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Nero Wolfe #6
Some Buried Caesar
A prize bull, a restaurateur's tacky publicity stunt, a family feud (among the bull's owners), and the death of a family scion pit Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin against a special breed of killer.
8 pages, Audiobook
First published January 1, 1938
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1523 people want to read
About the author
Rex Stout
833 books1,030 followersRex 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.
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.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 476 reviews
March 5, 2020
One of my favorite early Nero Wolfe mysteries, in which Wolfe leaves home, Archie almost fights a bull, and we are introduced to Archie's best girl Lily Rowan.
January 23, 2020
A lively Nero Wolfe mystery
Review of Kindle edition
Publication date: September 8, 2010
Publisher: Crimeline
Language: English
ASIN: B00413QAD8
Amazon.com Sales Rank: 69805
287 pages
SOME BURIED CAESAR is one of my favorite Nero Wolfe novels. Rules are broken. We learn some of Wolfe's background. Wolfe makes a rare mistake in his investigation. We meet Lily Rowan who intrigues Archie from the beginning.
Wolfe has left his home to exhibit albino orchids, reluctantly accepts a client in a small rural community, actually moves around meeting people and gathering evidence and faces the problem of a lack of acceptable chairs. Readers learn that Wolfe has some knowledge of cattle, particularly bulls which he gained in his youth. As this case involves a prize winning bull as well as murder, Wolfe's youthful experience proves useful. We also learn that Wolfe owns or owned a house in Cairo, Egypt. Mention is also made of Wolfe's employment by the Austrian government in his youth. All together a fascinating Nero Wolfe mystery.
Review of Kindle edition
Publication date: September 8, 2010
Publisher: Crimeline
Language: English
ASIN: B00413QAD8
Amazon.com Sales Rank: 69805
287 pages
SOME BURIED CAESAR is one of my favorite Nero Wolfe novels. Rules are broken. We learn some of Wolfe's background. Wolfe makes a rare mistake in his investigation. We meet Lily Rowan who intrigues Archie from the beginning.
Wolfe has left his home to exhibit albino orchids, reluctantly accepts a client in a small rural community, actually moves around meeting people and gathering evidence and faces the problem of a lack of acceptable chairs. Readers learn that Wolfe has some knowledge of cattle, particularly bulls which he gained in his youth. As this case involves a prize winning bull as well as murder, Wolfe's youthful experience proves useful. We also learn that Wolfe owns or owned a house in Cairo, Egypt. Mention is also made of Wolfe's employment by the Austrian government in his youth. All together a fascinating Nero Wolfe mystery.
April 8, 2017
The 6th book in the Nero Wolfe series by Rex Stout is one of the best. Wolfe is out of his beloved Brownstown to show his orchids. On the way the car, driven by Archie, has a blowout and hits a tree. This sets up one of the funniest scenes in the entire series as the two set off across a pasture to get help. Wolfe ends up standing on a boulder in the middle of the pasture to avoid a large bull named Caesar. This is also the novel in which we meet Lily Rown who becomes Archie's favorite dancing partner during the series. Sure the novel is missing Fritz, Theodore, and Cramer. The mystery here is really secondary to Wolfe being out of his comfort zone. Wolfe is in search of a chair that will hold him and food that is acceptable to his refined palate. Highly recommended.
April 9, 2017
Nero Wolf, is new Sherlock Holmes. And I can't believe it. But, sure as hell, if anyone can continue the legacy of Holmes, it would be Nero Wolf.
June 21, 2018
Those of us who are addicted to the Rex Stout mysteries, enjoy sharing the old brownstone on W35th St. with Wolfe, Archie, and Fritz and the majority of the stories take place there. But every once in a while, Wolfe leaves his house under duress and gets caught up in a murder. In this tale he is taking some of his prize winning orchids to a competition in upstate NY when a tire blow-out sends the car into a ditch, validating Wolfe's belief that automobiles are out to kill him. He and Archie walk to a nearby upscale residence and, picture this if you can, Wolfe ends up stranded on the top of a rock in one of the fields as a huge bull is not happy with his presence. Thus begins a tale of murder, Wolfe is hired by the father of the deceased, and is forced to solve the mystery in a very short time since all he wants to do is go home. (As an aside, he wins several prizes for his orchids).
Stout introduces us to Lily Rowan, who will become Archie's light 'o love for the rest of the series and she plays a small part in catching the killer. The introduction of a continuing female character was a good move by the author......she does not interrupt the rhythm of the male dominated world of Nero Wolfe and does not appear in many of the books, although she is sometimes mentioned. She does get a chance for a more major role in a couple of stories and may be the only woman, when posing as Wolfe's mistress, to passionately neck with him in the back of a limousine......a fact that she does not let Archie forget.
Interesting story, as usual even though I must admit that I enjoy those set in the brownstone better.
Stout introduces us to Lily Rowan, who will become Archie's light 'o love for the rest of the series and she plays a small part in catching the killer. The introduction of a continuing female character was a good move by the author......she does not interrupt the rhythm of the male dominated world of Nero Wolfe and does not appear in many of the books, although she is sometimes mentioned. She does get a chance for a more major role in a couple of stories and may be the only woman, when posing as Wolfe's mistress, to passionately neck with him in the back of a limousine......a fact that she does not let Archie forget.
Interesting story, as usual even though I must admit that I enjoy those set in the brownstone better.
