Nero Wolfe Books

These books, though written so long ago, are timeless and very enjoyable. Stout's forte was character building, and let me tell you there is no one out there like overweight Nero Wolfe! This book is all about a pedigree bull if you can imagine, but it is really good. Wolfe and his sidekick Archie are out of their element here again since they are in the countryside attending a country fair with Wolfe's orchids, and they happen to stumble upon a murder that occurs in a bull pasture. Wolfe knows its murder, but has to convince the local yokels of this fact. There are something like 46 Nero Wolfe novels, and I'm very tempted to read the entire series, since these are just so good.

It is amazing that a book written so long ago is still so entertaining. I will be reading the entire series and I bought the 1st seasaon DVD for a friend.

This is a great example of why this series is so enjoyable. Nero Wolfe proven right about automobiles, Wolfe trapped in a pasture by a bull, (Threatened by food, how appropriate.) Archie meets the one woman who sticks around (Lily Rowan) and a mystery that only gets solved with one of Wolfe's outrageous, but plausible (well, almost plausible) schemes. All the usual pleasures are just a bit better in this one, Archie gets arrested (as per usual) but instead of just suffering comically, he decides to organize the inmates. The banter between Goodwin and Rowan is another highlight (You'll see why Stout kept her around) and the twists and turns all have purpose. This one is one of the true classics of the series.

And it's not Hickory Caesar Grindon, the bull, either. This early Wolfe introduces Archie to his lifelong companion Lily Rowan.

Lily sticks with Archie (God knows why) for the rest of the series, which means from 1939 to 1975.

Some would say that Archie should be ashamed that he never makes an honest woman of Lily - I mean, isn't 36 years long enough? But that shows that they've not understood Lily - or Archie, for that matter.

Lily is a classic proto-feminist. She is independent and wilful. SHe thinks and acts for herself. Marriage, as she would define it, poses unacceptable terms to her: having to conform her actions to the expectations of someone else.

A great pleasure was seeing Kari Matchett play Lily in the much-lamented A&E series on Nero Wolfe. She was perfect: beautiful, self assured, charming and very much her own woman.

Oh, the story: a prize bull is killed and so is another person associated therewith...Wolfe, already grossly inconvenienced and in a highly uncomfortable place, must unravel this to assure that Archie does not languish in a provincial prison.

And, of course, a relationship begins which lasts a lifetime. The language and the characters in this story are irresistable, and Michael Prichard does his usual, wonderful job in capturing the spirit of Rex Stout's writing.

It's a story that stands up to multiple listenings. Enjoy!

Some Buried Caesar begins with an auto accident as Archie Goodwin is driving Nero Wolfe to an orchid exhibition. Wolfe, in his own considerate way, loses no opportunity to tell everyone he meets that Archie has wrecked his car. While this definitely helps fuel some of the comedy in the book, it's not quite the central plot thread. It turns out that Wolfe and company get sucked into a murder investigation where the prime suspect is a prize bull. Wolfe knows that the bull is innocent but has to prove it to the police to earn his fee. There is plenty of enjoyable snappy patter and the story moves along at a nice brisk pace. Archie also picks up something of a girlfriend, Lily Rowan, who will be around off and on for the rest of the series.

Most Wolfe novels have him safely at home in the city but this one pulls him out of his cozy confines and this definitely helps add spice to the story. Speaking of the story, it's one of Rex Stout's best. The characters are varied and interesting and the murder mystery is just as baffling as you could hope for. Some of the dialogue is laugh-out-loud funny, just as you would expect from Wolfe and Goodwin.

If you've never read a Nero Wolfe book, this one would make a great introduction to the series. If you have read some of the novels, this one is well worth adding to your collection. In short, I would recommend it without reserve to almost anyone.

Having read just about all of the Nero Wolfe series, I have to say, this one contains all of the elements that make Rex Stout's detective novels wildly entertaining, without most of the elements that make some of them maddening

In this mystery, the utterly unswashbuckling Wolfe is revealed, in his younger, svelter days, to have been quite a romantic. Not only did he fight on the anti-Imperial side in Montenegro during the Great War, but he adopted and may even have actually sired a young girl.

To his shock, this young Yugoslav maiden--whom he had lost track of--reappears in his life, up to her neck in a particularly messy, intricate affair that may or may not include missing diamonds, a dead body or two, international intrigue, and a bellboy's uniform. For all of the peeks into Wolfe's previously unsuspected soul, he remains as crumudgeonly and as immovable as ever. Archie Goodwin, of course, remains the wisecracking, milk-drinking sidekick, flirting with anything in a skirt and even giving a Nazi agent a black eye just for the fun of it.

The joy of these books is their marriage of the American gumshoe attitude and the British cozy focus on character. Where they generally fall short is their plotting. This entry in the series is, without a doubt, the most successfully rounded out of the lot. Stout manages to keep the mystery truly mysterious, and yet never manages to confuse the reader so thoroughly that s/he can't find the exit. The plot actually ends on the last page--many of the Nero Wolfe mysteries fizzle out, wrapping up a chapter or two before the end, leaving nothing but rumination and grumbling for the final pages. Others seem never quite to wrap up all the loose ends. Here, the conclusion is both inevitable and unexpected--utterly satisfying.

