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The Disney Riddles

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What if the happiest place on earth hid a chilling mystery? When Walt Disney himself vanishes from his own magical kingdom, a trail of cryptic clues is left behind.

"The Disney Riddles" is a thrilling mystery that will keep you guessing until the very last page. Perfect

Fans of Disney who crave a touch of mystery and suspenseReaders who love unraveling intricate conspiraciesAnyone searching for a captivating escape filled with twists and turns"The Disney Riddles" is just the beginning of a thrilling journey. There are 3 more books in the series!!! Kingdom's Operation Disney Hapless Souls Core of Deceit

Start your adventure today!

343 pages, Paperback

Published December 12, 2023

430 people are currently reading
1515 people want to read

About the author

Robert J. Perreault

20 books50 followers

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5 stars
171 (21%)
4 stars
165 (21%)
3 stars
218 (27%)
2 stars
141 (18%)
1 star
85 (10%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 121 reviews
Profile Image for Peter.
2 reviews1 follower
January 11, 2024
I had hopes this would be a more interesting book, including some Disney facts/references. It seems to just be named dropped with people and attractions, but worse, there’s a lot of errors in the book (plot detail errors), almost as if an editor didn’t even review it. The dialogue between characters is rough to follow at times. I guess that’s what you get when you order a book from an Instagram ad.
Profile Image for The Romance Bookie.
135 reviews
January 22, 2024
1.5 stars.

I don’t write reviews often anymore publicly, but I feel I need to explain my low rating.

This book caught my attention because of its story premise. I love Disney. And I love mysteries and thrillers. So to have both together, was just amazing.

That being said, this book was awful.

There were so many inconsistencies in the storyline. The way the male author writes about his main female character makes him seem like an absolute misogynist. One second she doesn’t want to be known for more than just her beauty and be known for being a great agent, and then next she is hoping to get glances from her new partner…

This book was so cringe. I made so many notes on my kindle…38 notes. I don’t think I’ve ever made so many notes in one book.

The main character was tastelessly going back and forth between wanting an old flame and her new partner (both were involved in the crime she is trying to solve), and when one dies she immediately seeks comfort in the backup.

The writing…oh.my.god. The writing.

Here are some quotes just to give you an idea:

“”Don’t forget Mrs. Disney hired me to investigate the case as well. I think it’s best if I stay.” Lacie didn’t like the words but appreciated his tone, it was obvious that he was interested in finding the perpetrator, but was also interested in her.” (Meaning he was interested in Lacie, sexually.) 🙄🙄

“With Annabelle {Disney’s secretary} gracefully perched behind her desk wearing a cheerful pink sundress Ryan {Lacie’s FBI partner} couldn’t help but feel a twinge of envy for Mendez {a suspect, having an affair with Annabelle} getting to witness the beauty of what lay beneath. The sexual tension in the air was evident with the likes of four young attractive people occupying the room.”

Before I write out the whole book on Goodreads I’m just going to stop. But seriously how is that a quote?? The entire book is like this.

I was looking forward to the history of Disney and the parks that was sort of promised in the synopsis and it just felt so shoe-horned into the book. Most of the time, the fact or reference didn’t even fit into the story in the moment.


The mystery itself was not hard to figure out. I figured it out in the first few chapters who the bad guy was going to be. And then “the twist” at the end…seriously?!

And then the book just ends…because this is a series. 🙈

I paid $10 for a copy directly from the authors page because I fell for an ad on Facebook. The premise got me. I am a sucker for anything related to the Disney parks or history, especially involving a good mystery. Key word…”good”.

The only reason this book got more than one star is because the story idea is good. The execution? Not good.

Would love for this to be written by someone else and actually done correctly someday.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Bex.
461 reviews
December 31, 2023
Absolutely off the rails. This feels like a pulpy noir. And not a particularly good one. Logic does not follow and no one’s motivations or decisions make sense. In need of an editor. With so much fascinating Disney history and personalities, the references felt more like name drops than actively incorporated into the story. I wanted to like this, and would love to see a similar premise done in a different way. And it bugged me absolutely the entire time, but this 100% does not pass the Bechdel Test. And so much telling instead of showing.
1 review
March 6, 2025
Good idea for a book but poorly executed! Lots of inconsistencies. It does not appear the author used an editor at all.