March 15, 2024
4 Stars. It was missing something. I wasn't as engaged with Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin as in some of the great early volumes in the series. Until Archie went to jail. He had discovered a body under the hay in a cow stall at the local fair, and wanted to consult with Wolfe before talking to the Sheriff. The authorities got upset and locked him up. He proceeded to establish the Crowfield County Prisoner's Union. A political organizer! He has unknown talents. As President, he developed the union's 12 demands, which included #7, abolition of all animals smaller than rabbits, and #8, cell buckets of first grade enamel with good lids! The Warden, after due consideration, made the right decision to release him before he created further difficulties. The whole story relates to a valuable prize bull, Caesar, he of a much longer name, being scheduled as the main food attraction at a community BBQ later in the week. Not everyone was in agreement. It's the Pratts and the Osgoodes. That's one family in favour of slaughtering Caesar and their neighbours opposed. Next a body is found in Caesar's pen. Gored to death? Wolfe didn't think so. It's fun. (Ja2022/Mar2024)
November 15, 2015
I haven't read one of these in decades. It was a lot of fun to get back to Nero & Archie. Excellent reading too by Michael Prichard. I didn't think I'd like his voice at first, but it fit the story well & grew on me.
I like mysteries where all the clues are there & while I was pretty sure of the killer early on, I was never bored. Delightful! Not as dated as I thought it would be either, save for some of the prices - $60 to fix a car!!! Still, cattle haven't changed much nor shows & good blood stock. As for people, they haven't changed at all & the motives were all as old as the hills. The story was good, though. Quite a twisty bit of turns, some excellent tries at throwing us off the scent, too.
My library has more of these & I will indulge.
I like mysteries where all the clues are there & while I was pretty sure of the killer early on, I was never bored. Delightful! Not as dated as I thought it would be either, save for some of the prices - $60 to fix a car!!! Still, cattle haven't changed much nor shows & good blood stock. As for people, they haven't changed at all & the motives were all as old as the hills. The story was good, though. Quite a twisty bit of turns, some excellent tries at throwing us off the scent, too.
My library has more of these & I will indulge.
October 13, 2019
I have loved mysteries for a long time and I really enjoy a good series. Although, I often have to set a series aside for awhile. If I start reading a series in sequence one after the other, I can and often slip into the feeling of having been dropped into a formula, with the subsequent feeling of, 'I know where this is going.'
This is one of a few series I'm always glad to return to and am all to often reluctant to leave. It's warm and humorous, the mysteries are often a challenge and the character's and the setting have become tireless for me. Like sitting in that comfortable chair with your favorite slippers, a night light and a good book.
At one point I believe the, 'Mystery Writers of America', voted it as the best series of all time.
I concur.
A great read in a great series. ....just like the others
This is one of a few series I'm always glad to return to and am all to often reluctant to leave. It's warm and humorous, the mysteries are often a challenge and the character's and the setting have become tireless for me. Like sitting in that comfortable chair with your favorite slippers, a night light and a good book.
At one point I believe the, 'Mystery Writers of America', voted it as the best series of all time.
I concur.
A great read in a great series. ....just like the others
July 4, 2019
COUNTDOWN: Mid-20th Century North American Crime
BOOK 124 (of 250)
This was my first Stout/Nero novel (and many more were read afterward).How could I have never read one until 2018?
HOOK=4 stars: "That sunny September day was full of surprises," opens this book. Yes indeed, many surprises on the first pages: 1) Nero is out and about instead of home with his orchids and beer and custom made furniture for his massive size (we are told) and 2) Nero's sidekick, Archie, plows their car into a tree and 3) both Nero and Archie find themselves in a fenced pasture with an angry bull and 4) Nero finds a convenient, large boulder upon which he hauls his body while Archie goes for help. A very original opening. The massive Nero climbing a boulder? Well, okay, Ceasar the bull chases him upwards. The image is great and funny...but no, couldn't really happen.
PACE=2: This novel reads along nicely until an overly long imprisonment of Archie toward the end of the book slows the read to a crawl: it felt to me like Stout was aiming for a certain minimum word count.
PLOT=4: An expensive bull (the one in the pasture) has been sold for $45,000, but someone else wants Ceasar for himself for a publicity stunt: Ceasar is to be killed, cook and eaten. There is the standard double murder, a first one leading to a second, and there isn't anything unusual about that in the murder mystery genre. But the way the bull plays into the plot is an original, for a fourth star.
CHARACTERS= 3: Ceasar (actually Hickory Ceasar Grinder) the Bull plays a major role here. And Nero Wolfe is one of the most eccentric detectives in all of American crime literature. The verbal sparring of Nero and his side-kick Archie (actually Escamillo Goodwin, we learn) is, itself, worth the read. There is Dave, a ranch hand. And Thomas Pratt, the owner of a chain of NY City restaurants. Pratt's niece, Caroline, is a golf champion. Pratt's worthless nephew is along, in addition to Pratt's lawyer, Pavey. Then there is Lily Rowan, a family friend and Nancy and Clyde Osgood, a brother and sister, and a number of other characters. I must mention also Sidney Darth, chairman of the North Atlantic [Bull] Exposition Board. Interesting cast, but in truth Ceasar steals the show and is the only cast member memorable, other than the standard Nero and Archie.
ATMOSPHERE=3: A tree that can't be avoided by Nero and Archie, a pasture that eventually must be guarded at night by Archie, a bull exposition, an orchid competition (the reason Nero has left his cozy townhouse), a grand ball, a jail cell and more add up to one of the most varying series of locales I've come across in crime fiction. All beautifully drawn by Stout, who must know a lot about the breeding and selling of bulls. And orchids. And devious minds: Nero, Archie, and even Hickory Ceasar Grinder (who actually does provide a series of clues and leads the cast to the first murdered person) plus a separate set of bulls. Yes, many settings, but therein lies the rub: it seemed to me that Stout packed too many places into one book and veered from the central plot.
SUMMARY=My rating is 3.2. If you're a mystery fan and haven't read Stout/Nero, you absolutely must! This is a good mystery, but Stout has written better ones: they are coming up in my countdown!
BOOK 124 (of 250)
This was my first Stout/Nero novel (and many more were read afterward).How could I have never read one until 2018?
