Fer-de-Lance by Stout
Fer-de-Lance (1934)
by Rex Stout
290 pages - Bantam
The first Nero Wolfe novel concerns a couple of murders, but the best aspect of the story is not any mystery but the characterization and excellent witty writing. I think I've seen all the episodes of the notable Nero Wolfe series on A&E, but I didn't feel like it got in my way at all when I read this, my first Wolfe novel. I could do a summary of the amusing idiosyncrasies and habits of the various recurring characters, but I'm sure there's hundreds of places on the web that do it just as well. I'll just say it was a really fun read.
by Rex Stout
290 pages - Bantam
The first Nero Wolfe novel concerns a couple of murders, but the best aspect of the story is not any mystery but the characterization and excellent witty writing. I think I've seen all the episodes of the notable Nero Wolfe series on A&E, but I didn't feel like it got in my way at all when I read this, my first Wolfe novel. I could do a summary of the amusing idiosyncrasies and habits of the various recurring characters, but I'm sure there's hundreds of places on the web that do it just as well. I'll just say it was a really fun read.