Three Witnesses by Rex Stout, 1954

 

Cover image only - no review

Three at Wolfe's Door by Rex Stout, 1960

About the author: Rex Stout (1886 – 1975) was an American writer noted for his detective fiction. His best-known characters are the detective Nero Wolfe and his assistant Archie Goodwin, who were featured in 33 novels and 39 novellas between 1934 and 1975. (wikipedia). (bibliography)

This title contains three novellas.

Poison à la  Carte: Wolfe's cook, Fritz Brenner, is hired by a gourmet club to prepare their annual dinner. Ten members are seated, and the courses are served by ten women hired from an acting agency. One member, Vincent Pyle, a theatrical producer, is known by several of the women as having made advances toward them. He suddenly becomes ill and within hours is dead of aresenic poisoning. Wolfe's task is to find which of the ten women did it.

Mini-review: It is difficult to follow which woman served which member unless it is charted out, and I didn't bother. They narrow the field down quickly, then use a clever ruse to make the killer reveal herself. The coaching and use of Zoltan, a kitchen worker, is quite enjoyable.

Method Three for Murder: Archie has one of his occasional spats with Wolfe and, as usual, quits. On his way out the door, he encounters Mira Holt coming in. She hires him on the spot for a consultation, but has a thin story. Complicating matters is the cab at the curb, empty except for a dead woman inside. Archie suggests to her three methods of dealing with the police: Say nothing, Say the whole truth, or pick a simple lie and stick to it.

Mini-review: There's a few too many characters for this short novella, and the timeline analysis is a bit overdone, but the major characters are well done. The tough-talking woman cabbie is a delight.

The Rodeo Murder: Archie's flame, wealthy Lily Rowan, hosts a contest at her rooftop penthouse. Cowboys toss a lasso over the edge, and try to lasso a horse ridden slowly past the building. One cowboy can't find his rope, and when he does, it is around the neck of one of the other cowboys - dead. 

Mini-review: The cowboy drawl and vocabulary got tiring pretty quickly. That plus the ridiculous setup of a lasso contest in Manhattan made the whole thing quite unreal; and the sorting out of alibis tedious. Worst of the three stories.

 

Double for Death by Rex Stout, 1939

 

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Series: Tecumseh Fox #1

About the author: Rex Stout (1886 – 1975) was an American writer noted for his detective fiction. His best-known characters are the detective Nero Wolfe and his assistant Archie Goodwin, who were featured in 33 novels and 39 novellas between 1934 and 1975. (wikipedia). (bibliography)

Major characters:

• Nancy Grant, Fox's client
• Andrew Grant, Nancy's uncle - accused of murder
• Ridley Thorpe, president of Thorp Control
• Jeffrey Thorpe, Ridley's son
• Miranda (Thorpe) Pemberton, Ridley's daughter (divorced)
• Vaughn Kester, Ridley's confidential secretary
• Luke Wheer, Ridley's chauffeur/valet
• Dorothy Duke, Ridley's mistress
• Henry Jordan, Dorothy's father
• Corey Arnold, Ridley's stand-in
• Tecumseh Fox, private investigator
• Dan Pavey, Tecumseh's Vice President
• Ben Cook, White Plains Chief of Police
• P.L. Derwin, District Attorney of Westchester County

Locale: Westchester County, New York (just north of New York City)

Synopsis: Nancy Grant hires Private Investigator Tecumseh Fox to assist her uncle, Andrew Grant, who is facing a murder charge. Grant just happened to be on the scene when Ridley Thorpe was shot in his remote bungalow getaway, which he maintained for his affairs with various women. Fox discovers that Thorpe is still alive, and the dead man is Corey Arnold - a somewhat look-alike he hires as a stand-in for security purposes. Thorpe is concerned he is the suspect, and hires Fox to build up an alibi for him. Then another murder occurs.

Review: This one was extremely fast-paced, and quite hard to follow as Tecumseh races from one inquiry to the next. There are two victims, one a stand-in for the other, two clients, two guns, and lots of misdirection. Halfway through I considered DNF'ing it, but I stuck with it, didn't pay too much attention to the details, and just enjoyed the ride. Fox's household is an amusing scene,  with his landlady and various hangers-on inhabiting it. Bottom line: Tecumseh Fox is to Nero Wolfe as Donald Lam is to Perry Mason!