HOOK=4 stars: "That sunny September day was full of surprises," opens this book. Yes indeed, many surprises on the first pages: 1) Nero is out and about instead of home with his orchids and beer and custom made furniture for his massive size (we are told) and 2) Nero's sidekick, Archie, plows their car into a tree and 3) both Nero and Archie find themselves in a fenced pasture with an angry bull and 4) Nero finds a convenient, large boulder upon which he hauls his body while Archie goes for help. A very original opening. The massive Nero climbing a boulder? Well, okay, Ceasar the bull chases him upwards. The image is great and funny...but no, couldn't really happen.
PACE=2: This novel reads along nicely until an overly long imprisonment of Archie toward the end of the book slows the read to a crawl: it felt to me like Stout was aiming for a certain minimum word count.
PLOT=4: An expensive bull (the one in the pasture) has been sold for $45,000, but someone else wants Ceasar for himself for a publicity stunt: Ceasar is to be killed, cook and eaten. There is the standard double murder, a first one leading to a second, and there isn't anything unusual about that in the murder mystery genre. But the way the bull plays into the plot is an original, for a fourth star.
CHARACTERS= 3: Ceasar (actually Hickory Ceasar Grinder) the Bull plays a major role here. And Nero Wolfe is one of the most eccentric detectives in all of American crime literature. The verbal sparring of Nero and his side-kick Archie (actually Escamillo Goodwin, we learn) is, itself, worth the read. There is Dave, a ranch hand. And Thomas Pratt, the owner of a chain of NY City restaurants. Pratt's niece, Caroline, is a golf champion. Pratt's worthless nephew is along, in addition to Pratt's lawyer, Pavey. Then there is Lily Rowan, a family friend and Nancy and Clyde Osgood, a brother and sister, and a number of other characters. I must mention also Sidney Darth, chairman of the North Atlantic [Bull] Exposition Board. Interesting cast, but in truth Ceasar steals the show and is the only cast member memorable, other than the standard Nero and Archie.
ATMOSPHERE=3: A tree that can't be avoided by Nero and Archie, a pasture that eventually must be guarded at night by Archie, a bull exposition, an orchid competition (the reason Nero has left his cozy townhouse), a grand ball, a jail cell and more add up to one of the most varying series of locales I've come across in crime fiction. All beautifully drawn by Stout, who must know a lot about the breeding and selling of bulls. And orchids. And devious minds: Nero, Archie, and even Hickory Ceasar Grinder (who actually does provide a series of clues and leads the cast to the first murdered person) plus a separate set of bulls. Yes, many settings, but therein lies the rub: it seemed to me that Stout packed too many places into one book and veered from the central plot.
SUMMARY=My rating is 3.2. If you're a mystery fan and haven't read Stout/Nero, you absolutely must! This is a good mystery, but Stout has written better ones: they are coming up in my countdown!
November 20, 2014
*Incredible* writing -and a pretty good story! But the writing and characterization are what hooked me to the Nero Wolfe mysteries - though really the titles are a misnomer, as they are about Archie Goodwin, my favorite "sidekick" ever. Agatha Christie used to be my favorite mystery writer (with no one coming in even as a close second), but with this book Rex Stout has now been placed firmly in first place. I still like Christie's *stories* and her mysteries are usually more complex than Stout's, but his writing and characters are far superior to Christie's.
The story: it's about a bull. A championship-winning prize bull. The bull-culture (?) is described in detail, along with bull classification, competition requirements, bull coloring, skin secretion, description of progeny and quality of offspring, etc. The thought of any of these things had never crossed my mind before reading this delightful book, and if you had asked me before, Would I read and enjoy a book about farmers and their bulls, I would have responded with a resounding, "No Way". But I simply LOVED "Some Buried Caesar"... main reason: Archie is at his absolute best (so far, of books 1-6) in this story.
Ode to Archie: I want to marry him. It would not be an exaggeration to say that he is now my favorite character from any book I've ever read. His irreverent, sarcastic, and casual personality is absolutely endearing. First, unlike Dr. Watson or Captain Hastings, Archie is recognized as intelligent in his own right, and moreover, Wolfe trusts him to make his own decisions about practical strategies, and does not micromanage techniques Archie uses to get needed information. Second, he is just absolutely brilliantly sardonically hilarious. I don't usually like humorous books because too many times the wit is flippant, inane, or arrogant, but Archie's commentary has made me put this book down for a good laugh at several points throughout, and smile for the rest of the time.
Example: Archie is imprisoned as a "material witness" in the basement of a courthouse. Within hours of arrival, instead of panicking, being unduly upset, or actively working on strategies to get out of prison, he instead takes the opportunity to get to know his fellow inmates, and to found the "CCPU", the Crowfield County Prisoner's union, complete with a list of demands such as "abolition of all animals smaller than rabbits" [in the cells] and "Soap which is free of Essence of Nettles, or what- ever it is that it now contains"...
The story: it's about a bull. A championship-winning prize bull. The bull-culture (?) is described in detail, along with bull classification, competition requirements, bull coloring, skin secretion, description of progeny and quality of offspring, etc. The thought of any of these things had never crossed my mind before reading this delightful book, and if you had asked me before, Would I read and enjoy a book about farmers and their bulls, I would have responded with a resounding, "No Way". But I simply LOVED "Some Buried Caesar"... main reason: Archie is at his absolute best (so far, of books 1-6) in this story.
Ode to Archie: I want to marry him. It would not be an exaggeration to say that he is now my favorite character from any book I've ever read. His irreverent, sarcastic, and casual personality is absolutely endearing. First, unlike Dr. Watson or Captain Hastings, Archie is recognized as intelligent in his own right, and moreover, Wolfe trusts him to make his own decisions about practical strategies, and does not micromanage techniques Archie uses to get needed information. Second, he is just absolutely brilliantly sardonically hilarious. I don't usually like humorous books because too many times the wit is flippant, inane, or arrogant, but Archie's commentary has made me put this book down for a good laugh at several points throughout, and smile for the rest of the time.