Profile Image for Crystal.
3 reviews
February 12, 2025
Don’t read

No research done on Disneyland, story changed with who did and saw what.

I was excited to read another story based off Walt Disney and this did not come close to what I expected. Very disappointed
Profile Image for Tabitha Pyper.
1 review
March 7, 2024
This book was hard to finish. Between the grammar and spelling errors, the plot holes and the overall storyline it was terrible. I always finish a book I start, but geez. Unfortunately I got suckered into buying this because I’m a huge Disney fan…and I fell for the bait. This felt more like a draft that is in need of major editing. Yikes.
Profile Image for Amanda Berry.
139 reviews5 followers
November 23, 2024
“He subtly gave her a once over and wondered how a woman so beautiful could be that smart.”

I hate to write a bad review. I worry about hurting the author’s feelings. This book has a completely unrealistic plot, despite the fact that obviously it takes real people and jumps into a fantasy kidnapping plot. But we’re supposed to believe there’s a hot woman FBI agent solving the case in 1965. And that people take her seriously. So there’s that. But also the writing is pretty terrible. I feel like a high school English teacher reading an assignment. And still, I was going to keep those thoughts to myself. But then I read the quote above and just felt like, you know what? Nah. Things deserved.
Profile Image for Tabitha jones.
52 reviews
August 1, 2025
Right before I start this the reason it’s a 2 star and not a 1 star is because the concept of the book is actually quite good HOWEVER if anyone knows me then they know I am a Disney nerd, I also love a good murder mystery book. If you’re writing a book about Disneyland then you need to get your facts right it’s common sense. It starts off with a murder on the train, where two people are sat next to each other and the murderer sneaks behind and slits his throat, then every chapter following the murder is told to have happened on the Matterhorn??? Like this is not the case it happened on the train. The Matterhorn is a rickety solo sitting coaster type of ride. Another thing that’s is completely wrong is referring to going to Disneyland in Pasadena when it’s in Anaheim so??? ANOTHER thing is that he called it the ‘greatest place on earth’ it’s the ‘happiest place on earth’ ANOTHER thing that’s wrong is he refers to the castle on more than one occasion as Cinderella’s castle, in Disneyland it’s Sleeping beauty’s castle. I feel like if you’re writing a story about Disneyland you’re trying to attract Disney adults so you need to get the easy facts correct. I understand it’s a work of fiction however the location is real and you need to get the basics right. No editing was done in this story clearly. Okay rant over.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Kirstin Briana Symmes.
65 reviews3 followers
March 28, 2024
This book was originally okay. I’ve read better. I was excited because Disney of course but this really had nothing to do with Disney besides name dropping and using some attractions.

The story line was going well until he took the main character Lacie who wanted to be respected for more than her sexual appearance to having sexual tension with her partner and when he dies immediately goes to her ex fling for comfort and sexual tension?!?!

I was upset to see Ryan killed off. It would have been better if he was kept alive and only injured (with serious injuries) then in the end he came too with Lacie in my opinion.

I knew exactly who did the crime when I was reading this book all way through after the first handful of chapters.

I thought the amount of murders was a little ridiculous as well as the every handful of chapters someone dies or is injured.

I felt as that was just a lot. They should have been able to at least save someone haha

