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Bob Lee Swagger #3
Time to Hunt
He is the most dangerous man alive. He only wants to live in peace with his family, and forget the war that nearly killed him...
It's not going to happen.
Stephen Hunter's epic national bestsellers, Point of Impact and Black Light, introduced millions of readers to Bob Lee Swagger, called "Bob the Nailer," a heroic but flawed Vietnam War veteran forced twice to use his skills as a master sniper to defend his life and his honor. Now, in his grandest, most intensely thrilling adventure yet, Bob the Nailer must face his deadliest foe from Vietnam--and his own demons--to save his wife and daughter.
During the latter days of the Vietnam War, deep in-country, a young idealistic Marine named Donny Fenn was cut down by a sniper's bullet as he set out on patrol with Swagger, who himself received a grievous wound. Years later Swagger married Donny's widow, Julie, and together they raise their daughter, Nikki, on a ranch in the isolated Sawtooth Mountains in Idaho. Although he struggles with the painful legacy of Vietnam, Swagger's greatest wish--to leave his violent past behind and live quietly with his family--seems to have come true.
Then one idyllic day, a man, a woman, and a girl set out from the ranch on horseback. High on a ridge above a mountain pass, a thousand yards distant, a calm, cold-eyed shooter, one of the world's greatest marksmen, peers through a telescopic sight at the three approaching figures.
Out of his tortured past, a mortal enemy has once again found Bob the Nailer. Time to Hunt proves anew why so many consider Stephen Hunter to be our best living thriller writer. With a plot that sweeps from the killing fields of Vietnam to the corridors of power in Washington to the shadowy plots of the new world order, Hunter delivers all the complex, stay-up-all-night action his fans demand in a masterful tale of family heartbreak and international intrigue--and shows why, for Bob Lee Swagger, it's once again time to hunt.
It's not going to happen.
Stephen Hunter's epic national bestsellers, Point of Impact and Black Light, introduced millions of readers to Bob Lee Swagger, called "Bob the Nailer," a heroic but flawed Vietnam War veteran forced twice to use his skills as a master sniper to defend his life and his honor. Now, in his grandest, most intensely thrilling adventure yet, Bob the Nailer must face his deadliest foe from Vietnam--and his own demons--to save his wife and daughter.
During the latter days of the Vietnam War, deep in-country, a young idealistic Marine named Donny Fenn was cut down by a sniper's bullet as he set out on patrol with Swagger, who himself received a grievous wound. Years later Swagger married Donny's widow, Julie, and together they raise their daughter, Nikki, on a ranch in the isolated Sawtooth Mountains in Idaho. Although he struggles with the painful legacy of Vietnam, Swagger's greatest wish--to leave his violent past behind and live quietly with his family--seems to have come true.
Then one idyllic day, a man, a woman, and a girl set out from the ranch on horseback. High on a ridge above a mountain pass, a thousand yards distant, a calm, cold-eyed shooter, one of the world's greatest marksmen, peers through a telescopic sight at the three approaching figures.
Out of his tortured past, a mortal enemy has once again found Bob the Nailer. Time to Hunt proves anew why so many consider Stephen Hunter to be our best living thriller writer. With a plot that sweeps from the killing fields of Vietnam to the corridors of power in Washington to the shadowy plots of the new world order, Hunter delivers all the complex, stay-up-all-night action his fans demand in a masterful tale of family heartbreak and international intrigue--and shows why, for Bob Lee Swagger, it's once again time to hunt.
596 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published May 18, 1998
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About the author
Stephen Hunter
106 books1,948 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
Stephen Hunter is the author of fourteen novels, and a chief film critic at The Washington Post, where he won the 2003 Pulitzer Prize. He lives in Baltimore, Maryland.
Stephen Hunter is the author of fourteen novels, and a chief film critic at The Washington Post, where he won the 2003 Pulitzer Prize. He lives in Baltimore, Maryland.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 284 reviews
May 29, 2019
Immer wider betone ich, dass ich eigentlich kein Thriller-Leser bin,
aber bei Stephen Hunter mache ich immer wieder 'ne Ausnahme.
Auch diesmal lässt der Autor seinen Protagonisten Bob Lee Swagger
zu Hochform auflaufen, spannend und kurzweilig.
Wie immer hebt er sich zum Roman-Ende noch einen besonderen Clou auf.
aber bei Stephen Hunter mache ich immer wieder 'ne Ausnahme.
