Christmas Murder Mystery Advent Calendar: Printable 24-Day Elimination Puzzle, Find the Killer

🎄 A CHRISTMAS MURDER MYSTERY ADVENT CALENDAR — ONE NEW CLUE EVERY DAY, 1–24 DECEMBER

The Parcel Post Poisoner is a printable advent calendar mystery: 24 doors, 300 illustrated parcels and exactly one killer. Open a door each day, read what happened, cross out every parcel that breaks the new clue — and on Christmas Eve only one is left.

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📮 THE CASE
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Every year on the Saturday after Thanksgiving, the whole of Hollybrook, Vermont queues at the post office on the Green to send its Christmas parcels down the valley on the 4:40 mail train. In 1952 that Saturday was the twenty-ninth of November, and the postmistress, Mrs. Hattie Pell, took in three hundred parcels between eight in the morning and half past four, with the door locked for her dinner from noon until one.

Mrs. Pell does things properly. She stuck a numbered Christmas Rush label on every parcel in the order she took it in — No. 1 at eight o’clock — and wrote each one into her Parcel Book: the time, the sender, their street, where it was going, its weight and the service paid for. Customers who came without wrapping used the wrapping table by the window, where she sells paper, twine and boxes at a penny a sheet.

The killer hid the evidence in the one place nobody may look: the Christmas mail. Three hundred parcels are snowed in at the post office — and they leave on the 4:40 mail train on Christmas Eve. The judge will sign a warrant for ONE parcel, if you can tell him which.

“Dear Detective, They have locked up Molly Calloway for poisoning Mr. Pruitt, and Molly wouldn’t poison a wasp. Whoever did it took Mr. Pruitt’s black ledger out of the bank — and on Saturday afternoon they walked into my post office, wrapped it up as a Christmas parcel and handed it to me across my own counter. Little Ruthie Gage saw it done. Three hundred parcels are sitting on my back-room shelves, snowed in until the plough train comes on Christmas Eve. The law won’t let me open a single one. But the judge will sign a warrant for ONE — if you can tell him which. I’ll send you whatever we learn, a little every day. Please hurry.”
— Hattie Pell, Postmistress, Hollybrook, Vermont

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🎁 HOW THE ADVENT CALENDAR WORKS
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1️⃣ Before December: read the case, meet the persons of interest and look over the Snowbound Shelves.
2️⃣ From 1 December: open one door a day — a few lines of story and one new clue (10–20 minutes a day).
3️⃣ Cross out every parcel that breaks the clue. Each door tells you how many parcels you should have left.
4️⃣ On 24 December one parcel is left. Name it — then open the sealed solution on Christmas Day.

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✅ WHY YOU’LL LOVE IT
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✔ A real advent ritual: 24 little door cards you print, fold and seal — or open on a phone, tablet or computer
✔ A picture puzzle: 300 hand-drawn Christmas parcels — stars, holly, ribbons, string, stamps and seals
✔ Exactly ONE answer — the whole case is checked by computer, with a count to check every day
✔ Short daily sessions, a cosy 1950s story, a twist on Christmas Day
✔ Play solo, as a couple or as a family of grown-ups and teens — or binge it in a weekend any time of year
✔ Makes a lovely gift: print and fold the doors for someone who loves a mystery

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📂 WHAT YOU RECEIVE
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✓ Case File PDF — story, 11 persons of interest, how to play, a 24-day detective’s calendar, how to read a parcel, the Snowbound Shelves (300 parcels) and the verdict page
✓ The Advent Doors — 24 fold-up door cards (one per page, single-sided printing) + a one-door-a-page version for screens
✓ The Parcel Book PDF — the postmistress’s register of every parcel
✓ Sealed Solution PDF — open on Christmas Day: the killer, the full story and the day-by-day walkthrough
✓ US Letter AND A4, full colour AND ink-saving printer-friendly versions
✓ PLUS a Large Print Edition — bigger text and bigger pictures, easy on the eyes

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👤 GREAT FOR
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🎄 Advent calendar lovers · 🔍 Murder mystery & cosy crime fans · 🧩 Logic puzzle fans · 💑 Couples · 🎁 Stocking stuffers & gifts for mum, dad or a friend

📌 PLEASE NOTE
• This is a DIGITAL DOWNLOAD — no physical item will be shipped. Print at home or at a print shop.
• Some illustrations were created with the help of AI image tools; the puzzle, story and design are our own.
• For personal use only. Please do not share or resell.
• Questions? Message us any time — we reply quickly.

More Case Files and murder mystery party games in the shop: Midnight Motive.

Detective… the first door opens on 1 December.