Chapter 1 of 10
The Tuesday bus stops at the Harmony crossroads long enough to put down one passenger: a lean man in a pressed surplus coat who shoulders a duffel, reads the painted sign over the general store, and crosses the road like a man who practiced it. He waits his turn behind the seed order and the gossip, takes off his hat, and asks Mrs. Ada Bly, politely, whether she is Mrs. Ada Bly. Then he asks for a room, buys a cake of soap, and leaves. By closing, the store has replayed it forty times. He asked for her by her full name, says the counter regulars, the way process servers do, and men with angles. Ada says nothing. She had watched his hands while he waited; they had been at parade rest, and that made her hold the counter's edge.
Use the arrow keys to move between letters. Press Enter or Space on the first letter of a word, then again on the last letter. Press Escape to cancel.
armchairpuzzles.com · free large-print word searches
About this case
A chapter of The Man off the Bus, a mystery told in word searches. Each chapter leaves you one clue; the finale needs them all.
How a mystery chapter works
- 1Read the scene first.Every chapter opens with a scene from the case. The word list is drawn from it, and so is the clue.
- 2Find the words.Tap a word's first letter, then tap along to its last, or press and drag. Found words colour themselves in and cross off the list.
- 3One listed word is not in the grid.Find the other nine and the word left over is the chapter's clue. Note it down, or let the case page keep it for you.
- 4The finale needs every clue.The last puzzle's word list is the clues you collected, and once you find them all, the leftover letters spell out who did it, and why.
Prefer pen and paper?
Print The Man off the Bus as one large-print booklet: every chapter and its puzzle, a clue ledger, and the ending sealed on the last page.