Solution: Twisting Passages All Alike

Written by Sofiya Vasina

In the grid of letters the words ALWAYS TURN RIGHT CHECK CULDESACS can be read like this:


YASQUMWWLFCMOFNIRLLJKTPGFJVGED
SCEMTZZQWLVZYLFMTWYGHJAWPFGMLL
PFOTRITQAQCVPBHUNCSMIAVIYMNEZA
AOFFIWOCNOTQKJSSFHUZTEAPMYCADB
LTQGZADNDRDWIOHCHMJDMDHMTUKWUC
WVIQCHQFVTYZQGNYIVLSAYWILRDWPH
AOVTFZCWFZQDZHJKGSKRMKQJTDBYAE
YLGTGMSIJYIOBHILUPFGIRQACLDDJC
SHPBCVOUFZTOAVVJIRZNZHGPIICLLK
OHTFJVCYRIOLWWITGBMGELOKCWTEIG
PYNKEWGGVZOTKMOTGZKSFOFTAHRTLB
TCAONEMTLITBCENUYTTJNZYSTZBMTN
UUPOJDSVYFFRGHWTDVOWFCVEVQEWDC
RRSBGCFAZEFEWLMEXPQUMWYJCUBGSU
NEWWFDALDZPJEMUQHTHZVUWUFZPGFL
LKMIISMIEQIEAMHTEQYLPUGMPLLFSD
OECBNKTBTZSCTSPCPTSNGJINVYAIEE
RSYDUMNPNIOGKJABMQUIECPMPMLPVS
IWKHBFTOVHYLOSUPJLGFOKHAYWRKNA
GWLLEMRYCNGAAEJULSERZNEHYCFPNC
HOPPBUCTTEHAEIWLEJHICHBHOZJTPS
TTMDJOZMISRQTWZQLDBTLDBNKPNUKD
SYWGCHUBUDUMUOJTGUYHPJLQYVHLRR
OLQMRTUNUPRQDMGNHMJFUZPGPNDWZU
POHHBABWNWNGNQTTFBHOGCNVIDJLBJ

Except for a few letters, the grid is randomly generated, so there may be more words hiding in there, but hopefully nothing meaningful.

Off to the maze you go. Start at the spot marked with X, always turn right, and you'll come up with the following path:

maze-sol

Now, back to the grid. There is only one X in the whole grid and it corresponds to the spot marked with X in the maze (see below). If you map the maze to the grid and take the letters corresponding to the cul-de-sacs in the maze in the order in which you encountered them:

YASQUMWWLFCMOFNIRLLJKTPGFJVGED
SCEMTZZQWLVZYLFMTWYGHJAWPFGMLL
PFOTRITQAQCVPBHUNCSMIAVIYMNEZA
AOFFIWOCNOTQKJSSFHUZTEAPMYCADB
LTQGZADNDRDWIOHCHMJDMDHMTUKWUC
WVIQCHQFVTYZQGNYIVLSAYWILRDWPH
AOVTFZCWFZQDZHJKGSKRMKQJTDBYAE
YLGTGMSIJYIOBHILUPFGIRQACLDDJC
SHPBCVOUFZTOAVVJIRZNZHGPIICLLK
OHTFJVCYRIOLWWITGBMGELOKCWTEIG
PYNKEWGGVZOTKMOTGZKSFOFTAHRTLB
TCAONEMTLITBCENUYTTJNZYSTZBMTN
UUPOJDSVYFFRGHWTDVOWFCVEVQEWDC
RRSBGCFAZEFEWLMEXPQUMWYJCUBGSU
NEWWFDALDZPJEMUQHTHZVUWUFZPGFL
LKMIISMIEQIEAMHTEQYLPUGMPLLFSD
OECBNKTBTZSCTSPCPTSNGJINVYAIEE
RSYDUMNPNIOGKJABMQUIECPMPMLPVS
IWKHBFTOVHYLOSUPJLGFOKHAYWRKNA
GWLLEMRYCNGAAEJULSERZNEHYCFPNC
HOPPBUCTTEHAEIWLEJHICHBHOZJTPS
TTMDJOZMISRQTWZQLDBTLDBNKPNUKD
SYWGCHUBUDUMUOJTGUYHPJLQYVHLRR
OLQMRTUNUPRQDMGNHMJFUZPGPNDWZU
POHHBABWNWNGNQTTFBHOGCNVIDJLBJ
you will get THE BOOK OF ESTHER VILLAIN, which is HAMAN.