Halloween In Pieces: A Top Ten List

Halloween Puzzle Week

Our theme on the blog this week is Halloween puzzles. Yay! I’ve been looking forward to covering this topic. I love this time of year and I love Halloween. There aren’t too many Halloween puzzles that come in adult sizes. This week we’re going to focus on the best out there. We reviewed “Trick or Treat Hotel” by Charles Wysocki (Buffalo Games 2016) and “Halloween Town” by Randy Wollenmann (Vermont Christmas Company 2016).

This post I’ll be revealing my “top ten” list of Halloween puzzles for 2016. Because it’s Halloween my list ended up at lucky 13.

13. “A Country Town in Autumn” by Sam Timm, Sunsout — 500 pieces

This is a brand new release from Sunsout and Sam Timm. It’s a lovely rural scene with a few pumpkins and hay decorations giving it a Halloween tone. (Click on the image below to see the puzzle on Puzzle Warehouse.)

12. “Friends on Halloween” by Doug Laird — Sunsout, 1000 pieces

I reviewed this puzzle last year and enjoyed assembling it. The best bit is the group of trick-or-treaters and the pumpkins, but the whole puzzle has a nice hometown Halloween feeling. (Click on the image below to see the puzzle on Puzzle Warehouse.)

READ MY FULL REVIEW HERE

11. “Jack-O-Lanterns” by Lori Shory, White Mountain — 1000 pieces

This is my White Mountain pick for the list. I became a fan of White Mountain puzzles this year–I like the larger puzzle size and the flat and seamless finish. This photo collage from Lori Shory is packed with plenty of pumpkins. (Click on the image below to see the puzzle on Puzzle Warehouse.)

10. “Halloween Treats”, Eurographics — 1000 pieces

It you like collages and brighter colors, check out “Halloween Treats”. I have this puzzle and did it a few years ago, though I never reviewed it for the blog. The piece cut is random and it’s a quick puzzle to assemble because all the “treats” are pretty distinctive. I also like putting together the lettering on these Eurographic collage puzzles. (Click on the image below to see the puzzle on Puzzle Warehouse.)

9. “Scaredy Cat”, Sunsout — 300 pieces

Whether or not you like an image is a subjective thing, but for my two cents, when I first saw this brand new Halloween image from Sunouts I loved it–and was disappointed it only came in 300 pieces. But for a relaxing, one session puzzle, and for those who love 300 and 500 piece puzzles, this is a knock out. I like the purple background, the pumpkin (of couse) and the two identical kittens, which would make assembly extra interesting. (Click on the image below to see the puzzle on Puzzle Warehouse.) Note: I haven’t been able to find the artist’s name for this puzzle.

8. “Halloween” by Tony Ryan, Falcon — 1000 pieces

This was my favorite Halloween puzzle last year. If you haven’t gotten it yet, I highly recommend it. I love the quaint English village and the trick-or-treaters. (Click on the image below to see the puzzle on Puzzle Warehouse.)

READ OUR REVIEW HERE

7. “Edward Gorey” by Edward Gorey, Pomegranate – 1000 pieces

If you like fine art puzzles and exceptional quality, look no further than “Edward Gorey”. Pomegranate makes outstanding fine art puzzles and this creepy Gorey puzzle is a sophisticated choice for Halloween. (Click on the image below to see the puzzle on Puzzle Warehouse.)

6. “Translyvania”, D-Toys — 1000 pieces

In the vein (no pun intended) of Loup’s “Castle of Horror”, this puzzle is a cartoony take on horror themes. It’s an easy and fun puzzle to assemble, and the D-Toys quality in the unit I tested was much improved. I’ll be reviewing this puzzle next week.

(Click on the image below to see the puzzle on Puzzle Warehouse.)

5. “Ghostly Gathering” by Randy Wollenmann, Vermont Christmas Company — 1000 pieces

Randy Wollenmann and VCC won our #1 spot this year with “Halloween Town” (550 pieces), but this 1000 piece offering is another outstanding Halloween puzzle. Good colors (I love the yellow leaves at the top) and lots of fun Halloween costumes. (Click on the image below to see the puzzle on Puzzle Warehouse.)

4. “Trick or Treat Hotel” by Charles Wysocki, Buffalo Games — 500 pieces

This Wysocki Halloween image had been out of print for years. (It was once put out by Milton Bradley.) Fortunately, Buffalo Games brought it out again this year. It’s filled with wry little gremlins and lots of Halloween treats. I loved assembling it. (Click on the image below to see the puzzle on Puzzle Warehouse.)

READ MY FULL REVIEW HERE

3. “Monsters Night Out ” by Bill Bell (1000 pieces), Sunsout

This is a terrific Halloween puzzle from Bill Bell and available in 1000 pieces too! I love the monster theme, the colors are great, and the art style is cute without being too childish. (Click on the image below to see the puzzle on Puzzle Warehouse.)

2. “Castle of Horror” by Jean-Jacques Loup, Heye — 2000 pieces

This is one of my all-time favorite Heye puzzles, which is saying a lot! This is a very large and moderately difficult puzzle filled with cartoony vampires, witches, zombies, and all matter of dreadful tropes. The art by Loup is perfect–tons of detail without ever getting crowded or muddy. (Click on the image below to see the puzzle on Puzzle Warehouse.

READ MY FULL REVIEW HERE

1. “Halloween Town” by Randy Wollenmann, Vermont Christmas Company — 550 pieces

My top pick of the Halloween puzzles this year is “Halloween Town” by Randy Wollenmann. I love the bright colors, all the individual little characters, and the soft art style in this one. Although it’s 550 pieces, it’s about the size of a 1000 piece puzzle when assembled, and it’s very satisfying and fun to put together. As addictive as a bucket of Halloween candy! (Click on the image below to see the puzzle on Puzzle Warehouse.

READ OUR FULL REVIEW HERE