tHE LOst PUZZLER

released 10 JaNUary 514 pages | Paperback/ebook

Author eyal Kless Publisher HarperVoyager

post-apocalyptic fiction remains one of publishing’s most popular subgenres, but this latest example skews in a pulpier direction by pushing the action into the distant future. The Last Puzzler also throws several other genres into the mix, combining aspects of pulp adventure, punky sci-fi and epic fantasy into a flawed but still entertaining brew.

Set after the fall of a mysterious future civilisation, this first volume of the Tarakan Chronicles tells the story of Rafik, a young boy with a mysterious inherited ability to solve puzzles. This makes him valuable as a “Puzzler” to those aiming to unlock the buried and heavily-guarded secrets of the past – but it also sets him on a path that, years later, might involve the fate of humanity itself…

Author Eyal Kless has created a rich and vivid future Earth that’s inventive and attention-grabbing in equal measure, but unfortunately he’s a little less original when it comes to the characterisation and story. The Lost Puzzler is fast-paced, colourful and often entertaining, but underneath the gritty tone, much of it plays as the kind of by-thenumbers fantasy served up by authors like Terry Brooks. There’s definite potential here, however; here’s hoping that future volumes can inject some more depth and freshness into the series. Saxon Bullock