5/5 Stars-Reader's Favorite

The Enigmatologist is a novel written by Ben Adams. Tired of the same old private investigative assignments which always ultimately bring unhappiness and divorce for the client, John Abernathy is relieved when the National Enquirer calls, offering a hefty sum if he can prove that a recent photograph provided to them is of the real Elvis Presley. Not dissuaded by the fact that the previous investigator was murdered, John sets off to Las Vegas and looks into the matter, knowing that he can design a few crossword puzzles in his spare time during the assignment. John’s investigation leads him to being sexually propositioned by an 80+ year old woman who enjoys BDSM, before being kidnapped by the military, being held at gunpoint by a barman and eventually gaining the attention of the local sheriff who immediately recognizes the man in the photograph. On learning, first-hand, why the not-so-photogenic Elvis really had to disappear from everybody’s radar, John quickly goes into damage control, trying to throw the tabloid magazine off Elvis’ trail before everybody from crazed fans to the Mafia take over the quiet town. Unfortunately, John’s good intentions don’t quite go according to plan as the National Enquirer chooses to go ahead with the story anyway, embellishing the truth and creating a nightmare which stirs up a hornet’s nest, adding to the body count.

The first word that comes to mind after reading The Enigmatologist is WOW! This is definitely a unique and extremely imaginative and humorous tale which has a lot going on, keeping the reader interested, focused and wanting more. At first, the main character is bored and unhappy with making others unhappy and is excited at something different. With all of the evidence pointing in one direction, and a giant painted artwork of Elvis’ appendage pointing in another, John Abernathy follows all leads, determined to get to the truth of the matter. I almost woke the neighbors, laughing at the insane interaction between John and the woman who had taken the photo, especially when her painted depiction of The King subtly caught John’s eye. Ben Adams has found the perfect combination of action, adventure, drama, suspense, and comedy and intrigue in this murder-mystery with a twist and I recommend The Enigmatologist to all Elvis fans who love to laugh. - Rosie Malezer for Readers' Favorite

5/5 Stars- J Bronder Book Reviews

John Abernathy graduated with a degree in enigmatology, specifically the creation and design of crossword puzzles. Unfortunately there really are no practical jobs in his field so he has taken a job as a private investigator and is very unhappy. But when he approached to go to Las Vegas and authenticate a picture of Elvis, things start getting pretty wild.

Elvis is really an Elvis impersonator by the name of Al Leadbelly. John’s investigation leads him to Al’s destroyed house along with the first person sent out to authenticate the picture. Now John is in the sights of Alvin Hollister and gets wrapped up in a story full of aliens, shape shifters, Abraham Lincoln, and even his great-great-great grandfather.

This story has everything and had me hooked from the very beginning where John is presenting a wife with pictures of her cheating husband and she has the completely opposite reaction. John is clearly unhappy but cannot seem to find his place. But this is a puzzle that us just itching to be solved and will leave you very surprised at the end.

If you are looking for a wild mystery I strongly recommend you check out The Enigmatologist. It’s a great story that will have you questioning if Elvis really did die in 1977.

BookViral

Vividly imaginative and unassumingly assured, The Enigmatologist proves a gem of a debut for Ben Adams. A cool, indie ‘mash-up’ of genres set against a Nevada background, it’s an artful combination of pizzazz, mystery, solemnity and laugh out loud humour that invites us to think of the clichéd private eye persona in an altogether new way. As the story unfolds it provides a rich source of dialogue, behaviour and incidents whilst in John Abernathy and Al Leadbelly we discover characters who quickly grab our attention and we quickly come to care about. These alone are reason to turn the pages, but what is particularly clever is how Adams transposes the attitudes and dialogue of classic detective fiction to create an altogether original narrative. Take it for granted that the plot is somewhat eccentric with stories within stories. There’s conspiracies and alien intrigue with Adams keeping us on point through out with arbitrary twists, but what ultimately makes his debut stand out is how the underlying themes come together into a pitch perfect denouement which will leave you wondering what really happened to Elvis!

If there’s any justice in the world then The Enigmatologist deserves to be widely applauded. A superb debut for Adams, it is recommended without reservation.