As most of you know, I was chosen as “Mystress of Ceremonies” for Kathy Owen’s “Dangerous and Unseemly Mystery Book Tour.” Why me? I have no idea. But since it’s my job, I’m gonna make sure that Kathy’s tour ends on a high note!
It’s been an exciting time for Kathy with the release of her very first mystery novel. So if you’ve had a chance to enjoy her book, let me assure you there’ll be more to come in the near future. And if you haven’t had a chance to read it yet, there are links at the bottom of Kathy’s post that will direct you to your favorite book retailer.
Yet, for now, I’d like to hand things over to Kathy because she has an annoucement to make, cause we have winners! Yes winners, as in, more than one! Wahoo!
So take it away Kathy!
Hey, Karen, thanks for having me back to wrap up the Whodunnit contest! We had a great time spreading mystery and mayhem all around the blogosphere, bwahaha.
Here’s the original puzzle:
You have received a partial telegram, stating that the murdered body of Sir Reginald “Good Riddance” Crenshaw, your long-lost third cousin (twice removed) has been found. However, the rest of the message has been lost, scattered and garbled along a trail of multiple telegrams to other people by a drunk clerk at the telegraph office.
Before you can make a claim upon dear Reggie’s ill-gotten wealth, you must establish the particulars of the murder. Where was he found? What was he killed with? And, most importantly, WHODUNNIT?
(by K.B. Owen)
Now, I know you’re all dying for the solution, but bear with me for a minute as I walk you through a few of the clues from various sites on my book tour. You needed four letters to solve each piece of the puzzle. Those letters, unscrambled, corresponded to a Clue-game style ROOM, WEAPON, and CULPRIT.
The first four stops (Elizabeth Craig, Janice Hamrick, Jill Edmondson, and Margot Kinberg) had the letters to the ROOM. Here were their questions, with the answers:
1. One of the following is NOT a rule of Golden Age detective fiction, as famously listed by literary critic Ronald Knox (in a preface to a 1929 collection of detective stories). Which is it?
Answer – B: The butler should be the culprit
2. What famous fiction private eye said: “The cheaper the crook, the gaudier the patter”?
Answer – I: Sam Spade
3. This detective said: ”Warning. Assholes are closer than they appear.”
Answer – L: Ace Ventura
4. What percent cocaine solution did Sherlock Holmes inject when bored between cases?
Answer – R: 7% (some of those other percentage choices would have killed him!)
The next four stops gave us the letters to the WEAPON. Now that you have the idea, I won’t go into the specific questions, but here are the letter answers:
Nancy Lauzon: E / Renee Schuls-Jacobson: R / Julie Glover: O / Jenny Hansen: V
E – R – O – V Unscrambled, we get: REVO or REVOLVER
Then the final three stops (Tiffany had two clues) gave us the CULPRIT:
Rachel Funk Heller: U / Laird Sapir: M / Tiffany White: P, L
U – M – P – L Unscrambled, we get PLUM, or PROFESSOR PLUM
So, there you have it! Professor Plum killed Sir Reggie Crenshaw in the library with the revolver.
I’ve always thought that one of the defects of the Clue game, however, was that the motive isn’t part of the equation. Well, no more!
Professor Plum had murder in his heart ever since 2005, when Sir Reggie had written a mocking review of Plum’s beloved scholarly work: “T.S. Eliot and Geoffrey Chaucer: Reciprocal Influences on a Wasteland Pilgrimage.” It had been the loving work of 13 years and ran 1,847 pages long. Plum had considered it the crowning glory of his academic career, until that philistine Reggie ruined it for him. Then it was “bye-bye” tenure. Since then, Plum has gone from college to college like an itinerant farm-hand, teaching part-time writing classes to privileged college brats whose idea of writing was sitting in the back of the room, texting with their thumbs. Enough was enough – it was high time for payback.
He found Sir Reggie alone in the library. At first, Plum thought it would be poetic justice if he konked Crenshaw over the noggin with his “Wasteland Pilgrimage” volume – 1,800+ pages makes for a substantial weapon, after all – but he couldn’t bear the thought of bloodstains marring his precious book, even for a good cause. That’s what revolvers are for, after all.
And The WINNER Is: Julie Glover!
Congratulations, Julie, and great job! I’ll be sending you a free ebook copy of Dangerous and Unseemly, and a $25 gift card to Barnes and Noble (winner’s choice).
But, wait – that’s not all! I’ve decided to give away an additional copy of my ebook.
The winner of that drawing is…Nandini Lal!
Congrats! The Kindle version is on its way.
Thanks so much to everyone for commenting, visiting, and competing in the contest, and supporting me on the book tour. It was a blast!
~Kathy
Thank you Kathy! And congratulations to both winners!
Kathy Owen’s new book “Dangerous and Unseemly” is available now at:
And please check out Kathy Owen’s website for more historical mystery at kbowenmysteries.com!
Let’s all give Kathy a big hand for a most exellent Mystery game! She did a fantastic job, don’t you think?
So how did y’all do? Did Kathy stump you? She can weave a mean mystery, can’t she? Did you have a fun time? What was your favorite part of Kathy’s book release tour? Do you have a new book on the horizon? What are your plans for making the most out of its release? Are you self-pubbing or going the traditional route? Inquiring minds want to know!
Thanks everyone for stopping by and for all your wonderful comments!
Karen