Archie Goodwin's Office: Nero Wolfe Speaking

by Sandy Lerner

It's 1978. Nero Wolfe, New York's 300-pound, epicurean genius detective has been dead for two years, leaving Archie holding the brownstone. In a post-Wolfe dystopia-with-a-sense-of-humor, Archie, Saul, Fritz and Cramer find themselves in the crosshairs of a worldwide criminal cartel.

In America, it's a time of Viet Nam, Watergate, free love, smallpox, the reserve clause, and cheap oil are all history. People are changing names, changing jobs, and changing sides. Aided and abetted by Roy Cohn, Richard Wragg, Dorothy Bruce, the Army, FBI, CIA and the Dutch police, will Saul and Archie live up to Wolfe's legacy?

Archie Goodwin's Office, Nero Wolfe Speaking is rife with answers and, sometimes, more questions. Did Wolfe really die of natural causes? How will Archie function in a world of hippies, goths, disco, the women's movement and word processors?

226 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 6, 2021

Reviews

[DMK · Rating 5 out of 5]

Archie’s voice literally came alive off the page for me! This isn’t just a sequel. It’s a hands down stand-alone winner. Especially, if you like mysteries, intrigue and smart dialogue like moi. This is your book! I cracked it open to kill time while waiting for my crappy delayed flight. Before I knew it. I got so engrossed! I almost forgot about boarding! Bravo Lerner!

[Stacey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was wavering between 3 and 4 stars - so I rounded up. What kept it from a 5? First off, it is NOT a mystery. There is a mystery present but there is very little detection and ultimately no solution. I am not sure if I was supposed to believe Annika's story at the end (and assume there is someone else behind the scenes) or not. Either way, whomever got away with a lot - although their organization was dealt as huge blow. I was actually ok with the feel that this is more a novel as I don't think Ms. Lerner is a mystery writer. It takes a very specialized skill to write a mystery. The book started strong and it fizzled somewhat as it went on. Partly this was due to editing issues. For example, in the beginning of the book she describes who is now in the Thursday night poker game. Later, maybe midway, she explains it again as if the reader had no idea. There were also some grammatical errors - words in the wrong order or even a word dropped now and then. A good editor would have/should have caught those. In fact, in the Meet the Author part, the same paragraph is repeated 3 times. Now, for the good. I thought she nailed Archie's voice. Whereas Rex Stout never aged his characters, Ms. Lerner definitely aged them and I thought they stayed true to how they would have aged. The best part? The opening - the death of Wolfe. I truly felt the loss and I loved that Cramer arrived immediately and cried. I loved that although Archie and Saul immediately started their own business together, it took 2 years for Archie to really sort through Wolfe's things. Also, that 2 years afterward, Archie still talked to Wolfe's chair. That said so much about the relationship between the 2.

[Arvin Yason · Rating 3 out of 5]

Moves all the characters forward but is that a good thing…

…and the ending was both too tidy and left a lot hanging…

I’ve been re-reading the Nero Wolfe collection over the pandemic and appreciated this effort for giving us a version of the post-Wolfe comings and goings at the Brownstone. I love the first half of the book for that and the author does a really great job at updating Archie, Saul, and others for the modern age. I appreciate the strong female empowerment dimension—the misogyny of the original books never really sat well with me. It was also great to see how Archie has learned not just to move with the times but also take a different approach to things in his (and Saul’s) way.

Unfortunately I found the last third of the book not as satisfying. It seems a lot of questions remain unanswered at the end, including the major whodunit. If you’re looking for the satisfaction of the core mystery being solved at the end—it was not there for me which was a big letdown. I don’t know whether the last scenes were meant to set up the anticipation for a sequel or the author was forced into closing the story “neatly”—either way the payoff was not there at the end.

[Arliss · Rating 1 out of 5]

I read seventy percent of Archie Goodwin's Office before I couldn't take it anymore. Author Sandy Lerner appears to have not really liked the original Nero Wolfe character or even Archie Goodwin, upon whom she bases this story. She even manages to toss Lily Rowan aside with a single line! Some books and authors are quite obviously of their time and Rex Stout was one of these. There are absolutely aspects of Stout's characters that are not politically correct, especially as this applies to women. Nevertheless, trying to pretzel Archie and company into a feminist diatribe is more than unfortunate. If this author wanted to write characters who believe as she does and are suited to the modern world, that's perfectly fine...but don't use the marketing boost one gets from an already deeply entrenched character to do it. It's disingenuous. Archie deserved better Ms. Lerner.

[Eli · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ms. Lerner does a great job picking up the Nero Wolfe gauntlet. She captures the personalities and the dialog perfectly (better, if I dare say so, than Goldsborough, whose characters sometimes sound like caricatures of the original).

Supplying the backstories of some of the characters is a nice touch as well, as is allowing them to age - something that Stout himself avoided.

