Snatch Paperback – February 7, 2017

Hard Case Crime’s latest selection is a two-for-one double bill that harkens back to the old Ace Double paperbacks. Snatch offers us not one, but two, novels from Gregory McDonald, both reprints. The first is “Snatched,” a 1978 book, also released as “Who Took Toby Rinaldi?.” The second is “Safekeeping,” a 1985 book. The two novels, whose pages add up to a whopping 448 pages (two complete novels for the price of one) are wholly distinct, separate, and unrelated, but sharing the fact that both involve kidnapping of somewhat precocious eight-year-olds, diplomatic intrigue, and satire. Neither of the two novels, moreover, is the usual hardboiled fare that one expects from Hard Case Crime.I have never read McDonald before, who is best known for his Fletch series of eleven novels issued between 1974 and 1994, a comedic detective endeavor, involving a journalist and a murder-for-hire, widely known because it was turned into a movie vehicle for Chevy Chase. Having never been a Chevy Chase fan (I’m more of a Belushi fan), I unfairly and unjustly have avoided the Fletch novels as well as the movie.“Who Took Toby Rinaldi,” the first of the two Snatch novels is a comedic crime caper that reminds me quite a bit of some of Donald Westlake’s comedic crime novels. It is a bit tongue-in-cheek and involves a diplomatic mission to the United Nations, a plot to kidnap the diplomat’s young son, and the oddest of kidnappers. The novel has a made-to-be-a-movie feel to it and, with the right cast, it could be quite humorous and successful. The best parts of the book involve young Toby who hasn’t quite got the idea that he is a kidnapping victim being held against his will and the ex-con who holds him hostage. The pair play Marco Polo at a motel pool with other children and end up at Fantasyland, an eratz-Disneyland type place where all kinds of action takes place, often in comedic fashion. For my tastes, this was the better of the two Snatch novels.The second Snatch novel is “Safekeeping,” and begins in a prim and proper British boarding school during the Second World War. There are some odd scenes involving the head of the school and it is really tongue-in-cheek stuff. Somewhat Oliver Twist-like, young Robby becomes an orphan when his parents’ home is bombed by the Germans and he is shuttled off as an orphan to America for safekeeping. There, his adventures begin in earnest as a drunken reporter takes him in and sends him off to school in the morning, with the advice that he should walk in concentric circles growing ever wider around the apartment until he found the local school. Robby is spotted as the heir to a noble British peerage and kidnapped by an odd collection of kidnappers. Again, as in the Toby Rinaldi novel, at first, Robby doesn’t always seem to get the idea that he is indeed a kidnapping victim, although later on he gets it. As with the first novel in this two-novel collection, the second novel also appears written with a possible eye to a movie tie-in. One can just picture some of these oddball characters on the big screen.Both novels in this collection are enjoyable and easy to read. Remember when reading them that they are meant to be funny, odd, and humorous.

This book is a delightful surprise. It's two medium-length novels by the author of the Fletch and Flynn series _ and they are both excellent. The first story is a great thriller with a Hichcockian climatic scene set in a Disneyland-like theme park. I'm amazed that it's never been made into a movie. The second is more overtly comical, and would make a great Coen brothers picture. One of the best things Hard Case Crime has published.

When I saw the name "Gregory Mcdonald" I was so excited. I'm a big fan of Fletch.But from this book I am quiet dissapointed. It was not bad, but one could see, that the story was written many years ago. And even at the time it was written I think it was only average.So no, not really my cup of tea.

Two-time Edgar Award-winner Gregory McDonald is best remembered for FLETCH and its 10 comedic mystery sequels, but he also wrote a number of popular standalone thrillers and mysteries. Snatch collects two McDonald novels that have no characters in common but both revolve around the kidnapping of eight-year-olds.SNATCH (originally published in 1980 as WHO TOOK TOBY RINALD?) is the breezier of the two, expertly blending action, quirky characters and an acerbic sense of humor. It is told in 67 bite-sized chapters for maximum forward momentum. Toby Rinaldi, the son of a UN ambassador from a Middle Eastern monarchy, is snatched by a group who want to control his father's actions. But the inexperienced kidnapper is no match for the savvy kid, who is more concerned with visiting a California amusement park than being reunited with his folks.The second novel, SAFEKEEPING (1985), feels like a mixture of Oliver Twist and Damon Runyon. Eight-year-old Robby Burnes, orphaned son of a duke, is one of many children shipped to New York during World War II to escape the London bombings. An Italian family with ransom dreams immediately kidnaps him from his inattentive, boozy guardian. But when Robby witnesses a mob murder, he flees to the streets--chased by one group trying to keep their ransom safe and another intent on killing a witness.Both entertaining novels are fun, fast-paced capers with colorful, sympathetic characters, surprising plot twists and crackling, snappy dialogue. Snatch offers two less-familiar but top-notch Gregory McDonald novels in one delightful volume.

This volume contains two books by Gregory ("Fletch") McDonald. The first, titled "Snatch," is a thriller about a young kidnapped boy in 1950s California, set largely at a fictionalized version of Disneyland. The second, titled "Safekeeping," is similarly about a kidnapped boy, but is set in WWII-era New York.Both books are rapidly plotted and very quick reads. The first book has probably aged better, and the portions of the book set in Disneyland (here called 'Fantazyland') stand out as particularly entertaining. The boy and his family feel truly imperiled, the boy's intelligence and resourcefulness entertain, the bad decisions made by some of the adults in the story (especially the boy's father) create tension, and the denouement is satisfying. Only one plot element really doesn't work -- the kidnapped boy's mother is punched in the face and then drugged to unconsciousness by a supposed ally. In the next chapter, she calls her husband and says "maybe we shouldn't trust this guy," never mentioning that he had hit her. The husband responds, basically "Nah, he sounds fine, you probably deserved it." In any updating of the story, this section would have to be removed or completely reworked."Safekeeping" is a more comical story with more cartoonish characters, one of whom is a fast-talking journalist. This book may be more satisfying to fans of Gregory McDonald's other work, though some of the satire is very broad.

A good read from this author that I did not know about. Good value - two stories in the book.