A Christmas Carl

by Ryan Field

If you believe in Christmas miracles, second chances, and absolute true love, then this remarkable journey of rediscovery will guide you through one selfish man’s quest to recapture everything he thought he’d stopped loving.

Wealthy Carl Smite, owner of a high-end antiques store in Greenwich Village, hates Christmas so much he takes the last dollar bill from a sick delivery boy with one leg on Christmas Eve. Carl despises everything that is good and pure about Christmas, including the fact that his employee devotes his time to handing out free dinners at a homeless shelter.

But when Carl goes to sleep on Christmas Eve, he never expects to receive a visit from the ghost of his former business partner, Marty Keller. Marty explains that Carl will have a visit from three Christmas ghosts that night.

The solemn Ghost of Christmas Past takes Carl back to a Christmas when he was in love with the most wonderful man in the world. The lighter, beautiful Ghost of Christmas Present shows Carl what happened to the love of his life and introduces him to the son he never knew he had. And the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come, who is actually the flamboyant ghost of gay icon Quentin Crisp, shows Carl the horrible things that will happen to him, and all the people he loves, if he doesn’t start loving again.

And while Carl is working through a Christmas Eve he’ll never forget, the romance moves toward a joyful climax of enlightenment and transition as he searches for the true meaning of life and hope. By the time Carl wakes up on Christmas morning, will he be ready to reclaim his lost love and give back what he's taken from the world?

Genres: M M Romance, Contemporary, Romance, Christmas, Ghosts, Holiday, Fantasy

190 pages, Paperback

First published November 7, 2009

About the author

Ryan @ryanfield Hybrid author of over 100 published modern romance novels and stories, including AN OFFICER AND HIS GENTLEMAN, FANGSTERS, and THE RAINBOW DETECTIVE AGENCY. He is a Lambda Award-winner with a short story and he's always more than thankful for reader reviews. In fact, he cherishes reviews from real readers, and that means good or bad reviews.

Reviews

[Deeze · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5


I'm really torn on this one.

There were parts I enjoyed and parts I hated.

I think if this had been a serious version it would of worked really well. But there were just too many times it felt like I was reading a spoof.

The whole being naked part I never understood. And the ghost of Christmas present being a pervy young woman? Was that meant to be a dig at us female readers? As for the “catchphrase” I'm So Over It? It drove me up the wall. Seriously it was a line repeated just for the sake of it but had no real meaning for me.

I loved some of the ideas. Having a son he never knew of be the Tiny Tim character was a nice twist. Although the mothers death could have been wrote more realistically. Try as I might I just could not see how that scene played out in my head.

Overall I found more parts that annoyed me than I liked but at the same time it was better than a 2 star read. I just wish I knew if it was supposed to be a comedy or not.

[Shirley Frances · Rating 2 out of 5]

Typical Christmas story with the 3 different visits from the Ghosts. I found it to be sooo very long. It described every little nook and cranny of every room. I liked description, specially if its a Paranormal or Fantasy book, but here it was just endless. I disliked Carl, from the get go and I didn't believe the abrupt change. He was too annoying and difficult to be so easily trusted. The book was okay, but don't take my word for it. I've never really liked books based on this premise.

[Elisa Rolle]

A Christmas Carl is the retelling of the Dickens’ seasonal story A Christmas Carol, and so, yes, most of you already know what will happen to Carl during the Christmas’ night, he will be visited by three ghosts, of the Past, Present and Future Christmas, and he will learn from his own mistakes. But this is the “gay” version of the story, and so Carl is not an old a bitter man, he is a young and bitter gay man. Carl hates Christmas since 15 years before, on a Christmas night, he lost the love of his life, Victor. From that moment on, Carl has denied all his old self, closing his heart in a cold safe, and little by little changing in a man that Victor would not recognize.

The most interesting thing of the novel is to read of the little “gay” details the author manages to fit in the “classical” Christmas tale. Carl is fit and handsome, Able, his employee, is a young man who dresses well his low waist jeans, the Ghost of the Christmas Present has high heels red shoes, and the Ghost of the Christmas Future is Quentin Crisp. Moreover, Carl not only enjoys sex with his past lover Victor, but we also read of different other sexual encounters he has in the next future, that more or less serve to prove that Carl is slowly descending in the darkness of loneliness, but in one of them, he is with high knee black boots and black leather long coat… Carl could be descending in hell, but damn it if he is not doing it in full black leather style!

So the story is a mix of naughty and nice; all the Christmas feelings around, the bells ringing and the people doing good action is the nice part; the use of very graphic details to describe Carl’s sexual life and even his intimate body part, is the naughty one. And the “naughty” word has here the joyous connotation of Christmas time, since even if detailed, I always felt like the author was blinking his eye to the reader, he was never really “bad”, he was more like a child who was stealing a cake under his mom’s nose.

