Maggie happily spends time with fictional people, whether it is in her book store or behind her laptop. She’s about to take a leaf out of one of her own detective books, however, when she finds a dead body. Even if the hotel she finds him in is known for being cursed, it soon becomes clear he was poisoned.
The cobbled streets of Castlefield are not safe, and not just because there is an evil chicken that attacks people or because Maggie's aunt Nancy wields household objects like weapons.People are scared and they turn to Maggie for help.
Writing about mysteries is easier than solving one, Maggie finds out, especially when ghost hunters believe a ghost is haunting the hotel. With people ready to blame a ghost and few clues about a human killer, it’s up to Maggie to team up with her fictional detective, as well as a very real one, and use every trick in the book to catch this clever killer.