Mrs. Meade and the Invisible Lodger: A Short Story

Mrs. Meade Mysteries #5.1

by Elisabeth Grace Foley

“Mrs. Meade, might I speak to you a moment? It’s—it’s quite absurd, but most distressing, and I really don’t know what to do.”

Mrs. Meade's landlady has an unnerving problem: her new lodger doesn't seem to exist! No one in Sour Springs besides Mrs. Henney has ever seen him—so where does he go when he leaves the house every morning? The obvious solution is to lay the question before Mrs. Meade.

This is a stand-alone short story, which can be enjoyed in any order with the Mrs. Meade Mysteries or by readers new to the series.

Genres: Short Stories, Historical Fiction, Mystery

27 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 13, 2023

About the author

Elisabeth Grace Foley (that’s Elisabeth with an s) is the author of numerous works of historical fiction and historical mystery set mostly in the American West, including the Mrs. Meade Mysteries, short cozy mysteries featuring a lady detective in Edwardian-era Colorado, and the Western comedy A Sidekick’s Tale. Her most recent release, The Smoking Iron and Other Stories, is the latest of several collections of Western short stories.

She was a Peacemaker Award finalist in 2015 with her novella Left-Hand Kelly, and again in 2021 with her short story “Dakota Clothesline,” and won the Peacemaker for short fiction in 2025 with her short story "Valiant-For-Truth." Her historical mystery novel Land of Hills and Valleys was voted one of Readfree.ly’s 50 Best Indie Books of 2021.

When not reading or writing, she enjoys gardening, crocheting, digging further into her family tree, cheering for underdog European football teams, and watching old movies. She lives in upstate New York with her family.

Reviews

[Bookworm · Rating 5 out of 5]

Delightful! Feel like I got a dose of Miss Jane Marple, but with less dire circumstances. Mrs. Meade is positively going to be a favorite.

[Kate Willis · Rating 4 out of 5]

An enjoyable reminder of how much I love this series. I need a whole collection now. 😉

[Nadine Keels · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick and pleasant G-rated historical mystery that hit the spot. Unsurprisingly, it isn't too complicated of a puzzle, and on a technical note, I'm not sure why certain words/terms in it are hyphenated, like "hair-brush." Does it have something to do with the historical period I don't know about?

At any rate, this was a tasty little snack for me. It's the second Mrs. Meade mystery I've read, and it'd be fun to read more.

[Dawn · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun short story. Would love to read all in the series!

[Angie Thompson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun little mystery that I really enjoyed. I guessed a tiny part of the solution, which is better than my track record of not guessing any of it, so I'm quite proud of myself. :D Love how well the old-fashioned flavor is done. <3

Content--fears of ghosts (dismissed); a young woman runs away from home to elope

[G.Terenzio · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mrs. Meade is approached by her agitated land lady because it seems the new lodger is invisible. Nobody ever sees him or has heard his name and Mrs. Henny is starting to believe in ghosts.

The practical Mrs. Meade is working things out be deducting and with commune sense.

[Lydia Willcock · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rating: 4.5 stars
This was a great short mystery with some hilarious lines and a fun storyline. It only took me about twenty minutes to read, and it felt just the right length despite being so short. I like how it can be read by Mrs Meade fans or someone completely new to the series.

[Hanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nothing too deep and engaging--an interesting plot shoved into very few words--but Foley's writing style is so lovely, and her character development is so endearing, I can't help but enjoy the story.

[Anna · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fast short read with a surprising mystery! Great Fun!

[Andrea Cox · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a cute story, but the vintage-style delivery, heavy on dialogue monologues, wasn’t to my taste. The cover and mystery were wonderful.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a 3.5 🌟 read rounded ⬆️ to 4 🌟.

[Sapphyria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mrs. Meade and the Invisible Lodger is a fun historical mystery. A quick ready perfect for a lunchtime, or anytime, break.

[Naomi McCullough · Rating 5 out of 5]

Foley does it again! Delightful and darling Mrs. Meade solves her mystery and gets her, erm, ghost. I love the dialogue exchanges and the Miss Marple style that this lady oozes.