What do you think?
Rate this book
The Puzzlemaker: Murder Is Only A Word Away
After 10 years' service as a cryptographer with MI6 during the cold war, the extremely shy and reclusive George Withers becomes editor and compiler of the Sunday Times crossword.
30 years later and now in his 60's, an old MI6 colleague asks him to place a code within the Sunday Times cryptic crossword puzzle. George is totally unaware the code is a catalyst for a number of gruesome deaths around the world.
The Serbian father of one of the victims discovers the puzzle maker had something to do with his son's death, and goes on the hunt. Georges' quiet world of puzzles changes into a nightmare hunt through the streets of London.
While on the run he tries to decipher that last fatal cryptic code in the puzzle he got from his friend, who has now disappeared, and hopefully save his own life and others near to him.
30 years later and now in his 60's, an old MI6 colleague asks him to place a code within the Sunday Times cryptic crossword puzzle. George is totally unaware the code is a catalyst for a number of gruesome deaths around the world.
The Serbian father of one of the victims discovers the puzzle maker had something to do with his son's death, and goes on the hunt. Georges' quiet world of puzzles changes into a nightmare hunt through the streets of London.
While on the run he tries to decipher that last fatal cryptic code in the puzzle he got from his friend, who has now disappeared, and hopefully save his own life and others near to him.
269 pages, Kindle Edition
Published December 5, 2018
7 people are currently reading
52 people want to read
About the author
Brian Christopher
49 books6 followersBrian Christopher was born and raised in Dublin, Ireland, and has worked as a producer and writer for various broadcast companies in Ireland and the Netherlands. He now resides in San Francisco and the Netherlands.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
December 16, 2019
Finally published for all to see!!
https://reedsy.com/discovery/book/the...
First and foremost, a large thank you to Reedsy Discovery and Brian Christopher for providing me with a copy of this publication, which allows me to provide you with an unbiased review.
New to the review platform Reedsy Discovery and the world of Brian Christopher’s writing, I was eager to try this novel, whose dust jacket blurb made it highly intriguing with a side order of mind-bending. George Withers has worked for the Times (UK) over the past three decades, in charge of their crossword puzzles. These mind-numbing pieces culminate each week with the Sunday puzzle, not for the rank amateur. While he is quite reclusive, George does have a few acquaintances from over the years, including one from MI6 who has a special request. George is to embed a handful of words and clues into an upcoming puzzle. George does so without blinking an eye and hopes for the best. In a small Serbian community, Dragan Nikolic discovers his son’s body, victim of an apparent hit. Seeing some of the clues around the body, Nikolic cannot help but wonder if the latest Times crossword could be responsible for passing along a message, one with lethal fallouts. A former mercenary under Tito’s Yugoslavian regime, Nikolic makes his way to London, seeking answers from George Withers. At the same time, George finds his friend has been murdered, wondering if those same clues might be the reason. When Nikolic and George spend some time together, it is anything but a joyful encounter, though George professes to know nothing about what they clues might mean and who could be responsible. When the police become involved for what appears to be a third-rate geriatric assault on London streets, there is much more to the story and Nikolic is sought for his past war crimes. As he stays off the streets, he has a close eye on George, who vows to crack the code and discover who might be responsible for these two deaths before he becomes the next victim of Nikolic’s vicious temper. Full of wonderful cryptic comments and a built-in crossword for the reader to complete, Brian Christopher provides an entertaining piece of writing that will have readers up late trying to crack the code. Recommended for those who love a good mystery and can handle a little pain along the way.
My debut experience with Brian Christopher’s work was quite pleasurable and left me hoping that there is more to come in the future. Christopher pens an excellent crime thriller and does so with a few strong underlying plot twists that keeps the reader intrigued throughout George Withers is a quiet man, but one who is quite complex below the surface. His work with MI6 left him as one of the UK’s most valued cryptologists and perfect for the position of crossword god at the Times. While strong academically, he lacks a great deal of social and life skills, forcing him to rely on others, as he does throughout the piece. His interactions are some of the most interesting throughout the book, as Christopher portrays him as somewhat bumbling and yet keen to find answers, if only to save more torture. Other characters, including that of Dragan Nikolic, serve the story well, injecting their own perspective and flavouring, which propels the story forward and keeps the reader wanting to know more. Christopher develops these secondary characters well to enhance George Withers, but also contrast nicely with all he does throughout the book. I found the plot to be strong and the narrative moved things along quite well. There were some portions where things could have picked up the pace, but the reader must realise that backstory development is key to a successful novel. Embedding clues to a larger crossword was ingenious and while I will not rush out to complete it, this might be a wonderful task for a reader who seeks an added prize as they read. Brian Christopher’s attention to detail not only added entertainment value, but instilled some realism around code breaking and the complex world of crossword puzzles I had not previously considered. I’ll definitely keep my eyes open for more, particularly if George Withers returns for another cryptic tale.
