Post by janetandjohn on Mar 15, 2017 13:23:35 GMT
Nero Wolfe and Archie, his PA and foot-soldier have a mystery and two murders to sort out. Nero has come across a large group of men, all at college together, who think that a trashy novel writer who had a nasty accident a long time ago at college, is going to try to kill them all, one at a time. Nero comes to an agreement with them that if he can solve this mystery he will receive a graded payment from each of them according to their means. He starts his research. Then a third member of the group disappears.
He's dead then - but where is the body? The body has to be found as soon as possible, so Archie is soon on the case, and since each death is soon followed up by a poem about the death supposedly written by the novel writer, it is hard not to think only he would know the details of each death.
I really enjoy Rex Stout's American crime novels as much because of Nero and Archie as for the complicated and clever crime itself (or themselves) which Stout was much admired for. They are thinkers' crime novels. Agatha Christie was a fan. This time I was sure I knew what had happened and who had done it - wrong again!, but fun finding out at the end.
He's dead then - but where is the body? The body has to be found as soon as possible, so Archie is soon on the case, and since each death is soon followed up by a poem about the death supposedly written by the novel writer, it is hard not to think only he would know the details of each death.
I really enjoy Rex Stout's American crime novels as much because of Nero and Archie as for the complicated and clever crime itself (or themselves) which Stout was much admired for. They are thinkers' crime novels. Agatha Christie was a fan. This time I was sure I knew what had happened and who had done it - wrong again!, but fun finding out at the end.