Short Story Wednesday Review: Hallmarks of the Job: A Stanley Melvin PI Story by Frank Zafiro

Last month I reviewed the novella, Shades of the Job: A Stanley Melvin PI Story by Frank Zafiro. That novella was my first experience with the very detail ordered and precise in his language Stanley Melvin. I liked the read a lot as I made clear in my review. That also led the publisher to send me the first read, Hallmarks of the Job: A Stanley Melvin PI Story.

 

As the tale begins, Alan Thorpe is an angry man as he sits across from Stanley Melvin in his office above Hamilton’s Barber Shop. He is adamant that his wife is cheating. He wants Melvin to prove it and to do so with pictorial proof. Because 38% of Stanley Melvin’s caseload are these types of situations, he knows that he is fully equipped to take the case.

 

But, is she really cheating?

 

Thorpe certainly thinks so, but all he has is speculation. He wants proof and he is willing to sign a contract and pay for services rendered to get that pictorial proof.

 

A signed contract and payment mean that Stanley Melvin is on the case. A man of skills, and on the spectrum, he is highly detail orientated and organized. Lists matter a lot as he moves through both his personal and private life. But, making a list and being able to cross it off does not solve everything.

 

Hallmarks of the Job: A Stanley Melvin PI Story by Frank Zafiro is a solidly good cozy style mystery read. This series is far different than the gritty police procedurals that make up his River City series. These novellas, quirky and fun, are well worth your time.

 

Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/4aCoNEr

 

 

My digital reading copy came from the publisher, Code 4 Press, with no expectation of a review.

 

 

Kevin R. Tipple ©2026