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Jack McMorrow Mystery #1
Deadline
Jack is back in this dynamic rerelease of best-selling crime writer Gerry Boyle’s first novel. Meet Jack McMorrow, a hard-hitting crime reporter for the New York Times now living in the backwoods of Maine, near the paper plant in Rumford. Jack’s there to run the local paper, but when a unpopular photographer is found drowned in a nearby canal, Jack gets drawn into a complicated game that has kept members of the town silenced and in fear for their lives. Maine may be the place where life is as it should be, but McMorrow finds out staying alive may be harder than he thought.
304 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 1993
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795 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 54 reviews
February 5, 2019
First published in 1993, this is the debut novel in an excellent series featuring newspaperman Jack McMorrow. As a young man, Jack worked his way up the ladder of the newspaper business until he reached the pinnacle of the profession, working as a metro reporter for the New York Times. But by the time he reached his middle thirties, he realized, sadly, that he was being eclipsed by younger and more energetic reporters and that his best days as a reporter might well be behind him.
Accordingly, McMorrow turned his life in another direction and accepted the job as editor of the Androscoggin Review, a small weekly newspaper published in Androscoggin, Maine. Androscoggin is a tiny county, located in a heavily-wooded area in the southwestern corner of the state. The Review publishes a lot of stories about the local high school sports teams, about the meetings of local clubs, about elderly citizens celebrating milestone birthdays and that sort of thing.
One thing that the Androscoggin Review does not do is make waves, or at least it didn't until Jack McMorrow comes along. McMorrow still believes in the values of excellent journalism and in the importance of publishing stories that are significant to the community. Thus, when the town's largest employer, a wood pulp mill, demands a significant tax break, rather than simply rolling over and supporting the request as the previous editor might have done, Jack digs into issue in an effort to determine if there's any justification for the request.
Jack's investigation upsets not only the mill owners, but a lot of workers and others in the town who depend on the wages and other money that the mill brings to the town. The mill has suggested that if the tax break is not granted, they may close their operations in Androscoggin and move the jobs elsewhere, so a lot of people in the county wish that Jack would just keep his big mouth shut. And some of them appear determined to make sure that he does.
While this debate rages, the newspaper's photographer suddenly turns up dead, drowned in a remote canal on a freezing winter night. Nobody knows how the photographer got to the canal or how he wound up in it, and nobody, save for Jack McMorrow, seems to care. The cops and the county coroner quickly rule the case closed, ruling it a death by accident or suicide. Jack refuses to accept the verdict without at least a minimal investigation of the circumstances surrounding the death, and this too will get him into trouble. Along the way, McMorrow has plenty of chances to simply surrender and give in to the pressures around him, but he's driven by a desire to know the truth, no matter the consequences of discovering it.
Gerry Boyle clearly knows the newspaper business well, and he's created a very appealing protagonist in Jack McMorrow. The plot moves along at just the right pace with the level of suspense ebbing and flowing until it builds to a great climax. In particular, Boyle excels at creating the setting. The small community of Androscoggin and its residents come alive in these pages, and one almost literally feels the freezing cold as McMorrow makes his way about the town and through the woods that surround it. I first discovered this series in the late 1990s, and I'm really looking forward to making my way through it again. 4.5 stars.
Accordingly, McMorrow turned his life in another direction and accepted the job as editor of the Androscoggin Review, a small weekly newspaper published in Androscoggin, Maine. Androscoggin is a tiny county, located in a heavily-wooded area in the southwestern corner of the state. The Review publishes a lot of stories about the local high school sports teams, about the meetings of local clubs, about elderly citizens celebrating milestone birthdays and that sort of thing.
One thing that the Androscoggin Review does not do is make waves, or at least it didn't until Jack McMorrow comes along. McMorrow still believes in the values of excellent journalism and in the importance of publishing stories that are significant to the community. Thus, when the town's largest employer, a wood pulp mill, demands a significant tax break, rather than simply rolling over and supporting the request as the previous editor might have done, Jack digs into issue in an effort to determine if there's any justification for the request.
