Joseph Teller wins 2009 Nero Award for The Tenth Case

Jane K. Cleland, Literary Awards Chair of the Nero Wolfe Society, presented Joseph Teller with the society's 2009 Nero Award for The Tenth Case (Mira, 2008) at the 32nd annual Black Orchid Banquet on December 5, 2009. The Nero Award celebrates the best American mystery novel written in the tradition of Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe series.

The Tenth Case, the first book in Joseph Teller's Jaywalker series, features as its central character the recently suspended defense lawyer Harrison J. Walker. More recent titles in the Jaywalker series include Bronx Justice (2009) and Depraved Indifference (2009).

Mysterious Reviews recently published M. Wayne Cunningham's assessment of Teller's award-winning title. Cunningham, who views Teller's own past experience as a criminal defense attorney as key to the success of The Tenth Case, states, "Police procedurals abound -- good, bad and indifferent. Now, Joseph Teller’s stellar, The Tenth Case, sets the standard for defense attorney procedurals."

Other finalists in contention for the 2009 Nero Award included Andrew Gross and Louise Ure. Gross was nominated for his first Tye Hauck series title, The Dark Tide (Harper Collins, 2008); and Ure, for The Fault Tree (Minotaur Books. 2008).

The Wolfe Pack, the official website for the Nero Wolfe Society, joined with the Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine at the Black Orchid Banquet to issue a second prize, The Black Orchid Novella  Award. Steve Liskow won the 2009 Black Orchid Novella Award for "The Strangle Hold."

The Wolfe Pack provides access to a wealth of information on the life and writings of Rex Stout (1886-1974), creator of the famed private investigator Nero Wolfe. Stout's rotund detective solves crimes while seldom venturing far from his New York City brownstone apartment, from whose rooftop garden he cultivates rare orchids and plans gourmet meals. Wolfe's legwork is accomplished by his assistant, Archie Goodwin, who is also the narrator of all the 72 Nero Wolfe novels and short stories.