Over My Dead Body by Rex Stout, 1939

 

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About the author: Rex Stout (1886 – 1975) was an American writer noted for his detective fiction. His best-known characters are the detective Nero Wolfe and his assistant Archie Goodwin, who were featured in 33 novels and 39 novellas between 1934 and 1975. (wikipedia). (bibliography)

Series: Nero Wolfe #7

Major characters:

• Carla Lovchen, fencing coach
• Neya Tormic, fencing coach, Wolfe's daughter
• Nikola and Jeanne Miltan, owners of studio
• Nat Driscoll, who had the diamonds
• Percy Ludlow, agent of British government
• Madame Zorka, dressmaker
• Ted Gill, dancing student
• Rudolph Faber (The Chinless Wonder) agent of German government
• Arthur, the porter
• Nero Wolfe
• Archie Goodwin

Locale: New York City

Synopsis: Nero Wolfe is approached by Carla Lovchen, who seeks help for her fellow fencing coach Neya Tormic. To Wolfe's suprise, she produces a certificate - bearing Wolfe's signature - that Neya is Wolfe's adopted daughter. Neya is accused of stealing diamonds from the suit pocket of a client, Nat Driscoll, which was hanging in a locker.

Archie Goodwin visits the fencing studio, run by Nikola and Jeanne Miltan. Another client, Percy Ludlow, sheepishly explains Neya actually had her hand in his suit pocket instead, in the adjacent locker. Driscoll remembers he had actually given the diamonds to his secretary, so it was all just an honest mistake. The case seems closed, but then Ludlow is found dead, run through with an épée with a pointed adapter, a cul de mort, on the end. Archie returns to the office and finds the cul de mort has been slipped into his pocket.

Review: It's a small but cosmopolitan cast as we meet Wolfe's daughter, unseen since he left her behind in Montenegro; and she is one of the main characters. There are a number of amusing incidents, particularly when Archie escapes the scene, pretending to be searching for a cat; and when Wolfe has various parties in his house and tries to keep them from seeing each other. Archie is still the tough guy and has several occasions to use his fists. I usually find dialect rendered phonetically annoying but here I found the dialect of Madame Zorka ("Zen I sink, murder ees so horrible...") a pleasure and added to her character. A quick, fast-moving read from the prime years of Rex Stout.

 

The Broken Vase by Rex Stout, 1941

 

This is Techumseh Fox #3. 

No review, cover photo only.

And Four To Go by Rex Stout, 1959

 

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Four novellas:

 Christmas Party:  Archie Goodwin is invited to an office Christmas party. The bartender is dressed as Santa Claus, a guest winds up poisoned, and Santa disappears leaving his outfit behind in the elevator.

 Easter Parade:  An orchid grower's wife is going to display a one-of-a-kind orchid on her outfit at a Fifth Avenue church on Easter Sunday. Nero Wolfe wants to get the orchid, but as his sketchy hireling  "Tabby" reaches for it, the woman falls down dead.

 Fourth of July Picnic:  Nero Wolfe is invited to be one of the speakers at a union picnic. Just as begins his speech, one of the other speakers is found stabbed to death behind the stage.

 Murder in No Joke:  A woman and calls on Nero Wolfe, makes a phone call from his office, and hands the phone to Wolfe just in time for him to hear the woman on the other end of the call killed. Was it real or was it staged? The woman is dead, and another woman who may have a conspirator is found dead also.  

Fer-de-lance by Rex Stout, 1934

 

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No review, cover image only. 

The Silent Speaker by Rex Stout, 1946

 

Nero Wolfe #11

Gambit by Rex Stout, 1962

The Wolfe Pack

About the author: Rex Stout (1886 – 1975) was an American writer noted for his detective fiction. His best-known characters are the detective Nero Wolfe and his assistant Archie Goodwin, who were featured in 33 novels and 39 novellas between 1934 and 1975. (wikipedia). (bibliography)

Major characters:

Sarah "Sally" Blount, Wolfe's client
Matthew Blount, her father, charged with murder
Anna Blount, her strangely-attractive mother
Paul Jerin, the chess savant
Bernard Nash, the Gambit Club steward
Tony Laghi, the Gambit Club cook

The Messengers:

1. Charles W. Yerkes, a banker

2. Ernst Hausman, a broker

3. Morton Farrow, Sally's cousin

4. Dr. Victor Avery

Locale: New York City

Synopsis: Nero Wolfe has a visit from Sarah "Sally" Blount, who hires him to help her father, Matthew Blount, get out from under a murder charge. The death happened at a meeting of The Gambit Chess Club. Chess whiz Paul Jerin was playing a "blindfold" game against twelve members of the club,  twelve individual simultaneous games. There was no literal blindfold - he was in the adjacent library room and four messengers would carry the moves to him and take his responses.

