Buck Passes Flynn (Hardcover)

~ Gregory Mcdonald (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Two-time Edgar winner Mcdonald . . . has created another complicated, crusty, engaging character. Fascinating.” –Booklist

“Flynn’s repartee is state of the art: rangily allusive, deceptively gentle. And Mcdonald’s blend of parody, farce, and sentiment . . . is rich, yet spare, edgily appealing.” --Kirkus


From the Trade Paperback edition. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Description

On medical leave from the Boston Police Department, the eccentric Police Inspector and offbeat operative, Francis Xavier Flynn might have his most perplexing assignment yet. Someone is giving away hundreds of millions of dollars, and Flynn has to find out who in a hurry. As he races from Texas to Las Vegas, from Massachusetts to Russia, Flynn quickly discovers that this is not the pastime of an eccentric billionaire, nor is it a nefarious counterfeiting scheme. Someone is looking to wreck the nation’s economy and bizarrely enough, spending a lot of money to do it. With every lead going nowhere, Flynn’s most dizzying logic is put to the test, but the clue he needs could be somewhere in his own murky past.


From the Trade Paperback edition. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Littlehampton Book Services Ltd (April 22, 1982)
• ISBN-10: 0575030925
• ISBN-13: 978-0575030923
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Hypocritical and slow moving, June 8, 2008

By	Genevieve Hayes (Australia) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Buck Passes Flynn (Paperback)

After someone leaves envelopes containing $100,000 each in several small towns across America, Boston Police Inspector and Secret Agent Francis Xavier Flynn is called in to investigate.

After finishing reading MacDonald's "Fletch" series of books, I decided to give the "Flynn" books a try, but the simple fact is that the "Flynn" books just aren't as good as the "Fletch" books. "The Buck Passes Flynn" is the second Flynn book, and not only is there no murder for Flynn to solve (yes, I am aware that it is possible to have a mystery story without a murder, but they're generally not as interesting), but the whole novel is essentially just a vehicle for MacDonald to voice his opinions on the evils of money. The story is slow-moving, far-fetched and totally hypocritical. The message of this book seems to be that money only brings misery, and yet MacDonald seems to overlook the fact that Flynn himself is very rich (this fact is mentioned in the first Flynn novel and in "Confess, Fletch", but is conveniently omitted in this book) and I'm sure MacDonald isn't a charity case either. I own copies of the other two "Flynn" novels, so I will probably keep reading them, but after this book and "Flynn", I am beginning to have my doubts as to whether I will actually enjoy them.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best of the "Flynn" series, August 8, 2000

By	Brian D. Rubendall (Oakton, VA) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Buck Passes Flynn (Mass Market Paperback)

McDonald's hero "Flynn" is not as popular as his "Fletch" series, but "The Buck Passes Flynn" is the best of the series and every bit as good as a Fetch novel. The theme, that someone is making random $100,000 deposits on the doorsteps of every home in small communities around the country and creating havoc in the process, is quite fascinating (though admittedly dated, it would probably be about $250,000 today). It is a mystery worthy of the great Inspector Flynn, and is told in a humorous style for which McDonald is known. Overall, a great book for fans of detective fiction.

5.0 out of 5 stars Thrilling and thoughtful, February 24, 2008

By	Gregory Hayes "Traveler" (Volkswagen Bus, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Buck Passes Flynn (Paperback)

Have you read a Fletch book? Flynn is, in some ways, Fletch's flipside - he is a perfect gentleman, a devoted family man even, who works for the forces of law and order - but if free spirit Fletch lives in fun stories that might give you some pause for thought, reliable Reluctant Flynn lives in hilarious stories that might later keep you up nights in deep contemplation.

McDonald is a damn good storyteller, running his clever characters through a series of plausible situations with snowballing root causes that give broad opportunity for adventure and the display of wry wit. Flynn and Fletch are his vehicles for some of the best dialogue I've seen in print.

This is one of my favorite McDonald books. My biggest problem with the work is that I keep giving copies away to friends and having to purchase more.