Kudos, Mr. Christopher, for a strong mystery that added thrills in ways I have not seen before. I am eager to explore some of your other work in the coming months.
Love/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/
A Book for All Seasons, a different sort of Book Challenge: https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/...
https://reedsy.com/discovery/book/the...
First and foremost, a large thank you to Reedsy Discovery and Brian Christopher for providing me with a copy of this publication, which allows me to provide you with an unbiased review.
New to the review platform Reedsy Discovery and the world of Brian Christopher’s writing, I was eager to try this novel, whose dust jacket blurb made it highly intriguing with a side order of mind-bending. George Withers has worked for the Times (UK) over the past three decades, in charge of their crossword puzzles. These mind-numbing pieces culminate each week with the Sunday puzzle, not for the rank amateur. While he is quite reclusive, George does have a few acquaintances from over the years, including one from MI6 who has a special request. George is to embed a handful of words and clues into an upcoming puzzle. George does so without blinking an eye and hopes for the best. In a small Serbian community, Dragan Nikolic discovers his son’s body, victim of an apparent hit. Seeing some of the clues around the body, Nikolic cannot help but wonder if the latest Times crossword could be responsible for passing along a message, one with lethal fallouts. A former mercenary under Tito’s Yugoslavian regime, Nikolic makes his way to London, seeking answers from George Withers. At the same time, George finds his friend has been murdered, wondering if those same clues might be the reason. When Nikolic and George spend some time together, it is anything but a joyful encounter, though George professes to know nothing about what they clues might mean and who could be responsible. When the police become involved for what appears to be a third-rate geriatric assault on London streets, there is much more to the story and Nikolic is sought for his past war crimes. As he stays off the streets, he has a close eye on George, who vows to crack the code and discover who might be responsible for these two deaths before he becomes the next victim of Nikolic’s vicious temper. Full of wonderful cryptic comments and a built-in crossword for the reader to complete, Brian Christopher provides an entertaining piece of writing that will have readers up late trying to crack the code. Recommended for those who love a good mystery and can handle a little pain along the way.
My debut experience with Brian Christopher’s work was quite pleasurable and left me hoping that there is more to come in the future. Christopher pens an excellent crime thriller and does so with a few strong underlying plot twists that keeps the reader intrigued throughout George Withers is a quiet man, but one who is quite complex below the surface. His work with MI6 left him as one of the UK’s most valued cryptologists and perfect for the position of crossword god at the Times. While strong academically, he lacks a great deal of social and life skills, forcing him to rely on others, as he does throughout the piece. His interactions are some of the most interesting throughout the book, as Christopher portrays him as somewhat bumbling and yet keen to find answers, if only to save more torture. Other characters, including that of Dragan Nikolic, serve the story well, injecting their own perspective and flavouring, which propels the story forward and keeps the reader wanting to know more. Christopher develops these secondary characters well to enhance George Withers, but also contrast nicely with all he does throughout the book. I found the plot to be strong and the narrative moved things along quite well. There were some portions where things could have picked up the pace, but the reader must realise that backstory development is key to a successful novel. Embedding clues to a larger crossword was ingenious and while I will not rush out to complete it, this might be a wonderful task for a reader who seeks an added prize as they read. Brian Christopher’s attention to detail not only added entertainment value, but instilled some realism around code breaking and the complex world of crossword puzzles I had not previously considered. I’ll definitely keep my eyes open for more, particularly if George Withers returns for another cryptic tale.
Kudos, Mr. Christopher, for a strong mystery that added thrills in ways I have not seen before. I am eager to explore some of your other work in the coming months.
