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Fletch Won (2002)

Fletch Won (2002)

Book Info

Genre
Series
Rating
3.74 of 5 Votes: 1
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ISBN
0375713522 (ISBN13: 9780375713521)
Language
English
Publisher
vintage

About book Fletch Won (2002)

I've long been a fan of the "Fletch" movies (not to mention Chevy Chase), but it was only recently I discovered that these were based on a series of novels by Gregory McDonald. "Fletch Won" is the first of these I've read, and it doesn't disappoint. Once you begin reading, you'll see that the movies aren't as molded around Chevy Chase's usual schtick as they might have seemed; rather, by a happy coincidence Chase and Fletch are perfect for each other. Chase perfectly captures Fletch's zen-like air of cheeky nonchalance and utter disregard for authority. Not a problem with authority exactly; just a kind of incapacity for taking it seriously, even when it is dangerous. If that's why you loved the movies, you'll probably love this book (and I imagine the others) as well. This book in particular is a prequel, telling the story of Fletch as a cub reporter. Given an assignment to expose the inner workings of a local whorehouse for the society page, Fletch instead investigates the murder of a criminal defense lawyer who was shot in the newspaper's parking lot shortly before Fletch was supposed to interview him for another society piece about his intention to donate $5 million to a local art museum. This little side project gets Fletch into all kinds of trouble with his employer, the police, and his fiance -- whom he is just a week away from marrying. In the end, everything is connected, nothing is what it seems, and Fletch's very risk behavior just barely saves him from the potentially disastrous results of his very risky behavior. As many other reviewers have noted, this book is almost entirely dialogue, and reads more like a screenplay than a novel. That said, McDonald is great at dialogue: at least, great at producing a constant torrent of amusing banter that somehow also serves the purpose of moving forward a very suspenseful plot. No, this isn't literary fiction. There are no attempts at flowery language or grand themes. But McDonald is a very capable writer. His characters come alive, his narration -- economical as it is -- will surprise you with his flourishes, and all in all it's just very hard to put down. Whether you're looking for a crime drama or a comedy, "Fletch Won" does both very, very well.

Irwin M. "Fletch" Fletcher is a self-proclaimed star investigative reporter for the News-Tribune in Los Angeles. While doing an undercover piece on drug trafficking at The Beach, he is approached by a multimillionaire executive vice president of a major aviation company with one request, "kill me." Apparently, this V.P., Alan Stanwyk, has inoperable cancer and he wants Fletch to kill him so his family can collect on his life insurance policy and he won't have to suffer. Fletch thinks there's more to it than Stanwyk is letting on to, so he decides to delve deeper to find the truth. Although the story gets very involved, the language with which McDonald writes it is very stripped down and easily understandable and focuses more on dialogue than on descriptions of the characters actions and the environment around them. If you're looking for a very flourished story, this is not the place to go. If you want a good dialogue-driven mystery, read on.

Do You like book Fletch Won (2002)?

As a huge fan of the first Fletch movie I was excited to read this novel that is the Fletch prequel/ origin story. I had read the first Fletch novel, that is somewhat like the movie. MacDonald is the master of Sarcasm and hilarious dialogue. It is what his books do best. I think that is the best aspect I can suggest from this book.Unfortunately there was a lot I didn't like about this book. For one thing I didn't find myself interested in the mystery at all. I found the story confusing, and at times I wondered if the book was missing pages. You'll almost never see me complain about this but it was under-written. As in sometimes the style was so minimalist I really wanting more. I hate over writing, so for me to complain about under writing you know it has to be serious.I laughed a lot reading the dialogue , but by the time I got to end of the short book I was over and glad it was short. First fletch novel was far better.
—David Agranoff

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.
—Kemper

I really admire Gregory McDonald's writing. So much that this must be the fifth time I've read this book. Being a sucker for characters, I find none greater in fiction than Irwin Maurice Fletcher. Again, my admiration stems from the fact that McDonald wrote these out of order. I was shocked to learn that Cariocca Fletch did not follow Fletch in releases, the way they do in the Fletch canon. McDonald claims at the time he couldn't afford to travel to Rio to research the book and came back to the story years later. In that vain Fletch won (the earliest tale of the character) was written in the 80's where as we first met I.M. Fletcher in the 70's. Fletch is new to the News-Tribune Newspaper and is being flopped betweenthe obituaries and the society pages. When the subject of his interview famous criminal lawyer Donald Habeck flops down in the parking lot of the Tribune-courtesy of a bullet, Fletch thinks he can do better than write an obituary for a society person, he can catch a killer. Dodging the bullying of crime-reporter Biff Wilson, the pestering of crooked police Lieutenant Gomez, and the pressure of his pending nuptials, young Fletch is going to prove he can excell at investigative journalism.
—Marco Conelli

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