Puzzle Power: The 8 Best Brain-Teasers for Adults

The Best Puzzle Books for Every Type of Brain Teaser Lover

Whether it’s Legos, puzzles, or board games, many people enjoy low-key activities that deliver a dopamine hit and require little physical effort. Puzzle books are just that — they’re a great way to entertain and challenge yourself without relying on an app or a screen, whether you're at home, commuting, or at the beach. If you’re looking for a brain teaser to keep handy, there are plenty of options available, each designed to cater to different interests and skill levels.

How I Picked the Best Puzzle Books

When curating this list, I considered four main categories of puzzle books:

• Visual: These include drawing and illustrations, such as mazes, seek-and-finds, hidden pictures, spot-the-differences, and more.
• Word: Word puzzle books feature classic linguistic brain teasers like crosswords, word scrambles, and word searches.
• Logic: Logic puzzles use deduction rather than guesswork, including sudoku, decryption games, Nurikabe, and more.
• Variety: These books combine different types of puzzles across the other three categories.

I also included books with varying difficulty levels: easy (best for beginners), medium (trickier but doable with practice), and hard (challenging even for enthusiasts).

Top Puzzle Books for 2025

Here are some of the best puzzle books that have been highly rated and recommended by experts.

Best Overall

Murdle: Volume 1
For true crime fans, Murdle: Volume 1 is a must-have. This book includes 100 original murder mystery puzzles featuring maps, drawings, and codes to help solve each case. The puzzles increase in difficulty, making it a great choice for those who enjoy deduction-based challenges. It's part of a series, including Murdle: The School of Mystery and Murdle Jr. for kids.

Editor’s Pick

The New York Times Best of the Week Series: Monday Crosswords
This compilation of easy crossword puzzles from The New York Times is perfect for both beginners and experienced solvers. It includes 50 Monday crosswords, known for being the easiest of the week. The large print and spiral binding make it ideal for reading on the go.

Best Visual Puzzle Book

Houseplants and Hot Sauce: A Seek-and-Find Book for Grown-Ups
This adult-friendly seek-and-find book features weekend scenes like brunching with loved ones and shopping for plants. Each page includes detailed illustrations and a list of ten items to find, offering a fun and challenging experience for puzzle lovers.

Best Crossword

Simon & Schuster Mega Crossword Puzzle Book
This book offers 300 brand-new crossword puzzles of varying difficulty levels. The perforated pages allow for easy tearing out of individual puzzles, making it convenient for solving on the move.

Best Relaxing Puzzles

The Mindfulness Puzzle Book
Designed to help you unwind while keeping your mind active, this book includes a variety of puzzles such as crosswords, word searches, mazes, and coloring pages. Each puzzle is crafted to provide a balanced level of challenge and reward, helping to reduce stress and boost mood.

Best Variety Book

The Master Theorem - A Book of Puzzles, Intrigue and Wit
Originating from an online “secret society of solvers,” this book compiles classic and new puzzles, including encrypted messages, ciphers, and brain-teasers. Each puzzle comes with an opening message containing clues and a full-color illustration.

Best Sudoku

Brain Games To Go: Sudoku
Sudoku is a number puzzle that involves filling rows, columns, and boxes with numbers from 1-9. This book features over 200 puzzles across five difficulty levels, along with a spiral spine that allows for easy flat laying when solving on the go.

Best Word Search

Big 2025 Word Search
This book contains 100 puzzles with themes specific to the year 2025. Each puzzle is individually crafted by a writer, using over 4,000 more words than previous editions. The large print and complete answers at the back make it accessible for all ages.

Why Trust This List?

Ashley Morris, an associate SEO reporter at NBC Select, has written extensively on the best puzzles for adults and other topics. For this story, she researched highly-rated puzzle books across categories and consulted NBC Select staffers for their recommendations. Stay updated with NBC Select’s coverage on tech, wellness, and more, and follow them on social media for the latest updates.