Example: Archie is imprisoned as a "material witness" in the basement of a courthouse. Within hours of arrival, instead of panicking, being unduly upset, or actively working on strategies to get out of prison, he instead takes the opportunity to get to know his fellow inmates, and to found the "CCPU", the Crowfield County Prisoner's union, complete with a list of demands such as "abolition of all animals smaller than rabbits" [in the cells] and "Soap which is free of Essence of Nettles, or what- ever it is that it now contains"...
April 5, 2021
Pirmas sakinys: Tą saulėtą rugsėjo rytą staigmenų netrūko.
Pirma pažintis su ekstravagantiškuoju Nero Vulfu ir sąmojinguoju Arčiu Gudvinu. Iš viso Rex‘as Stout‘as parašė beveik 50 knygų apie šį detektyvą. Lietuviškai išleistas žinau 6, tačiau ir tos – ne eilės tvarka (pvz., „Palaidotas Cezaris“ yra šeštoji serijos dalis).
Detektyvas pirmą kartą spausdintas 1938 m., tačiau nepasenęs – su malonumu perskaičiau po 80 m.: klasikinė detektyvinė mįslė, puikus humoras. Yra smulkmenų, kurios dabar skamba keistai (į automobilį pilant kuro, reikia kartu užsipilti ir tepalo, 2 dolerių užtenka geriems pietums), tačiau jos tik prideda šarmo.
Mėgstantiems klasikinius (Agatha Christie, Arthur Conan Doyle) detektyvus drąsiai rekomenduotina.
P. S. Kad knygoje bus gero humoro, galima nuspėti jau iš epigrafo: „Visi šios knygos personažai, įskaitant jaučius, yra grynas literatūrinis pramanas.“
Pirma pažintis su ekstravagantiškuoju Nero Vulfu ir sąmojinguoju Arčiu Gudvinu. Iš viso Rex‘as Stout‘as parašė beveik 50 knygų apie šį detektyvą. Lietuviškai išleistas žinau 6, tačiau ir tos – ne eilės tvarka (pvz., „Palaidotas Cezaris“ yra šeštoji serijos dalis).
Detektyvas pirmą kartą spausdintas 1938 m., tačiau nepasenęs – su malonumu perskaičiau po 80 m.: klasikinė detektyvinė mįslė, puikus humoras. Yra smulkmenų, kurios dabar skamba keistai (į automobilį pilant kuro, reikia kartu užsipilti ir tepalo, 2 dolerių užtenka geriems pietums), tačiau jos tik prideda šarmo.
Mėgstantiems klasikinius (Agatha Christie, Arthur Conan Doyle) detektyvus drąsiai rekomenduotina.
P. S. Kad knygoje bus gero humoro, galima nuspėti jau iš epigrafo: „Visi šios knygos personažai, įskaitant jaučius, yra grynas literatūrinis pramanas.“
January 25, 2024
Some Buried Caesar is one of the top five Nero Wolfe novels, and it’s just as great today as thirty years ago when I first read it. I would recommend it to someone who has never read Rex Stout, although the setting puts Wolfe and Archie in upstate New York rather than their familiar brownstone.
Michael Pritchard’s narration was good, possibly because there were few female characters; he doesn’t do females very well.
Michael Pritchard’s narration was good, possibly because there were few female characters; he doesn’t do females very well.
March 21, 2018
Another fun book by Stout. Archie Goodwin's wit never relents and Nero Wolfe gives as good as he gets and always manages to stay on top. The repartee is what makes these books.
But it is also a good mystery with the clues being doled out in a timely fashion, building the reader's suspense, and when it all comes together it makes sense. That is not always true for every mystery written, but it is with this one. It all comes together to a logical conclusion: Who did it; why did they do it; and how did they do it.
What is the plot? Briefly without giving anything away:
Nero Wolfe has made one of his rare excursions from his Brownstone. He is attending a flower show where he is exhibiting his precious Orchids. Unfortunately, Archie manages to drive the car into a tree on the way there. They must find someone to give them a ride.
They are out in the country and find themselves walking into the middle of a cow pasture. Not just any cow pasture. The pasture of a valuable prize-winning bull. The owners of the bull help Archie and Nero escape the bull just in time and also allow them to stay until they can get another car.
In the meantime, you guessed it, someone on the farm is murdered and Nero's help is enlisted to find out who did it and why. Nero will help them, but only until Thursday because he has his orchids to look after.
Will he do it? Will he solve the crime before the flower show? That won't leave you in suspense. We all know he will, but everything else about the plot is extremely interesting.
But it is also a good mystery with the clues being doled out in a timely fashion, building the reader's suspense, and when it all comes together it makes sense. That is not always true for every mystery written, but it is with this one. It all comes together to a logical conclusion: Who did it; why did they do it; and how did they do it.
What is the plot? Briefly without giving anything away:
Nero Wolfe has made one of his rare excursions from his Brownstone. He is attending a flower show where he is exhibiting his precious Orchids. Unfortunately, Archie manages to drive the car into a tree on the way there. They must find someone to give them a ride.
They are out in the country and find themselves walking into the middle of a cow pasture. Not just any cow pasture. The pasture of a valuable prize-winning bull. The owners of the bull help Archie and Nero escape the bull just in time and also allow them to stay until they can get another car.
In the meantime, you guessed it, someone on the farm is murdered and Nero's help is enlisted to find out who did it and why. Nero will help them, but only until Thursday because he has his orchids to look after.
Will he do it? Will he solve the crime before the flower show? That won't leave you in suspense. We all know he will, but everything else about the plot is extremely interesting.
