K. is not one of Ms. Rinehart's classic murder mysteries. There are mysteries, yes, but no deliberate murder. ( )

Early 20th century view of women's place in medicine and the courting game. Divorce was not an option. ( )

18-year-old Sidney Page is eager to break free of the Street that defines her life. Taking in a boarder with a mysterious past gives her the freedom to enter nurse's training. She can live in the nurse's quarters knowing that the reliable K. LeMoyne is looking after things at home. K. is both encouraging and protective in his friendship with Sidney. Soon everyone on the street begin to turn to K. in a crisis. Meanwhile, Sidney catches the eye of handsome young surgeon Dr. Max Wilson, younger brother of the doctor who lives across the Street from Sidney. Will Sidney's love for Wilson survive the revelation that her hero has clay feet?

This 100-year-old romance is very much a product of its time. The social structure that is so important in the novel no longer exists. While this is a didactic novel, the tone is not “preachy”. Both K. and Sidney exhibit sympathy for others, particularly women, who break the moral code of the street, such as the middle-aged spinster in love with a married man unable to divorce his insane wife. The characters and plot are forgettable. Readers wishing to learn about social life in a lower middle class neighborhood of a century ago will get the most out of this book. ( )

4840. K. by Mary Roberts Rinehart (read 14 Jul 2011) This 1915 book was No. 5 on the 1915 best seller list. It is a soupy simple book--not a mystery, as I had expected--laid in about 1913 , telling of Sydney and her social life. The title of the book suggests who she ends up with, but for most of the book she does not appreciate the merits of K. Le Moyne, who is a roomer in her home. I thought the writing poor and the plot creaky, One should look on it as a means of seeing what popular fiction was like before World War One. ( )