Jerin's custom was to drink hot chocolate while playing. Blount, who was observing the play, brought him a pot of chocolate which turned out to contain arsenic, and Jerin died after drinking some. 

The only persons who had opportunity to administer the poison were Blount, the four messengers, the steward Bernard Nash, and the cook Tony Laghi.

Review:  

This book is chess-centric, but you need not know about chess in order to enjoy it. There are a few incidental play references.  There is a small cast of characters, and it is mentioned a few times that the killer is one of the seven (Blount, Nash, Laghi, and the four messengers) and that turns out to be correct.  

The  big puzzle is how did the arsenic get into the chocolate? The solution is a clever Agatha Christie-like move. 

This is nice tight little read.

Also see this review by Bev Hankins on My Reader's Block.

 

The Second Confession by Rex Stout, 1949

 

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This is the second title in the Arnold Zeck trilogy (the first is And Be a Villain, the last is In The Best Families).

About the author: Rex Stout (1886 – 1975) was an American writer noted for his detective fiction. His best-known characters are the detective Nero Wolfe and his assistant Archie Goodwin, who were featured in 33 novels and 39 novellas between 1934 and 1975. (wikipedia). (bibliography)

Major characters:

• James U. Sperling, chairman of Continental Mines
• Madeline Sperling, his 26-year old daughter
• Gwenn Sperling, his 22-year old daughter
• James "Jimmy" Sperling Jr., his son
• Paul Emerson, right-wing radio broadcaster
• Connie Emerson, his wife
• Louis Reny, attorney
• Webster Kane, economist of Continental Mines
• William Reynolds, the name on the membership card
• Arnold Zeck, arch villain
• Nero Wolfe, P.I.
• Archie Goodwin, P.I.

Locale: New York City and Chappaqua, NY

Synopsis: It appears 22-year old Gwenn Sperling is getting set to become engaged to attorney Louis Rony. This does not set well with her father, ultra-conservative James U. Sperling, chairman of Continental Mines. Sperling suspects Rony may be a communist, and engages Nero Wolfe to prove it; so he can have a reason to cancel any budding relationship. Wolfe replies that of course, he cannot prove Rony is or is not a communist, he can only determine if he is one or not. 

Archie Goodwin is sent to stay at Sperling's Chappaqua estate, Stony Acres. He knows Rony is hiding a small item, and stages a holdup to try to get it. It turns out to be a Communist Party membership card, but in the name of William Reynolds - and it is not clear if Rony is Reynolds. Wolfe gets a phone call from arch-nemesis Arnold Zeck, warning him off the case.

Gwenn decides she has had enough anyway, and summons Rony to Stony Acres to tell him so. It doesn't end well - he is found dead the next morning, run over by a car. Circumstantial evidence points to Archie as the driver. Zeck takes action, and machine-guns Wolfe's plant rooms in revenge. Archie gets off the hook when Webster Kane confesses (the first confession) to being the driver. Wolfe doesn't believe it, and finds the real killer who supplies The Second Confession.

Review:

The good: A nice, tight, small cast of characters, all introduced quickly. Wolfe makes a rare trip outside his home, that is always a fun episode when he tries to "fit in" (literally) elsewhere.

The bad: The communism-scare angle is so dated and does not carry to present time well, although the right-wing radio hosts are certainly still around. The staged holdup did not seem believable at all. The whole Rony/Williams membership card thing was hard to follow and I am still not sure I understand it.

The puzzling: Arnold Zeck doesn't come across as the arch nemesis (other than the machine-gun episode). He is just too quiet, articulate, and polite.

I missed Lt. Cramer - he does not appear. 

Murder by the Book by Rex Stout, 1951

 

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About the author: Rex Stout (1886 – 1975) was an American writer noted for his detective fiction. His best-known characters are the detective Nero Wolfe and his assistant Archie Goodwin, who were featured in 33 novels and 39 novellas between 1934 and 1975. (wikipedia). (bibliography)

Major characters:

Joan Wellman, editor, deceased prior to story

John Wellman, her father

Leonard Dykes, law clerk and author, a.k.a. Baird Archer

Rachel Abrams, typist

James A. Corrigan, senior partner in a law firm

Nero Wolfe, private detective

Archie Goodwin, private detective

Inspector Cramer, NYC Homicide Division

Locale: New York City

Synopsis: Inspector Cramer consults Nero Wolfe about the death of law clerk Leonard Dykes, found floating in the East River. Police found among his effects a list of names which puzzles them. Wolfe suggests it is a list of possible pseudonyms for a writer

Wolfe is then approached by John Wellman, and hired to investigate the death of his daughter, Joan Wellman, victim of a hit-and-run car accident. Joan had been an editor for a book publisher. Wolfe finds that Joan Wellman had recently rejected a novel, Put Not Your Trust by Baird Archer, and that was one of the names on Dykes' list. This connects her death with that of Dykes - and it becomes apparent Dykes wrote the novel under the name of Baird Archer. 

