Fascinating study of obsession for the puzzle fan
597609
Weird photos of weird dioramas of unsolved murder cases.  Fascinating and disturbing on several levels, not least of which the story of the obsessive woman who made  them.  And for a puzzle fan the unsolved murders could be the source of a new obsession.
1923735
I found this puzzle engrossing without being annoying. I spent an enjoyable couple of hours leisurely putting the small globe together. Sufficiently unique enough to be a special gift for any puzzle lover or a great get well gift. It is small so it's not intrusive - no large table is required to spread out the pieces, and it is interesting enough to provide a good distraction.

Ravensburger makes quality puzzles and this one is no exception. The pieces are sturdy enough to construct it, take it apart and pass it along to a neighbor or friend to enjoy.
4619226
I tried to anagram the title of the book to make the title of this review, and this was the best I could do: Sizzling rave, upend nut? I tried because Patrick Berry, the extraordinary puzzle-maker behind "Adventures in Puzzling," makes such word play seem easy. In this collection of 54 variety puzzles, grouped into seven linked sets (in which the first eight puzzles help to solve the ninth), he has you translating alien speech ("Communication Breakdown"), traveling through pyramid mazes ("Large as Life"), traveling up a perilous mountain ("Upwords and Downwords"), completing the floor plans for the sad citizens of Squaresville (the excellent "T Squares"), and much, much more.

Even if you've been a subscriber to Games magazine for years, even if you've been on a puzzle hunt or two, you're still bound to come across something you haven't seen before, and while those who solve the WSJ's Second Saturday puzzles will quickly recognize Berry's innovative grid puzzles (like "In Boxes"), they'll nonetheless be bowled over by his incredibly tricky logic puzzles, which range from reconstructing games of Hangman with a pack of angry yetis to sussing out the winner of a game of five-card draw in which nobody knows how to play.

The pacing between puzzles is also well-planned: the one real stumper in every set of puzzles is always surrounded by a few that can be cracked with trial-and-error, persistence, or a nifty aha-moment. But even the easier challenges, like a word-search ("Foursquare"), have a trick or two up their sleeve. It's enough that I haven't wanted to put this book down since it arrived -- but also haven't been able to, yet, since I'm still working on more than a few challenges.

Bottom line? If you like variety puzzles -- i.e., something more than the average crossword, logic puzzle, word game -- then you have to go adventuring with Berry's book.
1664123
My mother in law has found this to be an extremely challenging puzzle! I would recommend this to any puzzle fanatic!
1875721
Told in alternating chapters from the viewpoints of the two main characters, and alternating chapters between (at first) past and present and (then later), between present and present gave this book an unusual structure that was well-suited to the tale told. I love the puzzle pieces inexorably assembled and cunningly revealed. This book got me hooked from the first and never let go. Buy it!
929369
I truly enjoyed working the puzzles in this book.  They raised my level of effort.  I was able to solve all but a couple of puzzles, but very seldom could I finish one in one sitting.  The puzzle answers included 2-to-5 word phrases, which added to the complexity.  The clues were ambiguous enough to prevent an immediate correct response, but were still solvable.  The answers, for the most part, were common usage words or phrases.  I enjoyed it so much I will never go back to puzzles less challenging.  My only criticism is that the print is small to the point that I had to occasionally look very closely to determine if a letter was a lower case o or a lower case a.
3422995
First let me say I have too much Sudoku.  I love this particular logic puzzle, and have collected a dozen or so different books of them.  A couple I purchased when I was in the hospital and didn't have access to my original book.  A few more I purchased because of some interesting variations in the puzzles.  The point is, I have no reason to buy more Sudoku books for a long time unless something special about it compells me to.

The I saw this book.  Kind of a cheesy way to cash in on a popular book and movie currently out, and the puzzles at hand really relate in no way to The Da Vinci Code.  But they did throw in a twist that caught my attention.  Basically, working your way through the book, another puzzle is slowly decoded and revealed.  I think it's a nice approach that keeps this from being just another Sudoku book.  Definitely a nice book to have for any Sudoku enthusiast.
4012753
Wow - one of the most challenging puzzles I've ever done. I just discovered Dowdle and I love his art work. My first puzzle was Boston Market. Thoroughly enjoyed that puzzle as well.
367249
As someone who loves world travel, antique objects, and interesting stories, I really enjoyed "Chess Masterworks." In many ways, it's not really about the game of chess at all, although I think most avid chess players would appreciate it. I would recommend it especially to art historians, but also to anyone who collects or just appreciates handmade and historical objects and the intriguing questions and stories that accompany them. When were they made? How were they made? Why were they made? For whom were they made?  The mini-documentaries create a fascinating tapestry, weaving together the pieces of chess sets with art, culture, history, politics, religion, and philosophy. From the wacky Salvador Dali chess pieces which were made from casts of his thumbs, fingers, and nipples, to the Communist Propaganda pieces glorifying the virtues of the communist revolution, to the whimsical Sea Life set with lobster bishops and sea horse knights, to the abstract Persian Muslim Silver Mushroom pieces, each mini-documentary presents a set so original in the way it was handcrafted and so historically different from the one before it, that you don't get bored watching and are excited to see what is going to be next. Perhaps what I enjoyed most was the way that "Chess Masterworks" appeals heavily to the tactile sense with glorious high definition shots of chess pieces made of jade, quartz, clay, topaz, silver, gold, crystal, ivory, ebony, porcelain, bronze, pearl, wood, coins, amber, and the list goes on. I found myself wanting to reach out and touch the pieces.

