Christmas Karma

by Gerald Everett Jones

“This homage to Anne Tyler is a Christmas parable for the rest of us – whether faithful, backsliders, slackers, or just I-don’t-knowists.” – Thomas Page, author of The Man Who Would Not Die
Christmas Karma is a touching and witty tale about the travails of a dysfunctional family around the holidays, narrated by an angel who has a wicked sense of humor. Main character Willa Nawicki is bewildered by a series of curious karmic events that literally ring her doorbell during the frantic season, awakening years-old resentments and stimulating ever-more-intense personal confrontations. These bizarre visitations include a grizzled old man claiming to be her father, who has been missing for some thirty years but now says the title to the family home is in his name - and now he wants the place back.
As the angel observes, "The surest way to invoke the laughter of the universe is to make plans, particularly devious ones."

Genres: Amazon

290 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 8, 2014

About the author

Gerald says, "I write mystery-thrillers and literary fiction for adult readers who seek insight, fascination, and delight in the adventures of their own lives."
Gerald Everett Jones is a freelance writer who lives in Santa Monica, California. Harry Harambee's Kenyan Sundowner is his eleventh and most recent novel. From 2020-21 he won ten book awards - one in business, four in literary fiction, and five in mystery-thriller. He is a member of the Writers Guild of America, the Dramatists Guild, Women's National Book Association, and Film Independent (FIND), as well as a director of the Independent Writers of Southern California (IWOSC). He holds a Bachelor of Arts with Honors from the College of Letters, Wesleyan University, where he studied under novelists Peter Boynton (Stone Island), F.D. Reeve (The Red Machines), and Jerzy Kosinski (The Painted Bird, Being There). Learn more at geraldeverettjones.com.

Reviews

[John Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another excellent read by an accomplished story teller!

Full disclosure: I am already a huge fan of this author. I have read all of his novels to date, my favorite still being “Mr. Ballpoint”.

But “Christmas Karma” is right in the pocket.

Gerald Everett Jones creates great characters, spins fascinating if often twisted stories which will have you smiling and constantly wondering what happens next, offers witty but realistic dialogue, massages it all with a superior command of the English language, then climaxes each novel with an unexpected but wholly satisfying ending.

No pretense. No gimmicks. No strained overreach. Just good, solid, totally engaging writing.

Have fun with this. And hope that your own Christmas karma arrives as well-packaged as this book.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was a lucky winner of this book here on Goodreads & am glad that I did. This book was well written with a great cast of characters. There were great twists and turns in the story line that kept things interesting. Would love to read more of Gerald Everett Jones's books in the future.

[Deedra · Rating 3 out of 5]

I listened to the Audible version of this book.I found it some what amusing ,but I believe that Aundrea Mitchells halting narration distracted me from the story.The storyline is as follows.A semi happy couple Norm and Willa, live in a modest ,paid for house with the wifes mother.When the mother Liz dies,Her husband,that abandoned the family years ago returns to tell them that he still owns the house.There are other stories going on besides these and it is a bit of fun figuring things out.
"This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of Audiobook Blast."

[Teressa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Audible version

"A Cute Story, Somewhat Hard to Follow"

"Christmas Karma' was a cute story. I liked the premise and the characters. The story, in combination with the narration was hard for me to follow though. Aundrea Mitchell has a nice voice but I felt that her voice inflections were off to the point of being distracting. It's just a matter of adjustment. Otherwise, the story itself was great.

"This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of Audiobook Blast.

[April · Rating 4 out of 5]

"This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of Audiobook Blast."

I have to say this dysfunctional quirky family travels an interesting road through the holidays and then some. The characters each have a personality that will make you laugh, cry or maybe just scratch your head and say "duh?" It was a fun little novel.

[Thomas Page · Rating 4 out of 5]

A family you can enjoy hanging with - from the angel overlooking them to the dog getting underfoot.

[Kylie · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars!
This was a fun, quick Christmas story. It definitely wasn’t all happy and cheery but it was fun. It had my attention throughout the whole thing and the pacing was perfect.
The characters all had their own distinct personality and were very memorable.
The only thing that bothered me was Sid. Every time you thought he was coming around, he would just go back to being a Grinch! Every time I came across this, I literally fumed. But I think that was the point (and the point was made very well). I also thought the writing was a little off at some points.
The ending was satisfying, but also very weird and had me one eyebrow raised for a few minutes.
If you’re looking for a slightly different Christmas story to read this year, this might be just what you are looking for!