Fletch Reflected

Fletch #11

by Gregory McDonald

When Fletch's newfound son, Jack, decides to help a former lover in distress, his kindness brings him trouble. Shana Staufel is about to marry the son of a multimillionaire, the eccentric inventor of the perfect mirror. But her prenuptial bliss is marred by fears that someone is trying to kill Chester Radliegh, her fiance's father. Jack agrees to go undercover to investigate and is drawn into a bizarre and increasingly deadly family drama. Jack's arrival is marked with an explosion in the research lab which instantly kills a scientist. Obviously the intended victim, Chester Radliegh is in serious danger. What Jack doesn't know is that the explosion is only the beginning of a killer's quest to murder the inventor. As things heat up, Jack learns there are more suspects than guests at the Radliegh estate. He also knows that if he isn't careful, he could be the next "accidental" fatality. As he runs out of solutions, Jack is left with one alternative. But "Dad," his last, best hope, is busy trying to help his son's mother recover from diet madness. With some misgivings, Fletch interrupts his worthy endeavor to help Jack out of another predicament, thrusting the duo back into action.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Audiobook, Humor, Crime, Detective, Thriller

224 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1994

Reviews

[Duffy Pratt · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not McDonald at his best. There are a few good moments here, but nothing like the hilarity of Confess, Fletch. This felt slight, even for a Fletch book, of a Fletch book as I remember them (I read them about 30+ years ago). And Fletch, as a character, here seems even more wooden than Chevy Chase made him out to be.

[Hans · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the last outing with Fletch…and his son. The Fletch series starts with back to back bangs--full-on 5-star books. The rest of the series provides a great ride along with Fletch and the crazy characters that he collected along the way.

The last few books were technically about his son Jack, but Fletch is the scene-stealer. The "mystery" here is secondary to Fletch and Jack working a few things out. It's a strong outing for the characters, but I wish there was one more outing with a richer main story line. Though, I can understand that it was time for McDonald to let Fletch say "Bye."

Do yourself a favor and go visit Fletch and Confess, Fletch. There is a good journey ahead (especially if you can push through Fletch's Fortune).

[Rebecca I · Rating 3 out of 5]

This Fletch book has a lot of characters to keep us guessing at who the murderer is. That is not a huge problem in the book. The most interesting things are the sub-plots. The first is that Fletch has a son. Other little issues are the motives of the characters living in a world/town created by an inventor who understands that people have a difficult time being content.

[John · Rating 2 out of 5]

There. Now I've finished the eleven Fletch's. Note to self: just because the first two in a series are brilliant doesn't mean the next nine will be. Love how they are non-sequential and dialogue driven, but the suspension of disbelief was burdensome.

[Paul Lyons · Rating 2 out of 5]

The final Gregory McDonald "Fletch" book is by no means his best, and thankfully not his worst. Though better than the previous novel, "Son of Fletch," this final chapter still ranks as a work of poor quality. Also unlike its predecessor, at least "Fletch Reflected" is readable, take that for what its worth. This only confirms what I had already felt, that Gregory McDonald lost interest in the Fletch books years ago, and from there forward only wrote what interested him at the time, and incorporated new Fletch books around that.

So, what DID appear to interest Gregory McDonald at the time of writing "Fletch Reflected"? Well, there was an interest in physics, the flawed nature of geniuses, and for reasons unknown, unusually talented teenage boxers whose supreme craft lay not in pugilistic endeavors but instead in memorizing poems at first listen, and reciting the poetry with a genius-level cadence and understanding. That's what the author wanted to write about...that, and sex.

Not feeling fully confident enough to give Jack Faoni, the illegitimate son of I.M. Fletcher ("Fletch"), his own novel, instead Gregory McDonald made Jack a major participant in the "Fletch Reflected" plot, imbuing Jack with essentially the same qualities as his father, minus the age, experience and wisdom...but WITH the women throwing themselves at him, and sneaking into his bed for some no-strings-attached sex. Great.

Unlike, say, the better Fletch novels, "Fletch Reflected" had no murder-mystery to solve, at least until the end, yet then again...not really. Jack finds himself working and investigating(?) a private kingdom in Georgia, controlled and operated by billionaire scientist Chester Radliegh, a genius who invented a mirror that present a truer image than past mirrors(??). Jack's ex-lover, Shana Staufel, called Jack and asked him to investigate the strange goings on at the enclosed Radliegh compound, and the attempts on Chester Radliegh's life.