Jack's investigation upsets not only the mill owners, but a lot of workers and others in the town who depend on the wages and other money that the mill brings to the town. The mill has suggested that if the tax break is not granted, they may close their operations in Androscoggin and move the jobs elsewhere, so a lot of people in the county wish that Jack would just keep his big mouth shut. And some of them appear determined to make sure that he does.
While this debate rages, the newspaper's photographer suddenly turns up dead, drowned in a remote canal on a freezing winter night. Nobody knows how the photographer got to the canal or how he wound up in it, and nobody, save for Jack McMorrow, seems to care. The cops and the county coroner quickly rule the case closed, ruling it a death by accident or suicide. Jack refuses to accept the verdict without at least a minimal investigation of the circumstances surrounding the death, and this too will get him into trouble. Along the way, McMorrow has plenty of chances to simply surrender and give in to the pressures around him, but he's driven by a desire to know the truth, no matter the consequences of discovering it.
Gerry Boyle clearly knows the newspaper business well, and he's created a very appealing protagonist in Jack McMorrow. The plot moves along at just the right pace with the level of suspense ebbing and flowing until it builds to a great climax. In particular, Boyle excels at creating the setting. The small community of Androscoggin and its residents come alive in these pages, and one almost literally feels the freezing cold as McMorrow makes his way about the town and through the woods that surround it. I first discovered this series in the late 1990s, and I'm really looking forward to making my way through it again. 4.5 stars.
February 1, 2015
I loved this book! It ended up being one of those I couldn't put down until I'd read the last word, and then I wished there was still more to read. So glad that it's a series! Jack McMorrow is hugely likeable and there are enough plot twists and turns to satisfy even the most demanding mystery reader. It’s a great read!
March 29, 2025
We discovered Gerry Boyle at Berry's Store in the West Forks. They have a great pile of books - for kids, cooks, outdoorspeople.
I worked at Mexico High School in 1971 and lived in Rumford Center, ME. I wound round the roads and Rumford downtown with Jackson McMorrow.
Loved the constant talk - the show, not tell - and the descriptions of time and place and people.
This is a fine mystery. I found myself entranced by Jack's story. Having worked in big cities for established newspapers, he finds his way to Androscoggin /Rumford, ME, to write and edit for a weekly. As he becomes more entrenched and embattled, he keeps on fighting and bloody he gets.
Maybe it's too self-centered, but I loved walking through Rumford and beyond with Boyle and McMorrow. I remember well all the people on "my" road (the one to Andover) and how giving they were, especially the deFreezes.
And the horror of so many people's lives, trapped and alive due to the mill. I had a VW hatchback that got hammered by crap from the mill and we couldn't open the school's windows due to pollution. But folks made decent money and made lives.
We also had an outbreak of scabies. I remember overseeing showers with Quell with the gym teacher, Frank Stoutamayer, and other teachers.
Egad...this book brought back so many memories.
And it's a way good mystery, unfurling only in the end. A terrible and disheartening end despite Jack's survival. Can't wait to read the rest of the series.
Glad that Boyle did new intro. to this edition, first published in 1993.
I worked at Mexico High School in 1971 and lived in Rumford Center, ME. I wound round the roads and Rumford downtown with Jackson McMorrow.
Loved the constant talk - the show, not tell - and the descriptions of time and place and people.
This is a fine mystery. I found myself entranced by Jack's story. Having worked in big cities for established newspapers, he finds his way to Androscoggin /Rumford, ME, to write and edit for a weekly. As he becomes more entrenched and embattled, he keeps on fighting and bloody he gets.
Maybe it's too self-centered, but I loved walking through Rumford and beyond with Boyle and McMorrow. I remember well all the people on "my" road (the one to Andover) and how giving they were, especially the deFreezes.
