Book Review – Over My Dead Body

Last week I finished Over My Dead Body by Nero Wolfe. At first I found myself in a deep funk, depressed by the similarities I found between Nero Wolfe's writing and that of one of my favorite authors, Lawrence Sanders. My depression turned to anger as I saw how closely so many of the similarities became. Flamboyant and smart main characters both with the name Archie, serious mysteries that are written with a fun loving (and more importantly, word loving) veil, and so many other facets. But, as I let the story sink in, I realized that Sander's might not have been copying Wolfe and his style so much as he may have been paying homage. Like a cover band that plays some of your favorite tunes, Steve Acho come to mind, but plays them as well or better than the originals.

Over My Dead Body is the first Nero Wolfe book I've ever read and I can guarantee you that it won't be my last. I was sad to learn of the passing of Sander if only cause I loved his writing so much. Any author who can have his character say "needless to say my flabber was gasted" while wearing a puce riding hat, has my esteem and interest. Wolfe does the same but with a slightly more serious tone.

Like Sanders, Wolfe enjoys talking about the food that surrounds his characters and ensures that they occupy a station in life that provides them with the best possible delicacies. I'm impressed with the proclivities with which he imbues his detective. His constant beer drinking, his never leaving the apartment to solve murders, his attention to detail and schedules. For some reason I found myself envisioning Wolfe in the form of Mr. Millet, my high school chemistry teacher.

As a huge fan of analogies, metaphors and similies, I found all of the following particularly fun.

The murder in the story takes place in a fencing gym, I thought the way he used lunge was apropos: "But he clipped off words and lunged with them . . ."

I love the way Archie describes this man and his suit, sums up perfectly the type of man Archie thinks he is, "He was about my age and size with a good pair of light-colored eyes, and a gray suit of a distinctive weave hung on him in a way that made it obvious that fit had not been managed by waving a piece of chalk at a stock job."

At one point Archie was asked by a lawyer to sign a statement. He did, with a nomme de plume, and left this post script. "I am writing to stipulate that a lawyer has a right to live, and I'm aware that even when he's dead no worm will enter his coffin because if it did, he'd make it sign some kind of paper."

Fabulous image in this one, "Twenty men went through that joint like molasses through cheese cloth."

It took me a second to figure out what he meant here, but when I did, I laughed, "I felt a lot like a hard morning at the alphabet piano, no I didn't."

The final confrontation leads with this image of Archie trying to catch the murderer, literally, "I gave it all I had then, but I couldn't catch lightning."

Secondly, I enjoyed the book for the abundance of interesting, and in some cases completely unknown words:

Persiflage - frivolous bantering talk : light raillery

Obloquy - a strongly condemnatory utterance : abusive language

Prate - to talk long and idly : chatter

Eructed - belch

Salver - a tray especially for serving food or beverages

Blatherskite - 1 : a person who blathers a lot 2 : nonsense, blather

In short, I loved the book, and I look forward to the next Nero Wolfe mystery I get to read.