Stephen Hunter's Books

I have read most of his novels and like them a lot. I believe the first was "Dirty White Boys".

I have all his books. Most are just as good, as point of impact. Several of his books are about bob lee. Several more are about his father. There is a sequel to point of impact.

Chek these sites for info:

http://www.stephenhunter.net/books/

http://authors.simonandschuster.com/Stephen-Hunter/1485163

http://www.amazon.com/Stephen-Hunter/e/B000AQ79EO

I just finished Hunter's penultimate book, Dead Zero -- absolutely loved it.

Hunter's first book was The Master Sniper (written in 1980), a WWII thriller about a master German sniper, his high-tech sniping weapon, and the efforts to stop him. It was fairly raw (as first novels can be), but it was already showing Hunter's gifts for dialogue, page-turning action, and affinity for working firearm minutiae into his story-lines.

IMHO, Dirty White Boys was Hunter's best work -- but honestly, I have enjoyed nearly all of his works immensely. Of course, I love his novels about Earl and Bob Lee Swagger, and expect to feel the same about Ray Cruz.


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I've read hem all, but my recollection is that Black Light was pretty good too.

GarySTL said:

I've read hem all, but my recollection is that Black Light was pretty good too.

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Yepper -- Black Light was another one of my favorites.


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The last couple of books, Night of Thunder, Dead Zero, 47th Samurai, Isniper (I think the titles are correct) are reaching a little. Still very enjoyable. He does a really good job incorporating "gun stuff" in the books. The cowboy name of the bad guy ( Texas red) in Dead Zero, is taken from the Marty Robbins song, Big Iron, Most of the people in Isniper, are based on real people, same as in Pale Horse Coming. All the gunfighters are real people.

rosewood151 said:

The last couple of books, Night of Thunder, Dead Zero, 47th Samurai, Isniper (I think the titles are correct) are reaching a little. Still very enjoyable. He does a really good job incorporating "gun stuff" in the books. The cowboy name of the bad guy ( Texas red) in Dead Zero, is taken from the Marty Robbins song, Big Iron, Most of the people in Isniper, are based on real people, same as in Pale Horse Coming. All the gunfighters are real people.

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I know what you mean about "reaching a little." Hunter's plot-lines do seem to be gravitating toward the outlandish. But for all that, he still has that knack for grabbing the reader and taking him along for the ride.


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I enjoy his books although Night of Thunder was kind of weak, in my opinion. Hunter does seem to know his way around guns. I've heard that he is a regular at an indoor range not too far from here. I've never gone there as I don't like indoor ranges as a rule. Don't want to be a stalker either.

wbwanzer said:

I enjoy his books although Night of Thunder was kind of weak, in my opinion. Hunter does seem to know his way around guns. I've heard that he is a regular at an indoor range not too far from here. I've never gone there as I don't like indoor ranges as a rule. Don't want to be a stalker either.

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I've read that, as much as possible, Hunter tries to experience the firearms about which he's writing (other than being a firearm aficionado on its own merits).

He also is/was the best film reviewer The Washington Post ever had.

He has also done his part in support of the 2A, as in writing articles like this one justifying high-cap magazines (in the wake of the Jared Loughner shootings):

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/04/AR2011020406709.html

We definitely need more artists like Stephen Hunter in the entertainment industries.


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He used to be the film reviewer for our newspaper, The Baltimore Sun. Last I heard, he lives in Columbia Maryland. I would love to talk to him about guns but I have a feeling that I would not be in his league.

I loved them all but found that he took a cheap way out in "Pale Horse Coming" by using a whole raft of real life characters with thinly veiled names to pull out the miracle ending. He had Earl Swagger recruiting people who really represented Charlie Askins, Bill Jordan, Ed McGivern, Audie Murphy, Elmer Keith, Jack O'Connor to join him in destroying a southern penal colony that had captured and hurt his lawyer friend.
47th samauri was a little far fetched with Bob Lee, in his late fifties/early sixties becoming good enough with a sword to take on a master after only one week training.
I still buy or check out and read every one he writes. He know a lot more about guns than just about any other author out there.

wbwanzer said:

He used to be the film reviewer for our newspaper, The Baltimore Sun. Last I heard, he lives in Columbia Maryland. I would love to talk to him about guns but I have a feeling that I would not be in his league.

