The Nardi Puzzle

By Gabriella Page

Rhiza Press 2026

Reviewed by Zewlan Moor

The Nardi Puzzle is the third book about escape rooms I have reviewed this year, reflecting their huge and ongoing popularity with families and young people.

It is the debut novel of Gabriella Page, an Australian opera singer living in Italy, who participated in the competitive Australian Society of Authors/Copyright Agency Mentorship in 2022.

Page has used her firsthand experience of Italy to set the novel on the island of Sardinia, in a mansion owned by the fictional games developer, Elizabetta Nardi. Sebastian is a 12-year-old Australian boy selected to attend, although he never really finds out the reason he was selected. A little like in Charlie in the Chocolate Factory, in the end it seems to be just luck.

Like Charlie Bucket, Sebastian is a likeable character. He is bullied by his two older brothers, kind to his younger brother and friend, with a mother who seems to be overly moody and harsh to him. She and Sebastian’s father, who is a fly-in-fly-out worker on the mines, are having marital problems, and the ensuing communication breakdown is what enables Sebastian to fly to Italy with a chaperone when he is invited to a party at Nardi Corp.

There are twelve other children from around the world at the party, which soon turns out to be a competition to see who can escape from the East Wing first. Players are allowed to play solo or in groups of up to three, leading to some interesting illustrations of the benefits and drawbacks of teamwork. Sebastian works cooperatively with two team-mates. The “villain” of the group, spoilt, arrogant and bigoted, who makes racist comments about gypsies, plays alone.

The children have a set amount of time to solve a series of puzzles and find the door to escape. A few of the puzzles are included as black-and-white illustrations, and many of the codes rely on careful observation of the rooms and research in the books in the library.

Despite an exciting beginning, with a stalker spying on him on the first page, I found the beginning of the novel a bit stilted and slow. However, once it moved to the Nardi Mansion, the plot raced along. I would recommend parents and teachers encourage their kids to persist with the start. Or make it into a game and write instructions on a post-it-note to start at Chapter 6 (page 48) and return to Chapters 1-5 if you want to learn more about Sebastian’s family.

These strategies will reward reluctant readers with a satisfying storyline and relatable characters they will want to spend time with. Inventive educator notes, including five Nardi puzzles for students, are available for free on the publisher’s website.

Zewlan Moor is the author of Nothing Alike, The Bill Dup and Our World: Philippines. Her latest book, Say Hello Like an Armadillo is out in the US/UK in June 2026 and Australia in Summer 2026-7. Pre-order or add it to your Goodreads Want To Read shelf now!