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

Review: Shades of the Job: A Stanley Melvin P.I. Story by Frank Zafiro

Shades of the Job: A Stanley Melvin P.I. Story by Frank Zafiro is the second book in the series that started with Hallmarks of the Job: A Stanley Melvin P.I. Story. I have yet to read that first book, so Shades of the Job was my intro into the world of private investigator Stanley Martin. This character reminds me a lot of the DS George Cross character and that is a very good thing.

 

Stanley Melvin lives in an upstairs apartment in a building that was converted from a house to apartments. He is climbing the stairs late one day with a grocery bag in hand when Violet Szade and her very young daughter, Lettie, come out of their ground floor apartment and get his attention.

 

The long and the short of it as Violet makes clear, is that she would like to hire him. Two weeks ago, her apartment was broken into and searched. Nothing was taken, but clearly, somebody went through looking at everything. She contacted the police and they came out, dusted for prints, filed a report, but have no clues as to who did it or why.

 

Then, yesterday, her ex-boyfriend, Geoff Grey, contacted her by text to say he wanted to meet Lettie and that he had changed. The same guy who, as soon as he realized he was going to be a dad, left her before the baby was born, now wants back into their lives. He has not done a thing to help as he had completely vanished. Now, he wants to see them.

 

If he really has changed, that is one thing. If he has not, that is a far different thing. And she is bothered a lot by the timing of events. She thinks the coincidence of the break in and his sudden contact is way too strange and suspicious. They agree that Stanley will investigate to ascertain what he has been up to while he has been gone from their lives, other background information, and to make sure that he is safe to be around Lettie.

 

A very detail orientated man who has strong routines and practices to control his anxiety, he begins an investigation that soon turns violent. In the course of his investigation, readers learn a lot about Grey, Melvin, and the other people who populate the building and the neighborhood.

 

A fast-moving read published by Code 4 Press, Shades of the Job: A Stanley Melvin P.I. Story, is a highly entertaining novella. Rich in character detail and atmosphere with flashes of humor, this is a solidly good read, and one well worth your time.

 

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

 

 

My digital ARC came direct from the author with no expectation of a review.

 

 

Kevin R. Tipple ©2026