A review by panda_incognito
Queen of the Tiles by Hanna Alkaf

3.0

This novel has an incredibly unique premise, and I loved all of the Scrabble and word nerd elements, but it never fully came together as a mystery. I would describe this as more of a thriller, because it was dramatic and suspenseful without being well-clued or possible for readers to figure out. The investigation wasn't well-organized at all, and there are some key suspension of disbelief issues that are difficult for me.

Spoiler

It turns out that this isn't a murder mystery after all, and that the apparent victim died from an accidental overdose of conflicting natural supplements. This seems profoundly unlikely, and it is also extremely difficult for me to believe that a teenager's sudden, mysterious death from an apparent heart attack went ignored, and that there wasn't an investigation into the cause of death at the time, regardless whether or not anyone was suspected of killing her.

I found this entertaining to read once, and I enjoyed the Scrabble content and cultural representation, but it is confusing and anticlimactic enough that I wouldn't particularly recommend it as a mystery. This book will appeal more to people who enjoy thrillers, novels about characters with PTSD, and books related to toxic friendships.