What do You think about Death Of A Doxy (1990)?
A surprisingly substantial mystery that remains within the boundaries of the Wolfe formula. The only contrived moment is in the very beginning of the novel, when Archie is the first to discover a murdered woman in her apartment. I say contrived because this episode is added for shock value over substance since it is completely unnecessary to the plot and how the investigation develops. The story would have evolved just as efficiently and along the same lines had they read about it in the newspaper, heard it on the radio, or one of the police inspectors come by Wolfe's office and informed them of the crime. Once that is out of bag though, the investigation begins rolling along at a smart clip, uncovering small clues along the way that eventually lead, inexorably, to the final reveal. A side note: as one can probably tell from the title, this novel has a few old-fashioned ideas about relations between the sexes. This is perhaps one of the last books to lean so heavily upon the trope of the shameful kept woman; a favorite theme of authors trying for gritty realism from from DeFoe's Moll Flanders through the late-Victorian period, past Sister Carrie, and right up to this novel. Not to long afterwards the attitude towards women living with men who were not their husbands became less of an outrage to decency, and so less of a sure thing when selling novels. As a result Archie's little rant about his preference for "doxy" over concubine or paramour or mistress is decidedly less shockingly hardboiled sounding to our minds, just as the extreme reaction of her sister to Archie's questions seems less justified.
—Alger
As this was my first Nero Wolfe novel, I went in thinking this would be a more-or-less "normal" mystery novel. It wasn't until halfway through that I caught on to the real flavor of the book - Nero Wolfe's eccentricity, Arhcie's snap comedy, etc. It was so much fun to read them ripping on each other, it felt like a peek into a "boys club." I love it in the way I love James Bond.Death of a Doxy is a quick read, and not only because it's short. The characters are smart and Stout assumes the readers are, too. We're supposed to keep up. Admittedly I thought the puzzle fell into place a little too easily, but I liked it all the same.I'm definitely interested in this Stout fellow and plan on picking up another of his books, too.
—Ashley Lauren
I learned a new word. If you look up "doxy" in Wikipedia it says, "Archaic for prostitute". It is not exactly the case here as the better term would be "kept woman". I try to keep my review rated PG-13, so please do not expect any related pictures here - these are easy to find, so have something cute which has nothing to do with the story whatsoever, like a piglet:Archie Goodwin does the majority of legwork for Nero Wolfe who almost never leaves his house. When the former is not enough Wolfe uses three other people who according to both main detectives are very good at what they do. This time one of the three was arrested on a murder suspicion and Wolfe decided it is his duty to clear up his name. The obvious way to do it is to find the real culprit. Not only he has to do something he hates (work), he is not expected to get paid for this or even be compensated for the expenses; not a good start no matter how you look at it. Fear not, Wolfe is not called genius for nothing: by the end of the day he will get paid. The novel is notable for one very interesting character called Julie Jacquette - this is her pseudonym. She was fun to watch as she managed to subdue Wolfe in his own house: something no woman has ever done before. At the time of the writing the author was 79 years old; this example clearly shows at that age he still knew how to write interesting people who really feel alive. Everything taken together - quirky new characters, good mystery, Wolfe's showing his deduction skills, and more personality of the recurring characters - add to 4 star rating.
—Evgeny
