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When a renowned theater director senses something amiss during his latest production, he calls in Nero Wolfe. Though the corpulent genius wouldn’t normally accept a job this vague, a mutual friend dangles the prospect of a very rare orchid in exchange for his services, and Wolfe can’t resist.
With a mind to suss out useful backstage gossip, Wolfe turns to his faithful assistant, Archie Goodwin, to impersonate a journalist in order to speak to the cast. Though Goodwin’s conversations prove unfruitful, on his last day at the theater, the director is murdered in his soundproof booth, poisoned by an unseen culprit during an evening performance. In short order, an actor whose health is failing attempts suicide with the same poison.
Now Goodwin is a prime suspect in the director’s demise, effectively sidelining him for the rest of the case, and freelance gumshoe Saul Panzer must step in to help wrangle the various members of the play—from the ingénue and the diva to the handsome movie star and the surly stage manager—so New York’s smartest, and most reclusive, private detective can determine who is responsible for these dramatic deaths and clear Goodwin’s name once and for all.
Continuing his beloved series—which also includes Archie Meets Nero Wolfe, Murder in the Ball Park, and Archie in the Crosshairs—Nero Award–winning author Robert Goldsborough “brings Nero Wolfe, late of Rex Stout, gloriously back to life” (Chicago).
Murder, Stage Left is the 59th book in the Nero Wolfe Mysteries, but you may enjoy reading the series in any order.
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Creators
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Series
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Publisher
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Release date
March 7, 2017 -
Formats
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OverDrive Read
- ISBN: 9781504041102
- File size: 1719 KB
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EPUB ebook
- ISBN: 9781504041102
- File size: 6451 KB
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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February 1, 2017
A friend of Manhattan PI Nero Wolfe, who shares the reclusive investigator's passion for orchids, asks Wolfe to meet Broadway producer Roy Breckenridge, who senses a cloud of doom hovering over his current play. Wolfe guards his time obsessively but agrees to see Breckenridge in exchange for a very rare orchid . . . or two. Wolfe's legman, Archie Goodwin, is then dispatched to interview the play's key actors and production hands, but nothing suspicious presents itselfuntil Breckenridge is found murdered. Wolfe takes umbrage and decides he and Archie will solve the crime. In classic Wolfe style, each member of the cast and crew is summoned to Wolfe's brownstone, where multiple suspects emerge, including the play's bitter female lead, the leading man, and a fetching ingenue with big plans. This is the twelfth Wolfe mystery authored by Goldsborough, and, as usual, it's a virtually perfect homage to the Rex Stout originals, from the orchids to the beer to the gourmet food and, best of all, to Archie's bemused, self-deprecating narration. Comfort food for fans of classic mysteries.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)
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