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From a cover blurb:
As any herpetologist will tell you, the fer-de-lance is among the most dreaded snakes known to man. When someone makes a present of one to Nero Wolfe, Archie Goodwin knows he's getting dreadully close to solving the devilishly clever murders of an immigrant and a college president. As for Wolfe, he's playing snake charmer in a case with more twists than an anaconda -- whistling a seductive tune he hopes will catch a killer who's still got poison in his heart.
This is the very first Nero Wolfe novel that Rex Stout published. You can see the hallmarks of Wolfe's world already, Archie Goodwin, beer, food and clever villains.
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Previews available in: English
Subjects
Fiction, mystery, Private investigators, Nero Wolfe (Fictitious character), Friend authors, American Detective and mystery stories, American fiction, Detective and mystery stories, American, Fiction, mystery & detective, general, Wolfe, nero (fictitious character), fiction, Private investigators, fiction, New york (n.y.), fiction, New york (state), fictionPeople
Nero Wolfe, Archie GoodwinPlaces
New York, New York (State)Showing 4 featured editions. View all 26 editions?
Edition | Availability |
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1
Fer-de-Lance (Crime Line)
January 21, 1997, Crimeline
Mass Market Paperback
in English
0553278193 9780553278194
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Book Details
First Sentence
"First sentence of the introduction: "Series are seldom read in order."; first sentence of the Fer-de-Lance story: "There was no reason why I shouldn't have been sent for the beer that day, for the last ends of the Fairmount National bank case had been gathered in the week before and there was nothing for me to do but errands, and Wolfe never hesitated about running me down to Murray Street for a can of shoe-polish if he happened to need one.""
Edition Notes
1992 edition includes an introduction
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Source records
Library of Congress MARC recordInternet Archive item record
Library of Congress MARC record
Better World Books record
harvard_bibliographic_metadata record
Excerpts
First sentence of both the book and the Nero Wolf story series. The introduction explains the choice well.
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History
- Created September 27, 2008
- 14 revisions
Wikipedia citation
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March 21, 2025 | Edited by mheiman | Merge works |
November 28, 2023 | Edited by MARC Bot | import existing book |
March 18, 2023 | Edited by lillalilla381 | Added ISBN 10 number from the book; added that it's a Crime Line (cl edition); changed publishing year to 1992 (from 2008); added that the introduction is by Loren D. Estleman; changed the l in Rex Stout Lirary to capital size; removed from by statement " ; introduction to The league of freightened men by Robert Goldsborough."; added first sentences. |
February 25, 2022 | Edited by ImportBot | import existing book |
September 27, 2008 | Created by ImportBot | Imported from Library of Congress MARC record |