The Christmas Murder Game: The must-read Christmas murder mystery

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Hay un par de retos que propone la autora al principio que bueno… uno viable y el otro bastante complicada, sobre todo si quieres ser ágil en la lectura. Vamos os puedo decir que hice el del primer capítulo y ya. Y eso que otra de las cosas que más me gusta en el mundo es hacer escape rooms. En este caso ya iba avisada por algunas amigas lectoras quela editorial había vendido una cosa que no era y es que publicitan que es un libro con acertijos para el lector. Esto no es del todo cierto. A delightfully twisty and suspenseful puzzle, I am still in awe that this is a debut. The story is skillfully written, cleverly plotted and filled with evocative imagery that brings the isolation and heart-pounding fear Lily felt inside this grand house in the snowy Yorkshire Dales to life. It felt like I was inside it myself, taking every step beside her as she played the game. She was a great protagonist who was easy to root for and get behind. But everyone at Endgame House is hiding secrets, including Lily, some of which are darker than others. The author had me on the edge of my seat as I tried to figure them out along with whatever other mysteries this place held. Sitting down to read The Christmas Murder Game during the festive holidays feels like a game in itself. Benedict weaves in clues for readers as well as her characters, feeding in twists designed to throw everyone off the scent, whilst the perpetrator lurks in the shadows, killing off their rivals in true And Then There Were None fashion. Lily has a love-hate relationship with her family and it clouds her judgement on more than one occasion, making her susceptible to trusting and suspecting the wrong people. She’s also still suffering from the trauma of her own mother’s death years before, which is made worse by the increasing body count piling up around her. A family gathers, one of them will walk away with an inheritance but first they must solve the clues..then a killer strikes and the stakes are suddenly much higher.

Until, that is, she receives a letter from her aunt promising that the game's riddles will give her the keys not only to Endgame, but to its darkest secrets, including the identity of her mother's murderer.As a snowstorm cuts them off from the village, the game turns deadly. Soon Lily realises that she is no longer fighting for an inheritance, but for her life.

No reprimo que primero me arropaste con peroratas. Piropos propios o ajenos que no enojan ni temen que mi mente colmase con camelos. No soy mucho de leer novelas navideñas, pero en este caso siendo un libro de misterio no pude resistirme cuando me propusieron leerlo. Lily Armitage never intended to return to Endgame House – the grand family home where her mother died twenty-one Christmases ago. Until she receives a letter from her aunt, asking her to return to take part in an annual tradition: the Christmas Game. The challenge? Solve twelve clues, to find twelve keys. The prize? The deeds to the manor house.Reconozco que al principio no me enganchó mucho pero a partir del 30% más o menos empecé a meterme más y más en la historia y la verdad es que me ha gustado bastante. As a snowstorm cuts them off from the village, the game turns deadly. Soon Lily realises that she is no longer fighting for an inheritance but for her life. I feel like I could just copy and past my thoughts about The Christmas Killer for this one. The premise is there, a murderous Christmas game involving family secrets and riddles, but the execution just wasn't up to scratch. The plot is predictable, the characters flat and one dimensional, and the writing just isn't good.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of The Christmas Murder Game by Alexandra Benedict for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.I hope you never have to read this letter, because if it now lies in your hands then I am dead. I've entrusted your old friend Isabelle Stirling with the task of making sure you get this if I die before the Christmas Game begins. I fear that I shall. I hope I'm utterly, shamefully askew on the subject. But I don't think I am. Lily has no desire to win the house. But her aunt makes one more promise: The clues will also reveal who really killed Lily's mother all those years ago. Che dire, ho assaporato ogni pagina, ogni capitolo, ogni giorno, fino ad arrivare alla conclusione di questa bella lettura. Lily really doesn't want to go, but is enticed by Liliana telling her Mariana was murdered, and if she wants to know more, then she must spend Christmas at the manor. Her cousins will be there, and a Christmas puzzle game has been set up for them to solve with 12 clues, 12 keys they must get, with the prize, Endgame House itself. However, they have to stay for the entire 12 days of Christmas, looked after by the housekeeper, Mrs Castle, but they have to give up their phones and any device that might provide them access to the internet. All of them are welcomed by a familiar face, Isabelle Stirling, a lawyer who sets out the terms of Liliana's wishes which they must abide by, after which she leaves. It is not long before the first murder occurs, and everyone is trapped with a ruthless killer among them intent on ensuring Endgame House will be owned by them.

There's a great* moment when a young child asks her aunt why her mother killed herself, and the aunts response is "because you didn't listen enough"?????? And then we're meant to see this aunt as a loving and caring individual who everyone looks up to and loves?? Daft. Straight up daft.I did guess most of what the ending would contain and did find the trajectory a little predictable in places, but this did not detract from the fun I had whilst reading it, nor did I feel let down by all the conclusion consisted of. La casa de los enigmas es un libro al más puro estilo de Ágatha Christie (salvando las distancias claro) ya que es un misterio en una habitación cerrada, es decir todo ocurre en una casa y cualquiera puede ser culpable. If you like your mystery stories cheesy, predictable and totally implausible then this is the book for you. There were so many things to dislike about this book. The writing style was especially painful in it's over use of simile and metaphor, it was like reading a school exercise in using imagery, totally overdone. The characters were rather flat and conformed to a type. The whole premise of the story was absurd and the ending predictable. But having said all that, I did actually find it rather entertaining, just not really my cup of tea. Fun to read, fun to unravel , with excellent writing and plotting- darkly delicious as the bodies pile up and the snow keeps falling, there's a cosy sense of menace to the whole thing which sounds contradictory but is true none the less.