The Contest

Macfee’s underwhelming sophomore effort (after Nine Tenths) centers on Gillian Charles, a 30-year-old former logic puzzle prodigy struggling to make ends meet as a personal shopper in Los Angeles. When Gillian’s former rival, Tommy Kundojjala, offers her $50,000 to investigate Miscellany, the puzzle-themed amusement park where he works, she reluctantly accepts. Eighteen years earlier, a 12-year-old Tommy narrowly defeated Gillian in a national tournament at Miscellany; now, Tommy suspects someone is leaking answers to prospective contestants before a new staging of that competition. Returning to Miscellany after nearly two decades, Gillian navigates a complex web of relationships with her former friend Martin Ellsberg, now in charge of security; Tommy’s estranged wife, Evelina; and Sebastian Luna, the park’s single-minded founder, who offers Gillian financial security if she turns her attentions elsewhere. As she digs deeper and uncovers significant financial misconduct, Gillian confronts thorny questions of loyalty and ambition. Despite an intriguing premise, Macfee generates little tension or suspense in the narrative’s middle stretch before ushering the proceedings to a lukewarm conclusion. It’s a case of unrealized potential. Agent: Lisa Rodgers, JABberwocky. (Feb.)