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And Be a Villain Audiobook
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(4.00) - 1,512 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
Madeline Fraser, radio talk show host extraordinaire, had a natural dread of dead air. So when one of her on-air guests signed off at the mike after drinking a glass of a sponsor’s beverage, it was a broadcaster’s nightmare come true. Enter Nero Wolfe. He agrees to take the case, with his sizable fee contingent on his solving the murder. But to Wolfe’s surprise, everyone connected to the case now lies in unison about it. And as the portly detective soon discovers, the secret worth lying about only hides another worth killing for. Introduction by Maan Meyers “It is always a treat to read a Nero Wolfe mystery. The man has entered our folklore.”—The New York Times Book Review A grand master of the form, Rex Stout is one of America’s greatest mystery writers, and his literary creation Nero Wolfe is one of the greatest fictional detectives of all time. Together, Stout and Wolfe have entertained—and puzzled—millions of mystery fans around the world. Now, with his perambulatory man-about-town, Archie Goodwin, the arrogant, gourmandizing, sedentary sleuth is back in the original seventy-three cases of crime and detection written by the inimitable master himself, Rex Stout.
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"I have read almost all the Nero Wolfe Mysteries written by Rex Stout, and this is up there with my favourites. It is the only occasion in which (to my knowledge) Wolfe solicits a monitory fee, and he quickly lives to regret it. Not only because he has to actually go to work, but because the complexities of the case, and other criminal activities that are inadvertently uncovered, lay the foundations for the rest of the Arnold Zeck Trilogy. This is one of those that I reread every so often, the case is brilliant (covering the murder of a guest on a popular radio programme), Prichard’s performance is first class as always, and even if you know who did it, you’ll still find something to keep you interested time and again. However if you don’t know who did it, you will be left guessing until the very end! "
— Chris (5 out of 5 stars)
And Be a Villain Listener Reviews
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" Very well done. A good closed room mystery. Well considered evidence and good background work. Wolfe and Archie are definitely on top of their game. "
— Stutley, 2/19/2014 -
" I adore the Nero Wolfe mysteries--and they are terrific audiobooks. Wolfe's and his sidekick Archie Goodwin's obsession with good food and fine flowers actually runs second to their obsession with integrity, logic, and clear-eyed thinking. These are the qualities that make the books such comforts: Wolfe is a person fully in control of his environment -- an increasingly appealing fantasy for me -- but he is also someone who can extract the truth from witnesses simply by the force of his reputation, intellect, and personality. What's not to love? And the food!: pheasant in aspic and three kinds of cheese "for a snack," cornmeal cakes with"autumn honey" --jiminy, I wish chef Fritz were real and could come for a visit.... "
— Valerie, 2/16/2014 -
" typical wolfe. super entertaining and just what i needed at the time i read it. "
— Jenn, 2/9/2014 -
" One of the twistier and more entertaining Wolfe mysteries. "
— Eric, 2/5/2014 -
" Not the best of the Nero Wolfe books I've read so far. It's a little slow getting started (like Wolfe is on this case) - but it has a great ending. Plus it seems to introduce a powerful villain that may be recurring. Hinting at being Wolfe's Moriarity. "
— William, 1/17/2014 -
" Another fun read from Rex Stout. It's not much of a mystery, but that's not really why one reads a Nero Wolfe book, is it? The cameo by Arnold Zeck was interesting. I've heard he appears in other books as a kind of nemesis for Wolfe. "
— ♪, 1/16/2014 -
" A Rex Stout classic, featuring Wolfe's first encounter with master criminal Arnold Zeck. "
— Bill, 1/15/2014 -
" While solving the murders in this book, Wolfe crosses paths with a master criminal, who figures in the next two books as well as this one. I'm looking forward to seeing what happens next. "
— Vicki, 1/14/2014 -
" One of the better ones, although Stout would make the phone book interesting. "
— Kelly, 1/14/2014 -
" Archie, as always, is in it up to his ears. Another mystery for mystery lovers. "
— Dianne, 1/6/2014 -
" I will always be impressed by Stout's ability to hide a mystery within a mystery so to speak. "
— Chris, 1/4/2014
About Rex Stout
Rex Stout (1886–1975), inimitable master of detective fiction, wrote seventy-three mysteries and numerous novels and short stories. He is best known as the creator of the fictional detective Nero Wolfe. He was named a Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America and received the Crime Writers Association’s Silver Dagger Award.
About Michael Prichard
Michael Prichard is a Los Angeles-based actor who has played several thousand characters during his career, over one hundred of them in theater and film. He is primarily heard as an audiobook narrator, having recorded well over five hundred full-length books. His numerous awards and accolades include an Audie Award for Tears in the Darkness by Michael Norman and Elizabeth M. Norman and six AudioFile Earphones Awards. He was named a Top Ten Golden Voice by SmartMoney magazine. He holds an MFA in theater from the University of Southern California.