And the horror of so many people's lives, trapped and alive due to the mill. I had a VW hatchback that got hammered by crap from the mill and we couldn't open the school's windows due to pollution. But folks made decent money and made lives.
We also had an outbreak of scabies. I remember overseeing showers with Quell with the gym teacher, Frank Stoutamayer, and other teachers.
Egad...this book brought back so many memories.
And it's a way good mystery, unfurling only in the end. A terrible and disheartening end despite Jack's survival. Can't wait to read the rest of the series.
Glad that Boyle did new intro. to this edition, first published in 1993.
August 21, 2011
Great book. Suprise ending.
May 7, 2014
Great plot, well written and well researched, with excellent pacing and plenty of twists and turns. DEADLINE follows the exploits of reporter Jack McMorrow, a big-city investigative journalist who, sensing his career's demise as younger up-and-comers at the Times nipped at his heels, has exiled himself to the position of editor at a small paper in rural Maine. When one of his staff is found washed up in a canal by the local paper mill and no one seems to care, McMorrow takes it upon himself to investigate. McMorrow is a well-drawn, interesting, sympathetic character, and author Gerry Boyle's understanding of the dynamics at work in the world of print journalism in the 21st century provides depth to the story. Add to that Boyle's portrait of rural Maine and the economics and personalities at work in a dying mill town, and you definitely have a compelling read. My only complaint is with the character of Roxanne, McMorrow's love interest, whose histrionics in the face of growing danger may have been justifiable, but still left me longing for a stronger female lead. That point is minor, however, and overall this is a great introduction to the McMorrow series -- a series I definitely plan to read much more of. Highly recommended for fans of mystery and noir.
July 11, 2008
DEADLINE - Ex
Boyle, Gerry - 1st Jack McMorrow
This is hardworking Maine, poverty Maine, where the local economy of the town of Androscoggin is ruled by the paper mill ... It's where Jack McMorrow, a former New York Times metro reporter has come to take over the local weekly ... When a seemingly friendless and ineffective staff photographer is found drowned in the river, McMorrow wonders why, and wonders why the local police don't wonder more ... The rhythms of the weekly newspaper work a wonderful counterpoint to the building tension of McMorrow's investigation, and the writing is sharp and evocative without being showy."
--Washington Post Book World
This is the beginning of a very good series
Boyle, Gerry - 1st Jack McMorrow
This is hardworking Maine, poverty Maine, where the local economy of the town of Androscoggin is ruled by the paper mill ... It's where Jack McMorrow, a former New York Times metro reporter has come to take over the local weekly ... When a seemingly friendless and ineffective staff photographer is found drowned in the river, McMorrow wonders why, and wonders why the local police don't wonder more ... The rhythms of the weekly newspaper work a wonderful counterpoint to the building tension of McMorrow's investigation, and the writing is sharp and evocative without being showy."
--Washington Post Book World
This is the beginning of a very good series
April 23, 2015
I'd been meaning to start the Jack McMorrow series for...well, eons. Once I did, I started devouring the books at the rate of two a week. I'm on #4 ("Potshot") as I write this review.
I was hooked from the first line. Well, that happens sometimes. The bigger trick is keeping the reader on a string through 299 pages of a 22-year-old book. Mission accomplished.
Trying hard to catch up so I'm ready when #10 ("Once Burned") is released on May 1.
I was hooked from the first line. Well, that happens sometimes. The bigger trick is keeping the reader on a string through 299 pages of a 22-year-old book. Mission accomplished.
Trying hard to catch up so I'm ready when #10 ("Once Burned") is released on May 1.
October 13, 2014
His first book. Character Jack McMorrow is editor of a newspaper in Maine. Discovered paper mill is trying to get money from city by threatening to close up.
Photographer is found in pond.
Photographer is found in pond.
