Each mystery features one of the three main detectives as a leading character:
- Inspector Parnacki: The only professional investigator of the three. He is a veteran who is stoic and good at his job.
- Miss Mary Miller: A playful yet cunning socialite who solves her friends mysteries.
- Joshua Cole: A young journalist who'd do anything to dig up a new scoop to compete with rival newspapers.
The novel contains examples of:
- Zero-Approval Gambit: One of the Inspecor Parnacki stories has a suspect (a fired employee of an antique dealer) claiming that he deliberately goaded his boss into firing him because he didn't like the job but was afraid his girlfriend would nag him if he just quit. Of course since he later went back and robbed the guy, he might be lying about that and have a grudge after all.
- Accidental Murder: Two stories involve romantic arguments where a man shoved a woman and she hit her head on a sidewalk or corner and died.
- And There Was Much Rejoicing: The very first story has the unpleasant murder victims children all indifferent or a little pleased that he's dead.
- Be as Unhelpful as Possible: A few witnesses are usually consulted in nearly every case. Many of them purposefully mislead, can't accept something has happened enough to recount it or refuse to say anything at all.
- Bruiser with a Soft Center:
- "The Investigation" a story following a murdered private investigator features his surviving assistants. Both are described as tough-looking (one of whom is an actual ex-boxer) but pleasant mannered and finding it difficult to believe that anyone would want to hurt their boss.
- Dana Steele from "The Mugging" is a husky guy with a record for muggings and other robberies but who professes to have gone straight, saying that he likes walking around the city, being reminded of its vastness, while stating that he's given up his life of crime because he doesn't want to have a roof between him and the sky again.
- The Butler Did It: A few stories feature butlers and the first such story has him be the thief.
- Clothing-Concealed Injury: In one story, Parnacki investigates a robbery where the store owner and his assailant injured each other. He interviews the suspects, and quickly zeroes in on the one man who's wearing a long-sleeved shirt on a hot summer day. He rolls up the man's sleeves and finds injuries from the struggle.
- Conspicuous Gloves: One story has a suspect wearing expensive Italian gloves. They turn out to be hiding nail polish the victim got on his hands.
- Da Editor: Josh's editor at the Sentinel is loud and demanding in forcing him to go and dig up new info on stories, and sometimes outright prints stories that Joshua suspects are false due to them making good headlines.Editor: Now get out there before I make you into the next big murder case!
- Dartboard of Hate: The mayor allegedly throws knives at a picture of his political rival.
- Divorce Requires Death: Murder is deemed necessary in multiple stories with a cheating spouse.
- The Don: Benny Lucas, a notorious crime boss who often turns up as a Red Herring or Greater-Scope Villain.
- Dramatic Drop: Averted. During one story involving a restaurant robbery a waiter who saw the thief comments he didn't drop his tray due to having the presence of mind to fear he didn't have to pay for the expensive dishes and would disturb and panic the oblivious customers.
- Even Evil Has Standards: The murder victim of one story, a two-bit rum runner, was murdered for his refusal to branch into smuggling drugs.
- Evil Uncle: One story has an ill-tempered, unpleasant man murder his niece just because he felt her doting influence was making his son too soft.
- Friend on the Force: Josh has a police contact named Pete, who gives him information about murder cases (although he won't release confidential details) and who Josh sometimes tips off about the solutions to cases he figure out.
- Great Detective: Inspector Parnacki, with his stoic personality, independent streak, and reliance on deductive skills.
- Heroic Bystander:
- One story has Joshua interviewing a blind beggar who saved a little girl from drowning. While it turns out the man isn't really blind (he just thought that might earn him more sympathy and help get him a job due to the press on the story) he is a genuine hero and Joshua chooses not to reveal his secret.
- One story has a kidnapper foiled when the nanny of his would-be-victim throws household items at him until he flees.
- Hyper-Awareness: During the restaurant robbery story the head waiter says he memorized all the customers who came in through the door and all were still there when the thief left, so the man must have come in another way.
- Inheritance Murder: Played with but mostly averted. One story has one of the victim's children murder his father in a blind rage in response to being told he's going to be cut out of the will. There are several other stories where a spouse or other relative who would inherit is guilty but for reasons related to an affair or simple hatred rather than money. In one such story an innocent man who was nearly murdered notes that what's left of his father's estate is "Nothing worth killing over. If money ever is."
- Intrepid Reporter: Joshua often has to go out and search for new information about news stories that have already been reported on, which more often than not, leads to him needing to solve some mysteries for himself.
- Kissing Cousins: A one-sided example appears in one story, with a man lusting after his cousin. His feelings are not returned and he kills her in a fit of anger when she makes this clear.
- Let No Crisis Go to Waste: After a mob lawyer is murdered in one story a nearby prosecutor Josh interviews gives a quote for the article to serve a warning to other lawyers getting involved with the mob.
- Little Old Lady Investigates: Mary Miller is an "aging" socialite who is quick to offer her insight when approached with a problem and is good at ferreting out criminals.
- Mafia Princess: One story's murder takes place in a building owned by Benny Lucas's three-year old niece (although it's unclear if he's just using her as a front or is really tying to get her groomed for/involved in the mob operations from a young age).
- Mean Boss: Mr. Earley, the murder victim in "The Late Mr. Earley" is described as a man always yelling at his employees for no good reason.
- Sibling Triangle: One story involves a man trying to kill his brother due to an affair with his brother's fiancee (who wanted to break things off).
- Sidekick: Joshua's friend and photographer Adam who sometimes acts as his watson to point out his deductions.
- Smart People Play Chess: One of Mary's cases involves theft at a chess club. It's noted that Mary herself stopped playing the game because she couldn't find anyone good enough to beat her.
- Suspiciously Specific Denial: In one story Mary becomes suspicious of a man who quickly established his alibi before she even said when the robbery took place.
- Tattooed Crook: One story has Parnicki investigating a story where a suspect is an ex-convict with multiple religious tattoos across him. And he's guilty.
- Wounded Gazelle Gambit: One story has a Headline seeking politician fake an attempt on his own life to get good PR.
