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Fletch #8
Fletch Won
Young Irwin Maurice Fletcher, a.k.a. Fletch, the eager and inventive new reporter for the News-Tribune, is having a hard time finding his place at the newspaper. After a few "mishaps" writing questionable headlines and creatively worded obituaries, Managing Editor Frank Jaffe appoints Fletch to the society pages, where he's assigned to cover a generous yet surprising donation to an art museum from a high-powered defense attorney.
But before he can secure an interview, the attorney is shot dead in the newspaper's parking lot, no witnesses in sight. To Fletch's chagrin, the story is reassigned to the boorish lead investigative reporter Biff Wilson, and he's placed on a seemingly unrelated story, some society pages fluff piece about an all-women-trainers health club that's rumored to offer a lot of "extras."
Undeterred by Biff's threatening nature and determined to dig up the dirt on both stories, Fletch collects a cast of engaging characters and strings together the scandalous clues that lead to an eventful and unexpected conclusion.
But before he can secure an interview, the attorney is shot dead in the newspaper's parking lot, no witnesses in sight. To Fletch's chagrin, the story is reassigned to the boorish lead investigative reporter Biff Wilson, and he's placed on a seemingly unrelated story, some society pages fluff piece about an all-women-trainers health club that's rumored to offer a lot of "extras."
Undeterred by Biff's threatening nature and determined to dig up the dirt on both stories, Fletch collects a cast of engaging characters and strings together the scandalous clues that lead to an eventful and unexpected conclusion.
265 pages, Paperback
First published July 9, 1985
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687 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 126 reviews
March 3, 2013
Hang on a second. I gotta start listening to Harold Faltermeyer's soundtrack while I write this review.
Fletch Won is the eighth book in the series, but it’s a prequel to the original Fletch. Young Irwin M. Fletcher is a Vietnam veteran trying to become a sports reporter, but he’s been stuck writing obituaries and headlines for his newspaper. His irreverent attitude angers his editor and gets him assigned to a fluff story about a wealthy criminal lawyer donating $5 million to an art museum, but the attorney is killed in the newspaper’s parking garage before Fletch even meets him.
Despite Fletch insisting that he should get to cover it, the murder is given to the paper’s bullying crime reporter, and Fletch is given the task of infiltrating a whore house masquerading as a gym instead. However, Fletch keeps digging into the attorney’s life which annoys his fiancé who thinks he’ll get fired right before their wedding.
I noted in my review of Fletch that there’s a curious thing about the print and movie versions of the character. While Chevy Chase’s portrayal captured the smug smart-ass nature of Fletch, the film one was also more of a goofball with funny disguises and pratfalls. There’s sometimes an edgier meanness to Fletch in the books.
Which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, and there’s certainly no shortage of smart ass protagonists in crime fiction, but Fletch’s tone frequently makes him seem like kind of a asshole and puts him far down the list of my favorite fictional sleuths.
Fletch Won is the eighth book in the series, but it’s a prequel to the original Fletch. Young Irwin M. Fletcher is a Vietnam veteran trying to become a sports reporter, but he’s been stuck writing obituaries and headlines for his newspaper. His irreverent attitude angers his editor and gets him assigned to a fluff story about a wealthy criminal lawyer donating $5 million to an art museum, but the attorney is killed in the newspaper’s parking garage before Fletch even meets him.
Despite Fletch insisting that he should get to cover it, the murder is given to the paper’s bullying crime reporter, and Fletch is given the task of infiltrating a whore house masquerading as a gym instead. However, Fletch keeps digging into the attorney’s life which annoys his fiancé who thinks he’ll get fired right before their wedding.
I noted in my review of Fletch that there’s a curious thing about the print and movie versions of the character. While Chevy Chase’s portrayal captured the smug smart-ass nature of Fletch, the film one was also more of a goofball with funny disguises and pratfalls. There’s sometimes an edgier meanness to Fletch in the books.
Which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, and there’s certainly no shortage of smart ass protagonists in crime fiction, but Fletch’s tone frequently makes him seem like kind of a asshole and puts him far down the list of my favorite fictional sleuths.
January 26, 2024
The eighth published Fletch novel is a prequel chronicling Fletch's first real scoop as a young reporter just starting out. The story is essentially a murder investigation that also sees the smug, irreverent, wise cracking Fletch go undercover inside a prostitution ring. His keys to success seem to be a total disregard for authority and a willingness to shamelessly humiliate himself. McDonald strikes a nice balance between plentiful madcap action and hijinks and what turns out to be a solid mystery with some weighty elements and seriously shady characters.
August 31, 2018
Back to the publication order re-read of the Fletch novels. It took a while to restart after the dreadful Carioca, Fletch, but this is back on form. Sparkling dialogue, fast pace and witty repartee.
A welcome return to form.
A welcome return to form.
