The Christmas Jigsaw Murders
Alexandra Benedict

This was enjoyable as a cosy Christmas mystery and also very busy. We had a murder mystery to solve and also puzzles and riddles throughout. The protagonist was rather unlikable at times.
I’m not totally convinced we needed the puzzles as it almost detoured you away.

Do you enjoy working on jigsaw puzzles? We were working on them more as a family during COVID times, but not as much now. My daughter just asked if we could work on one again, so we’ll see if the puzzle table comes out.

Edie O’Sullivan is eighty years old and enjoys her job putting together crossword puzzles for national newspapers. She loves her great-nephew/adopted son, Detective Inspective (DI) Sean Brand-O’Sullivan. Sean is having a stressful Christmas season as he and his husband, Liam, work on trying to show that they would be good adoptive parents. A package with a few puzzle pieces including a picture of Sean’s watch shows up on Edie’s doorstep. Will she be able to put together the puzzle and solve the clues to stop the murderer from reaching her family?

My thoughts on this novel:
• This novel had great characters. I felt like they were all unique personalities and interesting. Edie is a very grumpy character and seems to not care, but she deeply loves her nephew Sean. She has put up walls to protect herself from the heartbreaks she has suffered through her life. I wanted to spend more time with Edie and the characters in this community.

• I couldn’t put this book down and read it quickly as I wanted to know the answer and if Edie would be able to save her nephew.

• This novel was a good look into not judging people. Many people have things going on in their life that you don’t know about. Give people grace.

• I enjoyed that signature on the note that came with the puzzle pieces was signed “rest in pieces.” It made me chuckle every time I read it.

• I definitely did not guess the ending of this one! Besides the resolution of the mystery, the ending also had a heartwarming conclusion.

• The author had a variety of challenges in the book for the reader to complete with answers at the back of the novel. I was lazy and didn’t do any of the challenges.

• This author has written other Christmas mysteries that interest me. I’ll maybe pick some of them up to read next year.

Overall, The Christmas Jigsaw Murders by Alexandra Benedict was a riveting mystery with a great grumpy older main character with a heart of gold.

Book Source: E-book review copy from NetGalley and I purchased a paperback edition from Amazon.com. Thank-you! Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

3.5/5!

I’m pretty sure Alexandra Benedict is the queen of Christmas murder mysteries!

This is the third Christmas installment I’ve read from Benedict and each year I look forward to what puzzling mystery we’ll receive.

Admittedly, Jigsaw took me the most time out of the three books to get into, but I did find the case to be fascinating as we learned more. I was able to piece some things together as we went along and my final “aha moment” came right before the grand reveal.

I will say I liked the explanation of why these murders came to be a lot. It was don’t in a very ode to Agatha Christie vibe where the detective or in this case amateur sleuth lays everything out. I had a lot of questions and Benedict succeeded in answering all of them by the last page.

If you’re looking for some holiday murder mystery fun next year, I definitely recommend putting Benedict’s books on your radar!

I was excited for this read and did enjoy the premise and all the organization that went into the formatting and puzzles embedded throughout. However, the actual content (or more specifically the style dialogue) fell flat for me. It was not an addicting read for me as mystery/thrillers can feel since I usually don't want to put the book down. I had a hard time connecting with the main character at times and found it difficult to understand the phrasing at many points in the story. I think the intention and premise was fun, however the execution had room for improvement.

Still a big thank you to netgalley for approving this arc for me even after the pub date.

Anagrams of novels and holiday stories, titles of 16 Fleetwood Mac songs, and jigsaw pieces at the top of each chapter are clues to see if readers can solve the case faster than the characters. I didn’t try, just went with the flow. See if you can figure out all the hints or, like me, just want to enjoy the story. There are recipes and crosswords as well.

