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Fleming Stone #9
Vicky Van
An inventive, taut, and rational novel
Victoria Van Allen is something of a riddle for her neighbour, Chester Calhoun. Known as Vicky Van to her friends, she is somewhat avant-garde but respected nonetheless. When a millionaire is stabbed to death at one of her famed dinner parties, she flees the scene before the police can be contacted, unwittingly placing herself at the centre of their investigation. As it is discovered that the deceased had ties to Vicky’s past, and detective Fleming Stone is called in to bring her to justice, Chester grapples with his affection for Vicky and his moral obligation to the police.
Inventive, taut, and rational, this novel (first published in 1918) is ideal for fans of writers like Arthur Conan Doyle.
Carolyn Wells (1862-1942) was a prolific American writer and poet. She wrote a total of 170 books, alongside collections of poetry and newspaper articles. She focused on children's books and mysteries, with great success in both of these areas. Some of her most notable works include The Nonsense Anthology (1902), Vicky Van (1918), and her autobiography The Rest of My Life (1937). Carolyn Well’s humorous verse and intricate plotlines are perfect for fans of Arthur Conan Doyle, Jill Paton Walsh and Laurie R. King.
Il Disoriente – Thriller & Noir
A paperback and e-book series published by Intra.
Global readability, Italian charm.
Victoria Van Allen is something of a riddle for her neighbour, Chester Calhoun. Known as Vicky Van to her friends, she is somewhat avant-garde but respected nonetheless. When a millionaire is stabbed to death at one of her famed dinner parties, she flees the scene before the police can be contacted, unwittingly placing herself at the centre of their investigation. As it is discovered that the deceased had ties to Vicky’s past, and detective Fleming Stone is called in to bring her to justice, Chester grapples with his affection for Vicky and his moral obligation to the police.
Inventive, taut, and rational, this novel (first published in 1918) is ideal for fans of writers like Arthur Conan Doyle.
Carolyn Wells (1862-1942) was a prolific American writer and poet. She wrote a total of 170 books, alongside collections of poetry and newspaper articles. She focused on children's books and mysteries, with great success in both of these areas. Some of her most notable works include The Nonsense Anthology (1902), Vicky Van (1918), and her autobiography The Rest of My Life (1937). Carolyn Well’s humorous verse and intricate plotlines are perfect for fans of Arthur Conan Doyle, Jill Paton Walsh and Laurie R. King.
Il Disoriente – Thriller & Noir
A paperback and e-book series published by Intra.
Global readability, Italian charm.
212 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1918
About the author
Carolyn Wells
705 books48 followersCarolyn Wells was a prolific writer for over 40 years and was especially noted for her humor, and she was a frequent contributor of nonsense verse and whimsical pieces to such little magazines as Gelett Burgess' The Lark, the Chap Book, the Yellow Book, and the Philistine.
Librarian note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Librarian note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
December 19, 2019
This is probably the best mystery by Carolyn Wells that I have read so far. While there is still a bit of the archaic Edwardian man falling in love with the beautiful woman, this story takes a turn from the previous mysteries by Wells and comes to an unexpected conclusion.
The male narrator describes his young, vivacious friend, Vicky Van who lives in a brownstone across the street from him (all of Wells mysteries take place in Manhattan prior to WWI).
Vicky Van is a bit of a mystery. She lives alone with one maid, all other servants are for hire. She entertains all the young and fun of both sexes. She's confident, exuberant, and irresistably made to fall in love with. At least all the men find it so. The women find her to be irresistably attractive company.
Vicky Van entertains and then disappears, sometimes for weeks at a time. She's young and single, no one knows where her money comes from or where she travels to, leaving her brownstone empty for weeks.
One night she has a special surprise celebration in mind. It's her birthday and she has an Italian restaurant catering dinner and a few more delights hidden for her company. One man, Mr. Steele brings an uninvited guest, a Mr. Somers. Vicky Van does not permit this, but since the man has come she makes him welcome.
Mr. Somers has heard of the delightful Miss Van and has determined to meet her, even if it means intruding on her private party.
Well, what happens next? Someone is murdered of course. You'll have to read who is murdered and who is accused. I'll only say, that the story kept me going to the end and I did not predict the conclusion.
All in all, I find Wells an able mystery writer if a little old fashioned, but still a good read.
The male narrator describes his young, vivacious friend, Vicky Van who lives in a brownstone across the street from him (all of Wells mysteries take place in Manhattan prior to WWI).
