105 word search puzzles: 10 cases of 10, plus a 5-puzzle finale149 pages, Colour and Printer-Friendly editions, US Letter and A4Grids from 12x12 to 18x18, 4 to 8 directions, decoys from Case 4Every puzzle: 2 missing-word clues and a hidden message in the leftover lettersClickable contents page for tablets, solutions with every found word marked
A word search book with a plot. Every puzzle hides thirteen of its fifteen words; the two you cannot find answer the questions about the case, and the letters you never circle spell a confession, a clue or a lie. Ten connected cases set in the seaside town of Ravensmere lead to a finale where ten objects, ten hours and six suspects come together. Grids grow from 12x12 to 18x18, words start running backwards from Case 4 and decoys creep into every list. Full solutions at the back.
Two editions: full colour and printer-friendly
Language: English
Nothing is shipped. One-time payment, not a subscription.
One-time payment · instant download · not a subscription
This is a word search book that tells a story. Instead of a hundred unrelated grids, you get ten cases, each with a one-page story and ten puzzles set in the places where the crime happened: a library reading room, a bakery before dawn, a sleeper carriage, a lighthouse in a gale. Each puzzle is a normal word search with a twist.
Every puzzle lists fifteen words, but only thirteen are hidden in the grid. The two you cannot find are the answers to the first two questions about the case. Then you read every letter you did not circle, row by row, and they spell out the third answer: what the witness said, what was in the parcel, what the inspector wrote in her notebook. There is no guesswork, and nothing depends on colour, so the printer-friendly edition works in plain black and white.
The tenth puzzle of every case leaves you with an object and an hour, which you record in a case index. In the finale those ten results spell the place where a hidden letter waits, and four more puzzles give you the facts that rule out five of six suspects. Beginners can start at Case 1 with small 12x12 grids; by Case 7 the grids are 16x16, words run in all eight directions and every list carries decoys.
What is in the PDF
Colour Edition PDF (US Letter and A4), 149 pages, with a clickable contents page
Printer-Friendly Edition PDF (US Letter and A4), 149 pages, white pages and thin lines
10 illustrated case stories and a finale story
105 word search puzzles with 315 questions
Case Index page and a suspect table
Complete solutions section
READ-ME-FIRST text file with printing tips
How to play
Print the edition and paper size you prefer, or open the PDF on a tablet and solve with a stylus.
Read the case story, then work through its ten puzzles. Circle the thirteen hidden words and write the two missing ones as the answers to Questions 1 and 2.
Read the leftover letters row by row to find the hidden message that answers Question 3.
After Puzzle 10 of each case, write the object and the hour in the Case Index.
In the finale, turn the ten index results into a ten-letter word, solve the last five puzzles and cross off suspects until one name remains.
Check your answers in the solutions, where every found word is shaded and every message is spelled out.
Questions
Is this a physical book?
No. It is a digital download: two PDF files per edition (US Letter and A4). Print it at home or at a copy shop, or solve it on a tablet.
Do I need to solve the cases in order?
The puzzles get harder from Case 1 to Case 10, and the finale uses the results of all ten cases, so the order matters for the ending. Within a case, the ten puzzles can be done in any order.
What if I cannot find a word?
Two words in every list are deliberately missing; that is the clue. If you are stuck on one of the thirteen hidden words, the solutions at the back show every grid with the found words shaded.
Can I solve it in black and white?
Yes. No puzzle depends on colour. The Printer-Friendly Edition has white pages and thin lines and uses very little ink.
How long does it take?
A small puzzle takes about ten minutes, an 18x18 grid with its hidden message closer to twenty-five. The whole book is roughly thirty hours of solving.
Is it suitable for children?
The stories are cosy crime with no gore, written for adults and teenagers from about twelve. Younger solvers will enjoy the early cases with a little help.
Can I print it more than once?
Yes, for your own household. The files are for personal use and may not be shared or resold.
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