Stars: 3 out of 5
Pros: Puzzling mystery with lots of witty humor
Cons: Static characters and sub-plots
The Bottom Line:
Still a fun entry
But too much like the others
Some growth would be nice
By the Numbers Entry
Despite an unlikely heroine, I have come to really enjoy the
Puzzle Lady Mysteries. The main
character is Cora Felton. To the world,
she is the smiling grandmotherly face with a daily crossword puzzle for them in
their news papers. The truth of the
matter is she's a chain smoking former alcoholic who is a front for her niece
Sherry. Sherry really writes the puzzles,
which Cora couldn't solve to save her life.
The duo lives in the small town of Bakerhaven ,
Connecticut
Cora has recently discovered a talent for solving Sudoku
puzzles. And when she is asked to create
a Sudoku book for a Japanese publisher, she gladly agrees.
Sending Sherry to sign the contracts turns out to create
some problems when Sherry signs with the wrong businessman. Turns out there are rival Japanese publishers
in town trying to get Cora under contract.
But things turn deadly when a stranger turns up dead with a crossword
puzzle and a Sudoku in his pocket. Do
those puzzles mean anything or are they just red herrings?
This series has always done two things well, and it
continues to do them both well here. The
first is creating a truly puzzling mystery.
I never know where things are going to go when I start a book, and there
are always plenty of surprises along the way.
While the climax does tie things up, we often don't get all the clues we
need to solve the crime. Not my favorite
read, but I can usually live with that.
This book fits the mold. I really
didn't know who had committed the murder or why until Cora explained it. I did feel the solution was logical. But I can't figure out why the setting for
the climax was chosen. It made no
logical choice. Dramatically, it was fun,
but that was about it.
The other thing it does well is witty word play. I know I will get several laughs out of the
book, and this one was no exception.
There was even a scene where Cora and Chief of Police Harper discussed
how no one can die in town with a crossword puzzle being found nearby. When I wasn't laughing, I was grinning at the
antics.
Thanks to the fast paced writing and short chapters, these
books are always fast reads.
However, the flaws in the series are very pronounced in this
book. The series has a ton of main
characters who have a rather complicated history. Yet almost no time is spent introducing them
or their back story. If I jumped in
here, I would be lost. And the back
story is also relied on for much of the character development for the main
characters. Based on this book alone,
I'd say the characters were rather flat.
Even worse, the characters introduced for this plot are flat.
Really, my biggest complaint is the on-going story line
involving niece Sherry. Her ex-husband
keeps popping up in the books, causing all kinds of problems. However, it is always the same problems. Honestly, I'm ready for something new out of
the characters. Yes, most of the
mysteries I read have a certain formula to them, but these are becoming so by
the book it is ridiculous. Frankly, I'm
ready for Dennis to be the murder victim so we can close this chapter in the
character's lives.
Despite that rant, I do still enjoy the series enough to
continue. I recommend The Sudoku Puzzle Murders for fans of the series. If you
aren't familiar with the characters, find an earlier book so you will truly
understand what is happening here.
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