Nero Wolfe Series

Murder strikes thrice in these three baffling mysteries of crime and detection.

First, Rex Stout’s great detective, Nero Wolfe, develops an appetite for the sweet taste of revenge when someone slips something most foul into his lunch—in a case motivated by the most “alimentary” of passions. Then, a couturier’s beautiful sister uses Archie Goodwin, Wolfe’s man about town, as her ready-made alibi—and maybe her fall guy—unless Wolfe can spot the loose ends in a nearly seamless crime. Finally, Wolfe has a run-in with the law after a mysterious old woman leaves a package at the detective’s West Thirty-fifth Street brownstone that pits him against a cunning criminal—and the U.S. federal government.

What could make Nero Wolfe so determined to solve a crime that he would be willing to work entirely without fee or client? What would it take to put him, for the first time, at a loss for words? What would make him so angry about at case that he would refuse to speak to the police, even if he has to spend fifty-one hours in jail as a result? Never before in the Nero Wolfe books has Rex Stout shown us the extremes to which the greatest detective in the world can be pushed, but never before has a bomb blown up in the old brownstone on West 35th Street, murdering someone right under Wolfe’s nose.

When in October 1974 Pierre Ducos, one of Wolfe’s favorite waiters at Rusterman’s, Wolfe’s favorite restaurant, dies just down the hall from Archie’s Bedroom, Wolfe is understandably eager to find the perpetrator, but when that murder somehow becomes connected with tape recorders, Washington lawyers, and maybe even a conspiracy to obstruct justice, his fury becomes so intense that even Archie is puzzled. Not only is this a great chapter in the Nero Wolfe legend; A Family Affair is a splendid mystery novel that should capture many new fans and will delight (and amaze) the long-standing admirers of Wolfe and Archie.

A brilliant Rex Stout murder mystery featuring Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin
 
A bomb explodes in the desk drawer of a top TV executive. Was it intended for him or the man who opened the drawer? They each had enemies enough to die a dozen times over. Was it the jealous wife or the ambitious partner? The secretary who got passed around like an inter-office memo? Or the man who couldn’t wash the blood off his hands? Nero Wolfe didn’t want any part of it—but he was up to his neck in the toughest case of his career!

“It is always a treat to read a Nero Wolfe mystery. The man has entered our folklore.”—The New York Times Book Review

The mountain couldn’t come to Wolfe, so the great detective came to the mountain—to Lame Horse, Montana, to be exact. Here a city slicker got a country girl pregnant and then took a bullet in the back. Wolfe’s job was to get an innocent man exonerated of the crime and catch a killer in the process. But when he packed his silk pajamas and headed west, he found himself embroiled in a case rife with local cynicism, slipshod police work, and unpleasant political ramifications. In fact, Nero Wolfe was buffaloed until the real killer struck again, underestimating the dandified dude with an unerring instinct for detection.

Introduction by Don Coldsmith
 
“It is always a treat to read a Nero Wolfe mystery. The man has entered our folklore.”—The New York Times Book Review
 
A grand master of the form, Rex Stout is one of America’s greatest mystery writers, and his literary creation Nero Wolfe is one of the greatest fictional detectives of all time. Together, Stout and Wolfe have entertained—and puzzled—millions of mystery fans around the world. Now, with his perambulatory man-about-town, Archie Goodwin, the arrogant, gourmandizing, sedentary sleuth is back in the original seventy-three cases of crime and detection written by the inimitable master himself, Rex Stout.

All pretty Amy Denovo wants to find the father she has never seen, but she can’t afford Nero Wolfe’s outlandish fees . . . or can she? Suddenly she’s knocking on the oversized detective’s door with a parcel full of bills in hand—and a quarter of a million hidden in her closet. It’s all part of a nest egg left by her unknown father. But when Wolfe and his able assistant, Archie Goodwin, begin to trace the money to the man, they make a startling discovery: Amy’s father murdered her mother—and now he may be after her.

“It is always a treat to read a Nero Wolfe mystery. The man has entered our folklore.”—New York Times Book Review

With a rich man footing the bills and a handsome lover on the side, Isabel Kerr seemed to have the perfect setup. Now the well-kept lady is stone-cold dead, and the cops have nabbed a Manhattan private eye who just happens to be an acquaintance of Nero Wolfe. Unable to refuse a friend in need, the great detective deigns to get the gumshoe off the hook. Little does Wolfe realize that in a matter of hours he’ll be entertaining a party of fools and lovers connected with the doxy’s death, including a mystery blackmailer, a sexy lounge singer, and a cold-blooded lady-killer.

