Murder by the Book

Murder by the Book is one of the later, and better loved Nero Wolfe mysteries. I thought it was just alright, as Nero and Archie stumble through a leadless case, where three murders are linked only by a pseudonymous manuscript and its unknown contents. With little to go on, our heroes badger the staff of a small law-firm that employed the first victim, setting an elaborate trap to flush out the murderer. The climax, which hinges on a confession that contradicts the confessor’s prior actions, is quite moving, but the rest is Archie bumping around New York and a rainy and placeless Los Angeles.