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ssejig's review
3.0
Nero Wolfe, very famously, never leaves his brownstone in New York preferring to use his assistant Archie Goodwin as his legs. So it is quite a surprise that this book takes place mainly in Montenegro, Wolfe's birthplace.
The book opens with one of Wolfe's friends being gunned down. He was a fellow immigrant and one of the few people Wolfe would leave the house for even before he was dead, going to the man's restaurant about once a month.
Wolfe's adopted daughter, the one with whom he is estranged, comes onto the scene as well. She and the dead man were working together to help get other people out of Montenegro and to fight the current regime. She is going back to the country even before Wolfe and Archie decide to go.
An interesting step away from the normal Nero Wolfe stories and an interesting conclusion. Well worth a read but took some time to get into.
The book opens with one of Wolfe's friends being gunned down. He was a fellow immigrant and one of the few people Wolfe would leave the house for even before he was dead, going to the man's restaurant about once a month.
Wolfe's adopted daughter, the one with whom he is estranged, comes onto the scene as well. She and the dead man were working together to help get other people out of Montenegro and to fight the current regime. She is going back to the country even before Wolfe and Archie decide to go.
An interesting step away from the normal Nero Wolfe stories and an interesting conclusion. Well worth a read but took some time to get into.
kalicakem's review
adventurous
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
kukushka's review
4.0
When Nero Wolfe’s friend, Marko Vukcic, is killed, Wolfe vows to find the murderer. When Wolfe’s adopted daughter, Carla, goes to Montenegro to take over Vukcic’s affairs with a rebel group and is also murderer, Wolfe decides to finally leave his New York apartment and travel to the land of his birth.
An odd choice for my first book to read since it is so consciously breaking all of the trademarks of the the series. The novel reads almost more like a travel narrative set with already known characters than it does like a mystery. The ending is disappointing in that the mystery is solved merely because Archie and Wolfe happen to be at exactly the right place at exactly the right time and manage to overhear the baddie tell a prisoner his entire plan. If you are looking for a good mystery, turn away now. But the novel has beautiful descriptions of the area and is well worth a read despite its many flaws.
An odd choice for my first book to read since it is so consciously breaking all of the trademarks of the the series. The novel reads almost more like a travel narrative set with already known characters than it does like a mystery. The ending is disappointing in that the mystery is solved merely because Archie and Wolfe happen to be at exactly the right place at exactly the right time and manage to overhear the baddie tell a prisoner his entire plan. If you are looking for a good mystery, turn away now. But the novel has beautiful descriptions of the area and is well worth a read despite its many flaws.
fuelscience's review
3.0
Not so much sleuthing in this book, but Nero and Archie leave the brownstone and the US to find the murder of Wolfe's friend.
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