Over My Dead Body is the seventh in the Nero Wolfe series. A young lady claiming to be Wolfe's adopted daughter from Yugoslavia asks for his help with a charge of stealing diamonds but this quickly evolves into a situation where she is suspected of murder. The case frustrates Wolfe no end, it gets more complicated all the while, but of course he manages to uncover the solution by the end of the story.

This book is a prime example of a Nero Wolfe novel. Archie Goodwin is in top form as a wise cracking pain-in-the-neck. Inspector Cramer is present more than a lot of stories giving Goodwin plenty of opportunities for zingers besides the ones he routinely fires at Wolfe. Wolfe himself is definitely out of his comfort zone dealing with the situation of his adopted daughter and this also adds to the potential for laughs.

This is a very entertaining book and I would recommend it for readers unfamiliar with Nero Wolfe as a great place to start or for established fans.

In this Nero Wolfe mystery-one of the earlier episodes-we encounter Wolfe's adopted daughter, who is in a bit of a fix. Wolfe comes to the rescue and along the way, shares little glimpses into his past: his tumultuous youth in Europe; the origins of his suspicion of all women; how he came to adopt a child. In this book, probably more than any other in Rex Stout's series, do we see the effect that women-especially those from the former nation of Yugoslavia-have upon Wolfe's psyche. It's a good read-a good mystery with a great plot-like pretty much all of Stout's works.

This book hits on all cylinders. The plot is excellent, intricate but clear. The characters are well drawn. The atmosphere, New York on the eve of World War II, is almost palpable. The dialogue is perfect. I'm at a loss as to what else to say about the book except, "Read it."

A Britsh undercover agent is murdered at a Manhattan fencing school, skewered by an epee with a gizmo attached that turns it into a weapon sans blunt end. Yugoslav women who are instructors there are possible suspects, one of whom is Nero Wolfe's adopted daughter from his days as an ill advised Austrian agent in the Balkans, pre World War, before we started numbering them. This alone is a startling revelation about Wolfe. Wolfe slender? Youthful? Abroad, outside, involved with people? I was astonished.

As usual, the beer drinking, orchid collecting, erudite, corpulent food lover Nero Wolfe declines, under any circumstances, to leave his brownstone abode with a greenhouse rooftop for his rare flowers. Using Archie, his assistant, as legs, Wolfe solves the baffling case. I knew he would. He's solved all the other mysteries in the Nero Wolfe books I've read.

Mystery fans who have not read mysteries from the golden age (pre-1950) do not know what they are missing. There is no sex to lure the lascivious reader, very little violence, no profanity. What there is (and this book is an excellent example of the sub-genre) is intelligence.
That's a rare commodity in most modern mysteries.

This is, at once, one of the best books in the series and one which translated brilliantly to TV on the A&E series.

Rex Stout decides to deal us a little shock in this one: Nero Wolfe, woman-hater, has a daughter he's not seen since she was a baby. She comes from Yugoslavia to New York, unknown to her pops, and gets into a real tight spot involving murder by "coldymort."

When Archie learns this, he considers resigning on the basis of his boss's morals. You just have to read this one to find out.

Or, again, buy the A&E series - they did a great job here.

A man is poisoned during a chess match, and Wolfe gets called by the daughter of the arrested suspect to clear her dad and find the real killer. Naturally, Wolfe must do this while staying firmly ensconsed in his Manhatten brownstone, while Archie Goodwin does his legwork. The story quickly develops a natural suspect after an initial series of interviews of all the people surrounding the death. But it also takes an interesting twist when another dead body is found. I enjoyed that just enough clues were left in the story to allow me to figure out who the killer was just before Wolfe announced it. Here's a hint ... the method of murder was a little different than you may originally think it is. Enjoy!

For some reason the Amazon listings don't include the audio CD version of this outstanding book.

Michael Prichard's reading style is ideally suited to this great story about chess players and the "perfect murder." The variations in personalities at the Gambit Club prefigure the chess stars of the 70s.

From a view of character study, this one is really, really good (and great to listen to also).

My 5th Nero Wolfe book, and I loved it. I caution new readers that the Nero Wolfe books are an acquired taste. For women the Wolfe character is edgy. But, this puzzle of who poisoned what, etc. really grabbed my attention, and I dreamed about it for days (a good sign for me). I can tell that I'm finally getting into these books because I envy Wolfe's life. He's a recluse, and that's my big goal in life -- a recluse with lots of help to do my chores. It'll never happen, and that's why reading these books is satisfying a longing in me.

