Also, while I'm writing way too much, and in-case someone is interested; these are my favourite HOGs:
James Patterson Women's Murder Club - Whole series. While they're quite HOscene-heavy and have some silly puzzles, they also have some of the best stories and pacing in HOG, and I've enjoyed the series more and more with every game.
Mystery Case Files - Whole series, though I do think Dire Grove is absolutely the best of them. Mystery case files has the honour of being known as the series that introduced the adventure hybrid HOGs we have today, and it's not without reason. Some things haven't aged that well; there's a LOT of back tracking, and you would probably benefit from drawing a map, but even the classic HOG Mystery Case Files: Ravenhearst is worth a play-through for the story and beautiful drawings. Be prepared to do many jigsaw puzzles though!
Lost in the City and Lost in the City: Post Scriptum - a bit of a hybrid between adventure game and "locked in a room" game, the Lost in the City games have a special place in my heart because of their strong story, complicated puzzles and seriously weird endings. Unfortunately Lost in the City (1) hasn't aged very well and has to be played either in its original resolution or on a screen without very high resolution, but I've never found any other HOG with that kind of length or story.
There are timed "action" sequences where you can die, but you're returned right back on death and when you figure out what you're supposed to do, they're very easy.
Haunted Halls: Green Hills Sanatorium - I'm a sucker for asylum settings, and this game really delivered on the feel, atmosphere, story and scare-factor. Gameplay-wise there's probably a lot better games out there, but this one and Dire Grove are probably the only really scary HOGs I've played.
I, too, really liked F.A.C.E.S which has already been mentioned, and my honorable mentions go to: Snark Busters series (fun and challenging!), Awakening series (well made, challenging hybrid adventures, I'm not very fond of fantasy but recognize good production values and gameplay), Spirits of Mystery series (see last point about fantasy) and Sacra Terra: Angelic Night, because I have a thing for supernatural christian conspiracy-themed games.
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