November 1, 2014
My introduction to Gregory McDonald began with Fletch Won, the eighth mystery featuring wise guy newspaper reporter I.M. Fletcher. Published in 1985, the novel is actually a prequel chronicling Fletch as he chases down his first big story. Having grown up watching the movie Fletch (which was based on the 1974 novel of the same name), I couldn't get the voice or attitude of Chevy Chase out of my head while reading this book, which does recall certain plot elements from the film while at the same time, feels light in the loafers.
Fletch is introduced his third month on staff at the News Tribune. His editor, the acerbic Frank Jaffe, started Fletch off writing headlines, but after submissions like WESTERN CAN CO. SITS ON ITS ASSETS, shifted him to obituaries. Fletch's habit of digging for the truth resulted in more unprintable work. Begging to cover sports, Fletch is instead assigned to the society beat and given a piece on Donald Habeck, a defense attorney who's due to announce a donation of $5 million to a local museum.
Before Fletch can meet the philanthropist, Donald Habeck is shot and killed in the News Tribune parking lot. The paper's crime reporter Biff Wilson has jurisdiction over the story, but Fletch begins digging, provoked by his colleague's want of investigative skills and lazy determination that this was a gangland execution. Fletch beats both Wilson and plainclothes cop Lt. Gomez to Habeck's home, where Fletch is coaxed into the swimming pool by a strange old bird who claims to be Mrs. Habeck. Later, the gardener informs Fletch that he's never seen the woman before.
Because this is a mystery novel, Fletch is assigned what at the time appears to be a totally unrelated case, that of the Ben Franklyn Friend Service, an escort company that managed to wiggle its way into free advertising in the News Tribune under Frank Jaffe's watch. Fletch is mortified at being asked to go undercover at an escort service because he's to be married on Saturday. His fiancee Barbara works at a flower shop and while giving the sarcastic journalist his space, is busy making big plans for their future.
The chief reason to read Gregory McDonald is his dialogue, which races by often without character names serving as speed bumps.
"Messages for you," said the resource desk's Mary over the car phone. "Someone named Barbara called. Sounds like a personal message."
"Yes?"
"We're not supposed to take too many personal messages, you know."
"Ah, come on, Mary. Be a sport." Fletch's hunger, the morning's heat, the bright sunlight, made his eyes and head ache.
"Message is, 'Did you eat all the pizza yourself? All is forgiven. Please phone.'"
The reference to pizza made his tum-tum beat a tom-tom.
"Well?" Mary asked.
"Well what?"
"Did you eat all the pizza yourself?"
"Mary, that's a personal question. No personal questions, please."
"You did. I think you ate the pizza yourself. There's nothing worse than expecting someone to bring you a pizza and that someone eats it all himself."
Being a fan of the Chevy Chase film, I wasn't surprised that Fletch comes on like a major league smart ass. When confronting cops or solving the mystery, the character's prep school wit hit home. At other times, it becomes repetitive. I often wondered why Fletch bothered going into journalism, with its monotonous typewriter component, when he'd seem much more comfortable, and maybe meet more women, bagging groceries at Trader Joe's.
I was surprised by how chaste the character was. This is a very lighthearted, PG-13 romp with no sex or violence. Fletch's ears turn positively red at the prospect of having to go near an escort service and he's strictly hands off when it comes to being alone with his fiancee. I got the impression that McDonald might blush if a young woman smiled at him at a church picnic. It wasn't a bad choice but a bewildering one that caught me off guard.
One of the things that disappointed me about Fletch Won is how every character sounds alike, slipping into the same banter as Fletch in order to navigate a conversation with him. In McDonald's world, everybody's got a comeback. It's a little too cute.
Fletch's fiancee Barbara has got to be one of the most useless characters I've ever come across and in fact, none of the female characters in the book stood out much (McDonald's church picnic inclinations finally hamstring his fiction, I think).
The novel has no sense of place, no atmosphere. The newspapers are fictitious, landmarks non-existent and I'm positive that the words "Los Angeles" were never mentioned. It gives the book a very bland feel.
I guess whether or not McDonald is to your liking comes down to whether you're in the mood for a detective mystery that slams you through a wall and features all sorts of lurid detail, or is a lark, almost a joke book. At 264 pages, I shot through this paperback in three days, so it is a light, effortless read. It's not a bad novel, but one I can barely recommend. Based on what I found here, I doubt I'll be returning to Fletch again.
Fletch is introduced his third month on staff at the News Tribune. His editor, the acerbic Frank Jaffe, started Fletch off writing headlines, but after submissions like WESTERN CAN CO. SITS ON ITS ASSETS, shifted him to obituaries. Fletch's habit of digging for the truth resulted in more unprintable work. Begging to cover sports, Fletch is instead assigned to the society beat and given a piece on Donald Habeck, a defense attorney who's due to announce a donation of $5 million to a local museum.
Before Fletch can meet the philanthropist, Donald Habeck is shot and killed in the News Tribune parking lot. The paper's crime reporter Biff Wilson has jurisdiction over the story, but Fletch begins digging, provoked by his colleague's want of investigative skills and lazy determination that this was a gangland execution. Fletch beats both Wilson and plainclothes cop Lt. Gomez to Habeck's home, where Fletch is coaxed into the swimming pool by a strange old bird who claims to be Mrs. Habeck. Later, the gardener informs Fletch that he's never seen the woman before.