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Hey, WB -- I hope either or both of us have a chance to find out someday (I live in NoVA)...

Something tells me Hunter is a pretty cool guy...


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Read Stephen Hunter's latest - "Soft Target". A lot of elements of the plot are very believable, a cautionary tale. "Dead Zero" and "Soft Target" are focused on a new lead character, Ray Cruz. Given the age of Bob Lee Swager character in the later books, that is not an unreasonable progression.

rodregier said:

Read Stephen Hunter's latest - "Soft Target". A lot of elements of the plot are very believable, a cautionary tale. "Dead Zero" and "Soft Target" are focused on a new lead character, Ray Cruz. Given the age of Bob Lee Swager character in the later books, that is not an unreasonable progression.

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Hunter is one of the few authors for whom I won't wait for the paperback edition...


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JFrame said:

I've read that, as much as possible, Hunter tries to experience the firearms about which he's writing (other than being a firearm aficionado on its own merits).

He also is/was the best film reviewer The Washington Post ever had.


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In 2003 he won a Pulitzer Prize for his film reviews. Not too shabby.

natman said:

In 2003 he won a Pulitzer Prize for his film reviews. Not too shabby.

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No indeed!

Even more than other critics/reviewers, I think Hunter is a true student and analyst of cinema who weaves his knowledge of motifs, genres, imagery, etc., into his reviews, giving them profound historical context.

Hence, he also incorporates a lot of film references in his novels, and has also written one (The 47th Samurai) as a tribute to directors of jidai-geki -- Japanese period cinema.


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I've enjoyed most of his novels but like mentioned above...some of the more recent books have been a huge stretch IMO. I didn't get more than 1/3 of the way through 47th Samurai before I had had enough. Too unbelievable and too strange. What was the point of the porn stuff?

I did really enjoy Point of impact, Time to Hunt, Hot Springs, and I liked the first half of Pale Horse coming but rounded up the old posse was a little strange since they were based on real guys.

I like that most all the gun stuff is accurate and reasonable.

Thanks for sharing this. I've found that as a general rule of thumb, when a movie is based on a book (loosely or otherwise), read the book, because it'll be better. I enjoyed the movie a lot, so I'll definitely pick up the book soon.

If Mr. Hunter is reading this, I just want to say, "Thanks". His books have been "must reads" for me, and my wife and I even enjoyed two of them via audiobook while travelling out West on a road trip a year ago, in the Spring. Please, keep up the good work!

In Hot Springs there is a depiction of the "modern technique of the pistol" taking place in 1946, some two decades before Jeff Cooper started to write about it. In Time to Hunt, an entire plot point turns on the weight of a bullet. In Pale Horse Coming there are six characters that are thinly disguised depictions of well known old-time gun writers/hunters, exhibition shooters and gunfighters.

Like you, I enjoy his books. Saw an interview with him in Michael Bane's "Shooting Gallery"show. Hunter is truly interested in all aspects of firearms and appreciates the skill and discipline that goes into sniping. I bet it would be fun to have a long talk with him over some coffee and/or bourbon.

Jeff

I did really enjoy Point of impact, Time to Hunt, Hot Springs, and I liked the first half of Pale Horse coming but rounded up the old posse was a little strange since they were based on real guys.

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To those I would definitely add Black Light and Dirty White Boys as very good reads. I also would say that Pale Horse Coming was a disappointment for me, as I thought the renaming of the figures out of gun history was silly and beneath Hunter. I also cannot recommend The Master Sniper or The Second Saladin. But the Bob Lee or Earl Swagger ones were generally good reads. My wife particularly liked the older Earl books.

Stevie: I have read and liked Black Light. Thanks for the heads up on Dirty White boys...that's one I haven't gotten to. I'm in the middle of The Master Sniper right now and it's much slower reading than the others IMO.