"I was surprised by the ending and how Nero figures it out."

The Silent Speaker

Written by Rex Stout

Genre: Mystery

Book Synopsis

A Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin WhoDunIt.

A man is murdered, and Inspector Ash was not enchanted at the idea of Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin being involved. As if this case wasn't enough of a mess already, all it needed to make it a carnival was Nero Wolfe, and here he is. He worked his jaw, regarding Archie sourly.

"Who's your client?"

I shook my head. "I have no information about any client. As far as I know it's just Mr. Wolfe's scientific curiosity. He's interested in crime."

Debbie's Rating

Debbie's Review

As in all of the Nero Wolfe mysteryies I have read, I love the interaction between Archie and his boss Nero. Archie's dry wit and Nero's tell it like it is personiality is a combination for success. The time frame is from days gone by. Archie talks to you as the audience which draws you into the story even futher.

In this particular story Inspector Cramer, who is Nero's normal police contact is taken off the case, and Inspector Ash is put in. He doesn't like how Nero conducts his private eye business, this scenario created one of the best scenes in the book for me in how Nero outsmarted him.

I was surprised by the ending and how Nero figures it out. Even with reading all the clues before hand, for you have all the information that he has, and the ending still had a twist for me.

Disclaimer: May not be appropriate for young children due to mild violence.