Hints

Intro Page

  • What do you notice on the page that looks like water? Water reflects, could this as well?

  • Try holding the page up to something reflective. What do you see?

  • If you hold the page up to a mirror you should be able to see text in the water. It reads “seek letters”.
    This is a general hint for the rest of the puzzle book.

the path stones

  • There are animal carvings here, and a bunch of symbols, some below the animal heads. Can we match letters to the symbols somehow?

  • The fox gives us the symbols for F-O-X and the hare gives us the symbols for H-A-R-E.
    Can we figure out what the rest of the symbols mean through logic?
    (The longest word is related to letters directly.)

  • With some logical deduction, we get “LAST OF THE ALPHABET” from the stones.
    The last letter of the english alphabet is your answer.

the bird bath

  • The outer ring of the bird bath consists of sets of numerals like I,II.

    Then the center section of the bath looks a bit like a grid, with the axes labelled with the same numerals.

    Can we use the two together somehow?

  • The numerals around the outer ring can be used as coordinates to locate letters on the grid.

    What do they spell?

    (Make sure you follow the arrow on the outer ring, and are orienting yourself accordingly when reading the numerals. The first numeral in the coordinate set is always read on the X-Axis.)

  • There are 19 coordinate sets of numerals.

    Locating letters on the grid, you will get the words “THIRD LETTER IN BRANCH”.

    The third letter in the word branch is your answer.

the statues

  • Is there anything special about the bases of these statues? Can we connect those markings to the subject of each statue somehow?

  • The markings on the bases look a bit like blanks to fill in. If we fill in the blanks with what that statues subjects are, does anything stand out?

    Make sure to keep the plaque in mind: “that which we all share.”

  • Each statue has markings on the bases that match the number of letters in the word that each of the statues represents (owl, squirrel, trowel, lighthouse).

    The plaque points to the only letter that each of those words share. That letter is your answer.

the rain chains

  • What is the plaque at the top trying to tell us?

    Are there repeats on the page?

  • There are a few sets of the same icons on the chains.

    But what could that line in between the SAME, SAME be trying to guide us to do?

  • The line between SAME and SAME is directing you to connect the repeated icons together with a drawn line.

    There should be four lines, none of which overlap, and they should form the shape of a letter. That letter is your answer.

the gazebo

  • You’ve been collecting letters so far, can you put them somewhere?

  • In between the two A’s there are four spaces, and you have collected four letters.

    What do you get if you write down the letters here?

  • If you write down the letters you’ve collected from the other puzzles in order, you will get a six letter word for a flower that starts and ends with “A”.

the Keys

  • The keyhole is an odd shape. So are the bits of the keys.

    Is there one that matches the keyhole exactly?

  • The bits of the keys are pointed at us, but that’s not the direction they’d be pointing when inserting into the lock.

    If you picture holding the key as if you were about to put it into the lock, which one fits?

  • The bit of the key is the shape of the keyhole, but flipped horizontally.

    There is only one key with that shape. The letter on that key is your answer.

the Stairs

  • The text on the page mentions “looking from the right angle”.


    What could that be telling us to do?

  • Try looking from the edge of the paper at the base of the stairs.

    What do you see?

  • If you look at the edge of the paper with your eye almost perpendicular to it, you should see letters begin to form.

    These form a short sentence, telling you which letter to pick out of the word “letter”.

the ghosts

  • The text mentions “seeing through walls”…
    Is that possible here, in some way?

  • While paper isn’t exactly see through, if you hold it up to light you should be able to see both sides at once.

    The ghosts have a particular pattern, what could they be forming?

  • If you hold the paper up to a light, you should be able to see the ghosts overlapping in a way where their bodies form the shape of a letter.

    That letter is your answer.

the pumpkins

  • The text uses the word “fold” to describe taking the poster off the wall.

    Why do you think that is?

  • Make sure you’ve cut along the lines that intersect the little scissor icon.

    Is there anything on the page to clue you into how you should fold the page? A strange symbol or shape, perhaps?

  • There is a small shape on the back of the poster that depicts how the paper should look once you fold it.

    Looking at the paper once folded, you should see a face with two eyes, a nose, and a mouth.

    Match that face to one of the pumpkins to get your letter.

the Spider-Web

  • You need to ring the bell that wakes the spider.

    Which bell’s string connects to the spider at the center of the web?

  • If you trace the lines connected to the bells, only one should reach the center of the web.

    Which bell’s line reaches the web’s center?

  • Trace each line, being careful to follow the line whenever it crosses another line.

    The correct bell is on the right side of the page.

the Graveyard

  • The big headstone at the back contains all the rules to this logic puzzle.

    What are the facts that we have to work with?

  • We know that there is only one knave. We know that each headstone contains only one true statement and only one false statement.

    If we start eliminating statements, can we find one solution where all the above rules are followed for every headstone?

  • Pick any headstone.
    One of the statements on it must be a lie.

    If you cross out one of the statements and carry that logic to the other headstones, do any of the other statements contradict what you’ve established?

    If you find a contradiction, start again. If there are no contradictions, that’s the correct answer.

    Based on the statements you’ve now proven false and true, who is the knave? The first letter of their name is the answer.

the Crypt

  • You’ll have multiple letters from the puzzles you’ve already solved.
    Can you fill them in on the page?

  • There are six slots on the lock.
    You can list the letters you’ve found in order.

  • Feel free to check your answer on mjblackwood.com/eerie-estate.

    Put your answer in the password spot in all lowercase.