Rating: 
Summary: Very sharp....
Review: ...as the corpulent detective pits his wits against the FBI. The guy who shows up at the end and rings the doorbell may surprise you....or may not.
Rating:
Summary: Very sharp....
Review: ...as the corpulent detective pits his wits against the FBI. The guy who shows up at the end and rings the doorbell may surprise you....or may not.
Rating: 
Summary: What really holds Archie and Wolfe together
Review: I love this series, especially because of the relationship between NW and AG. These two men could not be more different in terms of work ethic, personal style, taste, etc. Yet they are held together by mutual respect and -- as illustrated by this colorful installment -- a very healthy disrepect for authority. Here we find Wolfe confronted by an institution he would enjoy tweaking even more than the NYPD, and that's the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The murder itself really is not that important to the story. The real story is Wolfe's elaborate (and boy, is it ever elaborate!) plan to sting the Feds. If you're looking for a complex whodunit, look elsewhere. But if you enjoy the series and the main characters of Goodwin, Wolfe and Cramer, curl up with this one and prepare to smile often.
Rating:
Summary: Nero Wolfe is Timeless Enjoyment
Review: If you want mindless action then leave now, Nero Wolfe mysteries are not for you. If, however, you have a love of classic detective fiction, a mind to appreciate a fine puzzle solving, a taste for gourmet meals, fine living and excentric characters--then Wolfe is your man! The most delightful thing about Rex Stouts novels is their period flavor. Stout wrote Wolfe as a "contemporary detective" and began his writing career in the first half of this century. A prolific writer, Stout has brought Wolfe across the decades from the WWII era to the disco days. Each novel is a unique period piece of masterful puzzle solving by a marvelously enjoyable cast of characters. Archie and Wolfe never seem to age as they cope with the times, their clients and each other in each new volume, and to the reader this is not incongruous--they are that easily well loved! Nero Wolfe will go down in history with Mycroft Holmes, Hercule Poirot, Sam Spade and Jessica Fletcher as a Classic!
Rating:
Summary: A Great Book, Whose Plot Is Misunderstood by Mr. Dekle
Review: Mr. Dekle, in his review of June 8, 2001, completely misunderstands the rationale behind Wolfe's method of investigation in *this* particular book. The basic plot of the book is *not* Wolfe's determination to expose the murderer -- it is to pry the FBI away from his client and to keep them from harassing her. And to earn the outlandish fee she has promised him.In order to accomplish his goal, he determines that he must find a means of *forcing* the FBI to leave her alone. A murder case in which some local FBI agents in NYC are apparently involved then comes to Wolfe's attention. He, being a genius, decides that it will be in the best interest of his client (and himself) to determine that the FBI did *not* commit this murder. But, he also says to Archie, he is prepared to deal with the eventuality that the FBI *did* commit the murder and to turn it to his advantage. In either case, Wolfe doesn't give a fig as to who actually committed this particular murder -- he only wants to earn his fee.
Rating:
Summary: A Great Book, Whose Plot Is Misunderstood by Mr. Dekle
Review: Mr. Dekle, in his review of June 8, 2001, completely misunderstands the rationale behind Wolfe's method of investigation in *this* particular book. The basic plot of the book is *not* Wolfe's determination to expose the murderer -- it is to pry the FBI away from his client and to keep them from harassing her. And to earn the outlandish fee she has promised him. In order to accomplish his goal, he determines that he must find a means of *forcing* the FBI to leave her alone. A murder case in which some local FBI agents in NYC are apparently involved then comes to Wolfe's attention. He, being a genius, decides that it will be in the best interest of his client (and himself) to determine that the FBI did *not* commit this murder. But, he also says to Archie, he is prepared to deal with the eventuality that the FBI *did* commit the murder and to turn it to his advantage. In either case, Wolfe doesn't give a fig as to who actually committed this particular murder -- he only wants to earn his fee.