Because this is a mystery novel, Fletch is assigned what at the time appears to be a totally unrelated case, that of the Ben Franklyn Friend Service, an escort company that managed to wiggle its way into free advertising in the News Tribune under Frank Jaffe's watch. Fletch is mortified at being asked to go undercover at an escort service because he's to be married on Saturday. His fiancee Barbara works at a flower shop and while giving the sarcastic journalist his space, is busy making big plans for their future.
The chief reason to read Gregory McDonald is his dialogue, which races by often without character names serving as speed bumps.
"Messages for you," said the resource desk's Mary over the car phone. "Someone named Barbara called. Sounds like a personal message."
"Yes?"
"We're not supposed to take too many personal messages, you know."
"Ah, come on, Mary. Be a sport." Fletch's hunger, the morning's heat, the bright sunlight, made his eyes and head ache.
"Message is, 'Did you eat all the pizza yourself? All is forgiven. Please phone.'"
The reference to pizza made his tum-tum beat a tom-tom.
"Well?" Mary asked.
"Well what?"
"Did you eat all the pizza yourself?"
"Mary, that's a personal question. No personal questions, please."
"You did. I think you ate the pizza yourself. There's nothing worse than expecting someone to bring you a pizza and that someone eats it all himself."
Being a fan of the Chevy Chase film, I wasn't surprised that Fletch comes on like a major league smart ass. When confronting cops or solving the mystery, the character's prep school wit hit home. At other times, it becomes repetitive. I often wondered why Fletch bothered going into journalism, with its monotonous typewriter component, when he'd seem much more comfortable, and maybe meet more women, bagging groceries at Trader Joe's.
I was surprised by how chaste the character was. This is a very lighthearted, PG-13 romp with no sex or violence. Fletch's ears turn positively red at the prospect of having to go near an escort service and he's strictly hands off when it comes to being alone with his fiancee. I got the impression that McDonald might blush if a young woman smiled at him at a church picnic. It wasn't a bad choice but a bewildering one that caught me off guard.
One of the things that disappointed me about Fletch Won is how every character sounds alike, slipping into the same banter as Fletch in order to navigate a conversation with him. In McDonald's world, everybody's got a comeback. It's a little too cute.
Fletch's fiancee Barbara has got to be one of the most useless characters I've ever come across and in fact, none of the female characters in the book stood out much (McDonald's church picnic inclinations finally hamstring his fiction, I think).
The novel has no sense of place, no atmosphere. The newspapers are fictitious, landmarks non-existent and I'm positive that the words "Los Angeles" were never mentioned. It gives the book a very bland feel.
I guess whether or not McDonald is to your liking comes down to whether you're in the mood for a detective mystery that slams you through a wall and features all sorts of lurid detail, or is a lark, almost a joke book. At 264 pages, I shot through this paperback in three days, so it is a light, effortless read. It's not a bad novel, but one I can barely recommend. Based on what I found here, I doubt I'll be returning to Fletch again.
September 21, 2020
Fletch Won is the first (chronologically), in the series, whilst being the eighth book to be published (Don't you just love prequels? (insert sarcastic wink here)). The first chapter introduces us to the wise-cracking, rookie reporter being assigned to interview a lawyer who is donating $5M to an art museum. This same lawyer is found "shot dead" (the only thing "shot live" used to be sit-com's) in the newspaper's parking lot. The fun begins when Fletch is held at gunpoint in a liquor store for asking directions and then is conned out of his bourbon-soaked clothes by a woman claiming to be the dead man's wife.
The literal riot at the end makes Fletch Won well worth reading.
The literal riot at the end makes Fletch Won well worth reading.
Read
March 9, 2023forgot to review the 1st one last summer but i remember it was like a puzzle box where everything snapped into place @ the end w/ an almost audible *click.* this one was brilliantly scathing on the topic of greedy law firms but it didn't go *click.* those *clicks* are rare, man... you gotta cherish them
August 27, 2020
Another amusing little Fletch farce!
June 24, 2024
Back on track. After the first six Fletch books, which ranged from "I liked" to "I loved", the seventh just disappointed me completely. Now, the eighth in the series is a return to form, but only in the "liked" category. #8 can be considered a prequel, as all the events happen prior to the other books, and flesh out his background that is referenced throughout those. He's a rookie journalist in this one, and manages to stay ahead of his competition at his newspaper to solve a murder that just happens to occur in their own parking lot!
January 16, 2009
Well, let me think; where to start? Ye gods.
This story, a sequel, or more accurately, a prequel, chronicles the start of investigative journalist Irwin M. Fletcher's career.
