i do not know why i waited so long to enjoy a duncan ralston book but never again. this book was giving the movie saw but better because books are better than the movies right! the rooms were so descriptive i was imagining being in there shoes what i would do

What a great read! Going into this story I had very little ideas what I was getting myself into. I was hoping to find a "Cube" like plotline filled with brutal death scenes and little to no hope for escape. What I got was way better! A group of strangers find themselves in the predicament with a chance to take home a large estate... if only they can defeat the late World's Greatest Puzzle Master's last and mightiest puzzles. This book reminded me of Saw 5 which is a huge compliment as Saw 5 is hands down the best of the sequels. It was less extreme compared to my last Ralston read, so readers be warned this is not shock horror, though I wouldn't say this is for the faint of heart either. I already purchased my home library a copy of this puzzling tale!

This book is probably the wildest escape room thriller/horror I've read in that the characters agree to subject themself to these insane puzzles. Needless to say, the puzzle rooms are different from what they expected. This book could have been longer and I would've kept reading.

Escape room horror? Sign me up. This was a ton of fun to read, albeit it far from perfect. It was creepy, gory, violent, and had a lot of aspects of horror that I love to read. This was my first read by Duncan Ralston, and it will not be my last!

I really wish I DNFed this but I’m trying to work though my Net Galley backlog so I kept reading.

The premise was really interesting but the execution was so bad. This book made no sense - it’s like the author decided to throw everything at the wall to see what would stick. The characters were one dimensional, the plot was nonsensical and it ended on a cliffhanger.

If you're looking for a thriller horror combination this is the perfect book to read.
I also love the cover art.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this ARC

Creepy and scary, make sure you read this in the morning and not at night. How can the lives of six strangers change in the most horrible way? You must read this to find out the horrors that await them. If you enjoy horror movies, with some graphic scenes then this book is for you.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

6 strangers arrive the house of puzzle master Alexei for the reading of his will. They don’t know why they’ve received the invites as Alexei was unknown to them as they are to one another.

Upon arrival they learn that they must complete a series of puzzles to earn the inheritance. Some graphic descriptions and Saw-like horror unfolds.

Alright, let's break this down. Six folks, a shot at a whopping $150M, and a dive into the puzzle house. I was all in for what seemed like a thrilling horror/mystery ride with "Puzzle House: A Novel," but man, it picked me up and tossed me straight into what I call outlier alley.

At the kick-off, the setup got me hooked—a sweet inheritance deal from the puzzle maestro, Alexei Vasiliev, but here's the kicker: you gotta tackle six puzzles/escape rooms. The strangers, clueless about their Vasiliev connection, take the bait for that fat paycheck. Yet, the nosedive into outlier alley kicks in as they dive into these lethal challenges. The story takes a hit, especially in the final stretch when things veer into a downright bizarre and unsatisfying lane.

The author kicked off strong, laying out the six strangers and setting the scene for the will reading. Initially promising, right? But then, as the crew faced the puzzles, the story lost its grip on yours truly. The rising danger and mind-bending twists in the latter part didn't hit the mark, turning what could've been an exciting premise into a letdown.

Now, I get it—some readers might dig the shock value, but for me, the journey went from enjoying the ride to a downright "meh" feeling. It took turns that just didn't vibe with my wavelength.

Here's the deal, though—others out there seem to be having a better time with this book than I did. So, it might be worth peeping additional reviews for a more rounded take. Shock factor's there, no denying, but when the narrative swerved into the unexpected, I was ready to throw in the towel.

Major shoutout to Wicked House Publishing and NetGalley for tossing me a copy of this book for an honest review. You know the drill—my thoughts and opinions are strictly my own.

Six strangers arrive at the home of preeminent puzzle master Alexei Vasiliev for the reading of his will. Among them are the deceased's widow, who'd already begun divorce proceedings, a virologist troubled by actions in his past, and a convicted murderer on day release. The potential beneficiaries will split Vasiliev's $150M fortune if they participate in his last great work.

After Woom, I didn't hesitate to take advantage of the Read Now option on NetGalley. I enjoyed Woom more (which some may question my reading interests), but I think this one ended too abruptly (maybe there's more to come).. I think Netflix should pick this up as a short series though!

