The Puzzle Master

Trussoni (The Ancestor) blends the cerebral and the supernatural in this impressive thriller that sees renowned puzzlist Mike Brink drawn into a mystery with ancient roots. A high school football injury left Brink with sudden acquired savant syndrome, in his case granting him synesthesia and a remarkable ability to see patterns. Jess Price, once a promising novelist, was convicted years ago of murdering her boyfriend in Upstate New York. She has remained uncommunicative since, until she draws a puzzle and requests that her prison psychologist employ Mike’s help to solve it. Soon, Mike learns there’s something more sinister behind Jess’s silence than the murder conviction, and he winds up on the run, scrambling to solve her puzzle and stumbling into questions of Judeo-Christian mysticism. Meanwhile, he garners the attention of billionaire Jameson Sedge, “part of an underground collective of futurists and trans-humanists who believed that ancient esoteric methods could be combined with technology to create eternal life.” For a brilliant guy, Mike makes some dumb fumbles (it’s common knowledge that one can be tracked by their phone), but his puzzle-solving skills impress. Fans of Dan Brown’s Robert Langdon novels would do well to pick this up. Agent: Susan Golomb, Writers House. (June)