Trouble in Triplicate

by Rex Stout

Paperback, 1980

Library's review

A collection of three novellas featuring rotund detecting genius Nero Wolfe and my literary boyfriend Archie Goodwin.

Before I Die — World War II is raging, and Archie is restless. He's enlisted and is a major in the U.S. Army, but he's been assigned to help Wolfe work on top-secret cases for the

government instead of going off to fight Germans. Compounding the problem is a rationing crisis that has gourmand Wolfe desperate to get his hands and teeth on some real meat. When one of New York City's most notorious gangsters shows up at the door needing help with his daughter, the promise of black-market access in return makes Wolfe throw caution to the wind, leaving Archie to try to keep house, home, and body together long enough to solve the case.

Help Wanted, Male — The war is over and Archie is back in civvies, but one of the cases Wolfe solved for the U.S. Army comes back to haunt him. A publisher involved in that case is murdered, and the killer sends Wolfe a message saying he's next. Deciding he can't detect properly with his head on a swivel waiting for attack, he hires a lookalike to impersonate him and serve as bait. You can imagine how much fun Archie has with that.

Instead of Evidence — A man and his wife come to Wolfe, claiming his business partner is going to kill him. Oddly, the man doesn't want Wolfe to try to stop him; he just wants him to promise that after he's killed Wolfe will make sure his partner doesn't get away with the crime. Bonus points for a novel murder method.

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Description

They all thought they were about to die . . . and they were right. Dazy Perrit was an underworld kingpin until a hail of bullets sent him into early retirement. Ben Jensen was a well-connected publisher until a determined gunman severed all his connections. Eugene R. Poor made novelties like exploding cigars until one of them blew him to kingdom come. Only the gourmet sleuth, Nero Wolfe, and his sidekick, Archie Goodwin, can solve the deadly equation of murder times three. Introduction by Randy Russell "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.… (more)