Over My Dead Body

Nero Wolfe #7

by Rex Stout

When a Balkan beauty gets in trouble over some missing diamonds, who else can she turn to but the world-famous Nero Wolfe?  Especially since she claims to be Wolfe's long lost daughter!

The stakes are suddenly raised when a student at this woman's fencing school ends up dead after a pointed lesson.

As Wolfe and his sidekick, Archie, thrust and parry into a tangle of documents, identities and international intrigue, another student body turns up, expertly skewered through the heart. Here's a question for you: "Is Wolfe's daughter, the black sheep of the family, [also] a hot-blooded mistress of murder?"

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Detective, Crime, Mystery Thriller, Audiobook, Ebooks

272 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 3, 1940

About the author

Rex Todhunter Stout (1886–1975) was an American crime writer, best known as the creator of the larger-than-life fictional detective Nero Wolfe, described by reviewer Will Cuppy as "that Falstaff of detectives." Wolfe's assistant Archie Goodwin recorded the cases of the detective genius from 1934 (Fer-de-Lance) to 1975 (A Family Affair).

The Nero Wolfe corpus was nominated Best Mystery Series of the Century at Bouchercon 2000, the world's largest mystery convention, and Rex Stout was nominated Best Mystery Writer of the Century.

Reviews

[Carol, She's so Novel ꧁꧂ · Rating 3 out of 5]

While this Wolfe/Goodwin outing wasn't terrible, it wasn't one of their best either. Yes, you have to ignore racism in so many early 20th century books, but this started in this book on the first page.

Until I reached the 50% mark there wasn't much of the usual Wolfe/Goodwin banter and I found the plot confused and confusing. From the half way point the story does pick up though.

While I should have guessed whodunnit, I didn't and I think that might have been my general lack of interest in the result. I always found this series very uneven (the modern equivalent would be the Kinsey Millhone series) and one average book won't stop me reading further.

https://wordpress.com/view/carolshess...

[Charles van Buren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Verified Purchase

Reviewed in the United States on December 31, 2019

Format: Kindle Edition

One of the more convoluted Nero Wolfe tales

Review of Kindle edition
Publication date: July 13, 2018
Language: English
ASIN: B07FLFP4FF
Amazon.com Sales Rank: 86732
189 pages

Fine Nero Wolfe mystery featuring international intrigue, finance, royals, fencing, Wolfe's daughter, the FBI, and, of course, murder. I recommend reading the introduction as an afterwards unless you wish to know some story details in advance.

Where was Nero Wolfe born? This story brings confusion to the issue, contradicting other accounts in the canon. The introduction to this book attempts to shed some light on the matter and clear the confusion. Personally I will stick with William S. Baring-Gould who, in his biography of Nero Wolfe, popularized the theory that Wolfe was born in the Balkins, the son of Irene Adler and Sherlock Holmes.

Not the best of the Nero Wolfe mysteries but still exciting and engrossing. Wolfe works to clear his daughter of a diamond theft and murder. His daughter!?! Who knew? This one reveals more tidbits of Wolfe's background.

Note that the edition I read claims 189 pages in the description. The edition at which this review appears on Goodreads claims 271 pages.

[Jim · Rating 3 out of 5]

The seventh book in the Nero Wolfe series and we learn some interesting facts about the genius detective. Even Archie Goodwin is shocked to learn that Wolfe has a daughter. And there was a time when he didn't spend all of his time in his brownstone on W. 35th Street tending his orchids and enjoying gourmet meals prepared by his personal chef, Fritz Brenner. A time when he was active in Montenegro politics.

It is 1938, the eve of World War II. The United States is officially neutral but Americans have strong opinions on events in Europe. A Balkan beauty shows up at Wolfe's door and wants to hire Wolfe to help her friend who has been accused of stealing some diamonds. Both women are instructors at a fencing school and the missing diamonds belonged to one of the students. Her ace card? She claims to be his long lost daughter and has a document to prove it.