Edie O’Sullivan has a reputation for being an old grouch. It’s just that she likes things a certain way and at certain times and so few people comply. It’s just easier to avoid them. She is a good friend to her neighbor, Riga. When a package is delivered from an anonymous source, it contains a note and a jigsaw piece. Since Edie creates puzzles, the sender is sure she’ll solve their puzzle. If not, someone will die.

This is the beginning of the killer leading Edie on what they think is a merry chase. The victims may seem random but are not—they’re leading to Sean, Edie’s nephew, a police detective, who the killer says will be the final victim. Can Edie decipher the clues in time to save Sean? Chasing down the clues is getting Edie out of her house and interacting with people more than she has done in years. She’s not sure she likes it.

Edie’s personality is an acquired taste but once she lets someone into her life, they’re a permanent addition. Her friendship with Riga is a special one. Edie’s love for Sean is boundless. She’ll do anything to save him.

For readers who like to read the story as it unfolds and be surprised, this works. I did have an idea about the killer’s identity but not the motive—that only happened near the end of the book. Anyone who loves a puzzling plot to solve as it’s read—this is the book for you.

I love a good festive mystery! The Christmas Jigsaw murders provides a nice Christmas setting along with a must solve it mystery. This book is not the cozy mystery it appears to be as it does get a little dark but overall a great read.

I found this to be a very confusing mystery. But I did enjoy it! It kept me intrigued and trying to figure out what would happen next

I did enjoy this book however I did find it confusing the first half as there are way to many characters. I was intrigued with the plot and the outcome of the story however it was a little overwhelming. Althoufh this wasn’t a favorite read I would read this author again.

3.5 stars rounded up. This was a mostly fun, lightly suspenseful and festive book. I found the characters interesting, though not always likable, and the story held my attention. It kept me guessing until the end. The resolution was a bit confusing though. I didn't see it coming and I'm not really sure how I could have. I prefer mysteries where the killer stays close to the action.

I read an ARC of this book from NetGalley. All comments are my own.

A fun puzzle mystery to try to solve murders before Christmas. The jigsaw clues and extra bonus puzzle was a great addition. I'd pick this up if you like puzzles and murder!

The Christmas Jigsaw Murders 🎄🧩

I was lucky enough to receive an advanced reader copy of The Christmas Jigsaw Murders by Alexandra Benedict, and I was immediately captivated. This festive whodunit follows a group of friends who receive a mysterious package containing a jigsaw puzzle. However, this is no ordinary puzzle; it depicts a crime scene, and the sender warns that unless they can solve the puzzle and stop the killer, four people will die by midnight on Christmas Eve.

The novel expertly blends the thrill of a fast-paced mystery with the cozy charm of the holiday season. The characters are engaging, and the suspense builds steadily throughout. While the ending may be a bit predictable, the journey to get there is filled with intriguing twists and turns.

The Christmas Jigsaw Murders is the perfect holiday read for mystery lovers.

Rating: ★★★★☆

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This story is told in third person and follows Edie O’Sullivan. Edie is a renowned puzzle setter and quite the curmudgeon. I think your enjoyment of the book will depend on how comfortable you are with Edie. She’s that relative that says what she thinks before thinking about whether it will hurt feelings.

Edie finds a hand-delivered present on her doorstep with a few jigsaw pieces inside and a note signed “Rest in Pieces” indicating that she must solve the puzzle to prevent multiple murders. She contacts her nephew, Sean, who is a police investigator, and they work on the investigation together in the beginning, but he later concludes that it’s too dangerous for her to be involved and shuts her out. Of course, she continues her own investigation without him.

There are multiple games interspersed throughout as described in the front of the book. I love puzzles and enjoyed finding the musical references. I have discovered that I am terrible at anagrams. There are also a few interspersed chapters that follow the killer. I’m not usually a fan of points of view from the killer and admit that they annoyed me a bit in this story. I found the mystery to be entertaining and unpredictable. I love to have a few nonromance holiday books this time of year, so this book fit perfectly into my seasonal reading plan.

Thank you to Netgalley and Poisoned Pen Press for a copy provided for an honest review.

