The Autumn Killer: A 3-in-1 Murder Mystery Logic Puzzle
by A. S. Remington
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Solution
The archive has given you everything it can. If you have followed every clue, crossed out the impossible, and believe you have identified the killer, the victim, and the weapon, submit your findings and confirm your answers.
Hints
Stuck between two possibilities? Click here for spoiler-safe guidance.
Clues
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FAQs
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The Autumn Killer: A 3-in-1 Murder Mystery Logic Puzzle
Send Word to Detective
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The Autumn Killer: A 3-in-1 Murder Mystery Logic Puzzle
Hints
A NOTE FROM DETECTIVEWe had eight years of evidence and far too many names. Everything you need is in the archive, but not every clue asks you to look at the same thing. Some depend on the name itself, others on its page, chapter, neighbours, or nearby evidence. And remember: the killer is only one part of the case. You still have a victim to identify and a weapon to reconstruct. These are the things I wish we had noticed sooner.— E. S.
Use the Bigger Filters EarlyYou do not have to solve the killer clues strictly in numerical order. If a clue lets you eliminate an entire group of pages, a chapter, or a large section of the archive, using it earlier can save a lot of work.Keep the Original Archive IntactOnce you cross out a name, do not mentally remove it from the archive. Later clues involving neighbours or distances still depend on the original printed sequence.Let the Three Trails Help Each OtherThe Killer, Victim, and Weapon Trails are separate, but they are not completely isolated. If you reach a killer clue that depends on information you do not yet have, solving another trail first may make the next step much easier.Make a Survivor ListInstead of repeatedly scanning the full archive, keep a separate list of candidates that survive each stage. Record the page beside each one. Once the field becomes smaller, later page- and chapter-based checks become much faster.Count on Paper, Not in Your HeadWhenever a clue depends on repeated names, nearby entries, or totals on a page, make a written tally. The archive is intentionally large, and even one missed occurrence can send the elimination in the wrong direction.For the Victim, Work SystematicallyTreat the Recurring Names list like a tracking sheet. Count one listed name at a time across the archive and record the total before moving on to the next. Trying to track several names at once makes mistakes much more likely.For the Weapon, Build the Evidence List FirstBefore applying any elimination rule to the Weapon Trail, first identify which objects from the Loose Evidence Word Bank actually appear in the archive. Once you have that smaller working list, the rest becomes much easier.Keep the Weapon Survivors in OrderAfter eliminating objects, do not alphabetize the survivors or rearrange them. Preserve the order in which they appear in the archive before reading what they reveal.Audit One Candidate at a TimeIf you finish with several possible killers, stop working on the whole archive. Choose one remaining candidate and test it carefully against all eighteen clues from the beginning. Mark each clue as Pass or Fail. This usually exposes the missed condition.If Too Many Names Survive, Recheck the MechanicsA very large survivor pool near the end often means the problem is not one difficult clue, but how an archive rule was applied. Recheck page boundaries, original sequence, special entries, and counting before starting the entire puzzle again.Use the Examples as a Check, Not a ShortcutThe examples at the back are there to confirm how a clue behaves, not to point toward the answer. If a clue feels uncertain, compare your interpretation with its example before continuing.
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Questions, corrections, or feedback? If you found a printing issue, need clarification, or would like to share your thoughts about the puzzle, we would be delighted to hear from you at [email protected]
The Autumn Killer: A 3-in-1 Murder Mystery Logic Puzzle
Frequently Asked Questions
The investigation now unfolds across three connected trails: the Killer, the Victim, and the Weapon. These are the questions readers are most likely to have while working through the population archive, the Recurring Names, and the Loose Evidence. If you are right, the police will finally have the three answers they have been missing.— E. S.
Do the vowels in Clue 1 (Killer Trail) have to be different, and does the letter limit include consonants?No. A name must contain two or more vowels. The vowels do not have to be different — repeated vowels count separately. For example, two occurrences of the same vowel satisfy the vowel requirement.