Meanwhile, Jack's dad I.M. Fletcher goes on a roadtrip with Jack's morbidly obese mom, taking her to a boxing training camp in Wyoming in order for her to lose weight. Later on in the book, Fletch shows up at the Radliegh compound Jack's request, to help find out what is going on. In Jack's time working at the Radliegh compound, he discovers that all four of Chester Radliegh's children hate him, and wish him dead, and his pill-popping, alcoholic wife is too mentally messed up to care. One child is gay, and has been forced into a life (and future political career) that he did not want. Another child has been married three times, and borne seven children. One child is a drug using race car driver, and another, a petulant nymphomaniac. They all don't like Chester Radliegh, nor do any of his employees.

Despite several failed assassination attempts, and one attempt that cost the life of an innocent scientist working at a lab, the chill and relaxed Chester Radliegh is cool with it all. As Jack and his father soon discovered, Chester Radliegh is a delusional narcissist idiot, who fashioned a cloistered world for all of his friends and family to live by and with his strict rules, all of their own betterment. AND, Radliegh refuses to blame anyone for their assassination attempts, for he sees it just as growing pains from the young. Then, he dies. Was it a natural death? Who knows? Who cares?

So, "Fletch Reflected" is a book about a megalomaniac that no one liked, and every dependent wanted to get rid of, who dies out of nowhere, possibly of natural causes. Sound like a good read to you? Then get this. In the last quarter of the novel, the death Chester Radliegh immediately results in the ransacking of his cloistered compound, the explosive death of the a drug using race car driver child, the attempted murder of the nympho child, and the full-on murder of Radliegh's pill-popping, alcoholic wife. Before you can say "Whodunnit?"...the mystery was instantly solved. Having been in an affair with Chester Radliegh, horrified both his family and his surprising death, Shana Staufel went crazy and tried to kill one child, then later murdered Radliegh's pill-popping, alcoholic wife. Cut to: final scene between Fletch and Jack. The End.

Nope. Not good. Readable, bearable, perhaps. Yet, good? No way. "Good" would be the very first Fletch novel, or "Fletch and the Widow Bradley." Those were good books. "Fletch Reflected"?? Junk, at least by comparison. What a shame. Oh well, at least I got through it.

[Stewart · Rating 3 out of 5]

...and thus I completed the entire Fletch library. I even watched "Confess, Fletch!" during this mega-read, and it hewed pretty close to the book, actually.

I would say that this book ended the series on a fairly mediocre note. After reading all 11 books, I can say that I don't really get why Fletch has some sort of legendary status among pop culture aficionados. One great book (Fletch Won), one pretty good book (Fletch's Moxie), and the rest...throwaway fiction at best and awful at worst.

This last one splits time between Fletch and his son, giving us two middling stories and also letting us all know that the Fletchverse is in a parallel universe to our own where everyone has "Perfect Mirrors" which somehow show us exactly as we are instead of a reflection. And the loopy genius billionaire creator of the Perfect Mirror is what this story is mainly about.

Honestly, if you're looking for a cult mystery series where most of the books haven't aged well, you can do better. Like the Rabbi Small series, for one.

Skip it unless you really want to know how the series ends. Really, you should stop reading after Fletch Won, and don't say I didn't warn you.

[Edward Champion · Rating 3 out of 5]

So here we are at the last Fletch book, which is certainly much better than the books in the series that preceded it, but not without caveats. By building up the Fletch/Jack relationship, Mcdonald somehow resuscitates his witty dialogue. It was a smart move to have young Fletch and old Fletch show us who they are like this. The mystery itself, however, is extremely disappointing. This is not to suggest that the book doesn't work as a somewhat decent character study, with a few colorful side characters (such as Mortimer). However, the fatphobic jokes are completely gratuitous and not funny at all, serving only to make Crystal more of a caricature. I suspect that Mcdonald would have managed to get the Fletch & Son approach right if he had a few more books. But, alas, death was just around the corner. In the end, I think my favorite books in the series are the first three. And the first Flynn novel is a hoot too.

[Erik Prime · Rating 4 out of 5]

The eleventh (and final) book in the long-running series.

Fletch’s son Jack investigates strange doings at a lavish private compound owned by Chester Farliegh, the inventor of the “perfect mirror.” Numerous attempts have been made on the millionaire’s life, and all four of his children are suspects. Meanwhile Fletch is dealing with the medical issues of Jack’s morbidly obese mother Crystal. A fitting and satisfying end to the series.