August 11, 2019
I saw the wonderful review by James, and him wanting to re-read this series. So, I dug out my hard copy (Fantastic Fiction) and bought a used copy online. Recent crime reporter transplant from New York, Jack finds himself needing too find out more about a murder, in the small mill town in Androscoggin, in western Maine. With big-city noir brought to this small town, a great plot and a genuine surprise ending. Great debut, will be continuing this series.
June 6, 2019
This book kept my attention. I liked the main character, Jack McMorrow, although I really wondered about some of his actions, such as not reporting some things that happened, and placing himself in a dangerous situation more than once. But it was an interesting story, and I look forward to reading more in the series.
April 1, 2022
A small town in Maine is the setting for this mystery. Interesting characters, with a twist at the end. A chilling tail.
July 14, 2016
When I met my soon-to-be husband many years ago, he was the owner of a small weekly newspaper in East Texas. He was also the publisher/editor/writer/photographer/advertising manager and probably a few other jobs that I'm leaving out. It was hard work, with a lot of pressure and little financial reward, and, as we started our family, he sold the paper and opted for jobs with daily newspapers, from the Lufkin Daily News to the Houston Post, that offered a little more security and a little bit more money.
Nostalgia for those years with the weekly led me to pick out this book from among several that were recommended to me for reading, for it features the editor/writer at a weekly newspaper in rural Maine as its main character.
Jack McMorrow had been an investigative journalist with The New York Times before feeling that he was being outclassed by the competition, the up-and-coming young journalists who competed to work for the Times. Rather than waiting to be pushed out, he moved on to work for other daily newspapers along the East Coast, finally ending up at the weekly newspaper in little Androscoggin, Maine.
Androscoggin was a paper mill town. The local economy was utterly dependent on the stinking mill, and everybody in town was expected to fall in line and support anything that the mill owners wanted to do. When McMorrow wrote some stories about the mill that were not fawning in their assessment, he became quite unpopular.
Then, the body of the mild-mannered but weird man who worked part time as a photographer for the paper is found floating in one of the ice-clogged canals that flows by the mill. The medical examiner finds that the cause of death was drowning with a secondary cause of hypothermia. He finds no signs of foul play. And yet, questions remain. Most importantly, why would this man, who was not the outdoorsy type, have been near enough to the canal to fall in at night in freezing weather in winter?
No one except Jack McMorrow seems troubled by these questions, however. The local police are perfectly content to take the medical examiner's conclusions at face value and do not investigate any further. McMorrow instigates an investigation on his own. He goes to the dead man's home/studio where he finds some incriminating photographs that he believes might have given someone a motive for murder. Still, it appears that the local authorities are not interested.
McMorrow keeps running into nasty characters and getting beat up, but it isn't clear if the animosity toward him is due to his criticism of the paper mill or his investigation of what he considers a suspicious death. Maybe it's both...
I was prepared to really like this series, but I found this first book disappointing. Mostly, I was disappointed with the character of Jack McMorrow, who, it seemed, every time he had a decision to make, he picked the most boneheaded choice. Maybe that was necessary to move the plot along, but in my experience, newspaper men are a bit smarter than that, so color me unimpressed.
I did enjoy Boyle's descriptions of winter in Maine. I could feel the cold which helped a bit to alleviate the heat of summer in Texas. And I felt he had a good understanding of the insularity of a small town and the close-mindedness that can come from the town's dependence on one industry, even if that industry is harming the health of its citizens. There is the kernel of a good story here, but the main character needs to have his I.Q. increased by a few points.
Nostalgia for those years with the weekly led me to pick out this book from among several that were recommended to me for reading, for it features the editor/writer at a weekly newspaper in rural Maine as its main character.
Jack McMorrow had been an investigative journalist with The New York Times before feeling that he was being outclassed by the competition, the up-and-coming young journalists who competed to work for the Times. Rather than waiting to be pushed out, he moved on to work for other daily newspapers along the East Coast, finally ending up at the weekly newspaper in little Androscoggin, Maine.