Basically the story is a romance, but again it’s not a romance with a too much pink clouded perspective. There was a moment in the story, while Carl was reliving his last Christmas with Victor, when he says that after Victor, there hasn’t been anyone else in his life. Me, as an obtuse romance reader (and yes, as a female obtuse romance reader, and yes, I’m joking... don’t take me too seriously…) promptly jumped to the idea that Carl had no one else in his life since Victor, that he was always faithful to his first and only love, that he spent his life alone mourning his lost lover… only to find in the next chapter Carl, with the above said black leather boots, cruising for anonymous sex! It made me think, really. I though on Carl’s words, “There hasn’t been anyone else since then”… for Carl they meant that no one else has been in his heart since Victor! For absurbo, me, the romance reader, was thinking to a trivial thing like sex, and instead Carl was speaking of something more deep and romantic, like his heart. Carl was really more romantic than the romance reader that was me.

Again the author manages to write a light romance that it’s not light at all, it has a lot of hidden layers and each reader will find the one he/she is more interested in.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B002XULFXG/?...

[Amos Lassen · Rating 1 out of 5]

Field, Ryan. “A Christmas Carl”, Ryan Field Press, 2015.
Hacking Dickens
Amos Lassen
I have never understood why anyone would try to improve on a classic by updating it and making it relevant to the present time. Sometimes it works with a good writer (Jeanette Winterson’s “The Gap of Time” an update of Shakespeare’s “A Winter Tale”, for example is wonderful). But Ryan Field is not a good writer and this “A Christmas Carol” is an embarrassment. I quote the author’s blurb:

“Wealthy Carl Smite, owner of a high-end Antiques store in Greenwich Village, hates Christmas so much he takes the last dollar bill from a sick delivery boy with one leg on Christmas Eve. Carl despises everything that is good and pure about Christmas, including the fact that his employee devotes his time to handing out free dinners at a homeless shelter".

"But when Carl goes to sleep on Christmas Eve, he never expects to receive a visit from the ghost of his former business partner, Marty Keller. Marty explains that Carl will have a visit from three Christmas Ghosts that night".

"The solemn Ghost of Christmas Past takes Carl back to a Christmas when he was in love with the most wonderful man in the world. The lighter, beautiful Ghost of Christmas Present shows Carl what happened to the love of his life and introduces him to the son he never knew he had. And the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come, who is actually the flamboyant ghost of gay icon, Quentin Crisp, shows Carl the horrible things that will happen to him, and all the people he loves, if he doesn’t start loving again".

"And while Carl is working through a Christmas Eve he’ll never forget, the romance moves toward a joyful climax of enlightenment and transition as he searches for the true meaning of life and hope. By the time Carl wakes up on Christmas Morning, he’s ready to reclaim the one true love of his life, he runs to save his lost son from death, and he is ready to give back everything he’s ever taken from the world”.

There you have it—now you do not have to waste your money to buy a copy. I am wondering how Charles Dickens would react if he could see that Field rewrote his story. Not only is this too long; it is excessive in unnecessary detail and the writing is sloppy. I have to say that Ryan Field keeps pushing and perhaps one day he will be a fair writer but of what I have seen of his writing, I doubt it.

[Serena Yates · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a tough book to rate. I loved the second two thirds because it was a very nice new way of showing what happens when a true scrooge sees his life in a new light and makes some key changes. The characters were interesting, warm and real. The ending was as you would expect - a very happy ever after.

The first third, though, maybe because the story is so well-known, felt long and unnecessarily detailed and drawn out. Some of the facts were needed to establish the key elements of this version of the story, but there were parts where I wished the author would have summarized more.

Overall I still liked the story a lot. Anyone who is looking for a new interpretation of 'the scrooge' is sure to like this version.

[Carole · Rating 1 out of 5]

I like books with Christmas themes, but that was about all I liked about this one. It's yet another 'ghost of Christmas past' 'ghost of Christmas present' 'ghost of Christmas future' story with Carl Smite the hero, thus the too-cute title.

While it has some hot scenes, some redemptive scenes, some quirky characters -- I can't advise you to read this one. I said 'ick' as I deleted it from my Kindle.

[Beebs · Rating 3 out of 5]

Modern retelling of Dickens' A Christmas Carol.

it follows the plot of the original quite faithfully with an Ebenezer Scrooge- like antique shop owner discovering an unknown son and reuniting with a long lost love. While I enjoyed the overall story the ending felt a little rushed and I would have liked to see some more interaction between Carl and Carl junior.

*Received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

[OkayKim · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5
This surprised me! I've read a couple of Ryan Field's work and was always left with a meh feeling.
But Christmas Carl turned out to be a pretty good Christmas story. A different take on A Christmas Carol.
I look forward to rereading it again next year.

[Cardyn Brooks]

https://www.romancedailynews.com/sing...

[Elaine White · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book – A Christmas Carl
Author – Ryan Field
Star rating - ★★★★★
No. of Pages – 133
Cover – Lovely!
POV – 3rd person, one character POV
Would I read it again – Yes.
Genre – LGBT, Contemporary, Christmas, Classic-Retelling


** COPY RECEIVED THROUGH NETGALLEY **


This is my first Ryan Field story and I loved it.