Wolfe sends his confidential assistant and leg man, Archie Goodwin, to look into the matter and the situation is resolved almost immediately and without any real effort. But, this being a Nero Wolfe story there is a murder at the fencing school while Archie is there. He also finds something that makes his own situation look very bad.

This is one of the most complex, convoluted, and political of the Nero Wolfe stories that I have read but it is still entertaining and enjoyable due in large part to the relationships and interplay among the various characters. At one point Inspector Cramer shows up at Wolfe's brownstone and refuses to leave fearing he will not get back in the door. He is convinced Wolfe knows something and tells him he will even follow him into the kitchen when he makes salad dressing. Wolfe patiently explains you don't make salad dressing in the kitchen. You make it in the dining room and use it right away. And here I always thought you went to the supermarket and bought a bottle!

Nero Wolfe stories are always an enjoyable and nostalgic trip into a different time. Roadsters, pay phones, bell boys, etc. Open a Nero Wolfe book and step into different era. There is some outdated slang and use of ethnic terms that may be hard to follow or tolerate but overall Nero Wolfe remains one of the genres most unique and enjoyable characters.

[Jack Heath · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 Stars. Did you know Nero Wolfe had a daughter? Now in her 20s. This is complicated so attention to details is de rigueur! We first meet her on page one of 'Over My Dead Body' when she rings the bell at his office / home on West 35th Street in Manhattan. Oops I may have made a mistake. That's Carla Lovchen representing another young woman who is, she says, Wolfe's long-lost daughter, Neya Tormic. A little explanation. In his younger days, the great detective spent time in the Balkans, that hot-bed of international intrigue early in the 20th century - and later too! After all it was in the Balkans, Sarajevo in fact, where the road to WW1 began with the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria in July 1914. In his travels there, Wolfe met a three-year-old girl who needed help. He adopted her and sent financial support. He hasn't seen her in years. Why is she in New York? That's the essence of the novel. While in the city, she and her friend work at a club teaching fencing. One of the pupils receives the full thrust of an epee, a type of sword. Neya's? Whatever, he's dead, the police are circling, and now she really needs her father! (January 2023)

[Ivonne Rovira · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nero Wolfe, a portly, prickly private detective with a penchant for orchids, was a household name from the 1930s through at least the 1960s. It saddens me that — unlike Sam Spade, Philip Marlow, Jane Marple, Hercule Poirot, Albert Campion and Lord Peter Wimsey — Wolfe’s lost a lot of his audience. What a pity, as he and his wisecracking sidekick Archie Goodwin have not lost any of their allure in the ensuing decades.

In this novel, Wolfe, with an attachment to Montenegro, gets a visit from a Montenegrin beauty claiming to be his long-lost daughter. Neya Tormic has become embroiled in a case of missing diamonds at the fencing studio where she teaches. Soon stolen diamonds are the least of Neya’s problem when a student turns up dead.

[Charles van Buren · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the more convoluted Nero Wolfe tales

Outstanding Nero Wolfe mystery featuring international intrigue, finance, royals, fencing, Wolfe's daughter, Inspector Cramer, the FBI, and, of course, murder. I recommend reading the introduction as an afterwards unless you wish to know some story details in advance.

Where was Nero Wolfe born? This story brings confusion to the issue, contradicting other accounts in the canon. The introduction to this book attempts to shed some light on the matter and clear the confusion. Personally I will stick with William S. Baring-Gould who, in his biography of Nero Wolfe, popularized the theory that Wolfe was born in the Balkins, the son of Irene Adler and Sherlock Holmes.

[Bill Kerwin · Rating 3 out of 5]

A woman arrives from the Balkans--is she Nero Wolfe's daughter? An enjoyable mystery.

[Betty · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read most of the Nero Wolf Books by Rex Stout several times over. If I had list of my admired authors he would be on it.
In the seventh edition we find Wolf has two visitors from Montenegro. Neya Tormic wants him to investigate a diamond robbery in which Neya is accused of taking the diamonds. As usual Wolf refuse to get involve until Neya tells him she has the paper that says he adopted her when she was two years old. Wolf sends Archie to investigate. While he is there a murder is committed. Archie's actions will amuse you. The ending is unique and Wolf wins again. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS BOOK AND SERIES.

