The Last Coincidence (Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe)

Having read all of Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe books - many, many times over, I felt tempted to try a Robert Goldsborough Nero Wolfe mystery. I've never been happy with new authors who've tried to continue writing in the vein of the original author because of losing the original characters' personalities and realism, different writing and plot styles. This was not the case here! What a pleasant surprise! Goldsborough has obviously read Stout's Wolfe books and did a lot of research. He maintained Archie's and Nero Wolfe's personalities and styles of speech, as well as those of Lily Rowan, Fritz, Cramer, Stebbins, etc. Well-thought-out plot, and quite a tricky one. Probably the most difficult to deal with of all of Wolfe's clients. By the time I finished the book, I was more aware of the story and my favorite characters than the identity of the author. True, there can never be another Rex Stout, and there are naturally some very nebulous differences, but not enough to be bothersome or detract from the story. I look forward to the new source of Nero Wolfe reads from Goldborough - hats off to him! If you're a dyed-in-wool Wolfe fan, I think you'll be very pleasantly surprised!