A review by ashurq
The Labyrinthians by J.A. Armitage

2.0

You guys have all seen those escape rooms popping up all over the place, right? You pay money to get locked in a room, and then you have to solve puzzles to get out–often you’re timed. Well, this book takes that idea to the EXTREME. I liked the idea of it…but I think a novel isn’t the right format exactly. The reader only sees what the author describes to us so there’s no way that the reader can try to solve the puzzles before the protagonists. It casts the reader in a very passive role as opposed to an active one and I found that a lot less enjoyable. The characters themselves are not very developed, but they weren’t really the focus of the book anyway. I thought the relationship that’s developing between Kim and Nate is kind of weird, but also kind of inevitable. Overall, not much of the plot really makes sense (what that heck is going on with Ezra?) but if you enjoy reading about other people solving puzzles, you might enjoy this one.

Note: I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.