[Gary Sundell · Rating 5 out of 5]

We learn some things about Nero as a young man in Montenegro. A nice twist at the end. Nero claims to have been born in the US. In a later book he says he is a naturalized citizen. Puzzling.

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

wow who knew that Nero Wolfe had a DAUGHTER and was a freedom fighter in his youth. WOW and learned even more about the area of Serbia/Croatia.

[Elizabeth (Alaska) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had no idea who did the murder, but I was in good company. Wolfe seems often to know who and why very early, though he doesn't tell us. In this, he admitted even quite late in the novel that he didn't know who did it. Inspector Cramer spent more time hanging around in this one, which was certainly different. He said it was because he didn't have any idea who did it and he figured if he stayed near Wolfe, then things would certainly become clear. Archie displayed more brilliance than usual, but he just used his brains to make sure he was following Wolfe's instructions.

Others have mentioned the frequent use of 1930s slang in this series. I must admit I had not attributed it to the slang of the period so much as Archie's glib way of talking. I'm less sure, for instance, that "alphabet piano" was the slang of the times, than simply Archie's way of referring to a typewriter. That sort of thing and that Archie and Wolfe had to use more code (because there were always others hanging around) kept me on my reading toes.

This series continues to be enjoyable. I'm not sure this will be a favorite, however.

[Daniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was really fun. Archie’s approximately a ten-thousand times better character than Watson, the dynamic between him and Wolfe was entertaining, and the plot was enjoyably complex, featuring some international intrigue pre WWII.

Being from 1940 the handling of the one minor Black character who appears in the book is quite cringey, and there’s some mocking of immigrant characters’ accents.

I can’t recall for certain if I’ve read any of these before, I think I’ve probably read one or two, but assuming that’s the case, either past me selected bad examples or my taste has changed because the series never made it into my reading rotation. Regardless of whether past me read any or not, I did have a distinct impression of, and general familiarity with the characters that’s probably largely down to the 1981 TV series with the iconic William Conrad.

I’m quite glad the series was put back on my radar recently by Robert Jackson Bennett’s The Tainted Cup which bases its central characters on Nero and Archie, and references in my newly beloved Bergeron Mysteries by M.G. Lewis. Doing a little reading up on Stout after reading this I learned Stout and Wodehouse had a little mutual appreciation society going on, which also warms my heart.

I will definitely be slotting more of these into my reading list in the future.

[Eric_W · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have read all of Rex Stout's wonderful Nero Wolfe books. This one is the 2nd time around and still lots of fun.

[cool breeze · Rating 3 out of 5]

The weakest of the first seven Nero Wolfe books, somewhat less than 3 stars. I am leaving a review among the hundreds here already only because I thought this book was sub-standard compared to the rest of the fine series so far. Rex Stout seems to have felt a certain need to deal with the looming events immediately preceding World War II, but uncertain about how to do it. So, the reader gets a vague Balkan intrigue for motive (forest concessions, really ?!?), a gimmicky murder weapon and a weak ending.

[Pamela Shropshire · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, that was enjoyable. Not only do we have a double murder to solve, but there are SPIES. I do love spies - in fiction, anyway.

A young woman visits the brownstone; she is clearly a foreigner, and she gives a clearly fake name. She hides a paper inside a book entitled United Yugoslavia; the paper contains enough cryptic information that Wolfe realizes the woman is mixed up in some international intrigue. Actually, the young woman is traveling with a friend; and one of them has with her an adoption decree that is a real stunner: she claims to be Nero Wolfe’s adopted daughter! What’s more is that Wolfe admits he did adopt an orphan when he was a young man! Hidden depths!

So then a British agent is murdered. Later, so is a German one. (Remember that this book was published in the late 1930s, and that will give you a clue as to what is in the works.) Which of the young women is Wolfe’s daughter? Which one is the murderer? Is Wolfe’s daughter the murderer?