June 14, 2010
Just adding to my list of excellent books by Rex Stout. This one opens with a hilarious scene--Nero Wolfe uncharacteristically out of his brownstone in Manhattan, standing on a bale of hay in the middle of a field to escape from a bull. I also learned a new word on the very first page--plerophory--which I had to look up in the OED, since it wasn't in my unabridged. It is a belief held so strongly that the believer regards it as an experienced fact. Seems like a very useful word in today's America, and a shame that it has disappeared. Wolfe's plerophory is that mechanical things, such as cars, while usually obeying directions, actually have a will of their own and are liable to act unpredictably on their own whim. One wonders how he dares take the elevator up to his plant rooms every day. I also learned that I had always misunderstood the title--it is a quote from Edward Fitzgerald's translation of the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam--a book of poems hugely popular in the late 19th and early 20th century in both England and America. The relevant lines go
I sometimes think that never blows so red
The Rose, as where some buried Caesar bled.
A typical Nero Wolfe novel--good mystery, vivid characters, tight writing.
I sometimes think that never blows so red
The Rose, as where some buried Caesar bled.
A typical Nero Wolfe novel--good mystery, vivid characters, tight writing.
June 14, 2021
My favorite Nero Wolfe mystery. Originally I read it in 2001 and just finished the audiobook. It's my favorite because it introduces Lily Rowan who is Archie Goodwin's love interest throughout the remainder of the series. She is funny, smart, rich, and a perfect match/foil for Archie. Also I really enjoy the rare NW mystery where Nero actually leaves the NYC brownstone. I rate this as 5 star based on the premise that if you are considering a Nero Wolfe mystery, by all means select this one to begin your adventure. To quote Mr Wolfe, this mystery is "most satisfactory"!!
September 16, 2024
Reread: On vacation I re-read this again. it is solidly one of my all time favorite Nero Wolfe books. Archie's relationship with Lilly sparkles, and Nero's desperation to go home sends him to extraordinary feats. The dialog between Lilly and Archie are so fun that I kept bothering my wife to read passages out loud to her. She was very tolerant (buy her books! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08XW88YR5) of my pestering. I would give this five stars again and I'm stingy with my five star ratings, but this particular Nero Wolfe book is very worthy of it.
On the second reading this has become one of my very favorite ones. This particular episode is very unique since it takes place entirely outside of the old brownstone in New York City. Wolfe in a fit of pique has entered his orchards in a county fair out in the sticks. The story is clever and well told but what if particularly enjoyed was how the characters have changed from the first five books.
First lets talk about Nero. In the first five books he is a bitter misanthrope reluctant to engage with anyone unless driven by need. He is particularly resistant to women and he is very easy to dislike. In this book he is still a misanthrope but it's portrayed as more of a reason of convenience than bitterness. He doesn't want to get involved with people because he may have to work or stand up or take his attention away from his orchids or food. This is refreshing because all of us feel that way sometime, that it's just easier to avoid people. This humanizes Nero making him much easier to like. He even specifically requested the help of a woman, Lilly Rowan and more on her later, to finally solve the murder mystery and provide the authorities with a perpetrator and a confession.
Next Archie has also changed. In the first books he was rougher, and more thug-like. In this one he becomes more urbane and witty. His language is less full of slang and word misusage and more clever and witty. Especially his interactions with Lilly are very amusing. It is great to have him in the more familiar role of a very clever and capable assistant and detective in his own right instead of a blunt instrument used by Nero. Not that Nero doesn't still use him that way, just that he can be used either bluntly or subtly now.
Finally, this is the first book where we meet Archies long term love interest, Lilly Rowan. She doesn't get a lot of play in most of the books, but she does in this one since she is close to the murder. She and Archie hit it off immediately, but they both react to the possibility of a long term relationship by using humor to create distance. It ends up with them flirting by trying to see who can tease the other the most outrageously. It is sometimes laugh out loud funny, and it comes across as sweet and clever and never mean which too much teasing or the wrong kind of teasing can produce.
All in all this is the first time in the series that we really see what Rex Stout was trying to create. He uses this pattern over and over through the rest of the books, and he continues to use Archie in the more witty and clever as a foil to a much more likeable Nero.
On the second reading this has become one of my very favorite ones. This particular episode is very unique since it takes place entirely outside of the old brownstone in New York City. Wolfe in a fit of pique has entered his orchards in a county fair out in the sticks. The story is clever and well told but what if particularly enjoyed was how the characters have changed from the first five books.
First lets talk about Nero. In the first five books he is a bitter misanthrope reluctant to engage with anyone unless driven by need. He is particularly resistant to women and he is very easy to dislike. In this book he is still a misanthrope but it's portrayed as more of a reason of convenience than bitterness. He doesn't want to get involved with people because he may have to work or stand up or take his attention away from his orchids or food. This is refreshing because all of us feel that way sometime, that it's just easier to avoid people. This humanizes Nero making him much easier to like. He even specifically requested the help of a woman, Lilly Rowan and more on her later, to finally solve the murder mystery and provide the authorities with a perpetrator and a confession.
Next Archie has also changed. In the first books he was rougher, and more thug-like. In this one he becomes more urbane and witty. His language is less full of slang and word misusage and more clever and witty. Especially his interactions with Lilly are very amusing. It is great to have him in the more familiar role of a very clever and capable assistant and detective in his own right instead of a blunt instrument used by Nero. Not that Nero doesn't still use him that way, just that he can be used either bluntly or subtly now.
Finally, this is the first book where we meet Archies long term love interest, Lilly Rowan. She doesn't get a lot of play in most of the books, but she does in this one since she is close to the murder. She and Archie hit it off immediately, but they both react to the possibility of a long term relationship by using humor to create distance. It ends up with them flirting by trying to see who can tease the other the most outrageously. It is sometimes laugh out loud funny, and it comes across as sweet and clever and never mean which too much teasing or the wrong kind of teasing can produce.
