This is the second book in the Mystery Writer’s mystery series by Becky Clark. According to her bio at the end of the book, she is no stranger to writer conferences and has served as faculty on quite a number of them. She did say that she’s never encountered a hotel being double-booked with a conference and a dog show though. 😉 I was hooked on her writing since I read the first book last year, and I was eagerly awaiting the release of this one.
My Goodreads review:
Foul Play on Words by Becky Clark
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
This was absolutely awesome and so funny in places! I just love the author’s sense of humor which transfers easily to her characters. I don’t think Viv, Charlee’s good friend, was mentioned in the first book, at least I don’t remember her, but she and the conference were the center of this book. The first one took place in Charlee’s home state of Colorado, and we met her writers’ group. The writers’ conference was being held in Portland, Oregon, and suddenly Charlee found herself in charge, turning more than the kidnapping into a mystery, suspecting everyone of different things. It was pretty comical when she was following different people around and calling the police to report a kidnapping that she had no evidence of ever happening, since Viv swore her to secrecy.
When the perp was caught it was a great showdown. Charlee used her instincts and wits from being a mystery writer to trap that person. After having used the iron to attach conference patches to countless t-shirts, Charlee also found out that the iron came in handy for other things too. I loved that all the little ends were neatly wrapped up at the final banquet, a good happy ending for all. Even though there was no murder, I was so interested in finding out more about the case, that I didn’t really think about it or attempt to anticipate a murder. It was different in a really good way–I already know from reading the first book that the author is also great at a murder mystery, and now I can’t wait for the third book! I may give the first book a reread in the meantime…and maybe this one too. 😉
Cuddle Up With a Cozy Mystery 
Good review! I’ve never heard of this series before, but your post makes it sound interesting! What makes this story intriguing is that it’s about a mystery that isn’t a murder. So many stories on Hallmark Movies & Mysteries address the topic of a murder mystery to the point where a mystery that doesn’t involve a murder feels like a breath of fresh air. I’ll have to check this series out when I get the chance!
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The author is funny and talented—the first book was a murder mystery but this wasn’t. I guess you could say it shows how well she handles both types of mysteries. 😊
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