Nero Wolfe is Sherlock Holmes translated into 1950s New York: massively overweight, not ascetically lean; luxurious, not thrifty; a gourmet, not a cokehead. His assistant is a belligerent bully rather than a bumbling doctor. But the assistant is still the narrator (like Dr. Watson). His name is Archie Goodwin: a fabulous, complex name (suggesting that he’s arch, but good, yet wins?). Archie is alternately inarticulate and a master of metaphor:
“I couldn’t deny that the effect Coke and rum had on her was pleasant; it tuned her up…”
Every 55 pages another reckless but gorgeous woman appears, to tempt the excruciatingly horny Archie Goodwin.
