To save his favorite newspaper, Nero 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.