For anyone unfamiliar with Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe mysteries I'd highly recommend this novel. While it is not my favorite of Stout's Nero Wolfe stories, it is a nice introduction to to Nero Wolfe and his confidential assistant Archie Goodwin. Wolfe is a 285 pound orchid collecting genius of a detective who almost never leaves his office for work. he can be cranky and avoids work whenever possible. Archie is a sarcastic ladies-man who's job is to do the leg work for Wolfe as well as keep him focused.

The opening sections of the book illustrate the quirks of the main characters and as I said make a good introduction for new readers.

The mystery itself is interesting and full of the twists and turns that I have come to expect from a Nero Wolfe novel. It is written in Stout's signiature sytle and kept me guessing for much of the book. In the end, Stout does a good job of tying everything up and showing the logic behind the solution and how Wolfe and Archie got from point A to Point B to the solution.

A Review by Alex

Jerin is playing the usual twelve players with messengers running in a room with Jerin alone telling the layouts of each board. A man had come in with some hot chocolate for Jerin. The man's name was Blount. Later that night, Jerin dies and Blount is thrown in jail because they all think he did it. Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin have to solve the mystery and see to it that Blount is innocent. The only way they can solve it is the use of his daughter, Sally.

I really love and enjoy the fact that this book makes me think and makes it so I use my brain a little. It is a mystery, so therefore I have to be smarter than Archie. I was always trying to figure out if it is someone or not and when I read to find out it's not one person I try to guess who it could be. This book also gave me suspense, I got so excited when they were about to do questioning with someone like Sally or the mother. I always find out something new and clues of the killer. This book was also a perfect read when it came to pages, only 137 pages and the text was a bit on the small side but still made it a perfect size. Not too quick and not too long. This book always gave me a surprise.

This is a great mystery for those who love to use their brain figuring things out. Gambit is a really exciting book to discover new suspects and an unexpected murderer. You will dive into the book and not want to put in down caused by the eagerness to read about who did it and why.

I became introduced, and subsequently hooked on the Wolfe books through watching the A & E series a few years ago. While I own all of them I have thus far only managed to get through half of them. As I began reading the books I thought to myself if ever a series begged for a cookbook it was this one, and, much to my delight, there was one.

I recieved the cookbook as a present and have thouroughly enjoyed cooking meals from it. I have yet to make some of the more adventurous dishes such as the Starlings, Grouse (raised on fresh huckleberries), and turttle soup; due both to lack of fund$ and lack of supply. However, I have enjoyed making both the melon and crab salads. As well, I highly recomend Wolfe's Onion soup [especially if you have a cold], Cornbread Griddlecakes, Spareribs and Cassoulet all are delicous and finger-licking good. I warn you now the Nero Wolfe Cookbook is not for those who are on a diet Atkins or otherwise, the character of Wolfe is not known for his sveltness and, besides his relatively sedentary lifestyle, his epicurean nature is a clear indication as to why.

Inserted througout the cookbook are but a minutia of the plethora of food references found throughout Stout's, arguably most successful, series. These mouth watering recipes and qoutes make the cook/reader want to go and read more of the books to see what else Wolfe ate which in turn makes you want to go make more of the food because the books are so detailed about what is served. My only reget in reading this book is that Stout did not publish a second volume of Wolfe's dishes since readers of the series are left wanting more of the recipes to Wolfe's great feasts

If you are a fan of Nero Wolfe, then this is the book for you. REAL recipes used in the stories, the recipes that Fritz Brenner and Nero Wolfe cook with and sometimes fight over, while Archie Goodwin just sits down and enjoys it all. With a forward by Fritz, the book has everything from how to make the pie crust (for the many pies)to griddle cakes (which Archie loves). It even has Nero Wolfe's salad dressing!
ENJOY!

"I beg you not to entrust these dishes to your cook unless he is an artist. Cook them yourself, and only for an occasion that is worthy of them. They are items for an epicure, but are neither finicky nor pretentious; you and your guests will find them as satisfying to the appetite as they are pleasing to the palate. None is beyond your abilities if you have the necessary respect for the art of fine cooking -
and are willing to spend the time and care which an excellent dish deserves and must have. Good appetite!"

The above quote from the account one of Nero Wolfe's first investigations ("Too Many Cooks," 1937) serves as one of several introductory notes to this compilation of recipes from Rex Stout's famous mystery series involving the New York epicurean, orchid lover and heavy-weight detective whose exploits have long become as indelible a part of literary history as those of Sherlock Holmes, Hercule Poirot, Miss Marple and Lord Peter Wimsey. And the quote not only sums up to perfection Wolfe's view of the meals served in his house; it also - consequently - provides a taste of the approach one should adopt in using this cookbook. For unlike many other literature-related recipe collections, "The Nero Wolfe Cookbook" need not rely on a great many third-party sources to determine what the great detective might have consumed; a key part of the mysteries themselves are the descriptions of Wolfe's meals, and Wolfe's (as well as his Swiss chef Fritz Brenner's) attitude towards food in general.

