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librariangeorgia's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I absolutely loved this book. The concept was so well thought out and every single character had completely different personalities and therefore brought something different to the story.
The clues and riddles completely went over my head so I didn’t even attempt to solve those. But I did love the family dynamics and competitiveness.
It is the classic and-then-there-was-only-one murder mystery but the fact that literally no-one was freaked out when the murders started happening was very weird. They just carried on as if someone being murdered is normal - maybe it is in that household… I didn’t actually guess who the killer was, but it’s actually obvious when you think about it - I also didn’t guess the reasoning/plan behind it all either.
I loved the various lgbt characters and them actually having happy endings!
Overall, I thought it was a fun festive read and it has now pushed MURDER ON THE CHRISTMAS EXPRESS a lot higher on my tbr list!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Biphobia, Suicide, Death, Blood, Incest, Pregnancy, Car accident, and Cancer
somelatenightreading's review against another edition
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Murder, Suicide, Gore, Death, and Blood
juliette_95's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Blood, Death, and Murder
Moderate: Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, and Car accident
Minor: Biphobia
purplepenning's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.0
A classic, tense, atmospheric whodunit with a dysfunctional family and a rising body count during a snowed-in, country-mansion inheritance game full of clues, puzzles, and the weight of the past, present, and future. Not entirely my cup of tea (I like my Christmas murder mysteries to have at least a little Christmas warmth and cheer 😆) but a good one for word-puzzlers who like to play along at home.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Cursing, Pregnancy, Emotional abuse, Gore, Grief, Incest, Blood, Car accident, Murder, Physical abuse, Alcohol, Violence, Biphobia, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Cancer, Sexual content, Alcoholism, and Gun violence
markedwithanm's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Death of parent, Murder, Grief, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Suicide attempt, Self harm, Suicide, and Incest
Minor: Biphobia
lastblossom's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Thanks to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for a review copy.
tl;dr
A tense, atmospheric, closed circle mystery with a classic whodunnit feel. End feels a little contrived.
About
Liliana Armitage is dead, and ownership of the family mansion is up for grabs. A series of twelve riddles are all that stand between the remaining members of the family and ownership of the luxurious house called Endgame. Lily Armitage has no desire to return to Endgame and the painful memories it holds of her mother's death all those years ago. But a secret letter arrives, informing Lily that her mother's death was actually a murder, and the culprit's identity will only be revealed if she can solve the riddles of Endgame.
Thoughts
The book opens with a map of the house that looks purposefully like the board for Cluedo/Clue. I think it's the best hint possible for readers to set their expectations. What lies within this book is a mystery that feels very classic: strict rules, only one winner, no world-breaking plot twists. Fans of closed circle mysteries, "And Then There Were None" plot lines, and angry family members scrambling to solve clues for an inheritance will find all that in spades here. The numerous puzzles in this book rely heavily on in-universe knowledge to solve, so it's not a fair game mystery. The author makes up for it by hiding anagrams within the text of the book for readers to find. I played along for the first part of the book (it was fun), but I stopped once the plot picked up because I was too engrossed in the story.
The main character Lily is clever and talented, but she spends a lot of time making herself smaller (literally and figuratively) to avoid the attention of her louder cousins. While she does learn to be herself a little more, I was disappointed that she didn't manage to be more assertive in the end, relying on a bit of contrived luck to get out of a bad situation. Other characters vary in likability (on purpose), with some rather clear-cut villains and several genuinely sympathetic friends. Overall, a fun read for fans of classic-styled murder mysteries.
tl;dr
A tense, atmospheric, closed circle mystery with a classic whodunnit feel. End feels a little contrived.
About
Liliana Armitage is dead, and ownership of the family mansion is up for grabs. A series of twelve riddles are all that stand between the remaining members of the family and ownership of the luxurious house called Endgame. Lily Armitage has no desire to return to Endgame and the painful memories it holds of her mother's death all those years ago. But a secret letter arrives, informing Lily that her mother's death was actually a murder, and the culprit's identity will only be revealed if she can solve the riddles of Endgame.
Thoughts
The book opens with a map of the house that looks purposefully like the board for Cluedo/Clue. I think it's the best hint possible for readers to set their expectations. What lies within this book is a mystery that feels very classic: strict rules, only one winner, no world-breaking plot twists. Fans of closed circle mysteries, "And Then There Were None" plot lines, and angry family members scrambling to solve clues for an inheritance will find all that in spades here. The numerous puzzles in this book rely heavily on in-universe knowledge to solve, so it's not a fair game mystery. The author makes up for it by hiding anagrams within the text of the book for readers to find. I played along for the first part of the book (it was fun), but I stopped once the plot picked up because I was too engrossed in the story.
The main character Lily is clever and talented, but she spends a lot of time making herself smaller (literally and figuratively) to avoid the attention of her louder cousins. While she does learn to be herself a little more, I was disappointed that she didn't manage to be more assertive in the end, relying on a bit of contrived luck to get out of a bad situation. Other characters vary in likability (on purpose), with some rather clear-cut villains and several genuinely sympathetic friends. Overall, a fun read for fans of classic-styled murder mysteries.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Car accident, Incest, Blood, and Suicide
Minor: Biphobia and Miscarriage
booksnest's review against another edition
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Imagine a murder mystery with every murder mystery trope thrown into it, mix that together with a lot of cliché lines, bland characters, a predictable plot and moments that just make no sense. What are you left with? The Christmas Murder Game!
Honestly I don’t even have words for this weird mess of a book. Whilst it was flawed in so many ways, I did have fun reading it, so it wasn’t all bad. It just felt like it was trying too hard to be every Christmas mystery ever and in doing so, it fell into predictability and repetition.
More than anything though, the characters in this book felt totally flat. They didn’t react to anything in the way you’d expect from actual humans, including personal losses, which were easily joked about mere pages later. There were some pretty inappropriate things going on between some of the characters too that I kinda saw coming and dismissed because I didn’t this book would go there… but it did.
A weird, weird book. A poorly written book. But somehow despite all of this, I didn’t hate it and did half have fun… half.
Honestly I don’t even have words for this weird mess of a book. Whilst it was flawed in so many ways, I did have fun reading it, so it wasn’t all bad. It just felt like it was trying too hard to be every Christmas mystery ever and in doing so, it fell into predictability and repetition.
More than anything though, the characters in this book felt totally flat. They didn’t react to anything in the way you’d expect from actual humans, including personal losses, which were easily joked about mere pages later. There were some pretty inappropriate things going on between some of the characters too that I kinda saw coming and dismissed because I didn’t this book would go there… but it did.
A weird, weird book. A poorly written book. But somehow despite all of this, I didn’t hate it and did half have fun… half.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Blood
Minor: Incest
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