The Snowfall Manor Murders – The Advent Calendar Whodunit Mystery: An Interactive Christmas Escape Room Novel with 24 Puzzles and Clues for Mystery Lovers

by Elias Winterbourne

Genres: Christmas

129 pages, Paperback

Published November 6, 2025

Reviews

[Maria · Rating 1 out of 5]

Don’t judge me, this book was a gift. Seriously who writes this stuff? The author’s name is obviously a pseudonym and the writing is overly dramatic. Please don’t tell me I read an AI book! AI should be use to write instructions for how to cook Ramen Soups not literature.

The writing is very weird, the dialogue is really bad. An example is “Clara set the feather on the blotter as if it were a comma in a sentence she meant to complete later” or Gray looking at the clock, “No, he said. The clock is theatre.” and another doozy “Tell him quick, before someone decides you don’t belong in a place even the mice barely fit.” Also, talking about latches and screws on a door “ Mrs. Hemsley’s mouth thinned. “I do not give latches secrets to guest” to what Eleanor responded “But secrets breed.” It was torture to read every day one daily mystery in this weird writing so instead I read the entire book just to finish it, like when you have to rip out a band aid from an oozing cut.

It doesn’t matter if it was written using AI or a horrible translation using a program, this book should have never been published or sold.

[Kelli Nuwer · Rating 1 out of 5]

Very disappointed in this book. One of the chapters decodes a clue that doesn’t actually exist. Quite a few of the “puzzles” aren’t even puzzles. They’re already decoded and explained in the preceding chapter.

[Janice_MadamVivi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Instead of my children receiving miniscule Advent calendar gifts that end up being unwanted kitsch around our house, I choose this mystery to solve together. The concept of solving a mystery over Advent seemed fun to me. I really wanted it to be clever and interesting. Normally, we enjoy read aloud time! However, the clues did not always add up, there were obvious errors, and the puzzles were already solved for us.
I was able to teach my children about personification, and, more specifically, it's overuse.
My quest for a fun Advent activity/gift to complement our biblical Advent continues...
(My son wanted me to put 2 stars instead of just 1 bc we learned about personification.)

[Kaitlyn · Rating 1 out of 5]

Was for work bookclub, I regret the $10 I spent cause this is definitely written by AI 💀

Horrible writing, senseless metaphors every other sentence, and the puzzles either 1. Are solved before you get to think about them 2. Dont make sense or 3. Have made up answers

[Nicole · Rating 1 out of 5]

H O R R I B L E!!

This puzzle book was clearly written by AI. It has multiple errors and even refers to the prompt used when it was created. I tried to return it on Amazon and was immediately given a refund without having to send the book back. That is how bad it is!

[Molly McPheron · Rating 1 out of 5]

Fun idea but absolutely horrendous execution.

[Rebecca Cannaday · Rating 1 out of 5]

Definitely written by AI. Some of the puzzles didn’t even work and the book almost always gave the answer to the puzzle and then asked the puzzle question. Not worth the money or time.

[Larissa McCall · Rating 1 out of 5]

1/5 - So disappointing. This had to have been AI. The story was so disjointed with several plot holes, too much repetition, and just annoying fluff - WE GET IT, THE CLOCK STOPPED AND ITS STILL SNOWING OUT!! I was so burnt out by 'the house knows the secrets' that by the end I just wanted it to be over.

Besides two days, the puzzles were not actually puzzles, the story was a complete spoiler and "solved" the puzzle and then the "task" was just to re-explain it.

There was no resolution with Lillian, and having two endings made no sense. The epilogue said Clara left but the final solution said Eleanor left the house...it made no sense, much like the entire book.

Just wayyyy too many issues. It felt like there was absolutely no editing and the publisher knew puzzle books would be popular this year so pushed it out the door without anyone actually reading it or writing an actual plot or puzzles.