All of the recipes presented here were initially developed by chef Michael S. Romano and tested personally by Rex Stout and "New Yorker" food critic Sheila Hibben. And it's all there, from Eggs au Beurre Noir, griddle cakes, and apricot omelet to Fritz Brenner's various duck, duckling, and pork dishes, Wolfe's "relapses," and even the complete menu served by Fritz on the occasion of the annual Ten for Aristology dinner in "Poison a la Carte:" Blinis with Sour Cream (of course without the fatal dose of arsenic someone had added, to Fritz's eternal horror and shame, to one of the guests' plates!), Green-Turtle Soup, Flounder Poached in White Wine, Mussel and Mushroom Sauce, Roast Pheasant, Suckling Pig, Chestnut Croquettes, Salad with Devil's Rain Dressing and Cheese. As you would expect with cuisine as refined as this (and given that we're talking, after all, about the culinary arts of the early and mid-20th century), not all ingredients are easy to track down or even still available; turtles being the obvious example - and frankly, I don't quite share Wolfe's predilection for such things as starlings and marrow dumplings, either. But even foregoing those recipes, there are plenty of others to try your hand at, and to get a flavor of the culinary delights that fueled Wolfe's and his "legman" and chronicler Archie Goodwin's investigations.

In addition to the recipes, the book is lavishly garnished with quotes and excerpts from Rex Stout's - err, excuse me, Archie Goodwin's - narrations, providing the context in which individual dishes were served, as well as an array of photographs by renowned photo artists such as Norman and Lionel Wurts, Roy Perry, Samuel Gottscho, Andreas Feininger, John Muller, and Bernice Abbot; displaying the New York of the 1930s through the 1950s (by many considered the city's golden years, and the heyday of Wolfe's and Archie Goodwin's career), with brownstones like Wolfe's on West 35th Street and other fashionable residences (seen both from outside and inside), 5th Avenue, the Financial District and Times Square, the Empire State Building, Central Park and other green spots, Madison Square Garden, Fulton and other markets, the Staten Island Ferry, Grand Central and Penn Stations, and New York restaurants of various degrees of elegance and refinement. Thus, this is much more than "just" a cookbook - in fact, it's an introduction to Wolfe's entire world and style of life; tastefully uniting the essence of Archie Goodwin's manifold accounts in a single volume.

"I have not a great hope that many people will eat superior meals because they buy this book and use it," cautions Fritz Brenner in his own foreword. "The facts about food and cooking can be learned and understood by anyone with good sense, but if the feeling of the art of cooking is not in your blood and bones the most you can expect is that what you put on your table will be mangeable. ... But I do not think this book will make your food any the worse. At least it should help with some of the facts." And that, after all, is plenty already, I think. So savor, enjoy, and, in Wolfe's words - good appetite!

Also recommended:
The Grand Central Oyster Bar & Restaurant Complete Seafood Cookbook
The Union Square Cafe Cookbook: 160 Favorite Recipes from New York's Acclaimed Restaurant
Around the World Cookbook
Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home: Fast and Easy Recipes for Any Day
Sundays at Moosewood Restaurant: Ethnic and Regional Recipes from the Cooks at the Legendary Restaurant (Cookery)
Madhur Jaffrey's World Vegetarian: More Than 650 Meatless Recipes from Around the World
On Cooking: A Textbook of Culinary Fundamentals (4th Edition) Textbook only
Joy of Cooking: 75th Anniversary Edition - 2006

A wonderful companion to the Nero Wolfe experience, but the recipes are not for the inexperienced cook. We started with the baked scallops and were delighted, but there are several steps and you can screw up easily if you lack the right equipment or skills.

The excerpts are sly and the pictures are endearing. We wouldn't have minded a few images of the entrees, but the photos of period New York gently blur the line between fiction and reality, as does the whole book itself.

Buy this one if you are Wolfe obsessive, or (much better) if you can cook. But beware! Wolfe's tastes reflect a complete disregard for his health, so butter, eggs, and cream are in every second dish. A few call for ingredients you can't get (turtle meat, for example), but most rely on a short litany of spices and vegetables on top of easily found meats and fishes.

You will never really be able to have Fritz come visit your kitchen, but it's fun to imagine him watching over your shoulder, or peeking into your dining room, as you savor what might have been his own cooking (if you're chef enough, that is).

(Oh, our copy lacked the last page of the index, and it appears to be a printing, rather than binding error. Annoying, but we've given it 5 stars anyway.)

Yes, like the previous two reviews stated, this is a MUST for Rex Stout aficionados, but also for those interested the period. There are very nice photographs showing New York and the various locales mentioned in the books. I particularly enjoyed the pics of the brownstones like the one owned by Nero Wolfe and inhabited by Archie Goodwin, Theodore Horstman, Fritz Brenner and Nero Wolfe.