Auch diesmal lässt der Autor seinen Protagonisten Bob Lee Swagger
zu Hochform auflaufen, spannend und kurzweilig.
Wie immer hebt er sich zum Roman-Ende noch einen besonderen Clou auf.
December 16, 2019
Time to Hunt is one of eleven books in a series by author Stephen Hunter. The "star" of the series is one Bob Lee Swagger, an alpha male and former sniper in Viet Nam who has returned home after the war, gone on a fifteen-year drinking spree while managing to get himself involved in all sorts of violent encounters with bad guys. This is the third book in the series and Bob Lee has settled down--sort of--and is living with his wife and young daughter in the greater Boise, Idaho area.
I recently read one of the thousands of online articles proffered to me by my browser. The article's main point was that Boise was becoming lousy with Californian transplants, jacking up house prices and ruining what had once been a sleepy capitol in a beautiful and uncrowded state. I'm guessing if there's a real Bob Lee, then feelings about his presence in Boise must be mixed. He could probably take out an entire gang of ne'er do wells menacing your neighborhood, but, on the other hand, property damage would surely be high.
Bob Lee is an interesting protagonist. He is described as "looks like Clint Eastwood and talks like Gomer Pyle." (for those of you unfamiliar with "Gomer Pyle, USMC," it was an American TV show that ran from 1964-1969, starring the lovable actor Jim Nabors as a well-meaning but bumbling Southerner who joins the Marines and proceeds to drive his platoon sergeant, played by Frank Sutton, crazy with his screw ups. I'm assuming most know Clint Eastwood.
Bob Lee, then, is part of what used to be a common type in the US military--hard-as-nails Southern guys who came into the Marines already knowing how to shoot from having killed many varmints and accustomed to the sorts of privations and rigorous training the Marines would put them through. Bob Lee may speak a garbled, ungrammatical English but he has an IQ of 160 and despite his war hero status he is self-effacing and humble, living by a code of honor that sometimes compels him to kill a whole bunch of evildoers. He is also fighting his demons from his three tours of Vet Nam.
This is the second book in the series I've read and, as with many things in my life, I've approached them out-of-order. Apparently each book in the series builds a little bit on the books that have come before, though any can be read as stand-alone books.
Others have given the basic plot of this book, so I'll just say that it's a decent thriller that, as reviewer Mike (the Paladin) wrote, is a bit of a spy novel, as well.
I learned of the Bob Lee Swagger series by listening to an interview with Malcolm Gladwell who named them as his favorite thriller series. If you like strong, alpha characters, are intrigued by the rarefied world of snipers and have a love of weaponry, this series is a great diversion after your mind has turned to mush from reading some weightier tomes.
I recently read one of the thousands of online articles proffered to me by my browser. The article's main point was that Boise was becoming lousy with Californian transplants, jacking up house prices and ruining what had once been a sleepy capitol in a beautiful and uncrowded state. I'm guessing if there's a real Bob Lee, then feelings about his presence in Boise must be mixed. He could probably take out an entire gang of ne'er do wells menacing your neighborhood, but, on the other hand, property damage would surely be high.
Bob Lee is an interesting protagonist. He is described as "looks like Clint Eastwood and talks like Gomer Pyle." (for those of you unfamiliar with "Gomer Pyle, USMC," it was an American TV show that ran from 1964-1969, starring the lovable actor Jim Nabors as a well-meaning but bumbling Southerner who joins the Marines and proceeds to drive his platoon sergeant, played by Frank Sutton, crazy with his screw ups. I'm assuming most know Clint Eastwood.
Bob Lee, then, is part of what used to be a common type in the US military--hard-as-nails Southern guys who came into the Marines already knowing how to shoot from having killed many varmints and accustomed to the sorts of privations and rigorous training the Marines would put them through. Bob Lee may speak a garbled, ungrammatical English but he has an IQ of 160 and despite his war hero status he is self-effacing and humble, living by a code of honor that sometimes compels him to kill a whole bunch of evildoers. He is also fighting his demons from his three tours of Vet Nam.
This is the second book in the series I've read and, as with many things in my life, I've approached them out-of-order. Apparently each book in the series builds a little bit on the books that have come before, though any can be read as stand-alone books.
Others have given the basic plot of this book, so I'll just say that it's a decent thriller that, as reviewer Mike (the Paladin) wrote, is a bit of a spy novel, as well.
