puzzles – Page 2 – Cannonball Read 17

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The Puzzler: One Man's Quest to Solve the Most Baffling Puzzles Ever, from Crosswords to Jigsaws to the Meaning of Life by A.J. Jacobs

September 14, 2023 by Halbs Leave a Comment

I chose The Puzzler for my guy book club meeting this month, and it did not disappoint. We did talk about the book at our meeting, but my favorite part of the discussion was an impromptu show-and-tell session. Items included a lock-picking learning kit (with a clear Master-style lock so you can see the pins move), a legal puzzle as told through state law and agency regulation, an authentic Japanese puzzle box from the 90s, and a painfully detailed step-by-step children’s story explaining the moves to […]

“Traps upon traps. And riddles upon riddles”

The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

July 31, 2023 by Malin Leave a Comment

3.5 stars Official book description: Avery Grambs has a plan for a better future: survive high school, win a scholarship, and get out. But her fortunes change in an instant when billionaire Tobias Hawthorne dies and leaves Avery virtually his entire fortune. The catch? Avery has no idea why — or even who Tobias Hawthorne is. To receive her inheritance, Avery must move into sprawling, secret passage-filled Hawthorne House, where every room bears the old man’s touch — and his love of puzzles, riddles, and […]

A cozy escape room of a book

The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

November 2, 2022 by Mobius_Walker 3 Comments

BINGO – Cozy Avery Kylie Grambs has been named as essentially the sole inheritor of a massive fortune (think billions and billions). That would complicate life for any high school student, but, in Avery’s case, she’s never even met her surprise benefactor, the late Tobias Hawthorne. Mr. Hawthorne’s two daughters are left reeling at the reading of the will, but his four grandsons suspect that a game is afoot. Their grandfather loved puzzles, and they suspect that this is one too. Avery is just caught […]

I love epistolary novels but had a major issue with this one

The Jigsaw Jungle by Kristin Levine

July 11, 2022 by GentleRain Leave a Comment

I am a sucker for an epistolary novel, and this one is told in a combination of notes, transcripts, drawings, and so on to give it a sense that it’s a scrapbook. The Jigsaw Jungle follows Claudia’s quest to figure out why her father has vanished. One evening he sends an email saying he will be home late and then never returns. Claudia’s mother then has to go on a work trip to Switzerland and Claudia ends up staying with her grandfather for two weeks while […]

Zirza on A Gothic Classic for a ReasonIt's one of those wish-you-could-read-it-again-for-the-first-time books. I loved it.
Emmalita on “It came to something when you found yourself hoping that the footsteps you heard were ghosts.”I loved the ending! I don’t think it’s been out long enough to talk about why though.
Dixie on Track Her Down by Melinda LeighI am just starting Track Her Down and I have read them all in order till now and thought I...
Roland of Gilead on How can you give us the gift of a crazy character named Rando Thoughtful and then just as suddenly take that gift away? We need to talk, Uncle Stevie.I came across this randomly years after it was written because I was searching "Random Thoughtful. But I have the...
Emmalita on “Only you, Em, would refer to heartbreak as a distraction. I think I would have a more sympathetic response if I asked to marry a bookcase.”Oh my goodness, Gallifrey was beautiful. I’m sure her mittens were gloriously murdery.

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