Anyway overall it took me just a couple days to read as I have kids and life but I can appreciate the story to a point. I do not think I’ll buy the next book if this is truly going to be a series. With how it ended tho I would assume so.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Heather Mulvihill.
307 reviews27 followers
March 28, 2025
Lacie Webb, a former Disneyland security guard turned cop and her partner, Ryan are called in to investigate the kidnapping of Walt Disney and subsequent murders at Disney
A veteran detective named Tom and Brian, head of security who is hired by Lillian Disney after her subsequent “relationship “with Ub Iwerks, an animator and supposed enemy.
The twists and turns of this book are absolutely mind blowing. As a Disney fanatic, I absolutely love this book So excited to read this whole series
Profile Image for Debbie Hawkins.
76 reviews1 follower
July 20, 2025
It took me 3 hours to read this book, I just couldn’t put it down!
Profile Image for Katie MacQueen.
10 reviews
August 13, 2024
I won't pile on to the terrible reviews of others too much. There are inconsistencies, misspellings, misogyny, and a gratuitous use of transition words. The gaffes are glaring enough to be distracting. I'm not a professional editor, but I would love to offer my services to this "internationally best selling author." Even in my amateur status it would be an improvement on whatever system he's using now.
Profile Image for Deborah Bragg.
2 reviews
March 6, 2024
The concept behind this book was good. However the execution was terrible. Not including the grammar errors, the timelines didn’t add up, and some of the details didn’t match. Throughout the book the wording was incredibly awkward and often objectified both men and women. The whole thing was very unrealistic in its portrayal of the FBI and how cases are solved.
Profile Image for Tera.
30 reviews
January 21, 2024
I wanted to love this book but I just couldn’t. The writing was like reading a high schoolers story. Very slow start. Does have a few twists
Profile Image for Jessica.
105 reviews
April 22, 2024
Grammatical errors, spelling errors, plot holes.... the ending was worse than the ending of the mist movie. Ughhh I am sorry Robert.
Profile Image for Benjamin Englesmith.
4 reviews
January 4, 2024
I was hoping for something more with this book. I thought I was the perfect target audience, being a Disney nerd who likes thrillers, but apparently not.

One of the things Disneyland is known for is their attention to detail, but this book misses the mark more than a few times in that regard. One minor example is that Disneyland is repeatedly referred to as "The Greatest Place on Earth", when the actual phrase is "The Happiest Place on Earth". A bigger miss is that the opening scene centers around a murder that takes place in the back car of the old Mine Train Through Nature's Wonderland ride, but as soon as the scene is over everyone refers to the murder as taking place on the Matterhorn.

One other minor-ish quibble I had was the fixation with the physical attractiveness of the main characters. I don't mind a little romance thrown in to a story like this when it furthers the story (which it did end up doing in this case), but I felt like every other chapter included paragraphs that took a side step from the plot to remind us how hot these characters were. I felt like that was unnecessary and, frankly, a little weird.

There were a few fun moments, and some unexpected twists but ultimately I wish I would have liked this book more.
55 reviews1 follower
February 22, 2024
There are so many inconsistencies in the book. The murder takes place on the train, but the characters keep saying it was on the Matterhorn. The park is not located in Pasadena, as mentioned by Lacie, rather in Anaheim. It never takes 15 minutes to walk from Tomorrowland to Main Street, so there is no way going through employee tunnels (which in this area in reality do not exist) saves 15 minutes. It is Sleeping Beauty's castle, not Cinderella's. Argh. I wanted to love this book, but the inconsistencies did it in for me. Robert, please get a proofreader or beta readers to fix these errors before publishing.
Profile Image for Stephanie.
30 reviews
February 25, 2024
I really wanted to like this book. While I enjoyed the story line, I thought that the writing was lacking. This book definitely needs an editor.
Profile Image for Beth Agejew.
100 reviews3 followers
February 28, 2024
Overall, not a bad mystery—plenty of twists and turns and a surprise ending. Probably would have rated it higher if the writing and editing had been better.
Profile Image for Kaysie Larochelle.
8 reviews
August 3, 2025
:: sigh :: I’m not sure where to even begin. As far as I can tell, not only did this book not have an editor, it wasn’t even passed through a beta reader or two. I don’t take this lightly when I say: this story could have seriously used one or both of those options.
Typos galore. Facts botched and completely inconsistent (a murder happening supposedly on one ride in the park and then pages later referencing that SAME murder on a completely different ride). I know it’s an author’s prerogative to take some creative liberties, but knowing the huge following that Disney has… I’m not sure why some details were skewed. It just didn’t make sense. (Ex: Calling the castle “Cinderella’s” castle, even though this took place at Disneyland in CA and WDW aka “Project X” hadn’t even begun yet).
I think chapter 14 was meant to go right into chapter 16 because CHAPTER 15 felt completely out of place. Sure, it attempted to establish some needed “background” for Lacie and Ryan, but it literally interrupts the story. And as the two are pouring over random files, it mentions “the nation’s president”?! The story had nothing to do with that. It felt like this chapter was copy and pasted from a previous version of another story and unceremoniously plopped into this one.
The prose made me cringe. The complete random sexual tension between (literally all) the characters that came unprompted without context was overdone and made my eyes roll at times (in exasperation).
I really didn’t want to tear this book apart and I kept hoping there would be something redemptive about the story or the typos and grammar mistakes would eventually improve… but it just didn’t.
Truthfully, as a big fan of Disney I had high hopes, so maybe that factored in to my opinion — but I don’t think that was entirely to blame. This was just very poorly done.
The FMC’s love interests in first her partner and then her former boyfriend (head of security for Disneyland) cheapened her character. Especially since her internal dialogue addressed how hard she fought to have a place in the FBI as a female during that time period. It just made her seem flaky and flighty and didn’t establish a strong female lead. Left me feeling kind of gross, in a way — questioning how the author feels about women.
The next book in this series (The Kingdom’s Keeper: Operation Disney) appears to have slightly better reviews so I am going to forge ahead and give Lacie Webb another chance… I hope I don’t regret it, fingers crossed! Maybe that one was reviewed before it was published!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Jenntleh.
405 reviews1 follower
April 25, 2025
The Riddles of Disney by Robert J. Perreault presents an intriguing premise: a mystery rooted in the world of Disney, blending real-life icons with fictional twists. As someone who enjoys peeking behind the curtain of the Disney empire and unraveling a good puzzle, I found the concept appealing. If this story were ever dramatized in an audiobook—complete with the songs from the rides woven in—it could truly elevate the experience. Unfortunately, I only had access to the eBook, which left some of that immersive magic to the imagination.

