When a loudmouthed, arrogant author is silenced, the reclusive master
detective Nero Wolfe looks for the killer: "A very clever mystery . . .
A masterly job" (Booklist).
The gun was fired close to Charles Childress's head, and his were the
only fingerprints on it, forcing the police to conclude that the author
committed suicide. But his friends know this is impossible, because
Childress loved himself far too much. He had just begun attracting fame,
writing new mysteries starring the iconic Sergeant Barnstable, and he
had bright hopes for the future. His publisher hires corpulent genius
Nero Wolfe to determine who cut Childress's career short, and the
detective finds no dearth of suspects. Among the many who may have
wanted the wordsmith whacked are his agent, his editor, a corrupt book
reviewer, and an enraged legion of Barnstable devotees. With the help of
his indefatigable assistant, Archie Goodwin, Wolfe takes a look at those
closest to the arrogant, argumentative author, hoping to decide which of
Childress's associates merely hated him, and which would have been
willing to kill.