Androscoggin was a paper mill town. The local economy was utterly dependent on the stinking mill, and everybody in town was expected to fall in line and support anything that the mill owners wanted to do. When McMorrow wrote some stories about the mill that were not fawning in their assessment, he became quite unpopular.
Then, the body of the mild-mannered but weird man who worked part time as a photographer for the paper is found floating in one of the ice-clogged canals that flows by the mill. The medical examiner finds that the cause of death was drowning with a secondary cause of hypothermia. He finds no signs of foul play. And yet, questions remain. Most importantly, why would this man, who was not the outdoorsy type, have been near enough to the canal to fall in at night in freezing weather in winter?
No one except Jack McMorrow seems troubled by these questions, however. The local police are perfectly content to take the medical examiner's conclusions at face value and do not investigate any further. McMorrow instigates an investigation on his own. He goes to the dead man's home/studio where he finds some incriminating photographs that he believes might have given someone a motive for murder. Still, it appears that the local authorities are not interested.
McMorrow keeps running into nasty characters and getting beat up, but it isn't clear if the animosity toward him is due to his criticism of the paper mill or his investigation of what he considers a suspicious death. Maybe it's both...
I was prepared to really like this series, but I found this first book disappointing. Mostly, I was disappointed with the character of Jack McMorrow, who, it seemed, every time he had a decision to make, he picked the most boneheaded choice. Maybe that was necessary to move the plot along, but in my experience, newspaper men are a bit smarter than that, so color me unimpressed.
I did enjoy Boyle's descriptions of winter in Maine. I could feel the cold which helped a bit to alleviate the heat of summer in Texas. And I felt he had a good understanding of the insularity of a small town and the close-mindedness that can come from the town's dependence on one industry, even if that industry is harming the health of its citizens. There is the kernel of a good story here, but the main character needs to have his I.Q. increased by a few points.
April 7, 2009
When I discovered this book existed, I HAD to read it because, as it turns out, it's about the exact same small, weekly Maine newspaper (circulation about 4000, but who knows how many of those actually get read?) I just started working for. And it turns out that the author 1)was at Colby College the same time I was (although HE actually graduated) and 2)actually WORKED briefly at the Rumford Falls Times, maybe 20 years ago or so. That was just too much coincidence not to read the book, even if murder-mysteries aren't usually my thing. And as it turned out, I really enjoyed it, especially because I recognized so many of the places he described.
November 26, 2018
Small towns sure can carry their secrets, and sometimes they can be deadly.
If you haven't yet tried the Jack McMorrow series, you're missing out -- action-packed, super interesting and will keep you listening.
Great story, writing, narration - it's a great package just waitin' for ya!
Give it a listen, I absolutely loved it and will not stop until I've listened to them all :)
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.
If you haven't yet tried the Jack McMorrow series, you're missing out -- action-packed, super interesting and will keep you listening.
Great story, writing, narration - it's a great package just waitin' for ya!
Give it a listen, I absolutely loved it and will not stop until I've listened to them all :)
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.
June 11, 2015
Pretty good mystery, with lots of local color for that stretch of the Maine woods that is worlds away from the yachts and wealth of Down East. Protagonist is a newspaper reporter and a bird watcher.
October 3, 2016
Went to an author luncheon with Mr. Boyle on Friday, which was interesting and enjoyable. I read this book over the weekend (!) and enjoyed it very much. It was his first book ever -- looking forward to seeing how he evolved as a writer over the years.
December 6, 2018
This author was recommended at my book club. Loved it. Having a camp in the woods of Maine and having lived in the woods in NH, I can relate to Jack McMorrow's world. Fun read and mystery. Looking forward to reading the rest!
August 2, 2008
A quick read for those who like mysteries. Gerry Boyle writes well and I like his Jack McMorrow (journalist) character.