Dykes had clerked for a law firm consisting of James A. Corrigan, Emmet Phelps, Louis Kustin, and Frederick Briggs. The firm also employs Conroy O'Malley, who had been disbarred following an anonymous accusation of bribing a juror.

The two people who died had one thing in common - they both knew what was in the manuscript. Wolfe focuses on who else may have read it, which leads to typist Rachel Abrams. Archie Goodwin heads to her office, arriving just after someone had thrown her out her window to her death. Three persons have now died, and the trail points to someone in the law firm as the culprit.

Review: This one is fast-paced and a page-turner, which I read over two evenings. We don't get to know the first two victims at all, they are dead before the story begins. We also see very little of Wolfe's client, John Wellman. He heads right back to Peoria and only checks in periodically.

It quickly becomes apparent that the manuscript (we never get to see any of it other than the title) is poison, and anyone who has read it is a target. But what is in it that is so dangerous? We do finally find out, but it is not too exciting a reveal. 

Archie's method of pumping the female staff of the law office is amusing although quite unrealistic, although maybe he could have pulled it off in 1951. 

This has one of Stout's famous 'false endings'. It is all wrapped up with a bow and we are ready for "The End" when Wolfe declares the person fingered is not the murderer, and it is someone else entirely. I should have seen it coming, since there were 20+ pages remaining, but it fooled me as always. The killer is identified in the usual office denouément with all the chairs lined up. As usual, the person whom Purley Stebbins stands behind is the killer.

Cordially Invited to Meet Death by Rex Stout (1942)

 

This novella is usually combined with Black Orchids in one volume.

About the author: Rex Stout (1886 – 1975) was an American writer noted for his detective fiction. His best-known characters are the detective Nero Wolfe and his assistant Archie Goodwin, who were featured in 33 novels and 39 novellas between 1934 and 1975. (wikipedia). (bibliography)

Major characters:

• Bess Huddleston, professional party arranger
• Daniel Huddleston, her brother; a chemist
• Lawrence Huddleston, her nephew, a lazy stay-at-home
• Janet Nichols, her assistant
• Maryella Timms, her secretary
• Dr. Alan Brady

and of course:

• Nero Wolfe, private detective
• Archie Goodwin, private detective
• Lt. Cramer, homicide

Locale: Long Island, New York

Synopsis: Bess Huddleston arranges entertainment parties for the affluent Long Island set. She lives in a mansion on Long Island along with her idler nephew Lawrence "Larry" Huddleson, to whom she doles out an allowance. Also residing are her assistant, Janet Nichols, and her secretary, Maryella Timms; who are always shooting eye-daggers at each other. The estate is also home to Bess' collection of exotic animals, who have the run of the place.

Bess comes to Wolfe with a problem. Someone has been sending poison pen letters to her clients, hinting that Bess knows things about various indiscretions. The letters and the typewriter used are found to be in Bess' mansion, available to anyone in the house. No sooner has Archie looked the place over, when Bess turns up dead. And she was Wolfe's client!

Review: This is a nice tight novella, also published as Invitation to Death.  We don't get to know Bess very well, she is rather two-dimensional and she does not last long into the story. The animals running around her mansion are distracting and do not add anything much to the plot except messing up a bit of evidence.

The most enjoyable part of the story is the relationship between Maryella and Wolfe. Once Wolfe catches on that she is a credible and talented cook, he opens the kitchen to her and we get a number of firsts: a woman in the kitchen, and actually allowed to prepare food! Not only that, she touches him!

I learned a few things from this story, most importantly how tetanus is spread. The story is not to be taken as a medical reference, but it did send me to wikipedia to check (it agrees). Fortunately, my ten-year tetanus vaccination is still in force, and after reading the story, I will be sure to never let it lapse - and especially not wander around outside barefoot.

I also learned the secret ingredient which is required for corned beef hash.

Also see this review by Bev Hankins on My Reader's Block. 

Black Orchids by Rex Stout (1941)

 

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This title consists of two stories: Black Orchids and Cordially Invited to Meet Death. 

