Scan barcode
cedence's review
I enjoyed it at the beginning. I was curious to see where it headed. Then the "game" started, we got more point of views, and with short chapters I don't care for any of these characters. I am not even that invested in the plot because we've gotten so few chapters with Mullory, the main-main character, which I actually found interesting.
In other aspects, this may just have been a miss due to age.
In other aspects, this may just have been a miss due to age.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood and Murder
palmkd's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
medium-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? It's complicated
3.0
The concept and general framework for the story was so promising. Compared to Caraval and Hotel Magnifique, I was expecting whimsical wonder, some dark twists and interesting magic. There was definitely hints of that but unfortunately it did not deliver for me.
The murder mystery and magical inheritance game in a massive estate was a fun setting. There were many different points of view but the two main characters were easily Mullory Prudence and Lyric Stoutmire. When Xavier Stoutmire is found dead, it sets into motion a game to determine who will inherit both his magic and estate.
Mullory was warned to "run if the strange finds you" but when she's out of options and money, she decides to risk it and play this game to change her fate. An outsider who didn't even know magic existed before she got her invitation, she finds herself in competition with several others, mainly Stoutmires, for the chance of winning the massive inheritance.
The magic in this world passes down between family members, but each parent can only pass their magic down to one child. As the third child in the family, the family expected Lyric to inherit from Xavier who had no children of his own. No one, especially Lyric, was expecting there to be a challenge for Xavier's magic.
I felt the story read like a very young YA. Emotions are high and everything is a bit of a crisis. The audiobook added an extra layer of melodrama which for me only took away from the story, so I do wish I had read the text for this one instead of listened.
I feel with more editing and workshopping this story could have been amazing, but it was not a great fit for me unfortunately.
The murder mystery and magical inheritance game in a massive estate was a fun setting. There were many different points of view but the two main characters were easily Mullory Prudence and Lyric Stoutmire. When Xavier Stoutmire is found dead, it sets into motion a game to determine who will inherit both his magic and estate.
Mullory was warned to "run if the strange finds you" but when she's out of options and money, she decides to risk it and play this game to change her fate. An outsider who didn't even know magic existed before she got her invitation, she finds herself in competition with several others, mainly Stoutmires, for the chance of winning the massive inheritance.
The magic in this world passes down between family members, but each parent can only pass their magic down to one child. As the third child in the family, the family expected Lyric to inherit from Xavier who had no children of his own. No one, especially Lyric, was expecting there to be a challenge for Xavier's magic.
I felt the story read like a very young YA. Emotions are high and everything is a bit of a crisis. The audiobook added an extra layer of melodrama which for me only took away from the story, so I do wish I had read the text for this one instead of listened.
I feel with more editing and workshopping this story could have been amazing, but it was not a great fit for me unfortunately.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, and Violence
coffeeaddicted1988's review
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC.
The game that is the Mystery Royale was quite good. The clues were interesting. The events were glitzy enough to be distracting us from the clues and the end goal: find Xavier Stoutmire’s killer and inherit his fortune and magic.
The blurb, comparing this book to Inheritance Games, was spot on! Puzzles, mystery, games, simply add a dash of magic.
My negatives:
The multiple POVs threw me off in the beginning, it was confusing. Plus all the names were uncommon, so took me a minute to remember of who’s who.
I disliked ALL the main characters until the 30% mark. I kept reading because the plot was good. I usually wouldn’t keep reading when I don’t care for the characters.
Mullory starts off as weak (fainting and fearful), Ellison is haughty and disgusted of everything and Lyric is angry at everything. Once we understand more details about the family and the plot, we realize why they act and think the way they do.
Of course this had to have a cliffhanger. How many years before we know if there will be a book 2?
The game that is the Mystery Royale was quite good. The clues were interesting. The events were glitzy enough to be distracting us from the clues and the end goal: find Xavier Stoutmire’s killer and inherit his fortune and magic.
The blurb, comparing this book to Inheritance Games, was spot on! Puzzles, mystery, games, simply add a dash of magic.
My negatives:
The multiple POVs threw me off in the beginning, it was confusing. Plus all the names were uncommon, so took me a minute to remember of who’s who.
I disliked ALL the main characters until the 30% mark. I kept reading because the plot was good. I usually wouldn’t keep reading when I don’t care for the characters.
Mullory starts off as weak (fainting and fearful), Ellison is haughty and disgusted of everything and Lyric is angry at everything. Once we understand more details about the family and the plot, we realize why they act and think the way they do.
Of course this had to have a cliffhanger. How many years before we know if there will be a book 2?
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Blood
Moderate: Vomit and Abandonment