Both Inspector Cramer and Sergeant Purley Stebbins make appearances. Cramer is perhaps a bit nicer than usual, but that’s because the international intrigue bit has shut him out of the case entirely, and he knows his only hope of catching the killer is staying on Wolfe’s good side.

One bit of information in this book contradicts a previous book. In Too Many Cooks, Wolfe tells a group of waiters at a West Virginia resort that he is not a native-born American; that he immigrated here from Montenegro and became a citizen. In this book, he says he was born in America, but went to the Balkans as a young man, and was an Austrian agent for a while. Confusing!

4.5 stars.

[Bryan Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reread in 2024.

Still a solid entry in the body of work. I enjoyed noticing this time the different ways characters pronounced a French term col de mort. Obviously it was in my imagination but the way Stout wrote the various attempts was what triggered my imagining that so credit to the author for creating a vivid internal landscape while enjoying the book.


************************* Original Review********************************
This story was a return to form after the previous adventure taking place all outside of Neros home. The characterization changes I liked so much from the previous book all continue in this one. Archie is still witty and suave, Nero is still brilliant and grumpy.

The most remarkable thing about this story is that Nero made no money at all. I had forgotten than though I had remembered the secret twist of the story.

A brief note on another reoccurring character, the NYPD Homicide Inspector Cramer. He has either been in or referenced in every story so far, but his character hadn't settled down much either. He is still not at what he finally arrives at but here are hints of it as he dogs Neros steps looking to pick up the bread crumb clues that he knows Nero has already figured out.

[Wilma · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nero Wolfe novels are always a treat. Nero's adopted daughter shows up in this one.

[Kevin Findley · Rating 5 out of 5]

International intrigue and homicide bring Nero Wolfe face-to-face with the adopted daughter he has not seen since she was three years old. This is the underlying current to two homicides and enough plot devices and switches to fill two of Rex Stout's books.

Adding to the fun is another peek at Nero Wolfe's life as a younger man, traveling the world in search of adventure and windmills. In a handful of paragraphs, Stout gives a better portrait of his title character than many authors do with an entire novel. Amazingly enough, he creates just as much mystery as he reveals and never cheapens what we see as the reader.

I enjoyed this book from cover to cover, and you will too.

FIND IT! BUY IT! READ IT!

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a serviceable Nero Wolfe mystery newly available for Kindle. Just right for reading on a trip, I thought. The mystery revolves around Wolfe's long lost adopted daughter and intrigue in the Balkans. However this book didn't grab me like some Wolfe mysteries. Perhaps because the reasons for my trip were not all happy ones, no book could have been 5 stars.

[hotsake (André Troesch) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just a solid and fun Nero Wolfe adventure. Both Wolfe and Archie get pissed in this story and that is always a pleasure to read.

[Pamela Mclaren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Readers learn a bit about Nero Wolfe in this intriguing addition to the Wolfe canon. Because we discover a nugget from the genius investigator's past, including that he was once an agent in the Austrian government, joined the army of Montenegro ... and after the war, adopted a starving 3-year-old Yugoslavian girl.

He will come face-to-face to the young woman, along with international intrigue and murder, in New York. It all starts with a charge that one of the two Yugoslavian women, working in a dance/fencing studio, has stolen some diamonds. In order to get his help, one of the women tells him that she is his daughter, and shows to his an adoption document. But she also hid another document in one of his books, one that has another, much darker document that leads to the possibility of a Balkan princess operating in America.

But who is who? And why are they here? Quite soon there is a dead body and federal agents, along with New York police — and all want him to have the answers. Something that he must discover himself and be able to prove.

Rex Stout's mysteries and his one-of-a-kind private detective are always great reading and this one is particularly clever and humorous as Wolfe associate Archie Goodwin moves to get to the suspects and witnesses before everyone else.

[Tom Stamper · Rating 3 out of 5]

The 7th Nero Wolfe book begins with murder at a fencing school that has international implications. Federal agents, pre-war Nazis, and a princess come into play. Cramer chews on several cigars. Archie ribs Wolfe and the cops alike. One of the fencing students is Nero Wolfe’s daughter (adopted) from Yugoslavia, before the iron curtain fell.

