The first novel in a series of pulp novels containing two of my favorite characters: Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin. A genius but lazy detective who grows orchids in his New York brownstone and his personal assistant, body guard, and narrator; this books kicks off what would be a series of pulp novels running for almost 40 years. Like all early books in the series, the characters shown in have more edges and are testier around each other than they will be in novels in the future. Nero Wolfe is more high-handed and Archie is a bit more uptight than they'll be in later books, but the story flows well enough and the characters are the reason that you're reading. AFAIK, this book is longer than most other of the books in the series but it needs to be in order to lay out the world that Archie and Wolfe inhabit. Enjoy your 1930's era mystery!