Death on Deadline

By Robert Goldsborough

To save his favorite newspaper, Wolfe steps into the crossfire of a tabloid war.

Master sleuth Nero Wolfe's small circle of friends is limited to his assistant Archie Goodwin, his chef Fritz, and Lon Cohen, the head man at the New York Gazette. Cohen knows more about the city's power structure than any man in Manhattan, and for years he happily passed Wolfe information in return for the odd exclusive scoop. But now Cohen needs Wolfe's help, for the Gazette is ailing and the vultures have begun to circle.

Scottish newspaper magnate Ian MacLaren plans to gut the paper and turn it into a sex-filled conservative rag. Standing in his way is the company's chief shareholder, Gazette heir Harriet Haverhill. But when the aged Ms. Haverhill dies in an apparent suicide, no one remains to resist the Scot's advances except Wolfe. MacLaren may be fierce, but when the cause is just, Nero Wolfe knows how to play dirty, too.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Head of Zeus
• Release date: Jun 1, 2014
• ISBN: 9781784084936

Robert Goldsborough

Robert Goldsborough is an American author best known for continuing Rex Stout’s famous Nero Wolfe series. Born in Chicago, he attended Northwestern University and upon graduation went to work for the Associated Press, beginning a lifelong career in journalism that would include long periods at the Chicago Tribune and Advertising Age. While at the Tribune, Goldsborough began writing mysteries in the voice of Rex Stout, the creator of iconic sleuths Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin. Goldsborough’s first novel starring Wolfe, Murder in E Minor (1986), was met with acclaim from both critics and devoted fans, winning a Nero Award from the Wolfe Pack. Archie Goes Home is the fifteenth book in the series.  

Reviews for Death on Deadline

[jamespurcell · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Robert Goldsborough captures and shares Nero and Archie's essence quite well. I am looking forward to his other works for this genre.

[rosalita_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

My favorite series of all time is Rex Stout's mystery series featuring sedentary detective genius Nero Wolfe and his handsome, wisecracking assistant Archie Goodwin (who also happens to be my literary boyfriend). The good news is that Stout wrote 48 novels and short stories featuring the sleuthing duo over the course of 40-odd years. The last, [A Family Affair], was published in 1975 shortly before Stout's death.That said, I am not a fan of other authors continuing series. At worst they are dreadful, completely tone-deaf and make a mockery of the characters and milieu the original author created. At best they are methadone, reasonably well-done imitations that fail to provide the high readers got from the originals.Goldsborough's continuation of the Wolfe novels are methadone. He tries very hard, and he clearly knows and loves the world and characters Stout created. But there is just some ineffable something that jars ever so slightly on every page that reminds me this is not the real thing. Sometimes it's a turn of phrase that's not as elegant as I came to expect from Stout, or an attempt to create the humor in the originals that falls a bit flat. Sometimes it's a tiny detail of the Wolfe universe that is wrong or inconsistent with the originals. I read the first one, [Murder in E Minor], long ago and swore I'd never read another.Reader, I read it. Yes, I'm weak and without willpower. I recently picked up and re-read a couple of my favorite original Stouts and they did what they always do: both satisfied my craving and left me wanting more, more, more. So I was in a vulnerable state when the second Goldsborough went on e-sale, and I bought it.And ... it's OK. It's not Stout, it could never be Stout, and these are not exactly the Wolfe and Archie and Fritz and and Saul and Lon and Cramer and Stebbins that I've come to love. But they are close, and for now they are enough. They have to be enough, unless Rex rises from the dead or some unknown manuscripts miraculously surface in Harper Lee's safe deposit box.Oh, you want an actual review of this particular book instead of my moody navel-gazing? Weird, but all right. The plot involves the pending sale of the Gazette newspaper — employer of Lon Cohen, who over the years has fed Wolfe plenty of information to solve cases in exchange for exclusive stories. The rapacious media baron threatening that cozy arrangement is clearly a stand-in for Rupert Murdoch, for all that he's Scottish instead of Australian. Before he can complete his stock takeover, though, the current owner (who vigorously opposed the sale) is found dead of an apparent suicide. Was she murdered, and by whom? Is it connected to the takeover? Mystery fans who haven't formed an unhealthy attachment to fictional characters would enjoy this one, I think, even if you haven't read any of the originals. Maybe especially if you haven't read any of the originals.

[mike6l-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is the first Nero Wolfe novel I've read that wasn't written by the series creator Rex Stout, while I've never been more than a casual reader of the original novels (hardly an expert on the subject) this addition to the series does seem to touch on all the Wolfe standards. The brownstone, the gourmet food, the orchids, the enigmatic, eccentric genius that is Nero Wolfe and the wisecracking that is a signature of Archie Goodwin.It's been sometime since I've read any of Stout's original novels so it could well be nothing more than a sort of literary nostalgia on my part but this book seemed a little less compelling than the originals... as though it were somehow lacking a certain spark - some indefinable something. Not bad at all just less riveting than I recall the old Nero Wolfe books. It's good as a standalone but probably not quite as much when compared to the originals.I would recommend it to anyone who likes classic style mysteries with the caveat that those who are devout Nero Wolfe fans may find it disappointing.