As a professor of Arabic language and someone who has spent a lot of time traveling in the Middle East, I particularly enjoyed viewing some of the more abstract Islamic chess sets such as the 19th century Woven Moroccan and the 17th century Muslim Silver Mushroom. I also was very intrigued by Dr. George and Vivian Dean's life story and travels and how they came to own this world-renowned collection of chess sets.

The combination of the dazzling visuals and the music selections is mesmerizing. "Chess Masterworks" transports you momentarily to other times and places and realms and it's a journey you want to keep repeating (if only to fantasize that you own all these jewels!) The next time I see a chess exhibition going on, I may actually go check it out now--something I never thought I would say!
2154887
I was so happy to see that Shortz had added KenKen to his repertoire.  I had thought I was addicted to Sudoku.  Well, the level to which the Most Difficult KenKen takes you is not to be compared.  It is so much fun (some people are weird) to find a puzzle so difficult that it takes you days.  A puzzle so difficult, you awaken to go and see if something your brain has unraveled in your sleep MIGHT be the clue to complete the seemingly too-complicated-to-figure out grid,  Thanks, Will!
4436817
My husband and I got this book because we are fans of puzzle games of all kinds. In the past we have played lots of board games and hidden object games on our iPad, but we wanted something that would allow us to play together without having to have a screen in front of us. This book intrigued us, and we are so glad we took a chance on it.

There are several different types of puzzles contained in the book, from pure logic to picture phrases to crosswords. None were impossible to solve, but none were so easy as to be trivial.

We spent several evenings and weekends working through them, and in the end found it to be hugely satisfying. If you enjoy puzzles - you will delight in this book!
4781750
I thoroughly enjoyed the puzzle and trying to put all the pieces together and figure out the characters.  I couldn't put it down.
I came away thinking of memory and recall differently and revisited my own experience with therapy, discovering new dimensions.
2708923
[I received a free copy of the book in exchange for a review. This review originally appeared on PuzzleNation Blog.]

Kubricks Game is a puzzly thriller/adventure piece very much in the vein of The Da Vinci Code, though a far more satisfying read, more akin to the Shakespeare-fueled mystery of Jennifer Lee Carrells Interred with Their Bones or Haunt Me Still than the smack-you-in-the-face-with-coincidence style of Mr. Brown. Kent is clearly a fan of Kubricks work, and that enthusiasm infuses every page of the story.

Part puzzle hunt, part tribute, and part whodunit, Kubricks Game revels in the minutiae of classic films, adding depth and meaning to cinematic quirks and questions that hardcore film geeks have been debating and theorizing about for years.

But Kent goes one step further by including relevant images and frames of film, allowing the reader to follow the narrative. You cant quite solve the puzzles alongside the protagonists, especially in the later puzzles (unless you're a serious Kubrick aficionado, that is), but you know enough to avoid any possible frustration.

On the puzzle side, there are really three puzzly narratives to unravel. The first is the puzzle hunt early in the game, which is very straightforward. The second is Kubricks game itself. The third is the whodunit of the story, pondering who Shawn and his team can trust and who they're working against. Its a multilayered narrative that never bogs down, despite the twists and turns and numerous characters in play.

As for the human characters, Sami and Wilson are amiable support characters; they're likable and capable, focused and flawed in their own ways, but Shawn is clearly the centerpiece of the novel, so most of Sami and Wilsons more intriguing character aspects only emerge in reaction to Shawn.

As for Shawn, hes a little polarizing, because you want to like him, but several of his choices make it hard to do so. Some of this can be attributed to Shawns social awkwardness and insensitivity; there are certain character moments that are selfish and border on the emotionally brutal.

That being said, you cheer when Shawn succeeds and you root for him when he falters, which are signs of a solid protagonist.

Although the antagonists descend a bit into cartoonish villainy, thats a minor quibble. For the most part, the stakes feel high and the mentality of Shawn, Wilson, and Samis team against the world is an easy one to buy into.

Kent has done an impressive job of constructing an elaborate mystery worthy of Kubricks labyrinthine storytelling, one that should satisfy thriller fans and puzzle fans alike.
4024191
Addictive. These puzzles are incredible! the shapes of the pieces align with the pictures on the puzzle. The pieces in this puzzl are geometric and futuric. Expensive, but totally worth it. They'll become family heirloomsyou can do them over and over. My 20 year old son can't get enough of them! Someday I'll give them to his family.
3958365
An engaging introduction to Sudoku and many other mathematical delights!
3784063
I am an unabashed sudoku fan who is always looking for other addictive logic puzzles.  Nikoli produces human-made (rather than computer-made and human-checked) logic puzzles.  Their sudoku are elegant and interesting.  If you have never tried them, you should.

Which got me to this book.  I wanted some Nikoli sudoku to work on and masyu sounded very interesting.  I'm not going to explain all the rules (there are only 3, but they take some time to clarify) -- you can go on Nikoli's web site and explore them.  The point is, I wanted to try masyu, and getting some excellent sudoku in the same book was the excuse I needed to try some.

Like most logic games, masyu are fairly simple at the "easy" level, and can be hellish at the advanced level.  I found them quite addictive, and enjoyed solving even the ones that were too hard for my level of experience.

The beauty of the book is that it is a no-lose proposition for someone who likes sudoku and wants a taste of a different type of logic puzzle.  Even if you decide you do not like masyu that much, the experiment was probably worth the price of the book.
2189569
This is an extremely good puzzle game!  It's very addicting and I have not been able to put it down since receiving it.  It's based on matching three like tiles (kind of like Jewel Quest), but there are assorted tools you earn throughout the game to help you complete the harder levels.  You must clear all highlighted squares by matching the tiles.  Once all highlighted squares are cleared, you must then clear enough tiles to remove the scarab from the board.  This presents an even greater challenge.  I would recommend this to anyone who loves Jewel Quest or those type of matching games.