A Jolly Good Fellow

Interesting Characters, Unusual Plot, A Different Kind of Christmas Story

An unexpected story, growing into a memorable and thought-provoking ride. What happens when you mix the holiday season, and a confused young boy with a troubled grifter searching for a sure thing, the big bankroll? This unlikely plot delivers one of the best novels I have read in some time.

Richly drawn characters, slowly revealing their inner demons and dreams to each other, offer a fascinating view into the human psyche. You'll care about them, and hold your breath more than once while reading this unusual tale of a kidnapping, a lonely man and a young boy.

A welcome mix of humor, suspense, twists and turns, you'll enjoy this book, whether at Christmas time or a sweltering summer day.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

A Jolly Good Fellow

It's almost Christmas and times are tough, Duncan Wagner needed money to live off of so he concocted a plan to get one hundred thousand dollars by kidnapping and ransoming off the kid of State Representative Winthrop Booker. After several attempts to put the plan in motion, Duncan watches as Gabriel Booker misses his school bus and then, as he is hitchhiking down the road, gets into Duncan's car. No snatching, no screaming, no tying up, just gets in, sits down and says 'Just trying to get a ride'. All this made the first part of the plan so much easier than expected. Turns out the kid was running away from home an decides that Duncan seems nice enough to spend a few days with and will go ahead and play along with the whole kidnapping thing for a while, it might even be fun. Duncan wonders if the rest of his plan will work this well also or if he is going to get caught and go to jail.

A story of friendship and finding a way to move on, get over and get through life. Kind of cute even though it is predictable for so much of the main plot. I enjoyed the way Gabriel was written, a young boy at a difficult age, a boy very independent and with signs of his intelligence already creeping through but still having kid problems and in the end, he misses his mom and dad (how great is that). This was a different style of writing than I am used to , not just because the narration was written as if Duncan was thinking everything (first person), but it was set in Boston (nothing wrong with that) and some of the grammatical slang or dialect maybe, is what gave me difficulty. It was the 'by the by' and the 'so I says to him' (with the S on say, and not using said) even in the narrative. It caused a distraction for me (grammatically speaking) and I wasn't able to get past it enough to enjoy the story more. I do typically like the happy endings and this one had mixed messages there. No real closure, for the most part it left the characters almost in a sad state and the expected answer was avoided.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Literarily Book Reviews: A Jolly Good Fellow

In A Jolly Good Fellow, Stephen V. Masse gives us a truly heartwarming story that manages to avoid feeling light and fluffy or resorting to holiday clichés.

Duncan Wagner is a lovable, bumbling criminal. Masse puts the reader right inside Duncan's head and it is impossible not to like him, as we see his mixed emotions about the kidnapping, the easy-going affection he quickly comes to feel for sweet Gabriel, how he acts tough and gruff to cover it up. This book may be about a kidnapping, but it isn't dark or menacing in any way. Duncan's half-hearted, often naive approach to the crime he is commiting prevents that, and it is obvious from the start that Duncan would never physically harm Gabriel.

The novel is narrated by Duncan in the first person. The highly readable narrative gives a distinct flavor to the book. Duncan's dialect evokes hard-scrabble, working class Boston perfectly.

Masse's plot is subtlely intricate and perfectly paced. Though I knew Gabriel wouldn't be hurt and would ultimately be returned to his parents, Masse kept me guessing until the end about Duncan's fate. Would he get the ransom money he sought? Or would he get caught?

A Jolly Good Fellow can be read and enjoyed regardless of the season and whether you celebrate Christmas or not. That said, it would make a perfect holiday read for anyone who loves a great story with characters you won't want to say good-bye to when you turn the last page.


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1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

A reviewer

I Purchased A Jolly Good Fellow because I love Christmas stories. Ive read allot the other ones that are classics and i have a feeling this will be the next classic. it has such a great story and the way the author wrote it makes you feel like you know the characters. I highly recommend this book.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

A reviewer

What¿s so special about Stephen V. Masse's A JOLLY GOOD FELLOW is its immediate presence, its deceptive simplicity, and the compelling aliveness of its characters. It begins in the snows of a Boston suburb, and like a car accident it brings two unfamiliar persons together in a relationship that neither one could anticipate. Duncan Wagner has been stalking eleven year old Gabriel Booker with intent to kidnap him, ostensibly for cash from his father, State Representative Winthrop Booker III. An unexpected twist is provided by the boy, in that he has chosen this snowy day to run away from home by hitchhiking. Once Wagner has pulled his car to a stop, he immediately realizes all his plans for the seizure of the boy have become superfluous. The boy is more curious than scared, and Wagner is unsettled by his availability. If the reader is also unsettled, it is about Wagner¿s interest in the boy. There is a discomfort, a palpable threat of harm to this vulnerable child, and Wagner seems ever close to the edge of safety. Wagner narrates his story in tape recordings. His working class Boston lingo is obvious, and it deepens the contrast in class and character between him and his charge. But it is the unwitting love that pounds constantly within Wagner¿s heart, buried under twelve years of self-imposed loneliness, rejection and despair, which keeps showing itself in every clumsy transaction with Gabriel. The boy is a fountain of possibility, representing all that could go right in a world full of darkness and danger. He not only brings the freshness of a boy to the world, but he elicits springs of goodness and love from the heretofore chained-up soul of Duncan Wagner. Gabriel plays well as Wagner¿s charge, constant in his need for Wagner¿s fatherly attention. Apparently he is getting something from Wagner that he isn¿t getting at home. Early on, the reader suspects something more complex than cash ransom. But even though such suspicions remain unanswered, the sense that everything will deflate into a banal Hollywood resolution continues to run side-by-side with the competing hope that the author will come through with the goods. The great power of this story is its consistent march toward ultimate ambiguity: Love is not genetic, Love is a resource that will have expression even if it is crime which opens its floodgates. That A JOLLY GOOD FELLOW takes place around Christmas is not lost upon the reader. The text is fraught with references to the deeper meanings of the season. Wagner often refers to his Saint Joseph statue, and lectures Gabriel on the significance of this ¿underrated saint,¿ who is used by superstitious people to help them sell their houses. At one point Wagner tells Gabriel, ¿I want something green for Christmas,¿ meaning ransom money ¿ although ironically missing the reality that he has gifted himself with not only a Christmas tree for his stale home, but with Gabriel himself. Gabriel, like the Christ child, brings light into Wagner¿s darkness just as Christmas celebrations bring light into the darkness of winter. The ending is well worth the reeling trip through Boston with these characters. Absolutely a top list book. Don¿t miss it!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Fantastic Characters, Off-Beat and Unusual Storyline, Outstanding Read!

An unexpected story, growing into a memorable and thought-provoking ride. What happens when you mix the holiday season, and a confused young boy with a troubled grifter searching for a sure thing, the big bankroll? This unlikely plot delivers one of the best novels I have read in some time.

Richly drawn characters, slowly revealing their inner demons and dreams to each other, offer a fascinating view into the human psyche. You'll care about them, and hold your breath more than once while reading this unusual tale of a kidnapping, a lonely man and a young boy.

A welcome mix of humor, suspense, twists and turns, you'll enjoy this book, whether at Christmas time or a sweltering summer day.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.