The mystery itself was just okay. It had moments of engagement, especially when reflecting on themes like corporate greed, which felt relevant in today’s climate. The portrayal of Walt Disney, however, was a sticking point. In the beginning, he’s painted as a chain-smoking, hard-drinking, family-avoiding figure, which strips away much of his mythos. While I can accept some creative license for the sake of storytelling, reducing Walt to a one-dimensional "riddle man" without giving due credit to his creative genius felt like a missed opportunity. Whether hero or villain, he didn’t capture the complexity or charisma one might expect.

The mystery itself felt surprisingly mundane, especially given the rich setting. The author seems to enjoy crafting stories around famous people and places, which is a neat concept, but this particular plot didn’t quite carry the enchantment of Disney—on either side of good or evil. I finished the book still unclear on Walt’s real motivation to “participate” in the events, which left the ending feeling at best an ambiguous Walt Disney.

Overall, it’s a decent read if you're in the mood for a light mystery with a pop culture backdrop, but don't expect it to fully capture the magic of Disney.
Profile Image for Erin.
3 reviews
July 14, 2025
I wish I could give less than one star. This book was terrible. From the character development, the dialogue, and plot. The two main male characters had rhythming names: Ryan and Brian. The dialogue was terrible and the main female character came off too superficial about her looks. The amount of times this author brings up her beauty, her long legs and other parts of her body- you can tell it’s a male author. This author just wanted to name drop with no real research done about the man or park this is about.

Now, the inconsistencies in this are off the charts. It’s like there was no editing done at all. I started to keep track with notes on my kindle of them all. To start:
1. When Annabelle was first found, it was Roy who found and untied her. A few pages later, it’s saying that the head of security found her.

2. In one of the chapters it starts off by telling the readers that Lacie and Brian had a relationship that ended ten years ago. But not even three sentences later, it’s changed to seven years ago.

3. The book takes places in DisneyLAND. Disney World isn’t even built yet in the book as they refer to project x throughout the book. Yet, somehow Cinderella’s castle is in the park. Disneyland has Sleeping Beauty Castle. Cinderella’s is mentioned twice as the castle in the park. The author clearly did not research the parks or their history and just wanted to name drop with using such a big name as Disney.


There are many more but I’ll leave it at three. I thought this book would be interesting but I was very wrong. He took real people and put them into a very unbelievable plot. It’s a good concept but this was not how to do it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Angela Verry.
296 reviews8 followers
October 30, 2024
This is number 1 of 4 Lacie Webb Mysteries

BOOK #1 - The Disney RiddlesWhat if Disneyland was harboring a dangerous secret?
Amazon #1 best-selling author, Robert J. Perreault delivers a riveting tale of suspense and intrigue set against the backdrop of one of the world's most beloved amusement parks. The novel follows a series of mysterious events that unfold when the park becomes the scene of a gruesome murder and the abduction of its creator, Walt Disney.

