Said to be the last book in this series of (46) Nero Wolfe mysteries, it features all the usual characters: of course Wolfe himself (obese, crime solver; lover of orchids and food; not fond of a bee and a routine to keep to; reluctant to an extreme extent of ever leaving his NY house) and his intrepid sidekick Archie Goodwin (young and not afraid of the outside; often with a quick retort; resourceful and loyal) as well as Fritz (Wolfe's in-house chef).

The title gives a hint as to the plot, which is not as good as some others I have read in the series.

I will enjoy reading the many in the series that I have not read yet....those I have read almost always deliver good repartee amongst Wolfe, Archie and the various official detectives they come across, a good rollicking chase for the solution.

You will either enjoy them or not or perhaps be just 'meh'. I like them even if they at times trend to a good pallet cleanser!

Big Ship

4 July 2023 ( )

Nero Wolfe stories are always fun to read; smart, intriguing, interesting - keep you guessing until the end. ( )

Many readers had serious problems with this 46th of Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe mysteries. I didn't have the same problems. The killer was believable to me, unlike those other readers, but I did feel that the motivation wasn't built up throughout the book. Rather it was sprung on me at the end, almost as an afterthought. And Archie saying (more than once) that he supposes I knew who the killer was from an early stage is ridiculous. The end was as much of a surprise to me as it was to him.
So for the lack of development of motivation and back story - and not for the identity of the killer - only 3 stars on this one for me.
EDIT ON RE-READ
As I've gone back through more of my Nero Wolfe's, I rescind my surprise. Archie was right (as usual) and I should have known. ( )

This is the final Nero Wolfe book and it's been a long journey. Rather than reviewing this book I want to comment on the whole series.

Rex Stouts stories about Nero Wolfe started in the 1930s and has basically retained their form and shape since then, through 40 years. We are asked to not consider the characters age but we know that Rex Stout was 49 when the first book was published and an impressive 89 when this, the final book, was published. In total he wrote something like 40 (short) novels and 40 short stories (novellas?) about the fat detective and his strong arms.

That the pair takes inspiration from Sherlock Holmes and end up with an Archie Goodwin similar to Philip Marlow is easy conclusions but they have their own formula and it is more or less the same from book 1 to book 40. If it works, don't change it.

The world changes though. We go from the depression years in the 1930s to the war years in the 1940s to the 50s, 60s and finally 70s.

Through those years we can see how traffic changes in New York. More and more traffic, longer queues, slower moving cars and harder and harder to find parking. We can see how people's living changes. House servants go away, people live in their own apartments instead of boarding.

The fashion changes as well. Maybe not for our heroes but for women. We can see how skirts get shorter and shorter all the way to the infamous mini skirts of the 1960s. What a confusing world it must have been for someone born in the 19th century.

An obsession of Stout seems to be elevators and here we can follow the 30s elevators with an operator through to manual automatic operators, smooth as on rails. I do wonder if Wolfe ever had one of those silent ones installed. Goodwin thought he would, but then it was never again mentioned.

Another technological marvel is recording devices. When they first appear they are luxury products, large and complicated requiring operators. At the end they are miniature devices beyond understanding. As is phone exchanges. When the book series start we have manual switchboard operators. At the end you just dial a number. Magic.

Politics change as well, though it's mostly not covered in the books. Stout seems to have been open to changes happening in society though as always, we love to heckle our elected representatives. Only twice will politics have a central role. In a book with the FBI and at the very end when Nixon's affairs had become public knowledge and the only question was how deep the rot went.

There were a couple of books focused on the Balkans, the original home of Nero Wolfe. Around the war years and afterwards, there was always this question about how Yugoslavia ("the land of south slavs") would end up, and how it would align globally. Otherwise more or less every story takes place within driving distance of Wolfe's house.

It's been a long journey and I'm happy to have followed it. The Stout project of 2018 is hereby concluded. ( )

Feels almost like the logical conclusion to Death of A Doxie as Orrie Cather's treatment of women finally catches up with him. A bomb goes off in the Wolfe just after Archie agrees to let an agitated from Roustermans restaurant comes in with a story of a man trying to kill him. This means an investigation of course, and it leads Wolfe and company closer to home than expected and forces Archie, Sal and Fred to make a difficult choice. ( )