Stout Rex
Fer-De-Lance
A Nero Wolfe Mystery
1934
Shame on me for having neglected to introduce myself to these mysteries until so late in life. If you share my guilt in this regard, take my advice and do not delay any further your acquaintance with them.
Nero Wolfe is a large, eccentric man who, with the help of an assistant, Archie Goodwin, solves mysteries more or less from his armchair. One of his peculiarities is that he will not leave the house, and he reserves certain hours during which he does not see anyone on business. The affable Mr. Goodwin acts as Wolfe's legs. In this case, he interviews family members and others connected with the mysterious deaths of a college president and an immigrant metal worker. He also ferries witnesses and suspects to be interviewed in depth by N.W., whose agile mind and clever tricks advance the investigation to its surprising conclusion.
This is Stout's first Nero Wolfe mystery. Despite this, a sense of the main characters' past is so well developed that this could be a book in the middle of the series. The edition I read, published by Bantam in 1992, contains a great introduction by Loren D. Estleman and includes reproductions of some notes and drawings by the author.
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