Gifts for mystery and puzzle lovers
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Puzzle lovers are surprisingly hard to buy for: they’ve done the obvious jigsaws, they finish the crossword before you’ve found a pen, and they can smell an easy puzzle a mile off. What they want is something with a bit of depth — a proper mystery to get stuck into over the Christmas break.
A real case to crack
A murder mystery case file for the Christmas holidays
Cold Case Inc, based in Tamworth, make online murder-mystery games played in a browser: you read witness statements, study evidence and work out who did it. There are eleven standalone fictional cases of one to four hours each, with no subscription. The Stonewood Mystery, set in an English village, is the gentlest place to start. Players rate the cases 4.8/5, and they won the 2024 Bullseye Award for Best Overall Digital Game.
About £9.99 per case.
A case voucher that lands at 9am on Christmas Day
If you’re not sure which case to choose, or want it to arrive as a surprise, a Cold Case gift voucher lets you pick the case, add a message and set the delivery date and time — Christmas morning is a popular choice. Vouchers don’t expire.
About £9.99. At the time of writing, Cold Case are running a Christmas 3-for-2 with the code CASE3FOR2 — handy if you’re buying for several puzzle fans at once.
A wedding-day whodunnit for a sleuthing couple
Love, Aisle and Murder is Cold Case’s newest case — a murder at a wedding. Couples can play together on two devices at once, so it suits a pair who like to argue over the evidence.
About £9.99.
Classic puzzle gifts
A 1,000-piece jigsaw for the Christmas table
A big jigsaw is the ideal Christmas-week project — something to pick at between meals, with whoever happens to sit down. Choose an image they’ll enjoy staring at for hours: a map, a vintage poster, a busy illustrated scene.
A cryptic crossword book for Boxing Day
A collection of newspaper cryptics is perfect for the quiet days after Christmas. Pair it with a good pencil and an eraser, and if they’re still learning, add a beginner’s guide to how cryptic clues work.
An escape room in a box for Christmas afternoon
Boxed escape-room games turn the living room into a locked room for an hour or two. They’re a good group activity for families with older children, and most can only be played once — so check they haven’t done that one already.
A treasure hunt to find the main present
For the ultimate puzzle lover, don’t just hand over the gift — hide it, and write a trail of clues around the house. Riddles, anagrams, a cipher on the fridge. It costs nothing and is often the part of Christmas they remember.
Making it a Christmas tradition
Many puzzle-loving families save one big puzzle for the days between Christmas and New Year, when nobody quite knows what day it is. A new case file, a fresh jigsaw or a crossword book can become that tradition — something to look forward to once the presents are open.
Tips for buying
- Match the difficulty. A beginner wants a satisfying win; an expert wants to be properly stretched.
- Think about who they’ll play with. Solo, as a couple or as a family — it changes the right pick.
- Avoid anything they’ve already solved. Ask a partner or check their shelf if you can.
More personalised ideas: Personalised gifts at You Personalise · Couple’s Challenge Game Night at Cupidly · Christmas cards at Lush Lobster
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