The Killer Isn't Alice: The 46,600 Suspect Murder Mystery Puzzle

by Iris Starling

46,600 SUSPECTS. 18 CLUES. 1 KILLER.

Alice Starling is missing. The scene she left behind is a a dead body, a cryptic note, and a massive binder containing tens of thousands of names. The police are baffled, but Alice didn't leave her fate to the authorities. She left it to you.

The Killer Isn’t Alice is a first of its kind murder mystery experience. It is not a story to be read, but a case to be solved.


THE ULTIMATE LOGIC PUZZLE

This book contains a staggering list of 46,600 potential suspects. Somewhere in this sea of names hides a murderer. Alice has provided you with 18 specific, calculated clues to filter the innocent from the guilty.


YOUR MISSION IS SIMPLE BUT RIGOROUS

Analyze the Clues: Use the 18 pieces of evidence Alice entrusted to you.

Eliminate the Innocent: Methodically narrow down the list by stripping away those who do not fit the criteria.

Identify the  Find the one name that satisfies every single clue.


A NEW GENRE OF INTERACTIVE MYSTERY

Forget everything you know about whodunnits. There are no red herrings or narrative tricks here. This is a pure test of logic, observation, and deduction. You are the investigator. The binder is your crime scene. The truth is buried in the data.

One name. Eighteen clues. Forty-six thousand suspects.

Can you find the killer before time runs out for Alice?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Genres: Mystery, Puzzles, Mystery Thriller

211 pages, Paperback

Published February 22, 2026

Reviews

[Caitlin Ford · Rating 4 out of 5]

- one star because I almost lost my sanity

[Belles · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good mystery puzzle book! Minus 1 star because it was very mentally taxing to read nothing but an endless list of names. Because of that I wish it was a bit shorter. But I did enjoy it. I will probably now look for other puzzle books like this in the future.

[Nina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love love love love love this idea. Once you think you know who the killer is, there is a website you submit to and they will let you know if you are correct or incorrect. It took me about 5 days from doing it in the evening and I got it on my first try. But ugh, I hope she does more because this was wonderful.

[Sabrina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Liked it at first, but hated the ending. The concept is interesting, but the book is way too long. After reading hundreds of pages of names and details, missing a single page meant I couldn't solve the mystery. I had to look online to find out what I missed, and only then did the clues make sense. Clever idea, but overly drawn out and frustrating.

[Colton Campbell · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little daunting, but very cool how it rewires your brain to make things easier on yourself to solve.

[Anja Legermann-Schmitz · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you enjoy huge Puzzles you will enjoy this too. It is not very rewarding in the beginning and given that you get absolutely no back story it couldn’t hold my attention.

[Ryann Barnash · Rating 4 out of 5]

Title: The Killer Isn’t Alice
Author: Iris Starling
Genre: Puzzle Book
Length: 211 pgs.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

This book was surprisingly more difficult than I originally thought it would be - crossing off names doesn’t sound all that hard until you’re on page 115 of 200 and all the words have started to blur together. I ended up using different colored highlighters for each clue which helped a lot and made for some pretty cool-looking pages.
I also didn’t do the clues in order, which was a big help because some of them would have taken forever to complete if I hadn’t narrowed down the options first. I’d also say to take full advantage of the website - there’s an FAQ page that was able to answer all of my questions (I guess my problems aren’t that original).
This puzzle book is perfect for staying busy on long car rides, plane flights, etc., slow days at work, or just for relaxing every night before bed. It’s great because, as long as you remember what clue you were on, you don’t have to hold a bunch of details and hints in your head between solving sessions. I was able to put it down for almost a week at one point and come back and pick it up exactly where I’d left off without any issues.
This book saved me on some long car rides and slow days working customer service, and I was really proud of myself when I finally figured out who the killer was!

This book is currently only available for purchase on Amazon.

[Sophie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book drives you crazy in the best way possible. It's a little daunting at first but it gets super fun once you narrow some of the pages down. You'll think you know what you're doing but then another clue completely changes the way you have to think. I've started looking at names in real life places and accidentally applying the clues to those words. There's also a great community on tiktok that is extremely helpful if you're feeling a little bit stuck. All in all it's a fantastic puzzle and I really hope she makes more.