All in all this is the first time in the series that we really see what Rex Stout was trying to create. He uses this pattern over and over through the rest of the books, and he continues to use Archie in the more witty and clever as a foil to a much more likeable Nero.
November 27, 2016
Nero Wolfe leaves home to exhibit his orchids at a rural show, but, inevitably, he and Archie are soon caught up in a murder investigation. The complicated plot involves a prize bull called Caesar and a selection of great characters. I really enjoyed this novel - one of the best Stout mysteries I've read so far, with a hilarious sequence where Archie lands up in prison.
December 17, 2019
Another intriguing novel from one of the masters of the genre. I read this when I wasn’t diligent in posting to my Goodreads account. I listened to the audiobook - but it obviously a library loan. Oops!
December 2, 2019
Wolfe out of his brownstone again in this one, and was chased by a bull. Enjoyed this and was surprised that he actually lied. Always enjoy Archie and seems he is more of a ladies man than I had thought.
April 6, 2024
Nero’s Wolfe’s reluctance to leave the comfort of his West Side brownstone is confirmed when, while on his way upstate to an agricultural fair with his assistant Archie Goodwin, his car gets a flat tire and crashes into a tree. Seeking assistance at a nearby farm, they find themselves at the estate of Thomas Pratt, a New York fast-food restauranteur who has announced plans to slaughter a prize-winning Gurnsey bull for an upcoming barbeque despite protests from several prominent cattle-breeders. Because Archie promises to guard the bull as part of a bet, he discovers in the middle of his shift the body of Clyde Osgood, the bettor and scion of one of the county’s most distinguished families, apparently gored by the bull. Though the local authorities regard the death as a matter of death by misadventure, Wolfe knows differently – only his efforts to prove it may not prove quick enough before the available evidence is destroyed.
In dislodging Nero Wolfe from the confines and patterns of his home life, Rex Stout adopts a premise similar to that of this novel’s predecessor, Too Many Cooks. While the repetitiveness of this approach might lead some to think that the author was running out of ideas, the conflicts generated by this approach make it more than worthwhile. With only his assistant to rely upon, Wolfe is forced to cope directly with grieving parents, hostile witnesses, and the usual uncooperative authority figures for whom a death is a hassle to be addressed rather than a mystery to solve. That the murder is tied to the intricate world of stock-breeding only adds to the degree of unfamiliarity, which makes Wolfe’s resolution of the crime at the end of the book all the more satisfying.
In dislodging Nero Wolfe from the confines and patterns of his home life, Rex Stout adopts a premise similar to that of this novel’s predecessor, Too Many Cooks. While the repetitiveness of this approach might lead some to think that the author was running out of ideas, the conflicts generated by this approach make it more than worthwhile. With only his assistant to rely upon, Wolfe is forced to cope directly with grieving parents, hostile witnesses, and the usual uncooperative authority figures for whom a death is a hassle to be addressed rather than a mystery to solve. That the murder is tied to the intricate world of stock-breeding only adds to the degree of unfamiliarity, which makes Wolfe’s resolution of the crime at the end of the book all the more satisfying.
August 18, 2023
A little dated, as it was published in the 1930s, but still an enjoyable read if you are a Nero Wolfe fan. This one is a little different in that Mr. Wolfe and Archie are on the road to attend an orchid show in upstate New York. A minor car accident upsets their plans and they, of course, are drawn into a series of murders centered around a prize-winning Guernsey bull named Caesar. It was interesting to observe Nero Wolfe operate outside of his beloved brownstone. However, this reader prefers him in his own office with his cook, his bottles of beer, his orchids up on the roof, and wise-cracking Archie at his side ready to investigate on behalf of his eccentric genius boss. Cheers!
December 5, 2017
Once again, Wolfe & Archie are away from home in this 6th entry in the series! This time, Wolfe is visiting upstate NY in order to participate in a flower show (so his orchids can beat those of a rival who cowardly avoided the NYC flower shows). Of course, they get involved in a death or two (or 3) while there! This is the book which introduces a recurring character, Lily Rowan, and it was a lot of fun reading the persiflage between her & Archie.
October 3, 2025
The mystery, the character dynamics and the main character Nero Wolfe - all of it is incredibly fun.
December 5, 2015
Growing up some of my favorite detectives were Sherlock Holmes, Hercule Poirot, and Nero Wolfe. Sometimes it is fun just to go back and reread some of these. They never get old and I never get bored with them. Some Buried Caesar is the sixth book in the series by Rex Stout. For those who are unfamiliar with Nero Wolfe he rarely leaves his brownstone on West 35th Street in New York City. His confidential assistant Archie Goodwin does the legwork. This book is one of the few stories that deviate from the norm. In this story Archie is driving Wolfe to an exposition to show his orchids in Crowfield, NY when a tire blows out and the car hits a tree in a pasture. Wolfe is left stranded on a large bolder and Archie is vaulting a fence when it is discovered that this pasture is home to Hickory Caesar Grindon, a champion bull. Wolfe is rescued by Caroline Pratt who drives her car up to Wolfe. She is the niece of Thomas Pratt the owner of a chain of fast food restaurants and Caesar who he plans to barbecue in a publicity stunt. This is not well received by some of the locals. One of these is Clyde Osgood, son of a neighbor, who bets Pratt $10,000 that he will not barbecue Caesar by the end of the week. Clyde is right but at a high cost when he is found dead that same night and Caesar standing over the body. Of course Wolfe knows it wasn't Caesar who killed Clyde and sets out to find the real killer. This is a murder mystery but there is a lot of humor in there too. From Wolfe stranded atop a boulder trying to maintain his dignity, having to sit on folding chairs, and Archie's being locked up as a material witness and using the time to organize his cellmates for prison reform. I miss some of the regular characters in other Nero Wolfe books but all in all this was a fun book to read.