Introduction by Sandra West Prowell
 
“It is always a treat to read a Nero Wolfe mystery. The man has entered our folklore.”—The New York Times Book Review
 
A grand master of the form, Rex Stout is one of America’s greatest mystery writers, and his literary creation Nero Wolfe is one of the greatest fictional detectives of all time. Together, Stout and Wolfe have entertained—and puzzled—millions of mystery fans around the world. Now, with his perambulatory man-about-town, Archie Goodwin, the arrogant, gourmandizing, sedentary sleuth is back in the original seventy-three cases of crime and detection written by the inimitable master himself, Rex Stout.

There’s no one and nothing the great detective Nero Wolfe wouldn’t take on if the price was right. That’s something wealthy society widow Rachel Bruner is counting on when she writes him a check for a whopping hundred grand. But even Wolfe has a moment’s doubt when he finds out why the prize is so generous. For the oversize genius and his able assistant Archie Goodwin are about to lock horns with the FBI—and those highly trained G-men have a way with threats, tails, and bugs that could give even sedentary sleuth Nero Wolfe a run for his money.
 
Introduction by Stuart Kaminsky
 
“It is always a treat to read a Nero Wolfe mystery. The man has entered our folklore.”—The New York Times Book Review
 
A grand master of the form, Rex Stout is one of America’s greatest mystery writers, and his literary creation Nero Wolfe is one of the greatest fictional detectives of all time. Together, Stout and Wolfe have entertained—and puzzled—millions of mystery fans around the world. Now, with his perambulatory man-about-town, Archie Goodwin, the arrogant, gourmandizing, sedentary sleuth is back in the original seventy-three cases of crime and detection written by the inimitable master himself, Rex Stout.

When a bright young heiress with a flair for romance and one too many enemies is found brutally murdered, Nero Wolfe and his sidekick, Archie, find themselves embroiled in a case that is not as black and white as it first appears.



Susan Brooke has everything going for her.  Men would have killed themselves to marry her, and, in fact, one did.



Susan came to New York to find love and fulfillment, and ended up dead on a tenement floor.  The police say her black fiance did it, but Wolfe has other ideas.  Before he’s done, he’ll prove that good intentions and bad deeds often go hand in hand and that the highest ideals can sometimes have the deadliest consequences.

If Nero Wolfe and his sidekick, Archie, would ever admit to an Achilles’ heel-which they wouldn’t-it would be a weakness for damsels in distress. In these three charming chillers the duo answer the call of helpless heroines with nothing to lose-except their lives. First a beautiful young Aphrodite comes to Nero looking for a hero-and the answer to the mystery of her father’s death….Then an old flame of Archie’s reignites with a plan that may corner him into a lifetime commitment-behind bars….And finally a detective’s work is never done, as a hot tip leads the team into the sizzling center of a sexy scandal that could leave them cold-dead cold.

When an abandoned baby is left on her doorstep, the young socialite widow knows only too well the identity of the father: her deceased philanderer of a husband. But who is the mother? The case seems like child’s play to Nero Wolfe, until the first dead body. While the police nurse their grudges against him, and the widow nurses Archie, the genius sleuth and his sidekick look for the hand that rocked the cradle. But nothing can pacify the killer, who’s found the formula for murder—and is determined to milk it for all it’s worth.

Introduction by Marilyn Wallace

“It is always a treat to read a Nero Wolfe mystery. The man has entered our folklore.”—The New York Times Book Review
 
A grand master of the form, Rex Stout is one of America’s greatest mystery writers, and his literary creation Nero Wolfe is one of the greatest fictional detectives of all time. Together, Stout and Wolfe have entertained—and puzzled—millions of mystery fans around the world. Now, with his perambulatory man-about-town, Archie Goodwin, the arrogant, gourmandizing, sedentary sleuth is back in the original seventy-three cases of crime and detection written by the inimitable master himself, Rex Stout.

Jerin is a mental freak—a man capable of successfully playing a dozen simultaneous chess games against first-rate players while he himself is out of sight of any of the boards. It is while thus engaged that he is killed. A millionaire—his opponent in more realms than chess—is accused, and Nero Wolfe is given what appears to be the most hopeless case he and Archie Goodwin have ever tackled.

You need to know nothing about chess to follow this tale, but some understanding of beautiful mothers and daughters will help.

“It is always a treat to read a Nero Wolfe mystery. The man has entered our folklore.”—The New York Times Book Review
 
A grand master of the form, Rex Stout is one of America’s greatest mystery writers, and his literary creation Nero Wolfe is one of the greatest fictional detectives of all time. Together, Stout and Wolfe have entertained—and puzzled—millions of mystery fans around the world. Now, with his perambulatory man-about-town, Archie Goodwin, the arrogant, gourmandizing, sedentary sleuth is back in the original seventy-three cases of crime and detection written by the inimitable master himself, Rex Stout.