About the author: Rex Stout (1886 – 1975) was an American writer noted for his detective fiction. His best-known characters are the detective Nero Wolfe and his assistant Archie Goodwin, who were featured in 33 novels and 39 novellas between 1934 and 1975. (wikipedia). (bibliography)

Major characters:

• Harry Gould, Dill employee acting in their display
• Anne Tracy, Dill employee acting in their display
• W. G. Dill, head of Rucker & Dill, horticulturalists
• Lewis Hewitt, amateur orchid grower
• Fred Updegraff, head of Updegraff Nurseries
• Pete Arango, employee of Updegraff Nurseries
• Rose Lasher, the mysterious woman, a.k.a. Ruby Lawson

and of course:

• Nero Wolfe, private detective
• Archie Goodwin, private detective
• Johnny Keems, operative
• Lt. Cramer, homicide

Locale: New York City

Synopsis: The New York Flower Show is underway, and the stars of the show are three black orchid plants, grown by millionaire flower enthusiast Lewis Hewitt, who is also the chairman of the Flower Show committee. Nero Wolfe is quite jealous and wants to see, if not possess, them. 

Elsewhere in the show is the big Rucker & Dill exhibit, which features not only lots of flowers, but a staged meadow-and-stream scene with employees Harry Gould and Anne Tracy acting as lovers on a picnic. There is an undercurrent of concern at the show about Kurume Yellows, a plant disease which is plagueing the exhibitors. Hewitt even thinks there is some sabotage and wants to hire Wolfe to find out - an idea Wolfe dismisses.

The first hint of trouble is when Fred Undegraff, head of Undegraff nurseries, sneaks a plant clipping from Rucker & Dill's exhibit, and is seen by Harry Gould. Then, during the scheduled picnic scene, Gould is found to be not only asleep (as he is supposed to be portraying), but also quite dead. 

The police find a gun hidden in the scenery, with a string from the trigger leading to the service corridor behind the exhibit. The end of the string had been tied to a cane belonging to Hewitt, who was missing it. It was arranged such that anyone innocently picking up the cane (which happened to be Archie Goodwin) would pull on the string and discharge the gun. Pete Arango, employee of Undegraff Nurseries, had observed a woman - Rose Lasher - hanging around the service corridor. She is interviewed but hostile, giving a false name - Ruby Lawson - and address.

Review: This shorter novella is always a fun one to come back to, and it features an episode where Wolfe actually leaves the brownstone. 

The best part is when operative Johnny Keems shows up at Wolfe's with Anne Tracy in tow. Johnny, who is always seeking to take over Archie's position, did not follow Wolfe's instructions exactly and is reamed out in front of everyone. It is hilarious how Wolfe puts him in his place; although I definitely would not want to be in that position.

The denouément scene in the rooftop flower rooms is somewhat predictable as Wolfe lays a not-so-nice trap for the killer. There are a number of hints to the reader as to what is coming. 

Also please see this review by Bev Hankins on My Reader's Block.

The League of Frightened Men by Rex Stout (1935)

 

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About the author: Rex Stout (1886 – 1975) was an American writer noted for his detective fiction. His best-known characters are the detective Nero Wolfe and his assistant Archie Goodwin, who were featured in 33 novels and 39 novellas between 1934 and 1975. (wikipedia). (bibliography)

Locale: New York City

Synopsis: Nero Wolfe is approached by Andrew Hibbard and his niece Evelyn Hibbard. Andrew is in fear of his life and wants to hire Wolfe to protect him. He believes his old Harvard classmate, Paul Chapin, is out to murder him. Many years ago, Chapin was disabled in a hazing accident at Harvard, goaded on by Hibbard and his classmates - leaving Chapin without use of one leg, and dependent on a walking stick to get around. 

Hibbard and his classmates had remorse for the incident, and called themselves 'The League of Atonement', and had tried to assist Chapin in various ways ever since. Now two of the classmates, Judge William Harrison and Eugene Dreyer, have died recently - and after each death a letter came from Chapin claiming responsibility - and that more deaths will follow. No evidence has been found linking Chapin to the deaths, so the police cannot step in.

Wolfe takes on the case with all the members of the 'league' as his client. Chapin turns out to be a pleasant, but complex individual as Wolfe tries to determine if he is a killer or not. Meanwhile, Hibbard disappears without a trace.

Review: This early Wolfe story is a favorite and is good for a re-read every few years after I have forgotten the details. It is a bit unsettling in spots, dealing with the hazing incident, and hints of sexual fetishes. I was a bit overwhelmed at the listing of the members of the league in chapter IV: 29 names! How to keep track of all of them? Fortunately, only a half-dozen or so figure in the story. Paul Chapin is just creepy. His wife is even creepier.

Please also see this review by Bev Hankins on My Reader's Block.