This was a very interesting and slightly complex book. I admit to having just a bit of trouble getting into the advanced reader comp graciously given to me by Net Galley. But, once I knuckled down, got comfortable with the writing style and turned on my detective brain, it turned out to be an enjoyable read. The author did an excellent job of developing the plot line and I admit to not immediately realizing who the killer was. Again, thanks to NetGalley but the opinion is my own.

Alexandra Benedict writes a fantastic holiday murder mystery book! I read a different one last year that I enjoyed very much, and this one was even better!
I was genuinely stumped by this mystery and loved solving all of the jigsaw clues along with Edie.

This was a bit darker than what I was expecting. It's definitely not a sweet, cozy Christmas mystery. It was much more in the style of Agatha Christie.The ending was tidy, and all of the pieces to this mystery fell together quite nicely. I will definitely be reading more books by Alexandra Benedict, especially her Christmas mysteries.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are my own.

The Christmas Jigsaw Murders by Alexandra Benedict is an enjoyable mystery. The main character, Edie, is an older woman who is well-known as a puzzle setter. Unexpectedly, she is drawn into a puzzle that she must solve by Christmas Eve in order to prevent four or maybe more murders.

This book sparkles with an unusual premise and plot. While the characters are well-drawn, it was difficult to like Edie. However, she’s an interesting individual, quite intelligent, and her backstory explains a lot about her general outlook on life and people.

The puzzles that are presented are fun to try and solve (I usually failed miserably) and as the pieces come together the mystery begins to make more sense. A couple of times I felt that the conclusions that were being drawn weren’t quite based on the evidence presented. But, I suspect I felt that way because I had missed a crucial piece of information. This is a book that requires the reader to pay attention.

Meanwhile, the final chapters have some surprises and the conclusion is quite satisfying. I thoroughly enjoyed The Christmas Jigsaw Murders. It was a great book to read during the holiday season. NetGalley provided an advance reader copy.

I struggled to finish this one. The characters are not well written and incredibly unlikable. On paper this book should have been everything I look for and enjoy in a book but it repeatedly failed. The concept has great potential but this book wasn’t what I hoped it would be.

I did really enjoy this book. The Who done it plot was great especially with the Christmas theme and I enjoyed the killers POV. Great suspense read especially if your looking for one to help you stay in that holiday frame of mind!

I read this book really quick and it kept me engaged. The Whodunit plot was great for a Christmas thriller and it had some good overall lessons from the plot. I enjoyed hearing from the killer’s voice and it did keep me guessing until the end.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for a copy to honestly review.

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read this. I had hoped that this book would get me into reading more cosy mysteries, but it wasn’t that successful. While I loved the queer rep and thought the author had clearly planned out the story carefully I agree with most other reviewers in saying that the book wasn’t that captivating.

If this wasn’t for NetGalley I might have DNF’ed it. Thankfully the last part of the book really picked up and I was genuinely interested in how everything would wrap up.

The Christmas Jigsaw Murders, by Alexandra Benedict, is the perfect read for this holiday season, especially for the Agatha Christie's fans.

In fact, the protagonist is an eighty-year-old lady who is supposed to decipher an intrincate message from "Rest In Pieces", promising to kill four people before Christmas. Eddie receives messages with both jigsaws and anagrams, referring to her job as a crossword maker.

Eddie has a strong hatred for Christmases, due to her tragic past losses,. She will have to overcome her issues and help her son/grandnephew Sean, who works with the police, to stop the killer.

Although the book shows some graphic murder scenes, its focus is on the solution of the clues. Helped by her ninety-year-old friend Riga, Eddie will have to face her secrets and conflicts. What makes the narrative even more interesting is the use of references ( Charles Dickens mainly) and the anagrams contained in the mystery letters directed to Eddie.

In short, a cozy mystery that will keep the reader eager for the pages to come, and for the solution to all the mysteries involved. I really got interested in knowing other themed titles by the author.