Point of View

This novel is told from the third person limited point of view, primarily from the perspectives of Hugo Reese and Lucy Hart. The third person point of view helps advance the story because although Lucy is the protagonist, there are other key characters in the story whose stories must be followed in order for what happens to Lucy to make sense. This third person limited point of view allows author Meg Shaffer to tell all of these character’s stories with more or less insight depending upon who the narration is following.

The third person is advantageous because this novel is, in part, a mystery. Unlike traditional mysteries, there is no crime to solve, but the reader is left in the dark about why Jack is holding the contest as well as to what the answers to his riddles are. In short, Jack is the...