Marked by quick wit and a dizzying blur of action, thought, and some seemingly unrelated events that somehow puzzle themselves out yet keep the reader guessing I have to say; I'm glad I picked it up, and I'm glad I can finally put it down. The author really sells you on the details and backgrounds, adding things purely for flavor that enhanced the story in ways I'd not have thought of until you sit back to play the whole story through in your mind.
Definitely more cerebral than many modern day stories. I enjoyed it.
This story, a sequel, or more accurately, a prequel, chronicles the start of investigative journalist Irwin M. Fletcher's career.
Marked by quick wit and a dizzying blur of action, thought, and some seemingly unrelated events that somehow puzzle themselves out yet keep the reader guessing I have to say; I'm glad I picked it up, and I'm glad I can finally put it down. The author really sells you on the details and backgrounds, adding things purely for flavor that enhanced the story in ways I'd not have thought of until you sit back to play the whole story through in your mind.
Definitely more cerebral than many modern day stories. I enjoyed it.
August 9, 2019
★ ★ ★ 1/2 (rounded up)
This originally appeared at The Irresponsible Reader.
---
This is chronologically the first Fletch novel, he's a rookie reporter, who's been bounced around from headline writer, to obituaries, to wedding announcements, and is finally sent to the Society pages—with a warning. Fit in, and don't make any trouble or he'll be unemployed. His first assignment is to meet with an attorney, Donald Habeck, in the publisher's office to discuss a major donation he'll be making to a local museum and do a puff piece about it. Fletch objects, wanting to do real news—the kind of stuff he'll later be known for. His editor (Frank Jaffe, a name known to those who've read Fletch and Fletch and the Widow Bradley) refuses, insisting that this is his assignment—and maybe later he'll get a chance to do something else.
There's a catch—Habeck is murdered in the newspaper's parking lot on his way to this meeting. Fletch jumps on the opportunity to report on this, but the senior crime reporter shoos him off (and Jaffe). Fletch tries to exercise squatter's rights, but no one is having any of it. Naturally, this means that Fletch will ignore this and will investigate the murder on his own—and typically is a few steps ahead of both the police and the senior crime writer.
In the meantime, he has to do his actual job (at least until he has something he can print). There's another story they want Fletch to work on, there's a local "escort service" parading itself as a fitness establishment—Jaffe insists that Fletch do an expose about them. To stay employed, Fletch agrees—but threatens the most detailed and explicit expense report ever. This isn't a story that appeals to Fletch—I don't think he cares too much if this service is just close to prostitution, or if it's the actual thing—and he has better things to do with his time. Also, he's about to get married, the last thing his fiancé is going to want is him hanging around a brothel all day.
The opening chapter is a hoot. As are several of the encounters Fletch has with the members of Donald Habeck's family (particularly his wife)—and Alston Chambers never fails to be amusing. The escort service story is fun, and ends up being the kind of thing that Fletch can write about—but its main purpose is to give Mcdonald an opportunity to opine on our cultural obsession with beauty, health, and so on, while causing problems for Fletch's personal life. There's not a lot of meat to this story, but there's a lot of fun. On the other hand, the murder investigation is great and vintage Fletch. It's the best part of the book (as a mystery novel, I guess it should be, right?)
All in all, a decent Fletch novel—full of interesting characters, a nice twist, Fletch bucking all sorts of authority (police, veteran reporters, Frank Jaffee), and more than a few amusing situations. It works as an origin story, how did he become the sort of reporter we know, etc. As I mentioned earlier, we even see young Alston Chambers -- just starting as an associate in a powerful law firm. But—and this is a big but— this places Fletch at the newspaper we know he ends his newspaper career with as a rookie, as a man about to be married (for the first time). We know there's not a lot of time between the end of his first marriage and Fletch, but there's some. Enough for a second marriage and the Window Bradley events, but not much more. What there isn't time for is the past referred to in Confess, Fletch, Fletch's Fortune and even hinted at in The Man Who -- and the first two of those depend on Fletch's history to work. Unless we're to believe that his wives let him leave the state, work in a variety of other papers, developing a Fletchian reputation, move back to the same paper he started his career in (with the same senior editor), and then hit him up for alimony and still be carrying a torch for him. It stretches credulity a bit too much for me to stomach. The next book, Fletch, Too, doesn't help things.
Does that ruin Fletch Won for me? Not totally, but that alone keeps it out of my personal top-tier Fletch novels and rank it slightly above The Widow Bradley (only for the chuckles it gives me). Clearly, McDonald isn't as picky about this sort of thing as many of his readers are, but man, that rankles. Still, it's fun, it features entertaining characters— some odd poetry—and enough Fletchisms to keep you happy. It's a good time, and if you ignore what it suggests about the rest of the series, you should have a good time.
This originally appeared at The Irresponsible Reader.
