It is certainly no surprise to anyone who has read a few stories about Nero Wolfe to find that Wolfe can be childish and petulant. It is also no surprise to learn that Archie Goodwin can take pleasure in being playful and irritating Wolfe. That is how "The Golden Spiders," by Rex Stout, begins: Wolfe has been behaving like a spoiled child, and so Archie decides to annoy Wolfe by allowing a 12-year-old neighborhood boy to come into the office and tell Wolfe about a series of peculiar events. Ordinarily, Archie would have turned the boy away, but, as he says of Wolfe, "I thought it would do him good to have another child to play with."
What Archie thinks is simply a practical joke on his part has unforeseen consequences. As a result of that initial visit, Wolfe and Archie will be drawn into an unusual murder case. Wolfe will accept a client for the unheard-of fee of four dollars and thirty cents. They will engage in a hunt for an unusual pair of gold earrings shaped like spiders. And they will uncover a remarkably sordid story of greed, blackmail and murder.
In other words, they will be part of a really fine Nero Wolfe adventure. "The Golden Spiders" is the subject of this week's review on our Classic Mysteries podcast, and you can hear the entire review here.
One of my favorite Wolfe books. I reread all of them every few years.
Never get tired of visiting the brownstone.
Posted by: Yvette | July 27, 2010 at 09:11 AM
Yvette, if you're in the NY area, check out the Wolfe Pack, which holds bimonthly meetings, talks, etc. www.nerowolfe.com
Posted by: Les Blatt | July 27, 2010 at 04:02 PM