Deadbolt Mystery Society is a monthly subscription box for lovers of mystery and suspense.
Each box is a standalone mystery with puzzles written and designed by escape room creators with immersive scenarios, intriguing characters and original, compelling stories. Imagine yourself as a detective consulting on specific cases.
This box was sent to us at no cost to review. (Check out our review process to learn about how we review boxes.)
About Deadbolt Mystery Society
The Subscription Box: Deadbolt Mystery Society
The Cost: $24.99 + $4.99 shipping. Save with longer subscriptions.
ACTIVE DEAL: Save 20% off your first box!
CODE: MSA20
The Products: Clues and puzzles to help solve a murder mystery
Ships to: The US for $4.99, Canada for $16.99 and worldwide (excluding the UK) for $24.99
Deadbolt Mystery Society “The Body Farm” Review
The first item in the box was an introduction page that gave a general explanation of the contents in the box. It starts off with a link to a checklist to ensure we have everything in the box to solve the mystery, then it instructs us to read everything, to look for things that connect to each other and to solve all the puzzles in order to solve the mystery. It also has a link to the hint files (which is very resourceful). It also explains that there are QR codes in most of the boxes, so I made sure to download a QR scanner on my phone before starting the mystery. Lastly, it tells you what any good detective tells you: follow your instincts. Let’s dive into the mystery!
Every box I have received also includes a collector’s card of some sort. This month, it is of The Gravedigger. The back usually has some great background info, but I have learned these cards really don’t hold clues to solving the case, it just offers a little more info on the case I will be working on.
This month I also got this card. It looks like a business card but is actually a reminder card which connects detectives to clues, hints and even a whole bunch of other detectives via a Facebook page. Want to join? Subscribe and get to working on the case!
The first set of documents or clues that was in my box introduces the initial crime that occurred during the Great Depression in 1930 to the Jackson family. A family of 5, mother, father and 3 daughters lived on a farm. Suddenly, the eldest daughter, Alice becomes pregnant. It is reported that during the summer, the father, Jackson, snapped and annihilated his entire family, burying them in their own shallow graves which were scattered among the family farm. Then he just disappeared, never to be heard from again. Press and locals immediately dubbed him the Gravedigger. Urban legend has it that Jackson still lived in the woods surrounding his farm and he would attack anyone who trespassed and bury them in shallow graves, as he did to his wife and daughters. The farm eventually was called The Body Farm. The below items are some remains from the farm.
From left to right: Margaret (mom), Abigail, Ellie, Jackson, and Alice Montgomery.
Multiple diary entries
Hand-drawn picture of corn field
Pictures of locations where bodies were found (the backs have QR Codes)
The next set of clues or items I received are for a group known as S.T.A.L.K. They are working with a museum, Museum Nocturnus, to explore the case and property of the Montgomery family to see if they can shed some light on the case.
This brochure for the museum is both creepy and so interesting. The backside has pictures of the owner and employees who run the museum.
I also received more info about these people (victims? Suspects?). Each card has there name and picture and a statement from the person.
There are also a lot of other interesting items: a sheet with different handwritings and statements, a Ouija board with markings, blueprints of the home with markings, a strange pentagon with numbers and letters. There is a lot of stuff here that must contain important information to the original case of the Montgomery family and may also help us to locate the missing employees from Museum Nocturnus.
Then I uncovered this:
It appears that the employees are indeed missing and my official case is to locate them on the condemned body farm. I see a picture of one of the members on his knees in what appears to be a forest (or woods). He is bound and has a bag over his head.
Here are some additional clues:
A palmistry poster
A copy of the note on the door when S.T.A.L.K. showed up
Picture of a phone (the backside has a QR code)
Finally, the last piece in my case file is my Solve card. This card has a QR code and requires a password to open. Once I have cracked the case, I can input the answer to open up the key. The key contains everything: the murderer, the motive and so much more!
Since we had such a blast hosting Murder Monday last month, we decided to do it again. We set up at another detective’s house and did another taco bar. We set up all our clues and items from the case folder and read over everything. We took notes, we collaborated and we got to work cracking the case. From start to finish (dinner and drinks included), we cracked it in about 2 hours. Here we are looking at one of the e-clues we unlocked. This is a tradition we will be doing every month!
Verdict: Deadbolt Mystery Society is so awesome! The boxes are all different from each other and have different, unconnected cases we have to crack. They offer clues in the box as well as digital clues. I love the digital clues! They really make this feel like a real case. This month, the case was tragic and enticing. I was in full detective mode from the moment I opened my mailbox and in days after we solved the case. I have done other mystery boxes before, but this one has me on the edge of my seat and excited through the whole process. It is difficult but not hard enough that I want to walk away. For $29.98 a month ($24.99 a month + $4.99 shipping) this box is well worth the value.
To Wrap Up:
Can you still get this box if you sign up today? No, you will receive the September box. From Deadbolt Mystery Society:
We take subscriptions through the month. The cutoff is the last day of the month. We then mail out all boxes by the 4th of the following month.
Deadbolt Mystery Society also has their past boxes for sale.
ACTIVE DEAL: Save 20% off your first box!
CODE: MSA20
Check out our other Deadbolt Mystery Society reviews, along with the best horror subscription boxes of 2019!
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