May 13, 2015
Solid series opener. I will definitely read more, and look forward to seeing the characters develop.
June 29, 2016
The first in the Jack McMurray series. We'll done, interesting characters and plot. Gerry Boyle has been a newspaper man so lots of versimilitude.
February 12, 2019
I really like this book. Books with a newspaper person protagonist are refreshing, and Boyle writes really well, very much stronger for being understated. And yeah, there's some personal stuff but it's low key and not the result of someone's dream or encounter at a coffee shop. And there are two very personal reasons this book resonates. One character used to live at fifteen and a half Hancock Street. Well, in the mid seventies, I lived at twelve fifteen and a half Hancock Street in Columbia, SC. And while I lived there, I was introduced to Zen Buddhism by a little memoir called "The Empty Mirror," by Janwillem van de Wetering. On the back of the edition of Boyle's book, there is a short very praiseworthy blurb by Wetering. Than in itself would be inducement enough, but Wetering wrote an outstanding series of police mysteries , set mostly in Amsterdam, featuring Grijpstra and de Grier and their boss, the commissaris. So you see, I was hooked and then rehooked.
November 12, 2019
How can I not love a mystery that has a hard nosed newspaperman as a protagonist? Set in a mill town in upstate Maine, the novel introduces us to Jack McMorrow, a young journalist who trades in a job at the NYTimes for what he thinks will be the quieter life as an editor for a weekly, serving a small community that has seen better days. And life is fairly simple. That is, until the body of the paper's photographer is found floating in the canal.
When it seems as though the local cops are not interested in investigating the death, Jack starts playing sleuth and soon finds himself, and his new girlfriend, Roxanne, in danger.
Boyle's writing is taut, snappy, full of terrific dialogue, and quite suspenseful. It kept me guessing until the very end.
What a happy surprise to find this series - I look forward to reading more!
When it seems as though the local cops are not interested in investigating the death, Jack starts playing sleuth and soon finds himself, and his new girlfriend, Roxanne, in danger.
Boyle's writing is taut, snappy, full of terrific dialogue, and quite suspenseful. It kept me guessing until the very end.
What a happy surprise to find this series - I look forward to reading more!
July 18, 2021
Great series...I wished I discovered it before!
The author captures the small, Maine paper mill town with absolute genuineness. You can smell the mill, hear the trucks, and see the towns people as they go about their dysfunctional lives.
But despite all the small town craziness, there's a charm to the place that comes through in his writing. Makes me miss the place!
In any case, Jack McMorrow is not a cop, he's somewhat over the hill investigative reporter. But he smells a mystery with highly accurate instincts and follows it with a stubborn devotion to the truth despite all his cynicism. It's hard not to like the guy, and to root for him!
I'll be reading more about Jack McMorrow!
The author captures the small, Maine paper mill town with absolute genuineness. You can smell the mill, hear the trucks, and see the towns people as they go about their dysfunctional lives.
But despite all the small town craziness, there's a charm to the place that comes through in his writing. Makes me miss the place!
In any case, Jack McMorrow is not a cop, he's somewhat over the hill investigative reporter. But he smells a mystery with highly accurate instincts and follows it with a stubborn devotion to the truth despite all his cynicism. It's hard not to like the guy, and to root for him!
I'll be reading more about Jack McMorrow!
June 23, 2022
My wife’s brother-in-law told me about Gerry Boyle and his Jack McMorrow mysteries. When we spent a week in Maine, where my wife’s brother-in-law grew up, we visited a local independent bookseller and they had a section of mysteries set in Maine, including Boyle’s books. Deadline was the first in the Jack McMorrow books so I picked it up.
Reading it, I realized Boyle is a great writer and McMorrow is an outstanding creation. Set in a small town in Maine, McMorrow runs the local paper but when his photographer shows up dead in a canal near the town’s mill, McMorrow uncovers secrets about the photographer and the powerful in this town. McMorrow investigates when the local police appear to be doing nothing. It’s a wonderful first novel and I look forward to the other books in this series.