Thank you to NetGalley and Duncan Ralston!
3.5/5 stars

This was an excellent read. The way it was written was perfect. I will definitely recommend it. Can’t wait to read another book

PHEW this was a crazy ride of a book! I didn't know what to expect this being my first read from Duncan Ralston and I can unhesitatingly say that it will not be my last.

What kept me entertained and enthralled is the great writing that Ralston generates. His horror is unlike anybody else that is currently out there right now. It's dark, humorous, and it's untrustworthy (or maybe that's just his characters). Ralston makes characters that I root for despite dubious morals, backstories, or flaws.

I absolutely loved this story. I feel somewhat embarrassed to say that Woom was my first Duncan Ralston novel (followed closely by Gross Out - seriously go read it!), but he has since become an author who I love. I own most of his work now. Puzzle House is just another great book and I look forward to reading more and more of his work.

What a crazy thriller. This one kept me guessing until the end. I would love for this to be a series on tv or movie!

Thank you for Netgalley and the publisher for providing an arc of this title for an unbiased review.

Puzzle House feels like it was originally meant to be written as a script for a movie similar to Saw (or Final Destination), where the interest lies more in the unique death-traps a character is meant to be subjected to over other features of the story (like sense/plot/character development).

It was not for me, however I was definetly a fan of the ending. More horror should take risks like this.

I don't think this book was bad, just not for me. Giving the people the option to leave but killing them off didn't really make sense to me

Thank you to NetGalley.com, Duncan Ralston and Wicked House Publishing for providing an advanced copy for reviewing!

What happens when you mix 6 seemingly unconnected characters, a house of horrors designed by someone as sadistic and demented as Jigsaw and occult mythology? You get the crazy ride that is Puzzle House by Duncan Ralston!

You start the story with Henry, an ex-cop in solitary confinement for premeditated murder and meet the other characters as the story progresses. He along with a guard accompanying him, a famous actress, a professor of history, a Virologist Doctor, a dean of admissions and famous politician have all been named beneficiaries in the will of world famous puzzle master, who only one of them has any meaningful relationship with; everyone else not knowing who he is all. The only catch being they have to attend the reading of the will at his old house that he converted into a giant escape room to benefit. Upon arriving at the house though, they find that these puzzles to be quite deadly, and for some odd reason seem to be tailored to the players specifically. Why were they named as benefactors? How are they all connected? What is everyone hiding? Who will survive? I'll leave that, dear reader, for you to find out!

As a puzzle master myself (make escape room puzzles for a living), I was all over the premise of this book! "Deadly escape room puzzles? Count me in!" And boy did this book not disappoint! The story was fun and inventive, and I'm glad to say that I learned something about occult mythology while reading. The puzzles were clever, well clued and themed and are not dissimilar to the type of challenges and thinking required in actual escape rooms, bravo! The horror elements were definitely on the disturbing side of things (you definitely played on my fears in the second room), but added to the intensity of the story and raised the stakes! What can I say? This story was so good, I just could not put it down! I stayed up all night reading it because I just had to know more, learn more, and find out what was going to happen next?

The only knock I have against it was that I found the ending a bit dissatisfying. I never saw it coming, but it left me wanting more! I need to know more!

If you are not squeamish at all, like the idea of deadly escape room themed puzzles, enjoy movies like SAW and Escape Room, and don't mind a touch of paranormal mystery, then you will love Puzzle House!

Really had a great time reading! With each puzzle, I kept wondering if I would’ve made the same choices. Action packed with an ending that I didn’t see coming.

Duncan Ralston is one amazing horror author. This was a roller coaster. House of a puzzle but did they escape the escape rooms? Read it and find out!

I really enjoyed this novel! It felt like an Indiana Jones style escape room (but really house) mystery, with some mild Saw vibes. The characters were really well written, with their flaws and all, leaving for a high stakes game. There was not as much gore or violence as I had anticipated, but I didn’t quite feel that it was needed. I will definitely be adding more books by Ralston to my 2024 reads.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This book was really intriguing and I read the book really fast. It was a page turner for sure but honestly the ending fell flat for me. I was confused at the end. Haha.

Thank you netgalley for allowing me to read this book.

#PuzzleHouseANovel #NetGalley