Nero Wolfe may be enjoyed through the media of print, audio, and video--in print courtesy of Bantam Books; on audio courtesy of Durkin Hayes, Radio Spirits, and Books on Tape; and on video courtesy of A&E Network. It's hard to say which way gives the most pleasure. As much as I like the A&E shows, and as much as I like Durkin Hayes' editions of the CBC radio shows, I think the best way to enjoy Nero Wolfe is in print. And the best way to enjoy him in print is in Rex Stout's novelettes. The novels are good, but the novelettes are tauter, faster-paced, and funnier. "Three Witnesses" serves up three very good novelettes. In "The Next Witness" Wolfe sits uncomfortably in a crowded courtroom, under subpoena, and waiting to give truthful testimony which he expects will materially contribute to the conviction for murder of an innocent man. What to do, what to do? Flee the courtroom, dodge the arrest warrant issued for contempt of court, and bring the real murderer to justice before the judge can bang his gavel down on a sentence of imprisonment for contempt. That sounds easy enough, doesn't it? In "When a Man Murders", a millionaire returns from the dead to retrieve the fortune which was divided among his heirs and reclaim the "widow" who has entered into a much happier second marriage. The "widow" comes to Wolfe for his assistance in obtaining a divorce from her recently resurrected spouse. Not to worry, he almost immediately dies again, but the widow's new husband is arrested for murder. Wolfe must penetrate a web of lies to determine who among the heirs had the most to gain from the millionaire's second death. In "Die Like a Dog" an improbable chain of coincidences brings Nero Wolfe together with Nero the Labrador Retriever. Together they unravel a murder mystery, reunite a couple, and retrieve Archie Goodwin's raincoat. "Die Like a Dog" and "The Next Witness" have both been televised on the A&E series.

I love the mystery novels written during the 30's to the 60's. There is a certain style to Chandler, Hammet and Rex Stout which creates an interesting and fast paced story. Rex Stout is a master at giving the reader just enough detail to allow the reader to visualize his/her own images without going into the painful details some modern writers give. The books which are a collection of short stories are the best ones to me. They are written without tedious back-story and come to a speedy conclusion. Three Witnesses is a great example of this. Three stories linked in a theme that entertain. My favorite is the last story about the dog. It shows a different side of Nero Wolfe. Worth reading.

Nero Wolfe has many eccentricities, his orchids, his rigid schedule, his obsessive reading to name a few. Very prominent on this list is that Wolfe rarely leaves the house, NEVER handles divorce cases, and is opposed to animals in his house. In this collection of three novellas all of the above and more occur.

THE NEXT WITNESS is the first story. Nero Wolfe has been summoned to court as a witness in a murder trial. This has necessitated him to abandon his routine, travel in a car, sit in court (next to a woman wearing perfume!) and just when the end of this torment is in sight Wolfe walks out of court. Now a fugitive himself he, and Archie set out to solve the case in a more satifactory manner so Nero can return home. This is hilarious, Wolfe becomes involved in many unusual (for him) situations that he reacts to as only Nero Wolfe could or would.

WHEN A MAN MURDERS.... finds Nero and Archie confronted with a low bank balance and two eager clients which Wolfe would prefer to dismss since the case involves divorce. Still the details are intriguing enough to look into and soon this simple matter becomes one of death and deception.

The final work - DIE LIKE A DOG begins with Archie out on a simple errand. A would be client has taken Archie's raincoat by mistake so Archie go the man's apartment and retrieve his coat. When he arrives at the address he discovers that the situation has been complicated by the man's murder, he leaves in order to avoid dealing with the police but discovers that he has been followed home, by a dog. Archie then decides to have a little fun at Wolfe's expense before locating the dog's owner. Soon however the trio - Archie, Nero and the dog find themselves deeply involved in the case and with no client.

These are particularly funny entries into this long running series. Wolfe is thrust into many situations that he would very much prefer to avoid. Fans are treated to many juicy little tidbits about life in the brownstone and even a fleeting glimpse into Wolfe's mysterious past. The mysteries themselves, although somewhat secondary to the cozy/comic elements in these stories, are very clever, fairly laid out and challenge to reader to solve them before Nero reveals all.

These are great stories, but the most memorable one is "Die Like A Dog." A dog's owner is killed and, because Archie accidentally swapped coats with him, the dog literally follows Archie home. The A&E adaptation of this story is great.

The Wolfe Pack, though, has raised a continuity concern: the dog's owner was dead, Wolfe was obviously very fond of the dog, and yet, without explanation, the dog disappears.

"The Next Witness" has Wolfe testifying in court. The A&E adaption is also a good one, but I was disappointed in the depiction of the judge and his demeanor - it was not how the book has it at all.

And "When a Man Murders..." would have been an outstanding addition to the A&E catalog. Wolfe avoids marital work (a staple of the private detective business), but takes on this one because of some unusual facts and because he's low on cash. The characters in this one are great; you could see the A&E ensemble having a ball with this one.

To date (beginning of season 2), 2 of the 3 stories herein have been adapted by A&E with Maury Chaykin as Wolfe; the TV series is extremely faithful to the original stories.