February 7, 2020
A standout
While I tend to like all the Nero Wolfe mysteries, I especially liked this one. With Wolfe outside his usual environment, the story takes on a different air and the plot is especially clever. We also get introduced to Lily Rowan, who shows up in a number of other stories.
While I tend to like all the Nero Wolfe mysteries, I especially liked this one. With Wolfe outside his usual environment, the story takes on a different air and the plot is especially clever. We also get introduced to Lily Rowan, who shows up in a number of other stories.
June 17, 2015
The funniest Nero Wolfe story that I have listened to yet!
November 11, 2019
Moments of this book are laugh-out-loud funny.
April 10, 2018
This begins entertainingly with Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin being chased across a pasture by an expensive, prize-winning bull. Well, Archie is chased by the bull; certainly Wolfe doesn’t run.
They’re en route to the North Atlantic Exposition with a batch of Wolf’s orchids when a tire blows out and strands the duo in rural New York. After the incident with the bull they become aware of a local drama concerning the animal, and then when a man is found dead in the same pasture, Wolfe agrees to investigate the murder.
The mystery is just fine, but the appeal of these books is Archie’s endless banter, and Wolfe’s arrogance, and the general humorous tone. Archie is convinced, for instance, that Wolfe’s actions throughout the book are largely driven by his search for a comfortable place to sit. I think this is my favorite in this series so far.
They’re en route to the North Atlantic Exposition with a batch of Wolf’s orchids when a tire blows out and strands the duo in rural New York. After the incident with the bull they become aware of a local drama concerning the animal, and then when a man is found dead in the same pasture, Wolfe agrees to investigate the murder.
The mystery is just fine, but the appeal of these books is Archie’s endless banter, and Wolfe’s arrogance, and the general humorous tone. Archie is convinced, for instance, that Wolfe’s actions throughout the book are largely driven by his search for a comfortable place to sit. I think this is my favorite in this series so far.
April 17, 2019
Nero Wolfe an eccentric detective with his confidential assistant Archie Goodwin are in a different setting from their usual brownstone house which he never leaves. They are in a small rural town at a site for an agricultural fair to submit orchids for judging. After their car breaks down on route and they encounter a bull, their plans change drastically. They stay at the country home. While there, a man is killed from a neighboring farm. Wolfe is convinced it’s not an accident but murder so he investigates it with Archie. He solves the murder in a most ingenious way and wins awards for his orchids.
This is a great detective series. It provides surprises along the way with the great detective Nero Wolfe at the helm to navigate his talent to solve the crime amid much confusion. This is a great series to get immersed in.
This is a great detective series. It provides surprises along the way with the great detective Nero Wolfe at the helm to navigate his talent to solve the crime amid much confusion. This is a great series to get immersed in.
March 25, 2019
Irgendwie ziehe ich Bücher mit schrägen Paaren an, denn anders könnte ich den Detektiv und Orchideenzüchter Nero Wolfe und seinen Assistenten Archie Goodwin nicht bezeichnen. Doch gerade ihr miteinander sorgten dafür das ich mich auch zum 3. Mal in ihrer Welt verlor und mit Spannung verfolgte, wie ein Fall gelöst wurde.
Auch wenn ich das Buch als den 3. Band bezeichne, so ist dieser es nicht. Eigentlich ist er der 6. Band einer 33-bändigen Reihe, wobei die beiden bereits gelesen Bücher des Autors noch ein Stück weiter oben in der Reihe liegen. Hier hätte ich es schön gefunden, wenn man wenigstens mit dem ersten Band begonnen hätte um einen guten Einstieg in die Geschichte zu gewährleisten. Trotzdem schätze ich es, das man diese, doch in die Jahre gekommene, Serie wieder hervorgeholt hat, denn der Charme dermaligen Zeit im Buch ist ergreifend und faszinierend.
Der diesmalige Fall führte mich raus aus New York, wobei dies für Nero Wolfe natürlich eine absolute Ausnahme war, da der äußerst kräftige Detektiv seine eigenen Räume sehr zu schätzen weiß. Doch für eine Orchideenausstellung müht auch er sich aus den eigenen 4 Wänden, da die Präsentation seiner Pflanzen, für ihn eine Sache von Ehre darstellt. Hier begann dann auch die Story, bei welcher mir der Einstieg deutlich besser gelang, als bei „Es klingelt an der Tür“. Der Grund war, das ich im vorherigen Buch gleich am Anfang, mit all zu vielen fremden Personen überschüttet wurde, die ich im späteren Verlauf einfach nicht zuordnen konnte. Daher war diesmal um einiges angenehmer, neue Charaktere kennenzulernen, die auch Nero und Archie noch nicht kannten.
Die Gestaltung dieser war übrigens sehr bildlich, was an den hervorragenden Beschreibungen lag. Ein besonderes Augenmerk möchte ich dabei auf die stets sehr kuriosen Persönlichkeiten legen, die weit ab vom Standard waren und zu überraschen wussten. So auch diesmal. Farmer, die um einen teuren Stier stritten, verfeindete Nachbarn, wobei dies nur von einer Seite ausging und verzwickte Liebschaften sorgten für eine Menge Unterhaltung trotz der Ermittlungen. Diese erwiesen sich auch als sehr lehrreich, da z. B. die Regeln zur Bewertung der Tiere aufgezeigt wurden.
