Nero Wolfe, an avid orchid collector, a great gourmet, a beer lover and a great detective, almost never leaves the house. He unravels all the crimes based on the facts collected by Archie Goodwin, his charming, ironic assistant with an excellent memory. Wolfe sits without work, and the money in his account is disappearing. Concerned about this problem, Archie Goodwin first persuades the widow of a man killed by a bomb planted in a desk drawer to contact Nero Wolfe, and then convinces Wolfe to take up the investigation...