"The Next Witness" - (Adapted for _Nero Wolfe_'s 2nd season.) Wolfe makes a point of never leaving home on business, but alas, subpoenas are an occupational hazard for private investigators, and even Wolfe can't always shuffle them off onto Archie, even when the defendant never made it to the status of client.

Wolfe didn't deliver Leonard Ashe to the law; he rejected Ashe as a client because he won't touch marital squabbles. Ashe is being tried for the murder of one of the operators of his telephone answering service, apparently after a failed attempt to bribe her to tap his wife's calls. Wolfe, after hearing the testimony of preceding witnesses, skips out on the subpoena, taking Archie along, having become convinced that Ashe is innocent, though he doesn't at first explain why. See if you can deduce his reasons before the grand finale.

When Wolfe finally does take the stand quite a while later (now, of course, facing contempt of court), he has a diabolically clever plan to get his new evidence before the jury. Enjoy.

When a Man Murders... - Sydney Karnow had wealth, a sardonic sense of humor, a nice wife, and a pack of sponging relatives. A year after his marriage, he volunteered for army service in the Korean War, and was reported dead within a year, leaving his fortune divided between his wife (50%) and the spongers (50% divided 3 ways), so all were well provided for if not filthy rich.

Now, 3 years later, he's come back *alive* - two years after Caroline's remarriage to Paul Aubry. They used her inheritance to start an automobile agency, but the money didn't bring them to Wolfe - their problem is that their marriage is now invalid. (They're willing to concede anything about the money in exchange for a simple divorce.) Paul can't bring himself to speak with Karnow directly, and Karnow's lawyer won't get involved, so they're approaching Wolfe to act as intermediary.

Ordinarily Wolfe won't touch any case related to marital squabbles, but he's willing in this instance. Unfortunately, when Archie enters Karnow's hotel room at the Churchill, he's dead again, this time for keeps. Did Paul or Caroline try to hire Wolfe as a bluff? Or did one of the spongers (some of whom haven't *got* the money to repay the estate anymore) panic? Or was it something they don't know about yet?

"Die Like a Dog" - This has always been a favourite of mine, and I was very pleasantly surprised when A&E adapted it for _Nero Wolfe_'s 2nd season. A black Labrador literally follows Archie home, and not only retrieves his windblown hat, but turns out to be named 'Nero' (part of a much longer kennel-club name on his collar, but how could Archie resist?)

Unfortunately, the unannounced (even if temporary) introduction of a dog into the hallowed halls of the brownstone backfires in a totally unexpected manner, which you'll have to read/see to believe. :) The *dog* turns out to be a possible witness in a murder investigation, but how the heck can anybody learn anything from him?

One of these made it to the A&E series; as with other short stories, it would have been great to see the ensemble cast tackle the rest.

"Door to Death" was done by A&E, and we get to meet Andy Krusiecky, the man we'd all wished Theordore Horstmann could be. He's young, personable and a genius with the orchids...and suffers an awful loss.

"Man Alive" is about geyser-jumping. Not for the faint of heart...but his neice says that what looks to everyone like a suicide is really something else.

Finally, "Omit Flowers" is about a chef falsely accused of murder. You cannot beat food and murder in the Wolfe genre...but in the end, the way a woman feels about a man she loves who does not love her back tells the tale.

These are good stories, although you can detect a little "rushing" and lack of polish in some of the writing.

This edition boasts "As Seen on TV!" on the cover, alluding to the fact that one (as of the 2nd season) of the 3 stories herein has been adapted by A&E. The introduction is provided by Jonathan Kellerman, but otherwise the book is pure Stout. Archie provides a rare foreword, having noticed that Wolfe got a fee in only 1 of the 3 cases herein, to head off any funny ideas that might turn into a nuisance. :)

"Man Alive" - Cynthia Nieder, a young model getting hands-on experience as a fashion designer, not only inherited her uncle's half of Daumery & Nieder upon his death, but can supply the creative talent that was his contribution to the business. (Jean Daumery supplied the nuts-and-bolts business talent needed.) Cynthia wasn't surprised that uncle Paul killed himself within a week of Helen Daumery's death in a riding accident, since he'd been in love with her. (Although jumping naked into a geyser is an unusual method...)

That is, she wasn't surprised until she saw him in disguise a week ago in the audience at Daumery & Nieder's fall show, a few weeks after his partner Daumery's death in a boating accident. Did she really see him? Is the business as solvent as the creative side of the house thought it was? Who is trying to befuddle whom here?

"Omit Flowers" - Marko Vukcic, Wolfe's best friend, asks Wolfe to investigate the death of Floyd Whitten, who married the wealthy widow of the founder of the AMBROSIA fast-food chain, but not because of any care for the victim. Virgil Pompa, a once great chef forfeited any claim to professional respect when he took a high paying job in AMBROSIA administration, was once 'the best sauce man in France', and Marko owes him a lot. More, he knows Pompa well, and won't see him tried for a murder he didn't commit.