I learned of the Bob Lee Swagger series by listening to an interview with Malcolm Gladwell who named them as his favorite thriller series. If you like strong, alpha characters, are intrigued by the rarefied world of snipers and have a love of weaponry, this series is a great diversion after your mind has turned to mush from reading some weightier tomes.
May 3, 2012
This is the third of the Bob Lee Swagger books but for me it's the one I read last...I managed to skip it as I was reading them and had to come back and "pick it up". So, in a way here I'm looking at the entire run of Bob Lee Swagger books. All in all, pretty good action reads, some a bit better than others. My favorite in the series is I, Sniper, the sixth in the series.
Here we pick up after Bob has gotten through the events of the first two novels. He's still in sad shape, deep in the bottle struggling to hold on to life and not lose his wife and daughter whom he loves very much. Sadly in spite of that love his own personal demons are threatening to take everything away. Another struggle the family is having is that Bob has not been able to make a really good living and they are mostly getting by on Bob's retirement from the military.
Then someone from Bob's past shows up, apparently the Russian sniper that wounded Bob in Vietnam has returned. He shoots a man he mistakes for Bob and then Bob's wife and almost his daughter...Bob has to come out of his funk or really lose everything he loves.
The story here opens and about half the book takes place during the Vietnam war both in Nam and the U.S. The story moves forward and gives us some insight and more details on back story that we've known about since the first volume. This one moves along quickly with lots of action a good plot and more information filled in about our characters.
Here we get a little more of a "spy novel" flavor than we have in most of the other Swagger novels and there's a twist at the end (though I suspect you'll see it coming). Not a bad book at all. I think I like the first 2 a bit better (and of course as I noted the 6th is my favorite, filled with action and good dollop of humor)in some ways but the look at the Vietnam era in this one is very real. Having lived through it I remember the confusion so many had, the pain, the loss.
As noted pretty good book, I recommend it.
Here we pick up after Bob has gotten through the events of the first two novels. He's still in sad shape, deep in the bottle struggling to hold on to life and not lose his wife and daughter whom he loves very much. Sadly in spite of that love his own personal demons are threatening to take everything away. Another struggle the family is having is that Bob has not been able to make a really good living and they are mostly getting by on Bob's retirement from the military.
Then someone from Bob's past shows up, apparently the Russian sniper that wounded Bob in Vietnam has returned. He shoots a man he mistakes for Bob and then Bob's wife and almost his daughter...Bob has to come out of his funk or really lose everything he loves.
The story here opens and about half the book takes place during the Vietnam war both in Nam and the U.S. The story moves forward and gives us some insight and more details on back story that we've known about since the first volume. This one moves along quickly with lots of action a good plot and more information filled in about our characters.
Here we get a little more of a "spy novel" flavor than we have in most of the other Swagger novels and there's a twist at the end (though I suspect you'll see it coming). Not a bad book at all. I think I like the first 2 a bit better (and of course as I noted the 6th is my favorite, filled with action and good dollop of humor)in some ways but the look at the Vietnam era in this one is very real. Having lived through it I remember the confusion so many had, the pain, the loss.
As noted pretty good book, I recommend it.
December 23, 2015
SUBJECTIVE READER REVIEW FOLLOWS:
My first foray into Stephen Hunter's catalogue was the suggestion of fellow reviewer/critic Dan Legare, who read me like an open book making the recommendation that I begin Hunter's collection with book 3, not book 1, of the Bob Lee Swagger series. It took a good 100 pages for the novel to become the latest form of addictive drug, but Hunter somehow built a hybrid of 'American Sniper' and 'Forrest Gump' that all but made me relive my days of living in Washington as a young USAF lieutenant in the mid-1970s. The iconic landmarks and lifestyle references made this damn book fit like your favorite jeans. The front half of the book leaves the reader feeling desperately sorry for poor Marine Corporal Donny Fenn, whose beautiful young wife becomes recycled as his boss' second wife. Hunter pulls this off smoothly because of the 58,000+ American boys that died in that nightmare, the ones left living had to redefine their lives somehow. This book could easily be the epitome of 'all is not as it appears.' In the cruelest twist of all, the hard ass Naval officer that sent Donny off to Vietnam for three months to be hunted like sporting game turns out to be the grand manipulator in the end--but I ain't spoiling it for ya. This novel's got all of the redneck frustration of a 100 country songs, but in this case the redneck-Swagger from Arkansas-is also a supremely intelligent animal. Here's the deal; if you liked Nelson DeMille's 'Up Country,' I WILL GUARANTEE you will love 'Time to Hunt.' Plain and simple, this is one of the 10 best books I've ever read, and that includes 500+ novels in the last five years alone. 'Time to Hunt' might not be up there with Stuart Woods' 'Chiefs' or Vince Flynn's 'Term Limits' but it's up there, believe me. Your only problem might be finding it, as 'Time to Hunt' was published in 1998, but it's worth the time and effort to find a copy, put on those comfortable jeans and prepare yourself for slowing down as you approach the end, not wanting the freaking action to end on ya. My word as an author--this book ROCKS!