[Ashley Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you love murder mystery puzzles this one is the one for you.
With 46600 suspect names in the book, and 18 clues to narrow it down to one name it will keep you guessing. I loved the concept, and didn’t know what to expect when I bought it. It took me about a week to finish due to work and other life obligations. It frustrated me but also kept me invested. Made many mistakes but I’d definitely get a second vol if it came out. Best part is you can submit the name of the suspect via a website and within a few hours it will email you the verdict of your guess.

[Sheryl Henschel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Took me about 4 weeks to solve. There are 18 clues so get your highlighters ready. Go through the 200 pages and eliminate (highlight) the names that cannot be the killer. (Ie The killer’s name does not start with an “s”). After going through all 18 clues, you should be left with one name (out of 46,600). You submit your answer to a website and they will get back to you (within about an hour) with an answer if you are right or not. I solved it on my first attempt. 🎉

[JMBreslin · Rating 5 out of 5]

So I wasn't going to include a puzzle
Book in my "read" list but I did add a Murdle book last year because there is a little story to those! I am adding this one because I can assure you I read those 46,600 names several times including numerous reviews of the rules. It took me longer to solve the mystery than any book I have ever read! As far as I am concerned this counts!!!! Haha

So much fun, can't wait for another edition!!!!

[Mallory · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this idea. this one was really well done.It seems to be the first of its kind from publication dates that I can find. and it is definitely the best i've seen so far. very well organized. the Clues are not too hard and not too easy, just really a perfect balance to lead you to the killer. definitely recommend.

[Patty Getsla · Rating 5 out of 5]

I obsessed over this book for 10 days and finally solved it!!! Made me insane at the end, but totally worth it!

Once you solve it, you submit your answer on the website and get this official email back:

“After thoroughly reviewing the evidence, your tip-off proved to be accurate and we found sufficient evidence to take ________ into custody.” (Left out the name so I don’t spoil it for you)

[Lexie · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fun new murder mystery puzzle concept!! Had me overthinking for hours at a time. I was able to solve it one lucky morning, but not before a few wrong guesses lol (my mom, however, got it on the first try, so it is possible!!) Highly recommend for a brain-building, attention-grabbing, and very rewarding summer activity.

[Amy Leeke · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book had me intrigued when I saw it advertised on Insta. It was daunting, to be sure, but once I got into a rhythm, I felt it moved quickly. Good brain workout! Side note: I emailed the address in the book to ask a question about clue semantics, and the author personally reached out to clear it up for me. Loved that!

[Veronica · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this idea and im enjoying figuring out the puzzle.

I would have loved it even more if all the names had been different, I've seen duplicates ive also already spotted my name twice and im only up to chapter 2.

[C.M. Chafin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a lot of fun and I felt invested. Figuring out how to process the clues for my specific mind frame was the best part for me. I would’ve liked it if the email you receive from being right included a detail of the murder or more story than just the arrest, but it was still very cool.

[Abeer · Rating 1 out of 5]

It's different than any book I have read but I feel like there should be some way of letting us know the solution without having to keep going back through the book to find it yourself. If make just one mistake you have to go back to the beginning.

[Layne M · Rating 5 out of 5]

Solved I believe!

[Laura Usher-Matson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this. Not a novel but a puzzle book with lots to think about, search through.. highly recommend

[Lucia McCracken · Rating 3 out of 5]

fun but made me lose my mind

[Denise Pereboom · Rating 5 out of 5]

Geweldig!

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Get this book! So frustrating and so fun!

[Raquel Cardoso · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love it !

[Jamie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a good time!!! I’m sad it’s over!

[Lauren K · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my first “puzzle book.”

It was a bit tedious, but once it was narrowed down to a chapter it was fun.

[Christen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found the killer!! This was a fun book and once I got the hang of it I was able to go through it quickly

[Emily Kennedy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Addicting but drove me nuts

[ashley owczarek · Rating 5 out of 5]

This just about sent me over the edge, but I finally got it.

[Katherine Pezzullo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun engrossing and addictive puzzle book.