"Door to Death" - I recommend A&E's excellent, faithful adaptation with Maury Chaykin as Wolfe. Wolfe hardly ever leaves the brownstone, but a crisis has arisen: Theodore, the orchid nurse (as Archie calls him) is on an indefinite leave of absence due to his mother's critical illness. Not that Wolfe is worrying about old Mrs. Horstmann - with Theodore away, he can't just relax with the plants for a few hours a day; he has to *work*, and he's not a pro like Theodore.

Wolfe trudges all the way to Westchester with Archie, to tempt Andy Krasicki away from Mr. Joseph Pitcairn's orchids and into the brownstone for the duration. Andy is willing, and Wolfe, while happy to have his problem solved and to receive a tour of Mr. Pitcairn's orchids (as grown by Andy), might just as well have waited at home for a reply to his letter. But during the tour, they find Dani Lauer, Mrs. Pitcairn's nurse, dead under one of the orchid benches - apparently knocked out, then left to die during the previous night's fumigation. Wolfe sets to work to get his stand-in orchid tender out from under.

I cannot stop reading this book! The charactures are so vivid and real that I feel as though I am really there. Read this book!

"Three Doors to Death" is a collection of 3 short Nero Wolfe novels by Rex Stout. In "Man Alive", Cynthia Nieder asks Wolfe to find her uncle after seeing him in New York. Paul Nieder had "committed" suicide by jumping in a geyser. Before Wolfe can find him, Nieder is murdered. In "Omit Flowers", Mario Vukcic asks Wolfe to help clear his friend, Virgil Pompa who is accused of murdering Floyd Whitten. In "Door to Death", Theodore Horstmann takes a leave of absence, and Wolfe goes to Joseph Pitcairn to hire his orchid man until Theodore returns. While there, Dini Lauer, Mrs. Pitcairn's nurse, is found dead under an orchid bench. Wolfe feels obligated to solve the crime. All three of these short novels are excellent. The plots are strong. I always enjoy going into the old brownstone with Archie and Wolfe.

Editor Mike Ashley has assembled more than 500 pages' worth of short mystery fiction focusing on locked room murders, impossible crimes, and even perfect murders -- ranging from one story originally published as early as 1910 to several that were previously unpublished when the book came out in 2007. Included are 30 audacious murder scenarios: A man alone in a phone booth is somehow stabbed in the back with an icepick; a man alone in a room is shot by a bullet fired over 200 years ago; a man enters a cable-car alone and is dead when it reaches the bottom; a man receives mail in response to letters apparently written by him--after his death; a lion tamer is found strangled in a locked train car; an Indian rope trick performer vanishes at the end of the trick only to be found dead in a nearby lake; three women are found murdered, their bodies seemingly untouched yet with their internal organs removed.

Sometimes the reader knows the killer, watching to see whether he can beat the investigators; sometimes the story is a whodunit, where everyone is a suspect; and sometimes the crime is such a head-scratcher that one can only turn the pages hoping to figure out what in the world happened. Along the way, the editor calls on such familiar authors as Edward D. Hoch, Bill Pronzini, and J.A. Konrath, while also digging up a healthy assortment of lost classics. (Ashley avoids any examples from John Dickson Carr and G.K. Chesterton, two masters of the form, because those authors' stories are often so readily available.)

Some of the stories are great, some are okay, and one or two make you slap your forehead in amazement. Overall, a fine collection for any fan of puzzle mysteries.

I really enjoyed this book. One of the hazards of short story collections, particularly if you read as voraciously as I do, is that you end up getting a "new" collection full of lots of stories you've read before. I got a great deal of pleasure from this book because, while I recognized many of the authors, all of the stories were new to me. The authors came up with some very clever twists on the "locked room" theme--I highly recommend this book!

Publishers Carroll & Graf and its crack editor Mike Ashley serve up another wonderful collection of murder mysteries. In this case the stories collected are of a kind, seemingly impossible murders that defy explanation. As always, Ashley's instincts are impeccable with nary a clunker found in the 30 stories therein.

The stories in this anthology span the years from 1910(!)to 2006 with authors ranging from Peter Crowther to Edward D. Hoch, Robert Randisi, Richard Lupoff, Peter Tremayne and Bill Pronzini. Among the 'perfect crimes' are the following: a man seemingly alone in an all-glass phone booth who dies from an ice pick in the back; a lion tamer found strangled in a locked train car; a man wounded, while sitting alone in a room, by a bullet fired 200 years ago; an Indian rope trick performer who vanishes at the end of the trick only to be found dead in a nearby lake; three Denver women found murdered, their bodies seemingly untouched yet with their internal organs removed; a dead man who continues to receive mail in response to letters apparently written by him after he died; and so on.

My favorite tale in this volume is Bill Pronzini's "Proof of Guilt." Pronzini's clever, clever story concerns the murder of an attorney. A client who was with the attorney when he was murdered claims he's innocent and the police are stymied. The story has such a marvelous - and funny - denouement that it automatically earned the book a five-star rating!

