Fletch and the Widow Bradley (Vintage Crime/Black Lizard)

Rating:
Summary: Obvious Solution and Miserable Ending
Review: A terrible book. By page 94 (one third of the way through the book), the solution to the main mystery was obvious. This level of obviousness grew continuously throughout the remainder of the book until it was just plain embarassing. I spent two thirds of the book scratching my head, trying to figure out why Fletch, who is supposed to be brilliant, can't figure things out. There's no answer to this. Also, the ending tied to the secondary mystery is horrible. Unfortunately, there's not much I can say about it without giving it away. It's just all-around terrible and depressing. Stay away from this book.

Rating:
Summary: Good dialogue - No mystery
Review: I figured out the ending by page 52. But does anyone really read Fletch books for the mystery? It has the typical great dialogue Gregory Mcdonald is known for. But this one is a tiny book at only 158 pages. An escapist fun read to make the weekend go by quicker. Not much else.