Family Affair

Nero Wolfe, a passionate orchid collector, gourmet, beer lover, and great detective, hardly ever leaves his home. He solves crimes based on the facts gathered by Archie Goodwin, his charming, ironic assistant with an excellent memory. There has never been a murder within the walls of Nero Wolfe's mansion. Waiter Pierre Dakos from the restaurant "Rusterman," who came to the detective's home at night, claims that an assassination attempt is being prepared against him and demands a meeting with Wolfe. Archie Goodwin, not wanting to wake his boss, suggests that Pierre spend the night at their home and that the meeting be postponed until morning. And when everything settled down, an explosion reverberated through the house. A bomb disguised as a cigar exploded in Pierre's hand… What else can the detective do but investigate the crime ("Family Affair"). Wolfe's personal chef falls ill with the flu, and the detective is forced to temporarily switch to food from the delicatessen. But how great was the detective's outrage when quinine was discovered in the pâté bought by Archie Goodwin at the shop. Could someone have been planning to poison Nero Wolfe? The detective begins his own investigation, which leads to unpredictable results… ("Bitter End") It is no secret to readers that the traditional meal prepared by Fritz Brenner, Nero Wolfe's personal chef and top-class cook, is always present in every Stout novel. In the "Cookbook," which concludes this collection, the recipes of the famous detective's favorite dishes are gathered ("The Nero Wolfe Cookbook"). Most of the works included in the collection are presented in new translations or published for the first time.