Vicky Van is a bit of a mystery. She lives alone with one maid, all other servants are for hire. She entertains all the young and fun of both sexes. She's confident, exuberant, and irresistably made to fall in love with. At least all the men find it so. The women find her to be irresistably attractive company.
Vicky Van entertains and then disappears, sometimes for weeks at a time. She's young and single, no one knows where her money comes from or where she travels to, leaving her brownstone empty for weeks.
One night she has a special surprise celebration in mind. It's her birthday and she has an Italian restaurant catering dinner and a few more delights hidden for her company. One man, Mr. Steele brings an uninvited guest, a Mr. Somers. Vicky Van does not permit this, but since the man has come she makes him welcome.
Mr. Somers has heard of the delightful Miss Van and has determined to meet her, even if it means intruding on her private party.
Well, what happens next? Someone is murdered of course. You'll have to read who is murdered and who is accused. I'll only say, that the story kept me going to the end and I did not predict the conclusion.
All in all, I find Wells an able mystery writer if a little old fashioned, but still a good read.
February 1, 2015
I'm not entirely sure why I liked this as much as I did. Its a turn-of-the-century melodrama/mystery involving a mysterious woman and a local millionaire that shows up at one of her parties under an assumed name. There is, of course, a death and the mysterious woman is implicated and disappears, but not really because she keeps showing up at the house and the police are not smart enough to stake out the place to catch her. Most of the time when I read mysteries, I don't bother trying to figure out who did it, and I didn't do that with this one, but still figured out who the mystery woman was and then the mystery was pretty much solved -- and I did it before the series main character even arrived on the scene.
But at least in this book the women weren't portrayed quite as weak-kneed and silly as they have been appearing in other Carolyn Wells books that I've read, and for that I'm grateful.
But at least in this book the women weren't portrayed quite as weak-kneed and silly as they have been appearing in other Carolyn Wells books that I've read, and for that I'm grateful.
March 23, 2019
Synopsis: Narrator Chet Calhoun introduces carefree Vicky Van as she hosts one of her regular dinner parties. The guests arrive, and one of them, Norman Steele, brings along an extra uninvited stranger - Somers. Before the caterers can serve the meal, Somers is found stabbed in the dining room.
In the ensuing commotion, Vicky Van and her maid Julie have disappeared. Luigi, a caterer, states he saw her standing over the body with blood on her dress. The police arrive and soon "Somers" is found to be an assumed name for millionaire Randolph Schuyler, who lives around the corner on Fifth Avenue.
The search is on for Vicky Van and Julie. She cannot be found, but she communicates with - and visits with - Chet Calhoun - who is conflicted between loyalty to her, and revealing his knowledge to the police. Chet also has conflicting love interests - the widow Ruth, and Vicky Van herself.
The maiden sisters call in Fleming Stone to find Vicky Van and bring her to justice. Stone brings his irregular, Fibsy, to do the legwork.
Review: Thoroughly enjoyable and unique book. The narrator, Chet Calhoun, is in a precarious and unique position - having some knowledge of Vicky Van's whereabouts but hesitant to disclose anything to the authorities.
The book focuses on the search for Vicky Van. She mails little messages here and there, but otherwise has disappeared with no trace. Fibsy, the young assistant to Stone, manages to find the solution by compiling an impressive list of circumstantial evidence. The solution is a total surprise, turning the plot on end completely.
The best Carolyn Wells I have read thus far.
Note: contains pejorative term used for persons of Italian ancestry.
In the ensuing commotion, Vicky Van and her maid Julie have disappeared. Luigi, a caterer, states he saw her standing over the body with blood on her dress. The police arrive and soon "Somers" is found to be an assumed name for millionaire Randolph Schuyler, who lives around the corner on Fifth Avenue.
The search is on for Vicky Van and Julie. She cannot be found, but she communicates with - and visits with - Chet Calhoun - who is conflicted between loyalty to her, and revealing his knowledge to the police. Chet also has conflicting love interests - the widow Ruth, and Vicky Van herself.
The maiden sisters call in Fleming Stone to find Vicky Van and bring her to justice. Stone brings his irregular, Fibsy, to do the legwork.
Review: Thoroughly enjoyable and unique book. The narrator, Chet Calhoun, is in a precarious and unique position - having some knowledge of Vicky Van's whereabouts but hesitant to disclose anything to the authorities.
The book focuses on the search for Vicky Van. She mails little messages here and there, but otherwise has disappeared with no trace. Fibsy, the young assistant to Stone, manages to find the solution by compiling an impressive list of circumstantial evidence. The solution is a total surprise, turning the plot on end completely.