SPOILER PLOT SUMMARY FOLLOWS:
Soviet Mole in Deep Cover. Washington, DC, in spring of 1971 was a war zone, or rather a war protesters' zone, with nearly continuous demonstrations against the ongoing war in Vietnam. Marine Corporal Donny Fenn, already having served a tour in The Land of Bad Things is assigned to the garrison at 8th & I Streets, part of a Funeral Company doing ceremonial burials at Arlington National Cemetery. His high school girl Julie is now a war demonstrator from Arizona and they meet, determined to complete their vows to one another to marry when possible. The Naval Investigative Service-long before Jethro Gibbs made it famous-is deeply involved in ferreting out the criminal aspects of the peaceniks, and extort Donny Fenn into going undercover to spy on one of his fellow grunts. He does so, meeting some heavies in the antiwar movement and is promised promotion for his testimony against Lance Corporal Ed Crowe. When the bust goes down, Fenn is branded the traitor by his fellow Marines, listens to Julie and Trig Carter-an antiwar Moses-and refuses to testify at Crowe's court martial. Washington Navy Yard NIS Head Ward Bonson goes hermatile, banishing Fenn to Vietnam even though he's got only 13 months left in his enlistment. Fenn meets and is taken under the wing of Bob the Nailer, the most terrifying of Marine snipers assigned to their Central Highlands AOR. As fate would have it, Donny survives assured death at Kham Duc, a special forces irregular camp near the Laotian border, backing SSGT Bob Swagger up as he disrupts and entire Division of NVA regulars heading to overrun Kham Duc. On his last day in country, Donny is killed by a Soviet sniper sent in to kill him, even though he and Swagger thought they'd killed Solaratov earlier. Swagger is hailed the hero but was shot thru the pelvis just before Donny bought it. After 2+ years of rehab he rejoins the Corps, his life a nightmare as bourbon is the only thing to ease his pain. After a few years he and Donny's widow Julie hook up, marry and have a daughter Nikki. Out riding the mountains one morning in Arizona, a sniper kills a neighbor riding with Julie and Nikki, then turns the gun on Julie, wounding but not killing her. In the subsequent investigation, Bob moves to Idaho to hide while he seeks out the sniper, who is the same Solaratov, just recycled by the KGB/SVR. Ultimately, Solaratov finds the hide ranch in Idaho and stakes it during a freak spring snow storm. Swagger, now in league with DDCI Ward Bonson, takes a HALO chute dive into the LZ, narrowly avoids death and finally kills Solaratov. In the debrief to this 'hunt,' it's Julie that Solaratov was after, as she was one of four people to identify Soviet deep cover spy Evgeny Pashin, now a star in post-Soviet Russia running for President. Pashin's involvement in the hit on Julie results in his own assassination and all is quiet. Swagger makes one last trip to Trig Carter's mother to tell her of his passing, and how he was not the target but a math student who'd developed math algorithms for satellite imagery. He finds Trig's last notes/drawings, which reveal Bonson as a contact of Pashin's in 1971. Using a claymore mine Bonson gave him for his hunt mission for Solaratov, Swagger confronts Bonson who confesses all, confident his five Spetsnaz guards will secure him. Swagger exits the warehouse the lone man standing and heads west.
