Our mystery puzzle books are printable PDFs for people who like their crime fiction with a pencil in hand. Each one tells a self-contained story and every puzzle you solve moves the case forward, so you end with a culprit rather than just a stack of finished grids. All of them come in a colour edition and a printer-friendly edition, in US Letter and A4, and all of them can be played on a tablet with a stylus instead of printed.
They are very different in length and style, though. Here is what each one is and who it suits, so you can pick the right one for an evening, a weekend or a whole month.
At a glance
- Shortest: The Midnight Vault, about 30 to 45 minutes.
- Most variety: The Saltmarsh Case Files, 25 puzzles in 16 types.
- Most relaxing: Death at the Museum Gala or 100 Detective Word Search Puzzles.
- Best for December: Last Train to Edelweiss, one puzzle a day until Christmas Eve.
The Midnight Vault: a 45-minute murder mystery
A bank vault opens at midnight with its keeper still inside. You get five pieces of evidence (a time lock tape, the strongroom plan, a door log, a coded notebook and the night guard's log) and six puzzles that lock together like a chain: each answer opens the next, and the last one asks you to name the killer and explain how it was done.
Time and difficulty: most players finish in 30 to 45 minutes. Nothing to cut or fold, no outside knowledge needed. Best for: a first try, a short evening, or two to four people sharing the documents. See The Midnight Vault.
The Saltmarsh Case Files: 25 detective puzzles
A lighthouse keeper vanishes in a storm. Each of the 25 files on the detective's desk is a different kind of puzzle: Morse code, a mirror-written note, a tide-table number lock, letter sudoku, word searches with hidden messages, logic grids, alibi tables and ciphers. Every solved file gives you one fact, and when you have all 25 you close the case and name the killer.
Time and difficulty: three to five hours over a few sittings, rising from level 1 to 5, with two hints per puzzle and full answers. Best for: puzzle fans who get bored doing the same type twice. See The Saltmarsh Case Files.
Death at the Museum Gala: a name elimination puzzle
A museum curator is found dead during a fundraising gala, and the killer is one of 3,000 names on the guest list. Apply 18 clues in order and cross out every guest who does not fit, checking your count after every third clue, until one name is left. Three clues are locked behind small side puzzles.
Time and difficulty: two to four hours; the first clues take longest, later ones go quickly. Careful reading and simple counting, nothing obscure. Best for: anyone who finds long, steady pencil work relaxing. If the format is new to you, our guide to how name elimination puzzles work explains the techniques. See Death at the Museum Gala.
100 Detective Word Search Puzzles
A word search book with ten linked cold cases running through it. Each grid lists fifteen words but hides only thirteen; the two you cannot find answer questions about the case, and the leftover letters spell a hidden message. A five-puzzle finale brings all ten cases together.
Time and difficulty: 105 puzzles, so weeks of dipping in. Grids grow from 12x12 to 18x18, words run backwards from Case 4 and in all eight directions from Case 7. Best for: word search lovers who want a story, and as an easy gift. See the word search book.
Last Train to Edelweiss: an advent murder mystery
A sleeper train is stopped by snow in a mountain town, and a music-box collector is found dead in his compartment. Every day from 1 to 24 December you solve one puzzle, get one clue and cross names off a register of 480 suspects. On Christmas Eve exactly one name is left.
Time and difficulty: 10 to 25 minutes a day, with two hints and the answer for every day and a sealed Christmas Eve solution. Ages 12 and up. Best for: families and couples who want a daily December ritual instead of chocolate. See Last Train to Edelweiss.
Which one should you choose?
- Short on time: The Midnight Vault.
- Want the most different puzzle types: The Saltmarsh Case Files.
- Want something calm and meditative: Death at the Museum Gala or the word search book.
- Playing as a family in December: Last Train to Edelweiss.
- Buying a gift: the word search book for casual solvers, Saltmarsh for keen puzzlers. Our mystery gift guide has more ideas.
All five are cosy mysteries for ages 12 and up, with nothing graphic on the page. Browse them side by side in the mystery puzzle books collection, or see the whole printables range, including party kits, escape rooms and cold case files.