The Misadventures of Nero Wolfe
Parodies and Pastiches Featuring the Great Detective of West 35th Street
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- $13.99
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- $13.99
Publisher Description
Stories that pay tribute to Rex Stout’s legendary private detective by Lawrence Block, Loren D. Estleman, John Lescroart, Robert Goldsborough, and more.
If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin have been widely flattered almost from the moment Rex Stout first wrote about them in 1934. The Misadventures of Nero Wolfe collects two dozen literary tributes to one of crime fiction’s best-loved private detectives and his Man Friday. Included are: A 1947 pastiche by award-winning crime writer Thomas NarcejacRollicking new stories written especially for this collection by Michael Bracken and Robert LoprestiStories by bestselling authors including Lawrence Block and Loren D. EstlemanChapters from Robert Goldsborough’s authorized continuation of the Wolfe series; Marion Mainwaring’s 1955 tour de force Murder in Pastiche; and John Lescroart’s Rasputin’s Revenge, which reimagines a young Wolfe as the son of Sherlock Holmes Also featuring a reminiscence from Rex Stout’s daughter, this is a treasury of witty and suspenseful crime writing for every fan of the portly private detective.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The 18 pastiches and parodies in this superb anthology from Pachter (The Misadventures of Ellery Queen) honor Rex Stout's iconic sedentary sleuth. The contributors, who include such notables as Loren Estleman and John Lescroart, succeed in emulating Archie Goodwin's narrative voice and poking gentle fun at Wolfe's array of idiosyncratic quirks. The standout is Lawrence Block's "As Dark as Christmas Gets," which offers a new case for Leo Haig, a Wolfe wannabe who keeps fish instead of orchids and dreams that his success as a detective will one day land him a coveted dinner invite to Wolfe's home. Haig is called in by a man resembling the Mysterious Bookshop's Otto Penzler after an unpublished Cornell Woolrich manuscript disappears during a Christmas party. Authorized pasticheur Robert Goldsborough is represented by the opening chapter of his first Wolfe novel, Murder in E Minor. Other highlights include a new translation of a French pastiche, "The Red Orchid" by Thomas Narcejac, one of the coauthors of Vertigo. This will appeal to Stout devotees and more casual fans alike.