My first foray into Stephen Hunter's catalogue was the suggestion of fellow reviewer/critic Dan Legare, who read me like an open book making the recommendation that I begin Hunter's collection with book 3, not book 1, of the Bob Lee Swagger series. It took a good 100 pages for the novel to become the latest form of addictive drug, but Hunter somehow built a hybrid of 'American Sniper' and 'Forrest Gump' that all but made me relive my days of living in Washington as a young USAF lieutenant in the mid-1970s. The iconic landmarks and lifestyle references made this damn book fit like your favorite jeans. The front half of the book leaves the reader feeling desperately sorry for poor Marine Corporal Donny Fenn, whose beautiful young wife becomes recycled as his boss' second wife. Hunter pulls this off smoothly because of the 58,000+ American boys that died in that nightmare, the ones left living had to redefine their lives somehow. This book could easily be the epitome of 'all is not as it appears.' In the cruelest twist of all, the hard ass Naval officer that sent Donny off to Vietnam for three months to be hunted like sporting game turns out to be the grand manipulator in the end--but I ain't spoiling it for ya. This novel's got all of the redneck frustration of a 100 country songs, but in this case the redneck-Swagger from Arkansas-is also a supremely intelligent animal. Here's the deal; if you liked Nelson DeMille's 'Up Country,' I WILL GUARANTEE you will love 'Time to Hunt.' Plain and simple, this is one of the 10 best books I've ever read, and that includes 500+ novels in the last five years alone. 'Time to Hunt' might not be up there with Stuart Woods' 'Chiefs' or Vince Flynn's 'Term Limits' but it's up there, believe me. Your only problem might be finding it, as 'Time to Hunt' was published in 1998, but it's worth the time and effort to find a copy, put on those comfortable jeans and prepare yourself for slowing down as you approach the end, not wanting the freaking action to end on ya. My word as an author--this book ROCKS!
SPOILER PLOT SUMMARY FOLLOWS:
Soviet Mole in Deep Cover. Washington, DC, in spring of 1971 was a war zone, or rather a war protesters' zone, with nearly continuous demonstrations against the ongoing war in Vietnam. Marine Corporal Donny Fenn, already having served a tour in The Land of Bad Things is assigned to the garrison at 8th & I Streets, part of a Funeral Company doing ceremonial burials at Arlington National Cemetery. His high school girl Julie is now a war demonstrator from Arizona and they meet, determined to complete their vows to one another to marry when possible. The Naval Investigative Service-long before Jethro Gibbs made it famous-is deeply involved in ferreting out the criminal aspects of the peaceniks, and extort Donny Fenn into going undercover to spy on one of his fellow grunts. He does so, meeting some heavies in the antiwar movement and is promised promotion for his testimony against Lance Corporal Ed Crowe. When the bust goes down, Fenn is branded the traitor by his fellow Marines, listens to Julie and Trig Carter-an antiwar Moses-and refuses to testify at Crowe's court martial. Washington Navy Yard NIS Head Ward Bonson goes hermatile, banishing Fenn to Vietnam even though he's got only 13 months left in his enlistment. Fenn meets and is taken under the wing of Bob the Nailer, the most terrifying of Marine snipers assigned to their Central Highlands AOR. As fate would have it, Donny survives assured death at Kham Duc, a special forces irregular camp near the Laotian border, backing SSGT Bob Swagger up as he disrupts and entire Division of NVA regulars heading to overrun Kham Duc. On his last day in country, Donny is killed by a Soviet sniper sent in to kill him, even though he and Swagger thought they'd killed Solaratov earlier. Swagger is hailed the hero but was shot thru the pelvis just before Donny bought it. After 2+ years of rehab he rejoins the Corps, his life a nightmare as bourbon is the only thing to ease his pain. After a few years he and Donny's widow Julie hook up, marry and have a daughter Nikki. Out riding the mountains one morning in Arizona, a sniper kills a neighbor riding with Julie and Nikki, then turns the gun on Julie, wounding but not killing her. In the subsequent investigation, Bob moves to Idaho to hide while he seeks out the sniper, who is the same Solaratov, just recycled by the KGB/SVR. Ultimately, Solaratov finds the hide ranch in Idaho and stakes it during a freak spring snow storm. Swagger, now in league with DDCI Ward Bonson, takes a HALO chute dive into the LZ, narrowly avoids death and finally kills Solaratov. In the debrief to this 'hunt,' it's Julie that Solaratov was after, as she was one of four people to identify Soviet deep cover spy Evgeny Pashin, now a star in post-Soviet Russia running for President. Pashin's involvement in the hit on Julie results in his own assassination and all is quiet. Swagger makes one last trip to Trig Carter's mother to tell her of his passing, and how he was not the target but a math student who'd developed math algorithms for satellite imagery. He finds Trig's last notes/drawings, which reveal Bonson as a contact of Pashin's in 1971. Using a claymore mine Bonson gave him for his hunt mission for Solaratov, Swagger confronts Bonson who confesses all, confident his five Spetsnaz guards will secure him. Swagger exits the warehouse the lone man standing and heads west.
