Prisoner's Base (Mass Market Paperback)

William DeAndrea's terse introduction to the novel covers a lot in a few words. As he makes clear, this is an excellent novel for the new reader of the Nero Wolfe series. As a part of "The Rex Stout Library," a reprint of rare or "never before seen" memorabilia from Stout's archives is included at the back of the volume. I was disappointed with the item for this volume, the first typewritten page of Stout's manuscript. It does not exactly make a big splash, especially when the only difference between manuscript and final book form was the title. But that is my only criticism.

I recommend this book to all, avid mystery reader or not. I say not to fear for those fans of the television series that may be wary to tackle the volumes since Tim Hutton followed each novel very closely. The television show was excellent but there is even more detail in the book. For example, you get to learn exactly why Mrs. Jaffee should be able to recognize Eric Hagh along with how far an old man went when planning to strangle a young girl.

-DES

Wolfe has been goofing off lately, refusing 4 cases in a row, so the bank balance is at its lowest point in 2 years. Archie, fed up with sitting around, asks for a weekend off, and gets it, but when Wolfe makes a snide remark upon his departure, Archie tears up his salary check to help out (!). All of which leads to a certain tension in the brownstone the following week, so that when a pretty girl shows up (with luggage) asking to stay anonymously in the South Room for a few weeks, Archie says sure, come in and we'll try Mr. Wolfe. :) He manages to get a replacement salary check out of the incident, but due to a combination of circumstances, Wolfe doesn't throw the girl out until nearly midnight. By morning, Inspector Cramer is at the door, asking Archie how his fingerprints came to be on the luggage of a murder victim - the second victim of a double homicide.

Had the girl - Priscilla Eads - lived, Wolfe would either have taken a job from her trustee, Perry Helmar, to produce her, safe, in New York by her birthday, or taken a check from her (equaling the amount of Helmar's fee) to conceal her whereabouts as she originally asked. Unfortunately, when Helmar had offered the job, she had already been in the house, and she walked out rather than replace Helmar as Wolfe's client. Consequently, her murder leaves Wolfe with no client and no chance of a fee, and he won't investigate. But Archie can't stand the thought of a murderer being grateful to him for putting Priscilla in harm's way, and takes a leave of absence to hunt down the killer on his own.

Priscilla would have inherited 90% of the stock of Softdown, Inc. had she lived to see her birthday; since the stock now passes into the board of directors' control, Archie begins by interviewing them. (They talk to him, thinking he's a cop because they didn't check his credentials.) Archie gets arrested (falsely) for impersonating an officer, but by the end of the day - 14 minutes to six, to be exact - Wolfe has a client and he and Archie are on the case.

A case with some beautiful touches: a few really clever moves by Archie to get cooperation from various people, some spectacular confrontations between the brownstone's inhabitants and the forces of the law, and a surprising amount of cooperation with the law at other points. (Archie *really* wants to catch the creep who did this.) See if you can find the solution before the traditional finale in Wolfe's office; Stout plays fair and gives you all the information you need to solve it.