The Puzzle Box by Danielle Trussoni [Book Review]

Dive into The Puzzle Box, a thrilling adventure packed with mind games, ancient mysteries, and a hero with a unique gift for solving the unsolvable. Perfect for fans of high-stakes intrigue!

Buckle up, puzzle lovers—The Puzzle Box is a thrilling whirlwind from page one! Imagine diving headfirst into an ancient, unsolved enigma with a main character whose brain is wired for patterns and mysteries after a life-changing injury. Read a synopsis of the book below and find out why I gave the book four out of five stars. Get ready for an experience that’s equal parts brain teaser and adrenaline rush!

**Danielle Trussoni says weekly library trips were ‘like paradise’**

What is the book about?

It is the Year of the Wood Dragon, and the ingenious Mike Brink has been invited to Tokyo, Japan to open the legendary Dragon Box, a mysterious nineteenth-century puzzle that has remained unsolved for over 150 years.

The box was constructed during one of Japan’s most tumultuous periods, when the samurai class was disbanded and the shogun lost power. In this moment of national crisis, Emperor Meiji placed a priceless Imperial secret in the Dragon Box, locked it, and hid it in a temple far from the palace. Only two people knew how to open the box: Meiji and the box’s sadistic constructor, Ogawa. Both died without telling a soul what was inside, or how to open it.

Since then, the Imperial family has held a clandestine contest to open the box every twelve years, in the Year of the Dragon. The Dragon Box is devilishly difficult, filled with tricks, booby traps, poisons, and mind-bending twists. Every puzzle master who has attempted to open it has died in the process.

But Brink is not any puzzle master. With his uncanny abilities, he may be the only person alive who can crack it. Yet, his determination is echoed by a radical group—headed by two sisters descended from an illustrious but disgraced samurai clan—who have vowed to claim Meiji’s secret. They know that the box’s contents have the power to change the fate of Japan, and the world. When they align with Brink’s archrival, Jameson Sedge, Brink is up against the most dangerous challenge of his life.

Mike Brink’s quest to open The Dragon Box launches him on a breakneck adventure across Japan, from the Imperial Palace in Tokyo to the pristine forests of Hakone to historic Kyoto to an ancient cave in Kyushu. In the process, he discovers the power of Meiji’s hidden treasure, and– more crucially– the true nature of his extraordinary talent. [Goodreads.com]

My thoughts:

What an exciting ride! The Puzzle Box moves from the moment the book begins and doesn’t let up until the very last page. This was my introduction to both author Danielle Trussoni and her Puzzle book series, and I had no idea it was the second book in a series until I was well into it. The best part? You don’t have to read The Puzzle Master to dive into The Puzzle Box—it stands strong on its own.

The story is quite an adventure. We follow Mike Brink, a man whose unique ability to see puzzles and patterns stems from brain damage he suffered earlier in life. He’s invited to solve the Dragon Box, an ancient and deadly puzzle no one has managed to crack. But as Brink digs deeper, he realizes that the puzzle isn’t the only danger lurking around him.

I absolutely recommend this to anyone who loves an adventurous story packed with intrigue and mind games. If you enjoy characters with sharp intellects navigating high-stakes mysteries, add The Puzzle Box to your reading list right now!