Might As Well Be Dead

It all looks like a normal case - a man from Nebraska wants Nero Wolfe to track down his son who left their hometown 11 years earlier under cloud and was never seen since (although some cards had been sent by him so he is supposedly alive). The only unusual thing is that the man, James Herold, wants Wolfe's team and not Wolfe himself. But as often happens in this series, the seemingly clear case takes a sharp turn when the man is found quickly - while being convicted for murder.

As introductions go, this is probably one of the more convoluted ones in the series so far but the case it leads to is more in line with what Wolfe is good at - finding out the facts when everyone else seems to believe that they are very different. The detective show more decides that just sending the father to the son is not good enough so he takes on the investigation of that murder - which is considered solved by the police and the jury. And then people start dying. Which is never a good indication in seemingly closed cases.

Archie as a narrator of the tale is at his best - sarcastic, punctual and very detailed. Which is half of the charm in these series - we get to see not just the detective's thinking but the more mundane footwork in the investigation.

The novel, as all the novels of this series, is of its time (this one was originally published in 1956) so some elements and attitudes are beyond dated. But the mystery itself works and may actually be one of the strongest cases in the series. show less

For once, private investigator Nero Wolfe has a case that doesn’t involve murder. He’s been hired by a midwestern businessman, a Mr. Herold, to find his estranged son. Wolfe opens a line of investigation that leads to an unexpected result. The client’s son is almost certainly a man who has just been convicted of murder. It seems that Wolfe can’t get away from murder after all!

I generally prefer the novellas to the full length mysteries in this series. The longer novels can get bogged down in minutia. This is one of the best novels in the series. It’s satisfyingly complex with action that keeps moving forward.

Might As Well Be Dead (1956) (Nero Wolfe #27) by Rex Stout. Wolfe is hired by a man out of the midwest to find his estranged son. Seems there had been a mistake a dozen years before, now revealed as a robbery by someone else, and the father wishes to make amends. Wolfe takes the missing persons case after the police’s failure to locate the young man. Within a few days Wolfe finds him, only it seems he is on trial for murder.
As he can’t quite tell the repentant father this news, Wolfe makes the decision to have the verdict overturned by finding the true killer.
The book is much more subtle that what I have just described, but it is a great one. Wily, twisty and turny, alibis have to be destroyed, the murdered man’s work as a show more “consultant” pawed through and the truth to be uncovered. Trouble is, no one can quite say just what the dead man did for sure nor explain away what was found in the safety deposit box.
Well plotted with the signature banter between Archie and Nero, with the complete complement of Wolfe’s pack of detectives, and a rising death toll, Might As Well Be Dead ranks as one of Stout’s best.
And, if you are going to be shut in during the Covid-19 outbreak, who better to stay inside with than that self-imposed hermit, Nero Wolfe? show less

Might as Well Be Dead, by Rex Stout, is another Nero Wolfe novel, this one from 1956. Wolfe is approached by a man who, years ago, accused his son of theft; the son left their Midwest home and headed for New York City, after which the family heard nothing from him. The father has recently learned that the son was not guilty of the crime and wants Wolfe to find him and, hopefully, restore him to the bosom of his family. But when Wolfe investigates, he quickly learns that the son has just been convicted of murder and will soon be executed, even though his lawyer is convinced that the man is innocent. When people associated with the case, and with Wolfe's investigation of it, start turning up dead as well, the young man's innocence is show more proven but Wolfe must find the real killer before he strikes yet again....I'd put this as a medium Nero Wolfe, not among the very best, but still quite good. And the motive for the murders is as relevant today as it was 50 years ago. Recommended. show less

Archie Goodwin is back in action and Nero Wolfe is back in inaction when they’re hired to find a businessman’s long-lost (and unjustly treated) son. Soon, naturally, they’re entangled in a murder case—but one that has already been solved and the suspect convicted. Complications ensue, Archie flirts with the widow, etc. A fine example of the series.

I spent another pleasant evening with Archie and Co. chasing after information for Wolfe, one step ahead of the police and managing to keep the client in line. An interesting case that started out as a missing person case that turns into a murder case in a uniquely clever way. It’s relaxing to spend time with “old friends.”

I think this was one of the earliest Wolfe novels I read, along with The Golden Spiders. A wealthy Nebraska businessman hires Wolfe to find his son, whom he had thrown out on suspicion of theft (now proven unjustified) years before. Wolfe finds the son living in New York has just been convicted of murdering the husband of the woman he loves, but his lawyer believes he was framed. Wolfe, knowing te man's father would be much happier to find an innocent son, sets out to clear him.