Synopsis

Arthur Du Fuss, bitter, alone, and ignored by his neighbours, has two secrets: one dies with him when he commits suicide; the other is the vast wealth he amassed through the creation of a cult board game.

Now his erstwhile neighbours receive a post-mortem invitation to the offices of a charismatic City lawyer to play a final version of the game; the prize – Arthur’s fortune. As they dice with the devil, the game first exposes the fragility of their relationships, and then tears them apart, with tragic and horrifying consequences.

But Arthur, too, must pay for his revenge. The old man learns that outstanding debts can still be called in, even when you are dead.

Review

This book was creepy. There is a sense of foreboding immediately, with death ever present and looming over the heads of everyone.

The premise was fantastic: a darker version of A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, mixed with Jumanji and 1984. Greed, lust and envy are all present in a book where there is no good and bad. Only evil. The darkness within this book was great and the creepy factor remained throughout.

However, the book was far too short. I wanted more – especially on the game which was over far too quickly and a big let-down after the intense build-up.

We also needed a lot more information and tension when the characters played the game; the author could have dedicated more time to this, and in doing so provided us with a lot more background on the characters. We disliked them, but there was not enough substance to make us really loathe them, so the ending did not have the intended impact.

With more depth and drama, this would be a brilliant story.

Book provided by Love Books Tours. Opinions my own.