---
This is chronologically the first Fletch novel, he's a rookie reporter, who's been bounced around from headline writer, to obituaries, to wedding announcements, and is finally sent to the Society pages—with a warning. Fit in, and don't make any trouble or he'll be unemployed. His first assignment is to meet with an attorney, Donald Habeck, in the publisher's office to discuss a major donation he'll be making to a local museum and do a puff piece about it. Fletch objects, wanting to do real news—the kind of stuff he'll later be known for. His editor (Frank Jaffe, a name known to those who've read Fletch and Fletch and the Widow Bradley) refuses, insisting that this is his assignment—and maybe later he'll get a chance to do something else.
There's a catch—Habeck is murdered in the newspaper's parking lot on his way to this meeting. Fletch jumps on the opportunity to report on this, but the senior crime reporter shoos him off (and Jaffe). Fletch tries to exercise squatter's rights, but no one is having any of it. Naturally, this means that Fletch will ignore this and will investigate the murder on his own—and typically is a few steps ahead of both the police and the senior crime writer.
In the meantime, he has to do his actual job (at least until he has something he can print). There's another story they want Fletch to work on, there's a local "escort service" parading itself as a fitness establishment—Jaffe insists that Fletch do an expose about them. To stay employed, Fletch agrees—but threatens the most detailed and explicit expense report ever. This isn't a story that appeals to Fletch—I don't think he cares too much if this service is just close to prostitution, or if it's the actual thing—and he has better things to do with his time. Also, he's about to get married, the last thing his fiancé is going to want is him hanging around a brothel all day.
The opening chapter is a hoot. As are several of the encounters Fletch has with the members of Donald Habeck's family (particularly his wife)—and Alston Chambers never fails to be amusing. The escort service story is fun, and ends up being the kind of thing that Fletch can write about—but its main purpose is to give Mcdonald an opportunity to opine on our cultural obsession with beauty, health, and so on, while causing problems for Fletch's personal life. There's not a lot of meat to this story, but there's a lot of fun. On the other hand, the murder investigation is great and vintage Fletch. It's the best part of the book (as a mystery novel, I guess it should be, right?)
All in all, a decent Fletch novel—full of interesting characters, a nice twist, Fletch bucking all sorts of authority (police, veteran reporters, Frank Jaffee), and more than a few amusing situations. It works as an origin story, how did he become the sort of reporter we know, etc. As I mentioned earlier, we even see young Alston Chambers -- just starting as an associate in a powerful law firm. But—and this is a big but— this places Fletch at the newspaper we know he ends his newspaper career with as a rookie, as a man about to be married (for the first time). We know there's not a lot of time between the end of his first marriage and Fletch, but there's some. Enough for a second marriage and the Window Bradley events, but not much more. What there isn't time for is the past referred to in Confess, Fletch, Fletch's Fortune and even hinted at in The Man Who -- and the first two of those depend on Fletch's history to work. Unless we're to believe that his wives let him leave the state, work in a variety of other papers, developing a Fletchian reputation, move back to the same paper he started his career in (with the same senior editor), and then hit him up for alimony and still be carrying a torch for him. It stretches credulity a bit too much for me to stomach. The next book, Fletch, Too, doesn't help things.
Does that ruin Fletch Won for me? Not totally, but that alone keeps it out of my personal top-tier Fletch novels and rank it slightly above The Widow Bradley (only for the chuckles it gives me). Clearly, McDonald isn't as picky about this sort of thing as many of his readers are, but man, that rankles. Still, it's fun, it features entertaining characters— some odd poetry—and enough Fletchisms to keep you happy. It's a good time, and if you ignore what it suggests about the rest of the series, you should have a good time.
March 13, 2024
I was a bit confused because I read this after I read the one that comes chronologically next after this one just before reading this one. The next one (Fletch Too) covers his honeymoon, which turns into a trip to Africa to meet his once-dead father. This covers the days leading up to the wedding as Fletch is assigned his first big story. His career is just barely starting out but his wise-cracking mouth can't keep him out of trouble so he ends up getting moved around until he ends up in the society pages. He is assigned a story that turns into a non-story when the guy he's supposed to interview ends up dead in the parking lot just before they're supposed to meet. Naturally he doesn't listen to anyone and tries to pursue the story both against his boss' orders as well as the other reporter who is assigned to the murder. As you can imagine, he ends up many places he's not supposed to, even while he's supposed to be preparing for his wedding, which includes meeting his future mother-in-law and showing up for wedding meetings, which Barbara ends up having to handle. Like the other book, I feel like Barbara was a fill-in character, because her real personality never really fully developed.
Overall, I'm only finding these books okay. They're somewhat entertaining, but you don't really end up connecting to any of the characters. While I prefer character-driving books, I do love a book when there is a strong plot and great scenes. While there are entertaining scenes to be sure, the plot of these books (of the three I've read) seems to meander around and by the end, I'm still not sure if there was a point.
Overall, I'm only finding these books okay. They're somewhat entertaining, but you don't really end up connecting to any of the characters. While I prefer character-driving books, I do love a book when there is a strong plot and great scenes. While there are entertaining scenes to be sure, the plot of these books (of the three I've read) seems to meander around and by the end, I'm still not sure if there was a point.