The best Carolyn Wells I have read thus far.
Note: contains pejorative term used for persons of Italian ancestry.
August 24, 2010
Didn't see that ending coming! Carolyn Wells always amuses, and this little murder mystery is no exception.
January 17, 2012
Easy read, never came close to guessing the solution to the mystery
July 15, 2017
This is one of the best Carolyn Wells mysteries I have read so far.
Vicky Van is a friendly, entertaining and generous lady beloved by her friends. She is friendly but well-mannered and decent woman ( not a vamp :) )
A man named Sommers joins her house party one day. He follows her out of the card room and Vicky Van is seen standing next to him, with blood on her dress. Vicky Van then disappears from the party.
Why did she kill a stranger? What happened to her? Why aren't the police able to find her?
Her friend and neighbor - a lawyer tries to help her. But the murdered man is a 'somebody' and his family wants his murder avenged.
His old fashioned sisters and much-put-upon wife, Ruth enter the story and get the great detective Stone to investigate. Thankfully they do this fairly early in the story without evolving pages and pages of their own imaginary theories.
The story is taut & well-written. Though I guessed the murderer mid-way, I enjoyed how Stone and his trusty assistant Fibsy expose the murderer.
There is also a rational explanation for everything that happened and the reason for murder is strong. Very few lose ends (unlike other books).
Enjoy!
Vicky Van is a friendly, entertaining and generous lady beloved by her friends. She is friendly but well-mannered and decent woman ( not a vamp :) )
A man named Sommers joins her house party one day. He follows her out of the card room and Vicky Van is seen standing next to him, with blood on her dress. Vicky Van then disappears from the party.
Why did she kill a stranger? What happened to her? Why aren't the police able to find her?
Her friend and neighbor - a lawyer tries to help her. But the murdered man is a 'somebody' and his family wants his murder avenged.
His old fashioned sisters and much-put-upon wife, Ruth enter the story and get the great detective Stone to investigate. Thankfully they do this fairly early in the story without evolving pages and pages of their own imaginary theories.
The story is taut & well-written. Though I guessed the murderer mid-way, I enjoyed how Stone and his trusty assistant Fibsy expose the murderer.
There is also a rational explanation for everything that happened and the reason for murder is strong. Very few lose ends (unlike other books).
Enjoy!
October 17, 2023
This was a fun read. This cozy mystery was written in 1918. It is unlike Agatha Christie (my gold standard of cozies) in that the “famous detective” doesn’t appear until halfway through the novel. But it is a solid and entertaining whodunit. Tip: I listened to an audio version from a podcast called Classic Audiobook Collection. This was the first book I have listened to from that podcast and it was well done. All the books on that podcast are free. I have no idea if other narrators are as good as the narrator for this book but I’ll be downloading more to find out.
March 14, 2019
While attending a party of the society hostess Victoria Van Allen (Vicky Van), a man is killed. But Vicky Van disappears before the police arrive, and an eye witness account places her as guilty. Chester Calhoun a frequent guest of Vicky Van's befriends the dead man's wife, while also helping Vicky. The sisters of the dead man employ Fleming Stone to trace Vicky Van.
An enjoyable and satisfying mystery
An enjoyable and satisfying mystery
July 3, 2019
Neat old book
I have grown very fond of Carolyn Wells books. This one was especially inventive and enjoyable. I have found that I often know who done it rather early on but I still love these books. I love the time and the writing and the freshness of Carolyn Well's oh-so-old books. I highly recommend the Fleming Stone series to anyone who enjoys books of this era.
I have grown very fond of Carolyn Wells books. This one was especially inventive and enjoyable. I have found that I often know who done it rather early on but I still love these books. I love the time and the writing and the freshness of Carolyn Well's oh-so-old books. I highly recommend the Fleming Stone series to anyone who enjoys books of this era.
October 17, 2025
We have listened to a number of Carolyn Wells' Flemming Stone books. This is definitely one of her top reads. It is puzzling right to the end and Fibsy (Flemming Stone's helper) is the star of the show. If you read this story, be prepared for a real surprise ending. I would give it four and a half stars.
February 9, 2018
Wow, talk about a mystery with twists and turns. I enjoyed this story and I have to admit the writers of long ago are very good. I couldn't put it down until I had finished it.
September 12, 2017
Where is she?
I liked it. It was pretty easy to guess who would be blamed and why. They kept you guessing where the murderer was hiding and how she got away.
I liked it. It was pretty easy to guess who would be blamed and why. They kept you guessing where the murderer was hiding and how she got away.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews