Books into Board Games: Mysteries

I can't possibly discuss books adapted to games without touching on the most popular fiction genre, which would have to be mystery.  Umberto Eco's novel, The Name of the Rose (also adapted to a Sean Connery film), concerns a 14th century investigation into blasphemy and the deaths of a few monks.  The blasphemy involves a secret library of books that are considered dangerous to Catholicism in the abbey.  I haven't read the book yet, but after learning about it through researching this post, I'm kinda interested.

This book has spawned two games, Umberto Eco's The Name of the Rose and Mystery of the Abbey.  Both are deduction games, and I haven't had the fortune to play either one. 

"Detectives at work" photo of Mystery at the Abbey by BGG user Icefyst

Mystery of the Abbey involves players as monks who ask each other questions trying to determine whodunit, and can be a bit of silly fun on account of things like requiring players to sing Frere Jacques.

Photo from BGG user UnknownParkerBrother

The Name of the Rose game assigns each player a color that corresponds to a monk on the game board.  All players can move each monk, and doing so will remove "suspicion points" from each.  These are basically negative points, so players want to get them removed from the monk of their color.  They have to be sneaky, however, because each round players get to guess their opponents' colors, and if their color is guessed, they get slapped with some penalizing suspicion points.

The Name of the Rose is less related to the theme of the book than Mystery of the Abbey, but if you don't want to sing, this could be the better choice for you.  On the other hand, if you'd prefer to get into the role of a sleuthing monk, The Name of the Rose might be too abstract.

"I have a few suspects...but I need more time" Mystery Express photo by BGG user Chuckila

Aside from monks and abbeys, there's one other game I'd like to mention.  Mystery Express isn't so much based on Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express (also adapted to film, also suspiciously starring Sean Connery) as it is inspired by it.  There's a murder on the Orient Express in this game that has to be solved before the train reaches Istanbul. Crime cards with info about the suspect, location, motive, modus operandi and time, are placed under the game board, and at the end of the game players will make their accusations, earning points for each of these cards guessed correctly. During the game, players move about the train cars, each of which allow them to take different actions, including things like forcing other players to show their crime cards.  The game ends when the train arrives in Istanbul, when players make their accusations.

I hope you've enjoyed this mysterious post.  If you're curious about other great mystery and deduction games, the best place to find information about them is on BoardGameGeek. 

Alys Clare's Hawkenlye series

Alys Clare writes historically accurate mysteries set in 12th century England. Centered around Hawkenlye Abbey, the action always involves the brilliant abbess, Helewise, and a king's knight, Josse d'Acquin. The first title in the series, Fortune Like the Moon, is a great introduction to the period and the entire series. A young nun is found murdered just outside the abbey walls. The queen, Eleanor of Aquitaine, has just released felons from prison to gain acceptance for her son, the new king Richard Plantagenet, so the local people think one of them is the murderer -- but Abbess Helewise and Josse d'Acquin find many clues that lead them to believe otherwise. The English countryside is vividly described, and Josse and Helewise are fresh, charming, and appealing detectives. For a look at 1186 England, I highly recommend Alys Clare's Hawkenlye mystery series.

The 'Dark Fire' of 1540

Matthew Shardlake is a lawyer in 1540's London who, because of his ethics and honesty, is entrusted with many politically sensitive cases that involve Henry VIII and his advisors, especially the work he does for Oliver Cromwell. Of the 4 mysteries in this series, Dark Fire is the 2nd. Matthew has to solve whether a young girl murdered her 1st cousin or not and also find a lost cache of 'dark fire,' a weapon that could destroy England's navy. Tudor England is brought to life in wonderful period detail in all of C.J. Sansom's excellent historical mystery series. She does, however, take liberty with a few historical facts -- mainly in my opinion to make it a little more gruesome (Oliver Cromwell actually died of malaria, not a botched, painful beheading). Except for that one detail, I found Dark Fire to be an excellent read. The other titles in the series are Dissolution, Sovereign, and Revelation.