetGalley and the cover immediately drew my attention, and so did the synopsis. A book about a group of strangers being brought together by a puzzlemaster, to compete for his inheritance by completing intricate puzzles and escape rooms. That just sounds fantastic. I absolutely love escape rooms and locked room/closed circle murder mysteries. So anything in that vein will immediately grab my attention.

The start of this book was incredibly strong. Giving 1 chapter to each of the characters to introduce them and get them to the puzzle house was a smart decision. The prose was decent, nothing spectacular, but that's not why I was reading this in the first place. When the escape rooms started my hopes were still very high, but my enjoyment rapidly declined with each subsequent room. It's not that the book was bad in any way, it just took a direction that I was not expecting and was not a fan of. In the end this was an easy 1 day read and I don't mind that I've read it. But I cannot go higher than a 3 star