Love/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/
A Book for All Seasons, a different sort of Book Challenge: https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/...
December 16, 2019
Ik ben verwonderd dat de schrijver zoveel aandacht heeft besteed aan dit boek. Ten minste dit las ik op internet. Het sprak met niet echt aan. Het verhaal moest je zogezegd doen denken aan de kindertijd uit de na oorlogen van 1965. Dit was eerder een verhaal dat kon gebeurt zijn gisteren. Ik vond geen duidelijke link met de hedendaagse schrijverij. Er stonden vreemde en verouderde woorden in. Dit is op zich wel een kunst, maar in de context klopt het gewoon niet. De connecties in het boek waren ook niet wat het moest zijn. Er werden verwijzingen gemaakt naar personen die nog nooit eens vermeld stonden in het boek. Na een tijdje was mijn aandacht en motivatie zoek en heb ik het boek aan de kant gesmeten, iets wat ik normaal nooit doe
December 6, 2018
It's an honor to write the very first review of this book. Although it's being a good read, it's not the one that will come into my mind when someone asks me my recommendation on puzzle or crime related stuff.
The pace is quite slow at the start but gets relatively fast at the third of the story. But, then, it's getting quite jumpy all over the place and quit hard to catch up. The biggest disappointment for me here is it's more about action and gruesome torture tangled with international spies or agents stuff than about "crosswords" or "puzzles". Maybe I expected some good puzzle time here from the title but guess I was wrong.
One thing I like about the story is Mathilda and her attitude towards Dragan. That very "English" sassy remarks and obsession towards tea make me smile every time they pop up and I'm really liking it!
Overall, it's just a little more than three stars but I don't regret my decision to read it since I got a nice afternoon reading it.
The pace is quite slow at the start but gets relatively fast at the third of the story. But, then, it's getting quite jumpy all over the place and quit hard to catch up. The biggest disappointment for me here is it's more about action and gruesome torture tangled with international spies or agents stuff than about "crosswords" or "puzzles". Maybe I expected some good puzzle time here from the title but guess I was wrong.
One thing I like about the story is Mathilda and her attitude towards Dragan. That very "English" sassy remarks and obsession towards tea make me smile every time they pop up and I'm really liking it!
Overall, it's just a little more than three stars but I don't regret my decision to read it since I got a nice afternoon reading it.
January 28, 2025
Ex-Detective Hawthorne was different, and I wasn’t sure what to make of him. He is brilliant, sometimes likable and sometimes not likable. I did not work out the ending until it was revealed.
June 7, 2023
A page turner from start to finish.
A terrific read a really great thriller. Action packed and a really good storyline. How I came to read this book is a story in itself. I am a member of a Facebook group called Dublin Down Memory Lane. Someone posted an old photograph of a lady sitting on a wall outside an old petrol station. It was in an area where I grew up and some people commented on it. The owners of the station were my old neighbours and I posted this on the comments. Then an old teenager freind of mine who I had not spoken to our seen for over forty five years posted that the garage was opposite his old family home. We connected and did a catch up on where and what we were at. He told me that he was now doing what he loved and was now an author. Writing under the name of Brian Christopher. His first and second name. His surname was Holahan.
So he gave me a link to his page and I selected The Puzzelman as my first read from his collection. I will be back for more and I know my wife is going to love this one. The old saying says "Do something you love and you will never have to work another day in your life" Well done Brian a very talented gentleman.
A terrific read a really great thriller. Action packed and a really good storyline. How I came to read this book is a story in itself. I am a member of a Facebook group called Dublin Down Memory Lane. Someone posted an old photograph of a lady sitting on a wall outside an old petrol station. It was in an area where I grew up and some people commented on it. The owners of the station were my old neighbours and I posted this on the comments. Then an old teenager freind of mine who I had not spoken to our seen for over forty five years posted that the garage was opposite his old family home. We connected and did a catch up on where and what we were at. He told me that he was now doing what he loved and was now an author. Writing under the name of Brian Christopher. His first and second name. His surname was Holahan.
So he gave me a link to his page and I selected The Puzzelman as my first read from his collection. I will be back for more and I know my wife is going to love this one. The old saying says "Do something you love and you will never have to work another day in your life" Well done Brian a very talented gentleman.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews