Kirkus
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Abandoned at birth and left in a hatbox on the doorstep of the Fellowship of Puzzlemakers, Clayton Stumper is tasked with solving a puzzle his foster mother designed before her death to help him discover where he came from. Now 25, Clay was lovingly raised by Fellowship founder Pippa Allsbrook, “pioneering cruciverbalist” and British queen of crosswords. The novel alternates between his pained efforts to complete her puzzle, which leads him, step by step, to significant people and places, and Pippa’s account of becoming Clay’s caregiver at 67 while running the Fellowship. Her challenges include overcoming the opposition of eccentric members shaken by the very idea of having a baby among them and turning a run-down hotel in Bedfordshire that was once her ancestral home into the group’s headquarters. As it turns out, this diverse community of “enigmatologists,” who attend seminars on topics like “the history of lipograms and univocalics,” helps raise Clay. So does Nancy Stone, a female cabbie who’s into TV game shows (she was a contestant on Brain of Britain) and becomes Pippa’s best friend and ally. Burr’s first novel doesn’t get much deeper than “it’s never too late…to find the missing pieces that make you feel complete” and “love is all that matters.” Pithier wisdom is provided by Nancy, who says that puzzling is “good for the old noggin” and “stops you going doolally when you’re old.” But the book’s sweet-tempered storytelling and game-playing element are appealing and its characters good company even when not much is happening. A nice novel best enjoyed by crossword fans. Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.