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Running Scared
Tom Betancourt, an emotionally cold freshman, falls in love with Ellen Case, who doesn't know that he was the roommate who witnessed her brother's suicide and did nothing to stop it
- GenresFiction
208 pages, Paperback
First published July 3, 1973
61 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
August 11, 2012
I believe this was one of McDonald's first books and was hard to find in the mid to late 70's. For me this was a fantastic, disturbing read and I still remember the impression it left on me.
December 1, 2024
He was free, nineteen-year-old Tom Betancourt explained when asked by the police why he stood and watched his roommate Casey slash his wrists. Tom explained that he watched his college roommate die and then returned to reading his book, pausing only to inform the police. Though Casey was a longtime friend, Tom expressed no remorse or other emotion, explaining only that his roommate was free to do what he wanted. Indeed, Tom chose to spend the rest of the evening at the movies and even invited Mavis for a burger though she called him a murderer. And, Tom received a letter from Casey’s sister Ellen, calling him every name in the book.
Tom though had little in the way of emotions. Both his mother and Sarah, a girl he regularly visited for carnal purposes only, said they loved Tom even though he could not express love for them.
Tom, nevertheless, takes a summer job at the yacht club where he meets Ellen and introduces himself as Tom Matthew’s, never revealing his real identity until Ellen fell for him hook, line, and sinker.
Running Scared is not exactly a thriller or crime fiction, but rather a psychological study of an odd personality and his dealings with Casey first and then Ellen. The reader is left to wonder who Tom really is and if he is as intentionally cruel as he appears to be.
Tom though had little in the way of emotions. Both his mother and Sarah, a girl he regularly visited for carnal purposes only, said they loved Tom even though he could not express love for them.
Tom, nevertheless, takes a summer job at the yacht club where he meets Ellen and introduces himself as Tom Matthew’s, never revealing his real identity until Ellen fell for him hook, line, and sinker.
Running Scared is not exactly a thriller or crime fiction, but rather a psychological study of an odd personality and his dealings with Casey first and then Ellen. The reader is left to wonder who Tom really is and if he is as intentionally cruel as he appears to be.
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August 23, 2025Gregory McDonald is, hands down, my favorite author, but I've not read a ton of his non-FLETCH novels. That changes this year as I begin a project to work my way through the rest of his oeuvre.
RUNNING SCARED is McDonald's first novel, published in 1964 (ten years before the first FLETCH novel). A brisk 208 pages, the book follows Tom Betancourt, a possible sociopath, sleepwalking his way through Harvard University. Unfeeling and unwilling or unable to connect with other humans (even his own family), Betancourt watches impassionately as his college roommate kills himself one night. Suddenly transformed into a social pariah once news of his inaction comes out at school, Betancourt drops out and, in an effort to find a new interest, decides to disguise his identity and check in on his deceased roommate's family.
It's while pretending to be a drifter boathand that Betancourt meets Ellen Case, the sister of his dead roommate and a woman who had previously written Betancourt a letter of anger, blaming the boy for her brother's death. But Ellen doesn't know that Betancourt is Betancourt, and Betancourt has no plans to reveal his secrets because he's fallen head over heels in love with the girl.
RUNNING SCARED is a fun, pulpy read - feeling a bit like a cross between AMERICAN PSYCHO and a Nicholas Sparks novel. When I first started reading it, I thought it felt too dissimilar from McDonald's FLETCH novels - dense in descriptive prose and light on dialogue - but there are moments, especially the flirtation between Tom and Ellen, where you can see McDonald's gift for dialogue establishing itself. You can really tell that McDonald came from a journalism background from the way he sets the scene with a newshound's eye for details.
RUNNING SCARED feels very much like a first novel. The plot structure is secondary to the character work and the book's ending, while absolutely perfect for the story, does feel a bit rushed. The last line in the book, though? One of the best ways I've ever seen an author close out their story.
That said, I really enjoyed the book quite a bit. Reading it via an increasingly battered paperback felt like the perfect possible experience for this elevated dimestore romance.
RUNNING SCARED is currently out of print, but you can track down used copies online pretty easily. It was adapted into a British film in 1972 (with the action transported from Cambridge, Massachusetts, to Cambridge, England. The film, though, has seemingly never been released on home video and, besides a screening in England in 2011, has only been sporadically seen since its release. Well, at least I've got another white whale movie to keep an eye out for. If SPOOKIES can get a Blu-ray release, maybe RUNNING SCARED can as well.
RUNNING SCARED is McDonald's first novel, published in 1964 (ten years before the first FLETCH novel). A brisk 208 pages, the book follows Tom Betancourt, a possible sociopath, sleepwalking his way through Harvard University. Unfeeling and unwilling or unable to connect with other humans (even his own family), Betancourt watches impassionately as his college roommate kills himself one night. Suddenly transformed into a social pariah once news of his inaction comes out at school, Betancourt drops out and, in an effort to find a new interest, decides to disguise his identity and check in on his deceased roommate's family.
It's while pretending to be a drifter boathand that Betancourt meets Ellen Case, the sister of his dead roommate and a woman who had previously written Betancourt a letter of anger, blaming the boy for her brother's death. But Ellen doesn't know that Betancourt is Betancourt, and Betancourt has no plans to reveal his secrets because he's fallen head over heels in love with the girl.
RUNNING SCARED is a fun, pulpy read - feeling a bit like a cross between AMERICAN PSYCHO and a Nicholas Sparks novel. When I first started reading it, I thought it felt too dissimilar from McDonald's FLETCH novels - dense in descriptive prose and light on dialogue - but there are moments, especially the flirtation between Tom and Ellen, where you can see McDonald's gift for dialogue establishing itself. You can really tell that McDonald came from a journalism background from the way he sets the scene with a newshound's eye for details.
RUNNING SCARED feels very much like a first novel. The plot structure is secondary to the character work and the book's ending, while absolutely perfect for the story, does feel a bit rushed. The last line in the book, though? One of the best ways I've ever seen an author close out their story.
That said, I really enjoyed the book quite a bit. Reading it via an increasingly battered paperback felt like the perfect possible experience for this elevated dimestore romance.
RUNNING SCARED is currently out of print, but you can track down used copies online pretty easily. It was adapted into a British film in 1972 (with the action transported from Cambridge, Massachusetts, to Cambridge, England. The film, though, has seemingly never been released on home video and, besides a screening in England in 2011, has only been sporadically seen since its release. Well, at least I've got another white whale movie to keep an eye out for. If SPOOKIES can get a Blu-ray release, maybe RUNNING SCARED can as well.
May 10, 2016
A boy watches his friend commit suicide before falling in love with his sister.
June 3, 2022
An early work from Gregory McDonald, author of the Fletch series. McDonald dabbles in Cheever territory. Propulsive, but ultimately unsatisfying.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews