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2025 American Mystery Classics: Reading Schedule
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By Lesle , Appalachain Bibliophile · 28 posts · 164 views
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2025 September: The Case of the Careless Kitten by Erie S Gardner
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2019 March: Theme American Mystery Writers
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2025 March: Fer-de-Lance by Rex Stout
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By Lesle , Appalachain Bibliophile · 15 posts · 21 views
last updated Apr 09, 2025 04:02PM
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2025: 1,000,000 Page Challenge
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What Members Thought

Fer-De Lance is the first novel in the Nero Wolfe series and also my first dive into this many volumed (47 by Rex Stout) series of mysteries. I was instantly drawn into this story of murder and cover-up. This is not a thrill a minute mad paced novel at all. It is more of a character study, yet that is not a distraction at all. Nero Wolfe is a man mountain of flesh with a genius mind and his man of action is Archie Goodwin with a tongue in cheek attitude.
I started this novel curious as to the po ...more
I started this novel curious as to the po ...more

Rex Stout is an author that I had planned to read years ago. Finally, I got around to reading this. I liked this first book. Will I read any others? I don't know. Nero Wolfe is a genius living in New York City during the 1930s. Wolfe has an assistant, named Archie Goodwin who narrates the book and takes care of all the leg work in his investigations, since Wolfe refuses to leave his brownstone house on 35th street.
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My mom (hi mom!) was always reading the Nero Wolfe books, and had a whole collection of paperbacks. I didn't pay much attention until recently when I realized that the early ones are set in 1930s New York, a time and place that appeals to me.
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Sep 24, 2011
Zsa Zsa
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