Bad for Business by Rex Stout (1940)

wikipedia

This is Tecumseh Fox #2 (of 3).
(#1 is Double for Death, #3 is The Broken Vase.)

About the author: Rex Stout (1886 – 1975) was an American writer noted for his detective fiction. His best-known characters are the detective Nero Wolfe and his assistant Archie Goodwin, who were featured in 33 novels and 39 novellas between 1934 and 1975. (wikipedia). (bibliography)

Major characters:

• Amy Duncan, novice detective, niece of Arthur Tingley
• Arthur Tingley, head of Tingley's Titbits
• Philip Tingley, Arthur's adopted son
• Gwendolyn Yates
• Leonard Cliff, VP of P&B
• Dol Bonner, private detective
• Tecumseh Fox, private detective
• Nat Collins, expensive defense lawyer
• Inspector Damon

Locale: New York City

Synopsis: Amy Duncan, a novice detective, is having an on again/off again romance with Leonard Cliff, Vice President of Provisions and Beverages Corporation ("P&B"). There is a bit of conflict of interest, as P&B is trying to buy out Tingley's Titbits ("TT") , an appetizer maker headed by Amy's uncle Arthur Tingley.  Amy had worked for TT prior to seeking a career as a detective.

Tingley's Titbits is having a crisis. Reports come in of adulterated product all over. The appetizers have been tainted with quinine water, which has no detrimental effect other than spoiling the taste. It is suspected the P&B may be behind this, in order to drive the value of the company down so they can purchase it cheaply.

In the middle of all that, Amy finds uncle Arthur Tingley stabbed to death in his office. She gets blood on her hand, and becomes the chief suspect due to her relationship with Cliff. The other big suspect is Arthur's adopted son, Philip Tingley. Philip has neither head nor heart for the business, preferring to work for a bohemian outfit called Womon (Work-Money) which promotes a revolutionary new money standard based upon labor, rather than gold.

Review: It is fun to read a story set in Nero Wolfe's version of New York, but without Wolfe and Archie. We see Rusterman's restaurant and learn they have a bar, Lieutenant Rowcliff, and even a mention of "Vollmer Aircraft" (remember Doc Vollmer?)

Tingley's Titbits is the perfect setting, in a dark, four story building which has been converted into a factory; having a maze of corridors and partitions, and cheap management that won't even put wall switches in for the pull-string lighting over the stairs. The atmosphere is perfect for this story.

Amy Duncan doesn't quite have the stomach for being a P.I. but she gives it a try. 

This story has a small cast and despite Stout's attempts to make me think a certain person was the murderer, I was wrong. So chalk this up as a great non-Wolfe Stout.

Trio for Blunt Instruments by Rex Stout (1964)

About the author: Rex Stout (1886 – 1975) was an American writer noted for his detective fiction. His best-known characters are the detective Nero Wolfe and his assistant Archie Goodwin, who were featured in 33 novels and 39 novellas between 1934 and 1975. (wikipedia). (bibliography)

This title consists of three novellas.

Kill Now - Pay Later

Wolfe has a friend, Pete Vassos, a bootblack who has a route shining shoes - and enjoys literary conversations with him as he shines Wolfe's and Archie's shoes weekly. He has several clients, including Dennis Ashby, in an office just before he comes to Wolfe's home. This time Vassos arrives, upset. He had gone to Ashby's tenth-floor office to find he had just jumped (or was pushed?) out the window. He hints that he saw someone else in Ashby's office. Next Vassos himself is found dead, having jumped (or was pushed?) off a cliff. Wolfe immediately figures Vassos' daughter, Elma, may be next on the killer's list as her father may have mentioned the identity of the other person to her; and takes steps to protect her. For a fee of $1.

Murder is Corny

Nero Wolfe has a weekly corn delivery from an upstate farm, delivered by farm worker Kenneth Faber. One day the corn doesn't show up, but Inspector Cramer does, with the corn box under his arm. Seems Faber was found dead at the previous stop, Rusterman's Restaurant, bashed by a length of pipe. He was sweet on the farmer's daughter, Sue McLeod, an expensive model, and a previous girlfriend of Archie Goodwin. Faber wanted her for himself, so he cooked up a great idea: tell all her suitors that she was pregnant and he did it. The problem is: Sue tells the police Archie was on the scene of the murder.

Blood Will Tell

Archie receives a necktie with a spot of blood on it in the mail, along with a note (allegedly) from wealthy James Neville Vance. Archie goes to see Vance to find that it is indeed his tie, but he didn't mail it. While they are discussing this little puzzle, the police arrive on a welfare check call on the downstairs apartment. Vance (the landlord) and Archie accompany the police to the apartment to find Mrs. Bonny Kirk dead on the floor, hit with a liquor bottle. Did someone mail the tie in order frame Vance? If so, why to Archie and not the police?