The other part of the clue applies to all letters in the name, including vowels and consonants: no individual letter may appear more than twice. Only A, E, I, O, and U count as vowels; Y does not.Does a name with no alphabet-neighbour pair pass Clue 3 (Killer Trail)?Yes. A name may contain no alphabet-neighbour pair at all. If one does appear, it must be formed by the first two letters, and there must be no additional pair elsewhere in the name.For Clue 5 (Killer Trail), do I check both directions?Yes. Look both backwards and forwards from the candidate in the original archive order and identify the nearest person-name beginning with the same letter.Do crossed-out names still count in later clues?Yes. Crossing out a name does not remove it from the archive. It still counts for neighbour, distance, page, and counting clues. Always use the original printed archive order.Do Loose Evidence, Leaf Anchors, and Autumn Markers count as person-names?No. Ignore them whenever a Killer clue asks for a person-name, a neighbouring name, or a number of names between entries.Should compound or unusual names be split into separate names?No. If the archive prints something as one entry, treat the entire entry as one person-name.For Clue 15 (Killer Trail), does “exactly one Recurring Name” mean one name or one occurrence?It means exactly one occurrence of a name from the Recurring Names list on that page. If two qualifying occurrences appear, even if they are the same name, the page fails.For the Victim Trail, do similar spellings count as the same name?No. Use exact name matches. Alternate spellings and similar-looking names are different names. Capitalization alone does not make a different name.For the Weapon Trail, do I apply the clues to every object in the Word Bank?No. First find which Word Bank objects actually appear in the archive. Apply the three weapon clues only to those found objects.For Weapon Clue 3, does an object need A, E, and U to survive?No. It only needs at least one of those letters. Cross out an object only if it contains none of A, E, or U.
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The Autumn Killer: A 3-in-1 Murder Mystery Logic Puzzle
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The Autumn Killer: A 3-in-1 Murder Mystery Logic Puzzle
CLUES FOR KILLER TRAIL
Use these 18 clues to identify the killer. Each clue includes a short explanation. Worked examples for every clue are collected in the Clue Examples section at the back of the book. The examples are teaching examples only and do not name the correct killer.
CLUE 1: More Than One Vowel
The killer’s name contains at least two vowels, and no letter appears more than twice.
Only A, E, I, O and U count as vowels. Y does not count. Repeated vowels count separately.
CLUE 2: One Capital Letter
The killer’s name contains exactly one uppercase letter.
Look at the name exactly as it is printed in the archive. There must be one uppercase letter and no more.
CLUE 3: Alphabet Neighbours
The killer’s name may contain no alphabet-neighbour pair at all. If it does contain one, that pair must be formed by the first two letters of the name. No other neighbouring letters anywhere in the name may be consecutive in the alphabet.
Consecutive letters count in either direction, such as A–B or B–A.
CLUE 4: Alphabetical Flank
The name immediately before the killer comes earlier in the alphabet than the name immediately after it.
Compare the two neighbouring person-names using normal dictionary order. Start at the beginning of each name and move from left to right. The first letter that differs decides which name comes earlier. If one name is the beginning of the other, the shorter name comes first.
Page boundaries do not interrupt the sequence. If necessary, continue onto the previous or next archive page. Ignore all non-name entries when finding the neighbouring person-names.
CLUE 5: Same-Initial Distance
There are at least eight other person-names between the killer and the nearest name beginning with the same letter.
Look in both directions from the killer. The nearest person-name beginning with the same letter must have at least eight other person-names between it and the killer.
Continue across page boundaries and ignore non-name entries.
CLUE 6: Close in Length
The killer’s name is no more than two letters longer or shorter than the title of its chapter.
Compare the number of letters in the killer’s name with the number of letters in the chapter title.
CLUE 7: Different Opening
The killer’s name shares no letters with the first person-name on its page.
Only the first person-name in the main archive counts. Ignore the chapter title and all non-name entries. A letter only needs to appear once in both names for them to share that letter.
CLUE 8: Missing Hard Letters
The letters B, D and X do not appear in the killer’s name.
If any one of these letters appears anywhere in a name, that name can be eliminated.
CLUE 9: Between the Leaves
The killer is on a page between the pages containing the Leaf Anchors Maple and Chestnut.
