Shut The Books

About this board game

Shut the Books is a 2024 trick-taking game for 3–4 players, with a play time of about 40 minutes.

There is no master today, so the forbidden books are ready to be used. Their beautiful magic is coming out—but everything must be cleaned up by the time you get back. This playful premise sets the stage for a card game built around bidding and tricks.

In Shut the Books, players bid with cards before working to win tricks. To take a trick, aim to play a card that matches the card played by color or by number.

• Players: 3–4
• Play time: approximately 40 minutes
• Core mechanic: trick-taking with card-based bidding
• Winning condition: match a played card by color or number

The number of tricks performed also changes depending on the number of cards played. That rule gives the card count a direct role in how the tricks unfold, alongside the need to bid and match cards effectively.

With its forbidden-book theme and concise card-driven structure, Shut the Books combines a magical story with a distinctive trick-taking system. Players must use cards both for bidding and for pursuing tricks, while the changing number of tricks adds another defining feature to the game.