July 27, 2020
Heerlijk om Fletch weer tegen het lijf te lopen! Nadat ik het eerste boek 'Fletch' een achttal jaar geleden las (een ontdekking uit mijn speurtocht naar cultboeken) bleek het nadien uitverkocht en sindsdien nergens meer beschikbaar. Onlangs ontdekten we tweedehands een aantal oude pockets uit de reeks, die we met gretige leeshonger aankochten en kijk: dat hebben we ons niet berouwd.
We lezen de boeken nu in chronologische volgorde van het verhaal, hoewel McDonald ze niet in die volgorde schreef (ook altijd een dilemma, me dunkt. cfr: Kijk je de Star Wars films zoals ze verschenen zijn of in volgorde van het verhaal?).
Enfin, het was een blij weerzien met Irwin Fletcher, reporter van de News-Tribune, rad van tong en lefgozer pur sang. Fletcher bevindt zich - gewild of ongewild - steeds ten midden van de actie, weet met zijn nonchalance, sociale vaardigheid en (soms zwart) gevoel voor humor de meesten rondom hem (lezer incluis!) voor zich te winnen, of geneert zich niet om keihard te botsen met zijn omgeving als ze hem niet aanstaan.
De stijl die Gregory McDonald hanteert is razendsnel met heel wat flitsende dialogen en alleen korte beschrijvingen waar nodig. De strakke, snelle verhaallijn en de spanning tussen de karakters zorgen voor veel leesplezier en de dialogen van McDonald (vooral de antwoorden van Fletch zelve) zitten vol humor. U ziet het zelden, maar achter een boek van Fletcher zie je me regelmatig met een brede glimlach zitten.
Heerlijk leesvoer!
We lezen de boeken nu in chronologische volgorde van het verhaal, hoewel McDonald ze niet in die volgorde schreef (ook altijd een dilemma, me dunkt. cfr: Kijk je de Star Wars films zoals ze verschenen zijn of in volgorde van het verhaal?).
Enfin, het was een blij weerzien met Irwin Fletcher, reporter van de News-Tribune, rad van tong en lefgozer pur sang. Fletcher bevindt zich - gewild of ongewild - steeds ten midden van de actie, weet met zijn nonchalance, sociale vaardigheid en (soms zwart) gevoel voor humor de meesten rondom hem (lezer incluis!) voor zich te winnen, of geneert zich niet om keihard te botsen met zijn omgeving als ze hem niet aanstaan.
De stijl die Gregory McDonald hanteert is razendsnel met heel wat flitsende dialogen en alleen korte beschrijvingen waar nodig. De strakke, snelle verhaallijn en de spanning tussen de karakters zorgen voor veel leesplezier en de dialogen van McDonald (vooral de antwoorden van Fletch zelve) zitten vol humor. U ziet het zelden, maar achter een boek van Fletcher zie je me regelmatig met een brede glimlach zitten.
Heerlijk leesvoer!
July 26, 2017
Fletch Won is a return to the comedic cornball goofiness of the early Fletch books. This one chronologically has a young Fletch as a reporter about to get married. Along the way to the alter, he skinny dips in dead men's pools, applies for a job as a male prostitute, embarks on a unique weight training program, hands his clothes to an old lady who skeedaddles with them, visits a monastery, tackles a display of bourbon - but not top shelf bourbon, runs a foot race, and is arrested for ordering pizza. This book really delves into the life of a young struggling reporter, explores why people donate millions of dollars, and looks at dysfunctional families. It works in all its cornball buffoonery.
September 28, 2022
First in the chronological order of Fletch stories, but probably best if read after the first published story.
By this point, Mcdonald had really perfected his writing in the Fletch vein. At times, this reads almost like a movie script - it's very cinematic. Still not high literature, by any means, but a rollicking good read!
By this point, Mcdonald had really perfected his writing in the Fletch vein. At times, this reads almost like a movie script - it's very cinematic. Still not high literature, by any means, but a rollicking good read!
December 6, 2017
Fletch is loosing its steam as we move through the series.
September 9, 2022
Some very detailed sexual scenes. Humor and a well plotted story help save the interest in the storyline. Well narrated. Like the author’s other series more.
October 17, 2024
Super entertaining, witty and breezy mystery.
October 1, 2025
First one was weird but fun. Kind of done with this character now lol.
February 16, 2014
I loved this story, i laughed through many parts of this book just visualizing the ridiculous crap Fletch endures. The dialogue was well written and the sarcasm between the characters was enough for me to continue reading just to see what witty comments they'd throw at each other. I couldn't get the image of Chevy Chase out of my head though.. he played that character so well in the movie that no matter how they describe Fletch you still see Chevy. I loved this book and i plan on collecting the whole series.
March 13, 2014
I watched my Fletch VHS obsessively when I was younger and vaguely recall reading the book. It's been decades, though. Decided to read this book when I heard it was a prequel. I was hoping it was an origin story of sorts. Not so much. It was Fletch's first "case" for the newspaper, though. And it was thoroughly entertaining - for a guy who grew up obsessively watching the film. All Fletch dialog was heard in my brain as Chevy Chase speaking. The synth soundtrack was on a constant loop in my head. It was a blast. I will probably go back and read through the series.
