The Misadventures of Nero Wolfe: Parodies and Pastiches Featuring the Great Detective of West 35th Street

by Josh Pachter (Editor), Otto Penzler (Introduction), Rebecca Stout Bradbury (Introduction), Robert Goldsborough (Contribution by), Marvin Kaye (Contribution by)

Overview

Stories that pay tribute to Rex Stout’s legendary private detective by Lawrence Block, Loren D. Estleman, John Lescroart, Robert Goldsborough, and more.
 
If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin have been widely flattered almost from the moment Rex Stout first wrote about them in 1934. The Misadventures of Nero Wolfe collects two dozen literary tributes to one of crime fiction’s best-loved private detectives and his Man Friday. Included are:

• A 1947 pastiche by award-winning crime writer Thomas Narcejac
• Rollicking new stories written especially for this collection by Michael Bracken and Robert Lopresti
• Stories by bestselling authors including Lawrence Block and Loren D. Estleman
• Chapters from Robert Goldsborough’s authorized continuation of the Wolfe series; Marion Mainwaring’s 1955 tour de force Murder in Pastiche; and John Lescroart’s Rasputin’s Revenge, which reimagines a young Wolfe as the son of Sherlock Holmes

Also featuring a reminiscence from Rex Stout’s daughter, this is a treasury of witty and suspenseful crime writing for every fan of the portly private detective.
 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781504059862
Publisher:	Open Road Integrated Media, Inc.
Publication date:	04/14/2020
Pages:	364
Sales rank:	708,889
Product dimensions:	5.20(w) x 7.90(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Robert Goldsborough is an American author best known for continuing Rex Stout’s famous Nero Wolfe series. Born in Chicago, he attended Northwestern University and upon graduation went to work for the Associated Press, beginning a lifelong career in journalism that would include long periods at the Chicago Tribune and Advertising Age. While at the Tribune, Goldsborough began writing mysteries in the voice of Rex Stout, the creator of iconic sleuths Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin. Goldsborough’s first novel starring Wolfe, Murder in E Minor (1986), was met with acclaim from both critics and devoted fans, winning a Nero Award from the Wolfe Pack. Archie Goes Home is the fifteenth book in the series.
 

Lawrence Block (b. 1938) is a Grand Master of the Mystery Writers of America and an internationally acclaimed New York Times bestselling author. His awards include a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Private Eye Writers of America and the Cartier Diamond Dagger Lifetime Achievement Award from the Crime Writers’ Association (UK). Although he is best known for his four main mystery series, Block explored a variety of genres, including thrillers and erotica, and developed an early following as a pulp-fiction writer under a number of pseudonyms. Born in Buffalo, New York, Block has three daughters and currently lives with his wife in New York City.

Marvin Kaye (b. 1938) is the author of more than forty books. Born in Philadelphia, he attended college at the University of Pennsylvania, graduating with advanced degrees in theater and English literature. After reporting for the national newspaper Grit for several years, he moved to New York City and found work in publishing. He published his first nonfiction book, The Histrionic Holmes, in 1971, and followed it with the mystery novel A Lively Game of Death (1972), which introduced sleuthing public relations agent Hilary Quayle, Kaye’s most famous character.
 In addition to five Quayle novels, Kaye has written and edited dozens of works of fiction and nonfiction. He is also one of the founders of the Open Book, New York City’s oldest continuously operating reading theater. In 2010, the theater produced Kaye’s Mister Jack, a comedy about Don Juan. Before his retirement, Kaye taught creative writing at New York University, and regularly performed improvised comedy at the Jekyll & Hyde Club.      

Loren D. Estleman (b. 1952) has written over sixty-five novels. His most enduring character, Amos Walker, made his first appearance in 1980’s Motor City Blue, and the hardboiled Detroit private eye has been featured in twenty books since. Estleman has also won praise for his adventure novels set in the Old West, receiving awards for many of his standalone westerns. In 1993 Estleman married Deborah Morgan, a fellow mystery author. He lives and works in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Table of Contents

Tribute in Triplicate: Introductions

At Wolfe's Door Otto Penzler 3

A Family Affair Rebecca Stout Bradbury 7

Plot It Yourselves Josh Pachter 10

Part I Pastiches

The Red Orchid (1947) Thomas Narcejac 19

Chapter 8 From Murder in Pastiche (1955) Marion Mainwaring 45

The Archie Hunters (1968) Jon L. Breen 57

The Frightened Man (1970) O. X. Rusett 77

Chapter 1 From Murder In E Minor (1986) Robert Goldsborough 89

The Purloined Platypus (2017) Marvin Kaye 101

Part II Parodies

The House on 35th Street (1966) Frank Littler 121

The Sidekick Case (1968) Patrick Butler 127

The Case of the Disposable Jalopy (1979) Mack Reynolds 131

As Dark as Christmas Gets (1997) Lawrence Block 161

Who's Afraid of Nero Wolfe? (2008) Loren D. Estleman 193

Julius Katz and the Case of Exploding Wine (2015) Dave Zeltserman 217

The Possibly Last Case of Tiberius Dingo (2020) Michael Bracken 259

Part III Potpourri

The Woman Who Read Rex Stout (1966) William Brittain 281

Sam Buried Caesar (1971) Josh Pachter 291

Chapter 24 From Rasputin's Revenge (1987) John Lescroart 309

A scene from Might as Well Be Dead (2017) Joseph Goodrich 315

The Damned Doorbell Rang (2020) Robert Lopresti 327

Acknowledgments 339

Copyright Information 341

About the Contributors 345

Interviews

Washington, DC
 

Editorial Reviews

★ 02/24/2020

The 18 pastiches and parodies in this superb anthology from Pachter (The Misadventures of Ellery Queen) honor Rex Stout’s iconic sedentary sleuth. The contributors, who include such notables as Loren Estleman and John Lescroart, succeed in emulating Archie Goodwin’s narrative voice and poking gentle fun at Wolfe’s array of idiosyncratic quirks. The standout is Lawrence Block’s “As Dark as Christmas Gets,” which offers a new case for Leo Haig, a Wolfe wannabe who keeps fish instead of orchids and dreams that his success as a detective will one day land him a coveted dinner invite to Wolfe’s home. Haig is called in by a man resembling the Mysterious Bookshop’s Otto Penzler after an unpublished Cornell Woolrich manuscript disappears during a Christmas party. Authorized pasticheur Robert Goldsborough is represented by the opening chapter of his first Wolfe novel, Murder in E Minor. Other highlights include a new translation of a French pastiche, “The Red Orchid” by Thomas Narcejac, one of the coauthors of Vertigo. This will appeal to Stout devotees and more casual fans alike. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly

"The 18 pastiches and parodies in this superb anthology from Pachter honor Rex Stout’s iconic sedentary sleuth. . . . [The Misadventures of Nero Wolfe] will appeal to Stout devotees and more casual fans alike.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review

From the Publisher