In any case, if you're an armchair detective, you'll want to pick up this book. It's a wonderfully entertaining collection of stories!

***
I'd suggest you keep this book by your bed or favorite chair and sample the contents rather than reading it straight through - better to savor each unique, imaginative tale a story at a time.

Intertainment , like the "old Radio" mysteries, ... Great enjoyment while driving in the auto on long trips!

Nero Wolfe stories always present a good listen to the books of Rex Stout. Pritchard's voice is pleasant and displays the right amount of inflection to "get" the humor and interplay between the characters.

Stout is trying hard here to bring Nero and company into the turbulent 60s. This trend started with "The Doorbell Rang" and its depiction of civil rights. Here, the hegemony and influence of television in the late 1960s is the focus.

And what does it mean when a man hallucinates that he has blood on his hands?

Does Wolfe solicit clients? Of course, that is so beneath his dignity and personal value system, but the answer in this story is yes, indeed. He snares the wife of a dead TV executive via a provocative letter (all right, Archie really sends it, but Wolfe does not take an open invitation to repudiate it). This case really shows Wolfe in late career as a figure of "the New York establishment," where his reputation is wide and deep and the simply fact of his involvement in a case has a strong "Hawthorne effect."

It's a good read, and it sets the stage for the (sadly) few books left in the series before Stout's death. No collection is complete without it.

For those who love Nero Wolfe, Archie, and the gang, this compliation of the 3 adventures in which Nero Wolfe faces his arch nemesis, Arnold Zeck, is indispensable.

Riveting reads for Rex Stout fans. While the individual novels are available separately, they should be read in order and together. This old volume is a convenient solution.

A wonderful summer read for fans of classic mysteries, from the days before CSI and gory forensic procedurals. This trio of books is about colleagues who are really family. They reflect the time when they were written in a fascinating way. Highly recommended

This set of three books forms a gripping and yet humorous story about Nero Wolfe and his assistant Archie Goodwin (who cheerfully describes Wolfe as weighing "a seventh of a ton") and their battle against a powerful, ruthless, and all but untouchable crime lord named Arnold Zeck. The first two books concern other cases where Zeck was indirectly involved, and the third is where Wolfe is forced to combat Zeck himself. If you like a good mystery, this collection is highly recommended.

I had read a dozen Nero Wolfe novels, and I thought I had read Rex Stout's best. This set beats them all, and this is exactly the way to read them -- the three novels, published a year apart, that have the undercurrent of Wolfe's Moriarty, the villianous mastermind known as Arnold Zeck.

Start with And Be A Villian (1948), as Wolfe solves the murder of the guest on an Oprah-esqe radio talk show. Continue with The Second Confession (1949), where Wolfe is hired to expose a Communist and ends up solving a murder. They set the stage for In The Best Families (1950), as Zeck shows that his interference cannot be tolerated; Wolfe goes to amazing, drastic measures to stay alive and, almost as an afterthought, wraps up another murder case.

If you want to get analytical, you can compare Wolfe/Goodwin with Holmes/Watson, particularly during the events of In The Best Families. Or you can just hang on for one great ride.

In 1982, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) decided to adapt 13 of Rex Stout's short stories and novellas about Nero Wolfe for radio. This tape contains two of these 1-hour long adaptations.

This series is the best adaptation to any media of Nero Wolfe stories that I have come across. The production values are excellent, with good, well-integrated music and sound-effects, and excellent casting.

Mayver Moore, as Nero Wolfe, doesn't immediately jump out as the prototypical Wolfe, but gives a very satisfying performance nonetheless. Because of the symbiotic relationship between Wolfe and his assistant Archie Goodwin, and because of Archie's pivotal role as the series narrator, a miscast Archie would be more damaging than a miscast Wolfe. Fortunately, Don Franks captures Archie's personality so well that it is difficult to imagine how anyone could provide a better portrayal.

Once you have listened to these shows, you will be left wanting to hear more episodes, and you will be disappointed that CBC Radio adapted only 13 episodes.

In 1982, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (a.k.a. CBC) adapted 13 of Rex Stout's short stories and novellas about Nero Wolfe for the radio. This series is the best dramatic adaptation of the Nero Wolfe canon that I have come across.

Mayver Moore, as Nero Wolfe, sounds not quite fat enough, but very quickly overcomes any objections as to him being Wolfe. Don Franks plays the pivotal role of Archie Goodwin, and I could not imagine any better portrayal of him. Because of the symbiotic relationship between Wolfe and Archie, and because of Archie's role as the narrator of the Wolfe stories, a miscast Archie would cause more damage than a miscast Wolfe. Fortunately, CBC Radio was very careful about this role, as, indeed, they were with all the supporting and guest roles in the series. Having listened to three DHAudio releases (equivalent to 6 of the 1-hour long shows), I have no complaints about the acting or the casting. The production values were very good, and sound-effects and music fit very well.

This tape contains two excellent 1-hour long episodes, and will leave you wanting more. It's a shame that the CBC only made 13 episodes.