BOOK #2 - The Kingdom's Keeper: Operation Disney
In the thrilling sequel to The Disney Riddles, FBI Special Agent Lacie Webb finds herself thrust back into the fire when threats against Disney World escalate into a full-blown terror plot, A shadowy group called the Arcadian Order has launched attacks with the goal of destroying Walt's beloved theme park.

BOOK #3 - Hapless Souls - Lies Beneath the Heights
Lacie Webb is thr FBI Agent. But nothing to do with Disney this time.
When the body of a college student is found brutally murdered on campus, FBI Special Agent Lacie Webb is called in to head the investigation. But this is no isolated crime... it’s the latest in a string of gruesome attacks, with all the victims mysteriously connected by their shared birthdate of November 9th.

BOOK #4 - Core of Deceit
When Steve Jobs' Apple I prototype is stolen from his garage, he seeks the help of Lacie Webb to find it and fulfill his dream.
4 reviews
July 8, 2024
I couldn’t even finish this. I have NEVER taken notes while reading, and this book had me writing 2 full pages of errors and issues. I re read the first few chapters because I thought “wait, this isn’t matching what I read 4 chapters ago. And the two MMC names were damn near identical (that bothered me so much lol) I only made it to chapter 12 before I gave up. I legit was PO’d reading this and I just couldn’t do it anymore.

After reading comments on Facebook I thought I was going to love this. Super Disney adult here and was excited to see how it could be spun. Nope huge no go. There’s NO WAY someone isn’t deleting comments because after reading reviews on here, I know I’m not the only one who had issues with this book. And during reading these comments after I quit reading it, the author responded to a comment stating he was “glad to here that the family enjoyed”. Yes I know here is spelled incorrectly, does the author know that though?? Because that’s what he wrote…. Ugh. Frustrated lol
Profile Image for april kendrick.
6 reviews
March 22, 2025
I was really hoping to like this book. It sounded very intriguing and had a good plot line. However as it followed a police perspective I was very disappointed in the lack of accuracy of the processing. Evidence was forgotten at one point, the complete dismissal of suspects based on very little evidence. Not to mention the fact there didn't seem to be a decent investigation. They just kept accusing everyone they came across. I also kept getting thrown off at the blatant bungling of the case. From the start the police are sharing evidence and everything they have with potential suspects without even clearing them. Also the fact that they were led by Mrs. Disney to tell them everything and to pull in a private detective on the case was also disturbing to me. Both the detective she hired, who happened to be security for the park as well as Mrs. Disney were both suspects they neglected to clear. Over all I was just largely disappointed.
2 reviews1 follower
February 4, 2025
This book was disappointing. I was very excited about another fictional series based on Disney but this one was lacking. First, editing left a lot to be desired, at least in the digital copy. The summary boasted about the riddles and there were some but they were rather basic. The writing itself was rudimentary and after several chapters I was convinced that it had been written for young tweens until a later chapter talked about breasts. But my biggest complaint is that this writer seems to have skimped on research. The book mentions a call to 911, in a year before 911 existed. He references people doing air quotes before that became a practice. On 2 occasions it talks about Cinderella Castle in reference to the Castle in California and only later in the book switches the reference to Sleeping Beauty Castle, to name a few.
1 review
February 13, 2024
PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT AHEAD!

I ordered this book on ebay and it finally arrived today so I cracked it open and jumped right in. I'm only on page 64 and it's driving me crazy. So many inaccuracies regarding dates, attractions, facts, etc. It's clear that no one proofread this for grammar, punctuation, and continuity. The author contradicts himself within a single paragraph over and over and writes at a junior high skill level at best. And the anachronisms are nonstop. I was so anxious to read this. Now, I'm on a treasure hunt to find the next flaw. As someone who loves Disney and those who share my passion, SAVE YOUR MONEY! (If anyone else has read it, let me know. I'd love to hear your thoughts and throw it into the woodchipper together!)
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