On the downside, her handling of Lily Rowan doesn't really ring true. And the ending is contrived. We find out who the villain isn't but we never find out who he is!

All told, though, the book was an enjoyable and captivating read and hopefully the author will fill in the loose ends if she continues into a series, as I hope!

[Judd Freed · Rating 1 out of 5]

I read this based on the reviews here - and usually I agree or come close. Not this time. This is horrid. 0 stars isn’t allowed so it gets one.

Archie is portrayed as a misogynistic middle aged man of the 70s confronting his past behavior. Saul is a stereotype. Nero himself was actually disposed it seems.

Cramer is not the Cramer of old and the ridiculous attempt to bring in virtually every character from the past in a near desperate attempt to “update” them is - well, a failure.

Anyone who manages to write a book, see it through editing, and get it to press deserves accolades. I can’t do it. This author should not have.

[Carol M. · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was ok, but who was behind the crimes? If not Zeck, then?? Who killed Wolfe. Seems to me Archie and Saul would have looked high and low to find the culprit and not given up, especially since it wasn’t Zeck after all…. And there was far to much explanation! Action is better suited to an Archie dissertation for reporting.

These characters often did not ring true. 3 stars only because it was nice to have everyone back, but I will be pulling out Rex Stout’s version for the real thing. And an actual resolution!

[Shermeen Farid · Rating 1 out of 5]

A complete rewrite of history. Saul, Lily, Wolfe…. Just a horrible book. How in the world was the author able to use these characters? The author appeared to never have read a Wolfe book.

Mentioning Wolfe’s death, but never solving it? Archie wanting to get married? Who the heck is Edwina? This appears to be written by someon who either hated the original stories or wanted to promote their own agenda. What a disappointment.

[Lawanda Reed · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't like that he killed Wolfe

His writing is okay but he is trying to change the main character from Wolfe to Archie. Why couldn't they try to put Wolfe on a diet rather than killing him. Finally, I got tired of reading his explanation of his his attempts to update Wolfe. I quite reading. Maybe some people will like this but I don't.

[Michele bookloverforever · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hamilton Reviews

Many will consider this plot outrageous if not sacriligious. However, it I too believe that at least some of my favorite secondary characters should have happy futures.

[Dave Hogg · Rating 2 out of 5]

Odd direction to take

This book reads like a 1970s TV show about Archie's life in the Swingin' 70s. It doesn't try to read like Rex Stout, but I think at times it tries too hard not to sound like him.

[Barry Klayman · Rating 1 out of 5]

The book has a potentially good plot, but completely misses on the characters. Archie’s voice and humor are missing, and the ending is rushed and unsatisfying. Fans of Rex Stout or Goldsborough will be very disappointed.

[SheSwmz · Rating 1 out of 5]

Wish I could get back the time I wasted reading this!

[Karen McGrew · Rating 1 out of 5]

I can't believe that Rex Stout's estate would approve this misuse of the characters he created. Warning! The following requires a spoiler alert! After all the planning throughout the book, it is unbelievable that Archie and Saul would embark on a foolhardy unplanned mission and then just leave the murder of so prominent a personage unsolved with barely a regret mentioned.

[Jim]

"Archie Goodwin's Office, Nero Wolfe Speaking" is a blast. It is witty and well-paced, with interesting plot twists that are imaginative and clever, but not so over the top as to be absurd. The story is told from the perspective of Archie, with plenty of sardonic comments and observations, as he and his sidekick Saul attempt to solve a series of interrelated crimes after taking over for the now-deceased Nero Wolfe. Set in the late 1970s, there are numerous "Oh yeah, I remember that!" moments throughout the book, an added bonus. I found this well-written, affectionate spin on Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe hard to put down, and laughed a lot as I read it. Will it win a Pulitzer Prize?Probably not. Did I thoroughly enjoy the ride? Yes. Do I hope the author writes a sequel (or two)? Absolutely.

[Walter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tim Hutton’s office, Netflix calling! Reads like a screenplay!!

[Robert Stoney · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a good read! Set at the dawn of the digital revolution, Nero Wolfe’s protégé, Archie Goodwin, navigates a rapidly changing technological and cultural world with the blunt, staccato worldview of noir heroes of yesteryear. Wolfe has left a mysterious trail of breadcrumbs that leads Archie around the globe trying to identify the mastermind behind several seemingly unrelated criminal enterprises. Fast-paced and unerringly witty, I simply could not put the book down!

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you love Nero Wolfe, you will love "Archie Goodwin's Office: Nero Wolfe Speaking." If you haven't read any Rex Stout, you will still love this sequel by Sandy Lerner as she picks up the action two years after Nero's death. What a story she creates! It left me wanting more. Fans and newbies will both delight--The Goodwin Panzer Agency lives on!