MARITAL STATUS: still dating girlfriend Carrie.
SEXUAL LIAISONS: Two (Fletch’s son Jack with Alixis Radliegh and Shana Staufel).
NUMBER OF ALIASES: Zero.
NUMBER OF MURDERS: Two, plus many more attempts.
BEST RUNNING GAG: Fletch’s biography of American western artist Edgar Arthur Tharp, Junior is mentioned yet again.
RATING (OUT OF TEN): 7

[Daniel Beckwith · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm kinda over this series. I read the last 4 in a row in an effort just to get them off my phone.

none of the books were as good as the first, none of them had the hesitancy between fletch being a good guy or not. They just kinda ended up being a witty James bond type guy who cant actually fight... except sometimes he can.

i mean its good. and i'm sure old McDonald made a shit load of money. but its turned into a little bit better version of the jack reacher series.

although you can't have a witty ass character without actually being witty, and Mr. McDonald does hit that out of the park.... so pretty much i'm saying that its entertaining... not great amazing stuff, but entertaining without a doubt.
shit i went out and read 11 of them, they cant be that bad.

[Stephen Gilman · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wish Goodreads would let us give half-stars to books. This one is like the author was really getting into the story and the characters and then suddenly he realized he had a deadline to meet so he wrapped everything up in the penultimate chapter in the most abrupt, arbitrary, and unsatisfying way possible because if he didn’t turn the book in on time he wouldn’t get paid. So I wanted to give it four stars for the majority of the book, and then drop it down to three as punishment for the ending.

Seriously, the ending reminded me of how The Simpsons killed off Poochie, that’s how tacked-on it felt.

[Bobby Daugherty · Rating 3 out of 5]

The final Fletch novel. Not terrible. The first couple of books were the better ones but the character was likeable enough to follow through. It is the literary equivalent of a tv series. In this one Fletch hauls a 600 lb. woman to a boxing trainer to try to restore some semblance of health to her failed and useless life. The main focus is Jack (Son of Fletch) as he works at a family compound of a wealthy man to keep an eye on the patriarch. I think the fact that there is a patriarch and a few jokes about Fletch's fatty pig fatty friend that cause the bad reviews this book has gotten.

[Rodger Payne · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's meant to be funny, but I didn't find it more than mildly amusing. The story is very much a mess and the father/son Fletch characters are not really differentiated all that much. That may have been the point, but why? It's a quick read, but I'm not sure is was worth even that small amount of time.

Note: I read 9 of the Fletch books between 1985 and 1987, then the & Son book in 1996. This wraps up the series for me. Is the Flynn series better? I read one of those back in 1986 too -- my Dad had the paperbacks in his house, so they were handy.

[Hobart · Rating 3 out of 5]

So I was never going to get this (and 31 others) properly written up, so I posted quick, tweet-length thoughts about some things that have needed reviewed for far too long:
This is not the way the series should’ve ended. Some fantastic moments, but not sure it was worth it. Miller was solid as always.

[J · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ehhh, more like an attempt to do a classical mystery with more Jack and less Fletch, though he did arrive in time to save the day and solve the mystery. Jack seems like when Holmes would send Watson down to do the early legwork, observe, etc. Ditto Poirot and Captain Hastings. Would have been interesting to see where this went eventually.

[Jon · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found the writing, plotting and characterization all a bit thin, with the ending an unsatisfying jumble of sudden deaths and one character's sudden and implausible descent into insanity. It's a mildly diverting story, but there's not really much to it in the end.

[Catherine · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is #11 in the series. Not anywhere near as humorous or intriguing as the first book in the series, Fletch. Wish I could find books from the beginning of the series.

[Patrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

weird and wonderful just all the others

[Toni Rieder · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was ok. My husband is glad that I’m done reading these.

[Kimberly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fabulous series on audiobooks!!!!

[Bob Box · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read in 1995. I'd forgotten how long this series ran.

[Randall Yelverton · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Fletch Sr. half of the book is dreadful.

[Josh Newhouse · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was the weakest of the Fletch books not counting Carioca Fletch and Fletch, Too… it kind of peters off at the end and doesn’t so much end as coast…

[Andy Rausch · Rating 4 out of 5]

A mixed bag but entertaining overall. Crummy final two pages, but overall B+ material.

[Brighty · Rating 3 out of 5]

A somewhat abrupt end to what has been a great series.

[John Stanley · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent little Fletch story, entertaining enough, and I probably would have given it 4 stars if the ending had been a little stronger. Still, an enjoyable enough read.

[Shawn Deal · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun book. They are all fun. I ripped through this entire series. Read the last five books in 10 days. Page turners all of them.

[Andy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Kind of a lame finish to the series

[D F · Rating 3 out of 5]

Intersting and enjoyable story.
Wish there were more in the Fletch series to read.

[Jeff Mayo · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the eleventh and final Fletch book. However, in this one, his son takes center stage. Overall this was a mediocre series that went out with a whimper.

[Ray · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not good. Almost no delineation any of the characters most especially Fletch Sr and Jr,