August 1962. A suspicious fire claims a tumbledown foaling barn on the grounds of the once-proud Tempesta Stud Farm, halfway between New Holland and Saratoga Springs, NY. The blaze, one of several in recent years at the abandoned farm, barely prompts a shrug from the local sheriff. That is until 'girl reporter' Ellie Stone, first on the scene, uncovers a singed length of racing silk in the rubble of the barn. And it's wrapped around the neck of one of two charred bodies buried in the ashes.
I’d never read any of the Ellie Stone mysteries before A Stone’s Throw, but I’m going to fix that oversight as soon as I can, as this was a really terrific novel. It felt almost as if the original Nancy Drew had grown up and was living independently as an investigative reporter ... James W. Ziskin writes with extraordinary perception and sympathy, tackling the bigotry and sexism Ellie faces in both her personal and professional spheres ... I also enjoyed how those traits were applied to the study of horses, racing, and gambling, in addition to the solid investigative reporting.
...Ziskin's suspenseful sixth mystery ... The carefully constructed plot unfolds in unexpected ways ... Ziskin keeps readers guessing every step of the way.
The detective work is unspectacular but conscientious, absorbing, and believable, and the unblinking heroine’s clearheaded first-person narrative is never less than appealing.