Review: 

The Nero Wolfe novellas are just right for a one-hour self-contained bedtime read! Kill Now - Pay Later is the best of the three, although I did groan a little when Stout trotted out the old trope where the victim dips his finger in his own blood to write the name of the murderer just before he expires (didn't that go out in the 1930's)? Murder is Corny comes in second, the only downside being the obvious signs pointing to the killer. Blood Will Tell was a bit confusing, with a big shell game played with nine identical neckties; and I admit I gave up on following the ties around and just went along for the ride.

The Red Box by Rex Stout (1936)

 

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About the author: Rex Stout (1886 – 1975) was an American writer noted for his detective fiction. His best-known characters are the detective Nero Wolfe and his assistant Archie Goodwin, who were featured in 33 novels and 39 novellas between 1934 and 1975. (wikipedia). (bibliography)

Major characters:

• Miss Molly Lauck, poisoned prior to story.  Model at Boyden McNair Inc (BMN)
• Llewellyn Frost, theatrical producer, Wolfe's client
• Dudley Frost, Llewellyn's father
• Mrs Edwin (Calida) Frost, Llewellyn's Aunt Callie
• Miss Helen Frost, Calida's daughter, Llewellyn's cousin, model at BMN, "the sylph"
• Miss Thelma Mitchell, model at BMN, "the blonde"
• Boyden McNair, president of BMN
• Mrs. Lamont, assistant at BMN
• Perren Gebert, a hanger on with no visible means of support

Locale: New York City

Synopsis: This is a story of two boxes. Box #1 (brown) is a candy box which contained poisoned chocolates, and caused the death of Molly Lauck prior to the beginning of the story. Box #2 (red) is Boyden McNair's, head of a fashion design company which employed Molly Lauck as a model.

Theatrical producer Llewellyn Frost hires Nero Wolfe on a two-part job: find out who poisoned Molly Lauck, and convince his cousin, Helen Frost, to leave their employ. Boyden McNair had taken a special liking to Helen, and treated her as a daughter.

Wolfe interviews Boyden McNair. McNair suddenly leaves the topic of Molly Lauck to state, to Wolfe's surprise, that he has made a will and it names Wolfe executor of his estate. He is lalso eaving him his red box. He is about to tell where the red box is, pauses to take aspirin for his headache, and falls dead - poison victim #2, and right before Wolfe's eyes no less.

From McNair's description of the red box, it appears it contains the solution to the killings; but the red box cannot be found - even by Wolfe's operatives. Inspector Cramer wants the box also, but Wolfe is adamant that it became his property upon the death of McNair. The race is on to find the box.

Review:

This is an early Wolfe (#4) and he is a kindler, gentler sort than in later stories; and is even talked into leaving his house on business. He even cooperates courteously with Inspector Cramer.

It was not clear to me:

1. Why Llewellyn wanted to find Molly's killer in the first place - why did he care?
2. Why is Llewellyn in tight with Boyden McNair Inc., as he was a theatrical producer and didn't work there, but always seemed to be hanging around there despite all the disdain he showed for the place, calling it a "hellhole"?

I enjoyed the story, and the search for the red box kept the excitement up until the end, since no one knew where it was or what was in it. Wolfe's little trick with the box was an effective surprise. The ultimate event that followed the opening of the box was very similar to endings in the Philo Vance /  S. S. Van Dine stories which were being written during the same time period. 

Also see this review by Bev Hankins on My Reader's Block.

Alphabet Hicks by Rex Stout (1941)

 

This is a standalone novel - not a Nero Wolfe. It was later republished under the title The Sound of Murder. According to Wikipedia (See this page) there is only one other work featuring Alphabet Hicks: a short story titled "His Own Hand" which also appears in anthologies under the title "Curtain Line". Also note the linked Wikipedia page incorrectly places this title under "Works related to Nero Wolfe" - but there is no relation at all.