July 19, 2014
4.5 Stars - McDonald continues the series of Fletch novels by turning to the story of Fletch's first big break. As in the other books in the series, the pleasure is in watching Irwin Maurice Fletcher make the journey…the actual solution to the mystery doesn't really matter. My only complaint is that when McDonald gives Fletch's coworker the name Biff, he clearly telegraphs that the guy is going to be a heel. I can't think of a book or movie from the 1980s that had a sympathetic character named Biff.
November 16, 2020
I love this series. I decided to re-read them in chronological order vs publication order. I am sure many folks are familiar with the Fletch movies starring Chevy Chase, but I would challenge you to also pick up the books as well. As with most things the book is always better. In the Fletch series it is not that they are so much better, but there is just so much subtle humor that is lost on the big screen. I am looking forward to reading them all again.
August 27, 2007
The Origin of Fletch.
I love it.
I love it.
February 18, 2008
This was pretty alright - funny, noirish, 90% dialog. I have a suspicious that I will like the first Fletch book more. This book has made me want to read the first Fletch book.
August 19, 2021
After seeing both Fletch films, it was fun coming across the source material, in this case, the 8th Fletch book. Only seeing the movies, I wondered what the books could possibly be like, as Chevy Chase had so perfectly portrayed Fletch, that I wondered, in an unusual twist, if the books would do the movie justice!
Fletch Won, is actually a prequel, showing our hero’s beginnings with the newspaper business and his exasperated boss Frank. A prominent defense attorney is to meet Fletch for a story on how he intends to donate $5m to a local art museum. Fletch is assigned the ho hum story, and off we go. But before the attorney can tell Fletch his story, he is murdered in the garage of Fletch’s newspaper.
Fletch snoops around, after being pulled from the story, in favor of star crime reporter Biff Wilson.
Fletch is the same smart ass we know from the movies, and he works to solve the crime before the cops can throw him in jail on trumped up charges. (Sound familiar?) Two issues with the book. First, almost every character is too smart alecky for my taste. Almost every conversation in the book is written like a comedy routine. Second, the ending is way too rushed, and did not feel organic. That being said, the characters that do shine, are really given some excellent dialogue. The murdered man’s wife and son really give the reader a lot to chew on philosophically, though I won’t go into detail as not to spoil anything, suffice to say, they are the crux of the story in many ways.
I’d like to read the first Fletch book, to see where it all began. I’m sure I’ll enjoy it. That being said, this was a decent introduction to the series for me.
Fletch Won, is actually a prequel, showing our hero’s beginnings with the newspaper business and his exasperated boss Frank. A prominent defense attorney is to meet Fletch for a story on how he intends to donate $5m to a local art museum. Fletch is assigned the ho hum story, and off we go. But before the attorney can tell Fletch his story, he is murdered in the garage of Fletch’s newspaper.
Fletch snoops around, after being pulled from the story, in favor of star crime reporter Biff Wilson.
Fletch is the same smart ass we know from the movies, and he works to solve the crime before the cops can throw him in jail on trumped up charges. (Sound familiar?) Two issues with the book. First, almost every character is too smart alecky for my taste. Almost every conversation in the book is written like a comedy routine. Second, the ending is way too rushed, and did not feel organic. That being said, the characters that do shine, are really given some excellent dialogue. The murdered man’s wife and son really give the reader a lot to chew on philosophically, though I won’t go into detail as not to spoil anything, suffice to say, they are the crux of the story in many ways.
I’d like to read the first Fletch book, to see where it all began. I’m sure I’ll enjoy it. That being said, this was a decent introduction to the series for me.
November 14, 2022
This might be the last Gregory McDonald "Fletch" book I read. What started as a fun lark has turned into an exercise of boredom and frustration. Felt as it the author was attempting a return to form, with an origin story involving Irwin Maurice Fletcher's early days as a journalist, solving his first murder-mystery. Yet "Fletch Won" involves the Case of Who Cares, and Why Bother?
Throughout the experience of reading "Fletch Won," I found myself bored, and disengaged from Gregory McDonald's tepid tale of Fletch trying to solve the murder of a ruthless, unloved yet highly successful defense attorney, and also assigned to bust the lid open on a whorehouse/blackmail ring. Fletch is about to be married to his first wife Barbara, who he does not seem to love so much, and there's an evil, cantankerous veteran reporter named Biff Wilson who later wants to set-up Fletch as a drug dealer and thrown in jail rather than have Fletch get in his way.
Blah Blah Blah, Fletch wears uncomfortable, ill-fitting clothing, and later interviews a just-released-from-prison obese child molester who protests his well-intentioned molestations as an act of love. CUT TO: a police station breakout that makes no sense, and later:a horribly constructed and completely nonsensical and highly unsatisfying finale that made the otherwise mediocre novel far worse than it ever was. This book sucked. What a bummer.
