Murdoku was created by Manuel Garand, a puzzle maker from Montreal, Canada, whose puzzles have been published in the Financial Times. The idea came from a simple question: what if a sudoku told a story? Instead of numbers on a grid, characters in a house; instead of an abstract solution, a crime and a culprit.

It was an instant success and the book has been published in several countries and languages. In Portugal, the Portuguese edition arrived in November 2025 and the second volume, Regresso ao Passado, in May 2026, both from the publisher IN.

What sets Murdoku apart from other puzzle books is its visual side. Each case is a full-color illustration of a crime scene, with details that are part of the puzzle: rooms, furniture, plants, animals and objects. One reader described it as sudoku plus Cluedo plus mysteries, and that is a good definition.

There is no continuous story or characters developed throughout the book. The goal is to sit down, investigate and solve crime after crime, each with its own rules and a difficulty level slightly higher than the one before.

The 80 cases in each volume are arranged in increasing order of difficulty. The first ones take just a few minutes and help you learn the basic rules. Halfway through the book, additional rules appear, such as characters who must stand next to a window or animals that cannot share a room with certain suspects. The final expert-level cases require several passes over the scene and careful deduction.

In Volume 2, each themed chapter (medieval, pirates, Wild West, Ancient Egypt) starts again at easy and ends at expert level, so you can take breaks without losing the thread.

Both series are mystery books solved with logic, but the mechanics are different. Murdle is based on written clues and a deduction grid in the style of classic logic puzzles. Murdoku is based on sudoku-style placement rules applied to an illustrated scene.

If you like sudoku, visual puzzles or comics, Murdoku is the natural choice. If you prefer written clues, humor and a short story in every case, start with Murdle. Many readers end up with both on their bedside table.

Murdoku is suitable for adults and young people ages 12 and up, although younger children used to sudoku can solve the first cases with some help. It is a great option for a screen break, for train or plane journeys, for vacations and for family game nights, where everyone can take turns trying to solve the same case.

Just like puzzles for adults, Murdoku books train attention to detail, logical reasoning and patience, in an activity that is relaxing and challenging at the same time.

Manuel Garand is a puzzle maker from Montreal, Canada, whose puzzles have been published in the Financial Times. When he is not inventing new logic puzzles, he spends time with his children and his wife, Cindy, who was the first to fall in love with his puzzles and is still his most passionate and competitive tester.

At Loja dos Puzzles we only sell the official Portuguese edition of Murdoku, genuinely in stock, with fast shipping from Portugal via CTT and tracking. You can buy each volume separately or the two-book pack at a better price.

Explore the Murdoku collection and find out if you have what it takes to become a master detective.