It’s a wily killer who dares to strike on Nero Wolfe’s hallowed turf—and leave a corpse strangled with Wolfe’s own soup-stained tie. But no sooner does the gourmandizing sleuth clean up this first course of murder than he faces a gun-toting wife who serves up a confession of homicidal intent—only to become the sole suspect when the corpus delicti is found. It’s murder à la carte when the third course is served: a cop-hating landlady brings Wolfe counterfeit cash—that leads to genuine murder. It’s up to Wolfe to see that the malefactors get their just deserts.  

Introduction by Stephen Greenleaf
 
“It is always a treat to read a Nero Wolfe mystery. The man has entered our folklore.”—The New York Times Book Review
 
A grand master of the form, Rex Stout is one of America’s greatest mystery writers, and his literary creation Nero Wolfe is one of the greatest fictional detectives of all time. Together, Stout and Wolfe have entertained—and puzzled—millions of mystery fans around the world. Now, with his perambulatory man-about-town, Archie Goodwin, the arrogant, gourmandizing, sedentary sleuth is back in the original seventy-three cases of crime and detection written by the inimitable master himself, Rex Stout.

When high-society kidnapping unexpectedly turns to very seamy murder, all concerned turn to the great detective, Nero Wolfe, for the missing piece in the puzzle.

A missing typewriter, a mysterious ransom note—and a beautiful corpse.

Step into the unassuming Thirty-fifth Street brownstone, and join in the astounding exploits of Nero Wolfe. Marvel at his daily beer consumption, his unsurpassed appetite, the incredible expanse of his yellow silk pajamas. Bear witness to his unwavering, often infuriating addiction to fine foods, good books, beautiful orchids and custom-made chairs. Empathize with his confidential assistant Archie Goodwin, archetypal private eye and man of action, whose primary function is prodding his immense employer into motion. See for yourself why, through a hundred million copies and seventy-two cases, the adventures of America’s largest private detective and his extended family continue to captivate and enthrall readers around the world. Discover Nero Wolfe—the greatest detective of them all.
 
“It is always a treat to read a Nero Wolfe mystery. The man has entered our folklore.”—The New York Times Book Review

The dead man had one too many lovers. Nero Wolfe’s resourceful assistant Archie Goodwin finds that out when he stumbles into the room where the businessman has been murdered: a love nest lined with red satin and fleshy paintings. Besides the decor—and the trove of women’s slippers—another notable feature of the room is the absence of police. So Nero Wolfe has a healthy head start on solving the crime. Then comes a snag: a bidding war erupts for the reclusive sleuth’s services. Suddenly Wolfe has too many clients, including one who’s party to murder. . . .

Introduction by Malcolm Forbes, Jr.

“It is always a treat to read a Nero Wolfe mystery. The man has entered our folklore.”—The New York Times Book Review
 
A grand master of the form, Rex Stout is one of America’s greatest mystery writers, and his literary creation Nero Wolfe is one of the greatest fictional detectives of all time. Together, Stout and Wolfe have entertained—and puzzled—millions of mystery fans around the world. Now, with his perambulatory man-about-town, Archie Goodwin, the arrogant, gourmandizing, sedentary sleuth is back in the original seventy-three cases of crime and detection written by the inimitable master himself, Rex Stout.

Death comes a-calling not once but three times in this murderous collection of cases from the files of Nero Wolfe, the world’s greatest detective.

First there is the exclusive dinner party where the guests are gourmets, arsenic is the appetizer, and the suspects are five of the most gorgeous gals in New York. Next, a wandering cab pulls up to Wolfe’s door, containing a lady driver who doesn’t belong . . . and a comely corpse with a knife between her ribs. And finally, a championships rodeo roars into town, featuring square-jawed cowboys, bright-eyed cowgirls, and a dead millionaire with a fancy lariat for a necktie.
 
Introduction by Margaret Maron
 
“It is always a treat to read a Nero Wolfe mystery. The man has entered our folklore.”—The New York Times Book Review
 
A grand master of the form, Rex Stout is one of America’s greatest mystery writers, and his literary creation Nero Wolfe is one of the greatest fictional detectives of all time. Together, Stout and Wolfe have entertained—and puzzled—millions of mystery fans around the world. Now, with his perambulatory man-about-town, Archie Goodwin, the arrogant, gourmandizing, sedentary sleuth is back in the original seventy-three cases of crime and detection written by the inimitable master himself, Rex Stout.