Insgesamt war der Fall sehr spannend und abwechslungsreich. Das dieser Krimi zu einer anderen Zeit geschrieben wurde, merkt man ihm trotzdem stark an, da z. B. die Meinungen über Frauen noch sehr verhalten waren und die Ermittlung ohne technische Gerätschaften aus kommen musste. Aber genau dies ist es, was ich an solchen Krimis mag. Nichts mit Internetrecherche und Fingerabdruckscanner, nein, hier musste das Duo noch mit dem Kopf ran, was zu weilen erstaunliche Ergebnisse hervorbrachte. Auch ein wenig anders, sind Neros Ermittlungsansätze, welche stark auf den Dickschädel des Detektivs bauen. Dieser setzt nämlich sehr gerne seine Meinung durch, was ihm zu einer doch sehr schwierigen Figur macht. Archie ist dabei genau das Gegenteil, da dieser sehr gewitzt ist und dazu auch noch sehr anziehend auf Frauen wirkt. Als Partner funktionieren jedoch, zumal Archie stets die Laufarbeiten erledigt.
Der Schreibstil des Buches ist übrigens erstaunlich leicht, was besonders daran liegt, das wir das Buch aus der Sicht von Archie erleben. Dieser hat eine sehr freundliche Art, die es mir leichter machte in Wolfes Welt einzutauchen. Auch der Gebrauch von Fremdworten ist auf das Mindeste reduziert, sodass einem flüssigen Leseverlauf nichts im Wege stand. Mir persönlich gefällt die Reihe sehr, weswegen ich hoffe das noch weitere Neuauflagen der Bücher erfolgen.
Mein Fazit
Auch diesmal konnte Nero Wolfe einen komplizierten Fall lösen und das sehr zu meiner Freude. Ich verlor mich in der spielenden Zeit, welche so nah und doch so fern wirkte und konnte es kaum erwarten, wie der Fall ausgehen würde. Trotzdem sollte man für Nero Wolfe starke Nerven haben, da dieser Detektiv eher für sein Können berühmt ist, als für seinen Charme.
Auch wenn ich das Buch als den 3. Band bezeichne, so ist dieser es nicht. Eigentlich ist er der 6. Band einer 33-bändigen Reihe, wobei die beiden bereits gelesen Bücher des Autors noch ein Stück weiter oben in der Reihe liegen. Hier hätte ich es schön gefunden, wenn man wenigstens mit dem ersten Band begonnen hätte um einen guten Einstieg in die Geschichte zu gewährleisten. Trotzdem schätze ich es, das man diese, doch in die Jahre gekommene, Serie wieder hervorgeholt hat, denn der Charme dermaligen Zeit im Buch ist ergreifend und faszinierend.
Der diesmalige Fall führte mich raus aus New York, wobei dies für Nero Wolfe natürlich eine absolute Ausnahme war, da der äußerst kräftige Detektiv seine eigenen Räume sehr zu schätzen weiß. Doch für eine Orchideenausstellung müht auch er sich aus den eigenen 4 Wänden, da die Präsentation seiner Pflanzen, für ihn eine Sache von Ehre darstellt. Hier begann dann auch die Story, bei welcher mir der Einstieg deutlich besser gelang, als bei „Es klingelt an der Tür“. Der Grund war, das ich im vorherigen Buch gleich am Anfang, mit all zu vielen fremden Personen überschüttet wurde, die ich im späteren Verlauf einfach nicht zuordnen konnte. Daher war diesmal um einiges angenehmer, neue Charaktere kennenzulernen, die auch Nero und Archie noch nicht kannten.
Die Gestaltung dieser war übrigens sehr bildlich, was an den hervorragenden Beschreibungen lag. Ein besonderes Augenmerk möchte ich dabei auf die stets sehr kuriosen Persönlichkeiten legen, die weit ab vom Standard waren und zu überraschen wussten. So auch diesmal. Farmer, die um einen teuren Stier stritten, verfeindete Nachbarn, wobei dies nur von einer Seite ausging und verzwickte Liebschaften sorgten für eine Menge Unterhaltung trotz der Ermittlungen. Diese erwiesen sich auch als sehr lehrreich, da z. B. die Regeln zur Bewertung der Tiere aufgezeigt wurden.
Insgesamt war der Fall sehr spannend und abwechslungsreich. Das dieser Krimi zu einer anderen Zeit geschrieben wurde, merkt man ihm trotzdem stark an, da z. B. die Meinungen über Frauen noch sehr verhalten waren und die Ermittlung ohne technische Gerätschaften aus kommen musste. Aber genau dies ist es, was ich an solchen Krimis mag. Nichts mit Internetrecherche und Fingerabdruckscanner, nein, hier musste das Duo noch mit dem Kopf ran, was zu weilen erstaunliche Ergebnisse hervorbrachte. Auch ein wenig anders, sind Neros Ermittlungsansätze, welche stark auf den Dickschädel des Detektivs bauen. Dieser setzt nämlich sehr gerne seine Meinung durch, was ihm zu einer doch sehr schwierigen Figur macht. Archie ist dabei genau das Gegenteil, da dieser sehr gewitzt ist und dazu auch noch sehr anziehend auf Frauen wirkt. Als Partner funktionieren jedoch, zumal Archie stets die Laufarbeiten erledigt.
Der Schreibstil des Buches ist übrigens erstaunlich leicht, was besonders daran liegt, das wir das Buch aus der Sicht von Archie erleben. Dieser hat eine sehr freundliche Art, die es mir leichter machte in Wolfes Welt einzutauchen. Auch der Gebrauch von Fremdworten ist auf das Mindeste reduziert, sodass einem flüssigen Leseverlauf nichts im Wege stand. Mir persönlich gefällt die Reihe sehr, weswegen ich hoffe das noch weitere Neuauflagen der Bücher erfolgen.
Mein Fazit
Auch diesmal konnte Nero Wolfe einen komplizierten Fall lösen und das sehr zu meiner Freude. Ich verlor mich in der spielenden Zeit, welche so nah und doch so fern wirkte und konnte es kaum erwarten, wie der Fall ausgehen würde. Trotzdem sollte man für Nero Wolfe starke Nerven haben, da dieser Detektiv eher für sein Können berühmt ist, als für seinen Charme.
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