Use the numbered archive pages containing the exact Leaf Anchors Maple and Chestnut. The killer cannot be on either of the two anchor pages themselves.
CLUE 10: Twice the Victim’s Length
The person’s name immediately before the killer is no more than twice the length of the victim’s name, and its first and last letters are different.
Count the letters in the victim’s name and double that number. The previous person-name must have no more than that many letters.
Use the previous person’s name, ignoring any non-name entries between it and the killer. Page boundaries do not interrupt the sequence.
CLUE 11: Long Page Name
The killer’s page contains at least one person-name with nine or more letters.
Only person names in the main archive count. Non-name entries do not.
CLUE 12: Autumn Facing
The page facing the killer’s page contains an Autumn Marker.
Only the exact words listed as Autumn Markers count. “Facing” means the page directly opposite when the book is laid open. It does not matter whether the killer’s own page also contains an Autumn Marker.
CLUE 13: Not at the Opening
The killer is not on either of the first two archive pages of a chapter named for a time of day.
This refers to the first two numbered archive pages belonging to each of those chapters.
CLUE 14: Loose Evidence Nearby
There is a piece of Loose Evidence within four pages of the killer.
Only the entries identified as Loose Evidence count. Loose Evidence on the killer’s own page counts. If the killer is on page p, look from page p − 4 through page p + 4, where those pages exist.
CLUE 15: Exactly One Recurring Name on Page
The killer’s page contains exactly one occurrence of a name from the Recurring Names list.
Only the exact names listed as Recurring Names count. There must be exactly one such person-name on the killer’s numbered archive page.
CLUE 16: Interviewed Nearby
There is an Interviewed Person within seven pages of the killer.
Only the exact names listed as Interviewed Persons count. An Interviewed Person on the killer’s own page counts. Look up to seven numbered archive pages in either direction.
CLUE 17: Interviewed Twice in Chapter
The killer’s chapter contains the same Interviewed Person at least twice.
At least one of the listed Interviewed Persons must appear two or more times within that single chapter. The two appearances do not need to be on the same page.
CLUE 18: Autumn Initials
The killer’s page contains an odd number of person-names beginning with A, U, T, M or N.
Count every person-name on the page whose first letter is A, U, T, M or N. Duplicates are included in the count. Non-name entries are not.
Contact
Questions, corrections, or feedback? If you found a printing issue, need clarification, or would like to share your thoughts about the puzzle, we would be delighted to hear from you at [email protected]
The Autumn Killer: A 3-in-1 Murder Mystery Logic Puzzle
CLUES FOR WEAPON TRAIL
The weapon is hidden in the Complete Loose Evidence Word Bank. Not every object in that list appears in the archive, so first identify the objects you can find. Then apply the three weapon clues and read the first letters of the surviving objects.
CLUE 1: Smudged Ink
Cross out every found object that contains the same letter twice in a row.
CLUE 2: Pocket-Sized
Cross out every remaining object longer than 8 letters.
CLUE 3: Marked Goods
Cross out every remaining object that contains none of the letters from A, E, or U.
Contact
Questions, corrections, or feedback? If you found a printing issue, need clarification, or would like to share your thoughts about the puzzle, we would be delighted to hear from you at [email protected]
The Autumn Killer: A 3-in-1 Murder Mystery Logic Puzzle
CLUE FOR VICTIM TRAIL
One of the Recurring Names belongs to the victim.
CLUE 1: Recurring Name
Count how many times each listed name appears across the archive. The victim is the name that appears exactly 7 times.
Contact
Questions, corrections, or feedback? If you found a printing issue, need clarification, or would like to share your thoughts about the puzzle, we would be delighted to hear from you at [email protected]
The Autumn Killer: A 3-in-1 Murder Mystery Logic Puzzle
Book UpdatesThe Autumn Killer is currently available in its First Edition. No revised or updated edition has been released at this time.Your copy is fully solvable using the clues and data included in the book. If a future edition or important update is released, full details will be posted here.
Contact
Questions, corrections, or feedback? If you found a printing issue, need clarification, or would like to share your thoughts about the puzzle, we would be delighted to hear from you at [email protected]