Archie describes the daughter like this:

“She has a nice voice, but she talks like Lynn Fontanne in Idiot’s Delight. Her name is Carla Lovchen.”

Fontaine was a veteran stage actress often working with her husband Alfred Lunt. Even at the time the book was written most people would have no idea what that sounded like. I think it was Marion Davies that did the same part in the movies.

I don’t remember if Wolfe’s daughter shows up in any of the later books, but it would seem to offer possibilities. I found the book slow moving in the middle but satisfying by the end.

[EuroHackie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nero Wolfe takes on pre-WWII Nazi espionage and intrigue.

The first six books in the series were fairly light and very humorous; this one feels heavy and serious, and there isn't much to laugh about. There are crazy nobles running around, alongside spies and potential double-agents and FBI and consuls general for several countries. People are dying at an alarming rate; the police are being stifled in the midst of all this, Wolfe himself is confronted with the knowledge that his long-lost adopted daughter has abruptly returned and is seeking his help. So no, there isn't much to laugh about.

The story moves along at a rapid clip, but the ending doesn't make a lot of sense (and the whole Barrett angle was dropped completely, WTF??), and considering that this was published in 1940, it feels a bit too on the nose for Nazi shenanigans. Readable, but my least favorite of the series so far.

[Jane Stewart · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not as good as previous books, but ok.

I love some of the things Archie does and the way he and Nero think. If you’re new to this series, I suggest reading Fer-De-Lance and Some Buried Caesar before reading this - only because I think they are better. They are all stand alones.

Two female immigrants come to New York and teach fencing. One is accused of stealing from a customer. Two men end up dead.

The audiobook narrator Michael Prichard was good.

DATA:
Narrative mode: 1st person Archie. Unabridged audiobook length: 7 hrs and 23 mins. Swearing language: mild. Sexual content: none. Setting: 1938 New York City. Book copyright: 1939. Genre: PI mystery.

[Gilbert Stack · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nero Wolfe has a daughter who is every bit as cantankerous and all-around-difficult as he is. Visiting the U.S. she only makes her existence known when she gets in trouble—accused of stealing some diamonds from a locker in a fencing studio—but murder can’t be far behind in a Nero Wolfe mystery. This one stands apart because everything that happens involves a cast of international operatives seeking to advance a secret intrigue. Wolfe and Archie have to unravel a lot more than who killed who to get to the bottom of this mystery and they have to do it with a client even less helpful than Nero Wolfe.

If you liked this review, you can find more at www.gilbertstack.com/reviews.

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe books are always delightful reads, with his genius melding of Holmesian ratiocination and Marlovian tough-guy bark. This one is a little more complicated than some, with a complex geopolitical background and a large array of characters. Wolfe and his narrating leg man Archie Goodwin attempt to solve the murder of a fencing student, but the novel delves more than any other in the series (as I recall) into Wolfe's own personal history as a young man. Stout knows how to write with verve and style, and his plotting is first rate. A very good entry in the series.

[Bruce · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm a big fan of Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe series, but haven't read one in quite a while. Wolfe and Archie Goodwin are, in my estimation, the best detective team since Holmes and Watson. Over My Dead Body isn't a strong detective story per se, but is a hugely enjoyable escapade related in Goodwin's incomparably witty and buoyant narration.

[Leslie · Rating 4 out of 5]

While Wolfe is back to his typical self (not leaving home as in the previous 2!), some of his personal background is revealed in this one. Archie seemed a bit more hardboiled than I remember! The series remains poised on the edge between hardboiled & Golden Age in style, a tricky feat that Stout manages to perfection.

[NebulousGloom (FK) · Rating 4 out of 5]

As expected, this book was quite good. Sometimes, they drag while everyone is looking for clues, but this time, it went along pretty quickly. Also, we got some more backstory on the characters, which is always nice.

[M.L.D. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rather refreshing to read a book where Nazis are undisputed villains.