Nine Short Stories

by Rex Stout

An Officer and a Lady
The Rope Dance
Warner & Wife
Jonathan Stannard's Secret Vice
A Tyrant Abdicates
Rose Orchid
The Pay Yeoman
An Agacella Or
The Mother of Invention

Genres: Mystery

ebook

First published January 1, 1917

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

[Virginia Tican · Rating 5 out of 5]

On some of these stories or maybe most of them, I have already posted my reviews so I would like to comment on Rose Orchid. This is another study of human nature that has a beautiful twist into it. Lt. Commander Reed of the USS Helena though worthy was about as inflexible as strictly~by~the book martinet and about as unlikable to the point of hatred as evidenced by the several requests for transfers to other ships and desertion was maybe more frequent in the Helena than in other units. So when the Commander was rescued after a storm (coming from a short~lived visit to an old friend in Puerto Rico) by a couple, he recognized the woman's husband as one who once served at the Helena under another name. Back at the Helena, Commander Reed was facing a conundrum whether to report a deserter from the USS Helena whom he inadvertently found in the mountains of San Juan, Puerto Rico. The Mother of Invention ~ is a brilliant exercise of ingenuity by a stranded son of a New York financier who foolishly wasted his time or maybe increased his education, as the case maybe in the Mediterranean and Paris while on his tour before his final term in Harvard. When his life as a lotus~eater palled, he cabled his father for funds and his exasperated father told him to walk home following the several deceitful ploys requesting money that he practiced on his sire. The next move he did to get home in First Class accommodations no less was nothing short of an awesome feat of mental acuity.

[Kb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stories from the early years of Rex Stout’s career. Some are dated (the book was published in 1917) and some are universal. And—just a warning—one story contains casual usage of a racial slur.

An Officer and a Lady - a dated story with a cute twist
The Rope Dance - a cowboy finds romance in New York City
Warner & Wife - dated story of a woman choosing a career over traditional wifely duties, and the deleterious effect on her husband
Jonathan Standard's Secret Vice - dated story in its particulars, but describes a universal situation; of note, a woman consults a private detective about her husband's behaviour
A Tyrant Abdicates - a strict landlady is not what she seems
The Rose Orchid - a duty-bound naval officer learns flexibility in applying the rules
The Pay Yeoman - another Navy story similar to the last (this is the story that contains a racial slur)
An Agacella Or - a humorous romance involving a case of mistaken identity
The Mother of Invention- an incorrigible son fails to be corrected by his father

[Pat · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice mix of stories, with some interesting characters, but dated.

[Pat · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great writer.

Usually I’m reading Stout’s Nero Wolfe series, but these are wonderful. Intelligent, well written, varied. Enjoy them. I sure did.

[Gowri N. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting read - gives a good feel for the period in which the tales are set. The language maybe a little antiquated for some, but I enjoyed it very much.