This novel was originally serialized in Pulp Literature magazine in 2014 and 2015 as novella: ‘Stella Ryman and the Case of the Third Option’, Winter 2014; ‘The Poison Pen Affair’, Summer 2014; ‘Stella Ryman and the Four-Digit-Puzzle’, Winter 2015; and ‘Stella Ryman and the Case of the Vanishing Resident’, Summer 2015.
I picked up this book at the Pulp Literature booth last year at Creative Ink. The cover was adorable and the main character sounded like a hoot. I’m always on the lookout for a good mystery to read before bed or on my lunch break. This was an easy read, great for a relaxing Sunday afternoon.
Stella Ryman reminds me so much of my grandmother and I love it. They’re both into Agatha Christie, cozy mysteries, and being independent. My grandma is about the same age at Stella so I could easily picture how she would move about Fairmount Manor and interact with the other residents. Her internal dialogue is well done, especially the moments where she experiences a lapse in time. As a reader it was simple to tell that she was experiencing something that wasn’t happening outside of her mind. The events that interrupted Stella’s spells felt realistic and were handled well by the other characters.
I liked the throw back to older mystery novels having multiple “cases” in the novel. I did catch one spelling error/typo during my read through which, based on the books I’ve read lately, really isn’t too bad.
Looking for an enjoyable, lovely main character that you fall for immediately? This book is for you 100%.
4/5
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