Book #61 of 2026: The Red Box by Rex Stout (Nero Wolfe #4) These 1930s mysteries remain solid enough as a sort of American pastiche of Agatha Christie, but so far they’ve failed to hit the heights that she could periodically achieve for me. The premise to this novel, for example, is initially interesting — …
Tag Archives: mystery
Book Review: The Rubber Band by Rex Stout
Book #50 of 2026: The Rubber Band by Rex Stout (Nero Wolfe #3) This third Nero Wolfe mystery, also published under the alternate title of To Kill Again, is fine, much as the previous installments have been. The best elements remain the eccentric homebody detective and his banter with his assistant Archie, while the specific …
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Book Review: The League of Frightened Men by Rex Stout
Book #39 of 2026: The League of Frightened Men by Rex Stout (Nero Wolfe #2) I’m enjoying this old mystery series enough to keep reading, but I have yet to be blown away by the execution. The most enjoyable aspect remains the narrator’s banter and overall relationship with his boss the reclusive detective, which means …
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Book Review: Fer-de-Lance by Rex Stout
Book #28 of 2026: Fer-de-Lance by Rex Stout (Nero Wolfe #1) This 1934 novel introduces the character of Nero Wolfe, as well as his assistant Archie Goodwin and a few other members of their inner circle. The former is a genius consulting detective in the style of Hercule Poirot (who had debuted in 1920) or …
Book Review: The Man Who Died Seven Times by Yasuhiko Nishizawa
Book #183 of 2025: The Man Who Died Seven Times by Yasuhiko Nishizawa I’m a sucker for a good time loop story, but I’m afraid this 1995 Japanese novel, newly translated into English, doesn’t get there for me. It’s not a fault in the premise, which isn’t that absurd for this particular genre: the teenage …
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Book Review: The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco
Book #133 of 2025: The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco I haven’t loved this 1980 Italian classic as much as I expected to from the premise, which seems like it should be right up my alley: two fourteenth-century monks investigating a string of suspicious deaths at a secluded monastery. They aren’t called detectives, …
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Book Review: The Guest List by Lucy Foley
Book #120 of 2025: The Guest List by Lucy Foley A good plot twist should feel surprising in the moment but almost inevitable in hindsight, and there are several such developments woven throughout this wicked thriller about a disastrous wedding off the coast of Ireland. Other readers have compared this 2020 novel to an Agatha …
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Book Review: Death at the White Hart by Chris Chibnall
Book #99 of 2025: Death at the White Hart by Chris Chibnall This 2025 title is the debut novel of author Chris Chibnall, better known as the former showrunner behind Doctor Who and — more relevant here — Broadchurch. Like the latter show, it’s a murder mystery set in a coastal English village and investigated …
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Book Review: Nightshade by Michael Connelly
Book #85 of 2025: Nightshade by Michael Connelly (Detective Stilwell #1) This 2025 release is the start of a new series for author Michael Connelly, although there are a few subtle indications throughout that it’s set in the same continuity as his long-running Bosch and Lincoln Lawyer titles. I’d be shocked if there aren’t crossover …
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Book Review: We Solve Murders by Richard Osman
Book #80 of 2025: We Solve Murders by Richard Osman (We Solve Murders #1) Mixed feelings on this one. I like the interpersonal dynamics of the private security officer, her father-in-law the retired detective, and their eccentric author friend, and it’s fun to watch them bounce around the globe dodging their enemies while trying to …
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