This was a wholly original take on A Christmas Carol, without being untrue to the plot or having to keep the same cheesy writing style, or even adding in those key phrases everyone relates to the original. It took the basic shape of the original story and moulded it into something new and heart-warming.

There were a few hiccups along the way, with a few editing issues and an unexpected date-rape concept that took me by surprise (a female MC getting the closeted gay friend so hammered on alcohol that he was barely conscious when she had sex with him).

But, I loved that these men weren't in their 60's or 70's, beyond the age where they could make a real change in their lives. These were young men in their 30's who had half their lives left to live, once the spirits had done their work. That was a great change to the original story and gave the author so many wonderful opportunities that they capitalised on.

Abel was cheeky and sweet; the delivery boy was intriguing; older Carl was a real miser right from page one, until he met the spirits; young Carl, from his past, was this lovely, sweet boy with innocence and believe, hope and trust while Victor was this stronger, silent, sexy guy who took care of him. The love they shared in the Christmas Past scenes was heartbreaking, lovely, beautiful and it killed me. It was so strong and then it got chipped away by cruel fate, until Carl became someone he could barely recognise.

The story managed a great balance between originality and a faithful retelling, making the delivery boy the 'Tiny Tim' with one leg and a prosthetic, while having Victor also with a disability that might have turned colder men away. I loved the idea of the homeless shelter, the antique shop and the tea room all having a part to play, while giving them a broad range of locations to gather and consider things.

But what I truly loved and adored was that it was Victor who saved Carl. Yes, there were many things Carl saw from the Ghost of Christmas Past, the Ghost of Christmas Present and the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come that could have swayed him. The scene with the pram and the taxi started the ice melting, but it was still clear from events later on that he hadn't even started opening his mind and heart to the reality of what he was seeing. It was only Victor – the miracle of seeing him again and realising that he had never loved anyone else, even if he had to use mindless, meaningless sex to satisfy his needs – that made Carl who he became in those last chapters. Without Victor, Carl had no hope of redemption.

A perfect ending to a beautiful story. It made me cry and that says everything.

~

Favourite Quote

“He didn't even know there was a tear sliding down his cheek until it hit his bare shoulder.”

[Mainely Stories · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would classify this tale as a Gay Romantic Fantasy. In that light, I very much enjoyed "A Christmas Carl". A romance, by definition, has likable characters in a central love story and an emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending. Although Carl Smite could in no way be considered a likable main character, we do come to understand him just a bit. In the Christmas past visit the author introduces us to Carl as a young man at Briarwood, the home of his youth, where he was discovered in a compromising situation with his lover Vincent, the son of the estate owner. Sent away at Christmas, Carl subsequently hated the holiday. The Carl of present is a stingy, mean spirited, black-hearted man who is too cheap to wash his laundry or keep the heat in his apartment above 60. The author clearly demonstrates his similarities to Ebenezer Schrooge. The visits to the past, present and likely future reveal some very painful secrets but also some wonderful opportunities and fortunately, Carl does have a satisfying and optimistic ending.

[Alp Mortal · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am unashamedly a fan of Ryan Field - some authors just get under your skin, and Ryan is under mine. That is not to say that I like everything he writes - but generally I do like his work - a goto place when I'm feeling a bit down.

I snapped up A Christmas Carl and read it in one sitting - as is usual for me. I wasn't sure the whole Dickens thing was going to work, having read too many like it in the past - happily I was wrong.

It was sweet, to say the least, bordering on fairytale but also challenging in its own way - a nice combination - the pages kept turning and I felt good at the end.

There's no spoiler here - we all know the story of A Christmas Carol - but despite knowing what to expect, Ryan still delivered something unexpected - an enjoyable story in its own right.

The sex was not so hot that the kindle melted - I wasn't looking for that - just a thoroughly entertaining and enthralling read - and I wasn't disappointed.

Alp Mortal

[A.B. Gayle · Rating 3 out of 5]

For once, I'm going to link to the author's own comments around the time he wrote the book.

http://ryan-field.blogspot.com/2009/1...

The quote he uses in the blog:

from page one, Carl's negativity and his cold blooded attitude toward everything that is good and decent about love and Christmas is chronicled. And he's not well loved by anyone else, either. All the negativity within him, attracts even more negativity to him.

is very true.

Carl's meanness and negativity is very strongly drawn at the start, almost to the point of caricature, but hey let's face it. The story is about ghosts and morals. Even the original one was way OTT.

[Query · Rating 2 out of 5]

No real surprises here. The concept is carried through and it is just as adorable as it sounds, but the execution was seriously lacking. (That's actually not true. The execution was not just lacking, it was downright terrible.)

It's a nice read for a rainy day, though.

[Bookbee · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

[Shaundra · Rating 4 out of 5]

haha!! I loved this it was a new twist on a very old story. the Christmas Carol has been redone so many times this is the first that I loved besides the original story.