Reading it, I realized Boyle is a great writer and McMorrow is an outstanding creation. Set in a small town in Maine, McMorrow runs the local paper but when his photographer shows up dead in a canal near the town’s mill, McMorrow uncovers secrets about the photographer and the powerful in this town. McMorrow investigates when the local police appear to be doing nothing. It’s a wonderful first novel and I look forward to the other books in this series.
June 15, 2024
I just discovered this mystery series by Gerry Boyle and read this first book. (The Portland Press Herald recently featured his 30 year career writing 15
books about Jack McMorrow.) Jack has moved to a fictitious town of Androscoggin to be the editor of the Review, the weekly paper. He has lots of experience writing for big city papers and an eye for investigation.
It’s a gritty mill town with locals worried about their jobs and an economy based on men working in the forests and men driving big rigs loaded with logs.
The story begins when Arthur, the quirky loner photographer for the Review, is found murdered in a canal near the paper mill. I enjoyed it and now plan to read book two.
.
books about Jack McMorrow.) Jack has moved to a fictitious town of Androscoggin to be the editor of the Review, the weekly paper. He has lots of experience writing for big city papers and an eye for investigation.
It’s a gritty mill town with locals worried about their jobs and an economy based on men working in the forests and men driving big rigs loaded with logs.
The story begins when Arthur, the quirky loner photographer for the Review, is found murdered in a canal near the paper mill. I enjoyed it and now plan to read book two.
.
February 6, 2020
The ME says it's drowning with hypothermia, most likely accidental. But why was the insecure middle aged photographer from the newspaper even out there since he had no car and it was a decent walk from town? Jack believes that he is the only one snooping around and invested in the death of this small town photographer with no family ties. What happens next is very important.
Loved it!
I have the audio and Michael A Smith is the voice actor who brings Jack and the other characters to life and makes it hard to stop listening.
Loved it!
I have the audio and Michael A Smith is the voice actor who brings Jack and the other characters to life and makes it hard to stop listening.
April 8, 2020
This was a fun read. I probably shouldn't say that about a mystery that includes more than one murder and a significant amount of mayhem, but it just was. Perhaps it is the characters--the "relatively normal" and the quirky. Perhaps it is this small town and its paper. Hard to say. Of course I will do more reading in this series, if only to see if/how McMorrow manages to survive the trouble into which he gets himself.
July 1, 2020
In Gerry Boyle’s first novel, former New York Times reporter Jack McMorrow has moved to the secluded Maine town Androscoggin, whose economy is ruled by the local paper mill, to take over the local weekly newspaper. When a friendless, mediocre staff photographer is found drowned in the river, McMorrow turns sleuth while the local police drag their feet on the investigation. He soon finds himself the target of threats and intimidation as he probes into the secrets of the small town and finds more than he bargained for.
Having worked on a weekly newspaper myself, I can affirm that Boyle effectively captures its rhythms against the backdrop of a stark, rural landscape. With memorable characters and a gripping plot, “Deadline” keeps you guessing and on the edge of your seat. Five stars.
#book #reading #journalism #mystery #crimefiction #deadline
Having worked on a weekly newspaper myself, I can affirm that Boyle effectively captures its rhythms against the backdrop of a stark, rural landscape. With memorable characters and a gripping plot, “Deadline” keeps you guessing and on the edge of your seat. Five stars.
#book #reading #journalism #mystery #crimefiction #deadline
August 30, 2023
Very exciting, almost shotgun-like writing and dialogue make this book, the first in the series, an excellent way to spend your time. Taking place in Maine, in the coldest part of winter, newspaperman Jack McMorrow takes the death of the paper’s photographer seriously, even if the police don’t, or won’t. Plenty of action, romance, mystery and humor kept me so interested I am going to read book two next. Recommended!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 54 reviews