About the author: Rex Stout (1886 – 1975) was an American writer noted for his detective fiction. His best-known characters are the detective Nero Wolfe and his assistant Archie Goodwin, who were featured in 33 novels and 39 novellas between 1934 and 1975. (wikipedia). (bibliography)

Major characters:

• Alphabet Hicks, disbarred lawyer
• Judith Dundee, accused of selling out her husband
• Richard I. Dundee, her husband, owner of the plastics factory
• Ross Dundee, their son, a technician in the factory
• Herman Brager, an engineer in the factory
• Heather Gladd, a secretary in the factory
• Martha Cooper, Heather's sister
• George Cooper, her husband
• Jimmy Vail, a competitor

Locale: Katonah, New York

Synopsis: Disbarred lawyer Alphabet Hicks is driving a NYC taxicab, and picks up a fare, Judith Dundee. She recognizes his name and hires him to fix a touchy issue: her husband, Richard I. Dundee, has accused her of selling his business secrets on plastics manufacturing to a competitor, Jimmy Vail. She claims innocence, but her husband says he has proof - in the form of a phonograph record (which they call a sonograph plate) containing a conversation between her and Vail.

Hicks encounters another woman - Martha Cooper - and initially thinks she is Judith, as she has an identical voice. Hicks follows her to Katonah, NY, site of Dundee's plastics factory. She goes to the house on the site, which is occupied by Heather Gladd (secretary), Herman Brager (engineer), Ross Dundee (a technician, and Richard's son), and Mrs. Powell, a housekeeper.

Hicks suspects that the voice on the record may really be Martha Cooper, which would let Judith off the hook. Before he can investigate, Martha is found dead outside the factory; and the record is nowhere to be found. Her husband, George Cooper, arrives on the scene - and soon he is dead also.

Review: All through this book I thought I must be reading Erle Stanley Gardner. Gardner has a similarly-named lawyer (A.B.C. Carr) in his Doug Selby series. The action is like Gardner also. Hicks is quirky but quite at home dealing with the authorities, somewhat a disorganized Archie Goodwin. 

As soon as I found the plot involved a sound recording, I suspected a sneaky trick as in Agatha Christie's The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (1926) - but thankfully - it does not. The recording does play a part in the solution, but is not as simple as being either Judith Dundee or Martha Cooper. Let's just say that manipulating media files is nothing new!

The Final Deduction by Rex Stout (1950)

 

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About the author: Rex Stout (1886 – 1975) was an American writer noted for his detective fiction. His best-known characters are the detective Nero Wolfe and his assistant Archie Goodwin, who were featured in 33 novels and 39 novellas between 1934 and 1975. (wikipedia). (bibliography)

Major characters:

• Althea Vail, wealthy client
• Jimmy Vail, her husband, a kidnap victim
• Ralph Purcell, her brother
• Margot Tedder, her daughter
• Noel Tedder, her son
• Andrew Frost, her attorney
• Dinah Utley, her secretary
• "Mr. Knapp", alias of the kidnapper
• Nero Wolfe, private detective
• Archie Goodwin, private detective

Locale: New York City

Synopsis: Wealthy Althea Vail approaches private detective Nero Wolfe to take on a case. Her husband, Jimmy Vale, has been kidnapped. She has received a ransom note from "Mr. Knapp" demanding $500,000. She is willing to pay the ransom, but hires Wolfe to ensure the safe return of Jimmy. 

Wolfe places a prominent ad in the newspapers to the kidnapper, advising that he is on the case. Althea pays the ransom as directed on a deserted back road, and the next morning Jimmy returns home safely. All looks resolved until the body of her secretary, Dinah Utley, is found in a ditch at the same back road. It appears she was in on the scheme, and she was killed as she wanted too big a cut of the ransom.

Right away, Archie suspects that this was all theatre, and that Jimmy "kidnapped himself" in order to get a pile of Althea's money. The ransom note was typed by Dinah Utley on her own typewriter, so it quickly becomes an inside job. Althea's son, Noel Tedder, approaches Wolfe and wants to make a deal. If he knows where the money is, and Wolfe helps him retrieve it, he will give Wolfe $100,000 of it. Then Althea's daughter, Margot Tedder, shows up and makes Wolfe a similar offer.

Wolfe accepts Noel's offer, but before he can take any action, Jimmy Vale is found dead in his library, killed by a fallen life-size bronze statue of Benjamin Franklin. It is unclear if it is accidental or murder.

Review: This is a good tight Wolfe, with a small cast of characters. Once Wolfe is convinced it is all an inside job, it is fascinating as he interviews the family members and deduces who is the killer. 

The killer was a surprise to me - Stout had me fooled. I had picked a different person.

When the real motive for the kidnapping/theft is revealed, it seems quite a stretch to me that someone would do that for the possible benefit realized.

One little annoyance: much is written about surmises, deductions, inferences, and assumptions; and which clue is which. However, with all the argument about that, they are never defined for the reader.

Also see Review #1 and Review #2 by Bev Hankins on My Reader's Block.