Rating:
Summary: Mycroft Holmes and Sam Spade
Review: Nero Wolfe cannot be anything other than a reincarnation of Sherlock Holmes' smarter brother. Wolfe's corpulence, indolence, sagacity, and appreciation for the finer things of life can come only from the model of Mycroft Holmes. Archie Goodwin's antecedents are a little more complex. He has the energy of Sherlock Holmes, the loyalty of Dr. Watson, and the gritty toughness of Sam Spade. In this book they do something that was unheard of in 1965 when the book was written--they take on the FBI. Their client is being stalked by agents of the FBI, and they must stop it. Incidentally, they have to solve a murder in which the prime suspects are three FBI agents. They solve the mystery, cage the FBI's dogs, earn their obscene fee, and nobody but the reader lives happily ever after. It is truly entertaining to read how a handful of private citizens humble the mighty, monolithic FBI. Several incidents in the story made it appear that Wolfe and Goodwin had a cavalier attitude towards investigative ethics. In one scene Wolfe talks to Goodwin about the murder case. The two decide that it would be best to prove the FBI Agents didn't commit the murder. They then decide that's what they'll do. This is not the way to investigate a murder case. The objective of a murder investigation should never be to prove that someone did or didn't commit a murder. The objective of the investigation should be to determine who committed the murder. You might think that I'm splitting hairs, but I am not. When one sets out to prove that someone committed a murder, he can develop tunnel vision and ignore significant clues that point in other directions. Only after the murder is conclusively identified should the mission shift to proving he did it. This was my first Nero Wolfe novel. It was good enough to warrant reading further novels.
Rating:
Summary: Mycroft Holmes and Sam Spade
Review: Nero Wolfe cannot be anything other than a reincarnation of Sherlock Holmes' smarter brother. Wolfe's corpulence, indolence, sagacity, and appreciation for the finer things of life can come only from the model of Mycroft Holmes. Archie Goodwin's antecedents are a little more complex. He has the energy of Sherlock Holmes, the loyalty of Dr. Watson, and the gritty toughness of Sam Spade. In this book they do something that was unheard of in 1965 when the book was written--they take on the FBI. Their client is being stalked by agents of the FBI, and they must stop it. Incidentally, they have to solve a murder in which the prime suspects are three FBI agents. They solve the mystery, cage the FBI's dogs, earn their obscene fee, and nobody but the reader lives happily ever after. It is truly entertaining to read how a handful of private citizens humble the mighty, monolithic FBI. Several incidents in the story made it appear that Wolfe and Goodwin had a cavalier attitude towards investigative ethics. In one scene Wolfe talks to Goodwin about the murder case. The two decide that it would be best to prove the FBI Agents didn't commit the murder. They then decide that's what they'll do. This is not the way to investigate a murder case. The objective of a murder investigation should never be to prove that someone did or didn't commit a murder. The objective of the investigation should be to determine who committed the murder. You might think that I'm splitting hairs, but I am not. When one sets out to prove that someone committed a murder, he can develop tunnel vision and ignore significant clues that point in other directions. Only after the murder is conclusively identified should the mission shift to proving he did it. This was my first Nero Wolfe novel. It was good enough to warrant reading further novels.
Rating: 
Summary: Looking tough at the FBI
Review: Oftentimes the Nero Wolfe books are in some never-never time. You know it's sometime after the second World War, but placing it in the fifties or sixties or seventies can be tough. Except when Stout decides to take on what later became one of his favorite subjects, the Federal Bureau of Investigation. In The Doorbell Rang, Stout gets his jabs in at the "privileged" position of the federal investigator, while raising issues many Americans had at the time about a "secret police" which reported, supposedly, only to the president. A true immigrant, Wolfe has more of a feeling for what democracy is and how precious an item it is, and works harder to defend it than the "real" Americans. As always, Stout's prose is clean and crisp, and this is the same book that you expect from him.
Rating:
Summary: Can't think of a better detective than Nero Wolfe
Review: Rex Stout came up with a winner in Nero Wolfe. Archie and Nero combine for some of the best mystery/suspense reading possible. This book involves Wolfe with the most dangerous guys possible, the FBI. How he gets himself into and out of this mess is great to read. The book is full of excellent characters and no one can write a suspense story like Rex Stout.
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