Throughout the experience of reading "Fletch Won," I found myself bored, and disengaged from Gregory McDonald's tepid tale of Fletch trying to solve the murder of a ruthless, unloved yet highly successful defense attorney, and also assigned to bust the lid open on a whorehouse/blackmail ring. Fletch is about to be married to his first wife Barbara, who he does not seem to love so much, and there's an evil, cantankerous veteran reporter named Biff Wilson who later wants to set-up Fletch as a drug dealer and thrown in jail rather than have Fletch get in his way.
Blah Blah Blah, Fletch wears uncomfortable, ill-fitting clothing, and later interviews a just-released-from-prison obese child molester who protests his well-intentioned molestations as an act of love. CUT TO: a police station breakout that makes no sense, and later:a horribly constructed and completely nonsensical and highly unsatisfying finale that made the otherwise mediocre novel far worse than it ever was. This book sucked. What a bummer.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 13, 2018
While this is the eighth (I believe) book of Gregory McDonald's Fletch series, chronologically it's the first book, telling the tale of I.M. Fletcher's (Fletch) early days of his newspaper career and the first case Fletch solved The story moves at a quick, smooth pace and the mystery itself is serviceable.
McDonald's style was to lean heavily on dialogue to tell his stories and move the plot along. Generally, this technique works quite well, especially since the dialogues tend to be quite clever and witty.
However, since the first Fletch novel was published in 1974, I think it's safe to assume "Fletch Won" is set in the late '60s, early '70s. However, since we get mentions of video taped and cars having phones in them, it felt like "Fletch Won" is set in the '80s. But the story is captivating enough one can ignore those anachronisms. The silly way the novel ends is less forgivable.
Overall, "Fletch Won, '. Is an excellent book.
McDonald's style was to lean heavily on dialogue to tell his stories and move the plot along. Generally, this technique works quite well, especially since the dialogues tend to be quite clever and witty.
However, since the first Fletch novel was published in 1974, I think it's safe to assume "Fletch Won" is set in the late '60s, early '70s. However, since we get mentions of video taped and cars having phones in them, it felt like "Fletch Won" is set in the '80s. But the story is captivating enough one can ignore those anachronisms. The silly way the novel ends is less forgivable.
Overall, "Fletch Won, '. Is an excellent book.
June 9, 2020
As a belated prequel, Fletch Won just about passes muster. The original was supposed to be the most important story of its slightly seasoned hero's life. He was a bum then, so it's odd reading him as a slightly less cynical bum here, working on a story with equally big stakes years prior. But it's hard to argue with more Fletch, especially when McDonald seems so reinvigorated with the guy. After international departures and elevations in tax bracket, it's refreshing to see the barefoot reporter toiling away in a newsroom again. His personality is a little softer than in the original - Fletch worries that investigating a brothel may upset his soon-to-be bride - but it's not an unwelcome change, even if the timing doesn't make much sense. The mystery is solid, if a little less airtight than the series gold standard, but this one's more about the ride than the destination, and McDonald only got better at that.
December 13, 2022
Where on Earth did this come from? For the most part, the first six Fletch books were middling little mysteries. Breezy airport reading that had an unjustified mystique about them. Then book 7 was a hellscape of a novel that didn't even earn the single star I awarded it.
Then comes the prequel to end all prequels. As far as I can tell, this is chronologically the first of the series, and it's just great. Fletch is a cub reporter in search of a big story to make his reputation, and boy does he get his wish. A murder in the parking lot of the News-Tribune turns the puff piece he was supposed to write on the now-victim into a city-spanning odyssey featuring murderous convenience store owners, corrupt cops, athletic hookers, academic frauds, crooked lawyers, and his callow fiancée (did I mention he's getting married in a few days?).
Just a great story. Maybe undeserving of 5 stars, but I'll leave it anyway. Best in the series.
Then comes the prequel to end all prequels. As far as I can tell, this is chronologically the first of the series, and it's just great. Fletch is a cub reporter in search of a big story to make his reputation, and boy does he get his wish. A murder in the parking lot of the News-Tribune turns the puff piece he was supposed to write on the now-victim into a city-spanning odyssey featuring murderous convenience store owners, corrupt cops, athletic hookers, academic frauds, crooked lawyers, and his callow fiancée (did I mention he's getting married in a few days?).
Just a great story. Maybe undeserving of 5 stars, but I'll leave it anyway. Best in the series.
July 24, 2019
From beginning to end a real treat, like the first book. It's really kinda interesting to me, since I like to read novels by the same author in publication order (and with the Fletch series, there's that, and there's chronological order as this novel takes place before the first published novel and the whole series' publishing order is nothing like the storyline chronology), how McDonald can go from a somewhat dull book in Carioca Fletch and turn around and write something that's as good as his first book. There was a falling off that was happening with the series and then this one was a sharp uptick in quality of writing, crispness of dialogue, and just sheer pleasure in reading.
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