December 12, 2008
My introduction to the author was this book. Part adventure, part thriller, part mystery, the zigs and zags this story takes you on are so well executed your mind is left reeling. Once you are introduced to Marine sniper "Bob the Nailer" you will seek out all the books he is in. So good even my mother enjoyed it!
April 10, 2013
This is the third book in the Bob Lee Swagger series and another enjoyable read. The plot starts after the events of the last two books but we only get a short teaser into Bob's current life, a quick cliff-hanger before we jump back in time to the Vietnam War era. And once there, the POV shifts to Donny Fenn, a young marine who had been severely wounded during a tour in Vietnam but is now in Washington DC serving in a nice "safe" position. We get to watch him get drawn into the peace movement and be asked to spy on his fellow marines. His story is a poignant one and lasts for quite a while before he makes a courageous decision and is forced back to the warzone where he meets up with Bob Lee Swagger and becomes the master sniper's spotter.
That section was quite lengthy, so much so that I was actually beginning to wonder if this was going to be a Swagger book at all. But from there it's all Swagger as we jump around in time to experience the larger plot. Utimately this serves to tie the entire story together and, at the same time, really fleshes out Bob Lee Swagger's backstory. We get to see cool sniping action as well as fall into a mystery/espionage plot and finish with an intense long range battle between two super sniper legends. Along the way we come to further understand the present day demons that Swagger endures and how they came to be.
That section was quite lengthy, so much so that I was actually beginning to wonder if this was going to be a Swagger book at all. But from there it's all Swagger as we jump around in time to experience the larger plot. Utimately this serves to tie the entire story together and, at the same time, really fleshes out Bob Lee Swagger's backstory. We get to see cool sniping action as well as fall into a mystery/espionage plot and finish with an intense long range battle between two super sniper legends. Along the way we come to further understand the present day demons that Swagger endures and how they came to be.
October 12, 2010
More of Bob Lee Swagger. Ranging from the jungles of Vietnam to the present, Bob must find the link that ties himself & Donny Fenn to the sniper Salaratov.
This one was slow to start, with 85 pages of Vietnam era peace movement politics. It had a great section where Bob Lee & his spotter take on a battalion of North Vietnamese.
This one was slow to start, with 85 pages of Vietnam era peace movement politics. It had a great section where Bob Lee & his spotter take on a battalion of North Vietnamese.
September 17, 2021
Another solid installment in the Bob Lee Swagger series, Stephen Hunter delivers!
Time to Hunt takes us back to the days of Swagger as a Marine Sniper with his friend Donny Fenn in the Vietnam War, and to the day of Donny's death at the hands of a Russian assassin. Then the story jumps back to the present, where Swagger is living happily in Idaho with his wife and daugher, but Swagger still can't seem to but his dark past behind him. His ghosts once again come back to haunt him when a shot rings out, hitting Julie, (Swagger's wife and Donny's widow) but she survives. It turns out the Russian assassin responsible for Donny's death has returned years later, and has a score to settle with Swagger.
Swagger once again comes out of retirement and picks up his rifle for one final hunt. But Swagger doesn't realize that he's about to walk down a path that will forever change his life, and he will reveal the long lost truth surrounding Donny's death, putting the last piece in the puzzle.
Very long but very good! Even though I know there's more books in the series (which I may read sometime in the near future) I found this a perfect ending to what I considered a Trilogy.
Time to Hunt takes us back to the days of Swagger as a Marine Sniper with his friend Donny Fenn in the Vietnam War, and to the day of Donny's death at the hands of a Russian assassin. Then the story jumps back to the present, where Swagger is living happily in Idaho with his wife and daugher, but Swagger still can't seem to but his dark past behind him. His ghosts once again come back to haunt him when a shot rings out, hitting Julie, (Swagger's wife and Donny's widow) but she survives. It turns out the Russian assassin responsible for Donny's death has returned years later, and has a score to settle with Swagger.
Swagger once again comes out of retirement and picks up his rifle for one final hunt. But Swagger doesn't realize that he's about to walk down a path that will forever change his life, and he will reveal the long lost truth surrounding Donny's death, putting the last piece in the puzzle.
Very long but very good! Even though I know there's more books in the series (which I may read sometime in the near future) I found this a perfect ending to what I considered a Trilogy.
April 5, 2015
It's as always with those books: first narrative flows slowly even lazily and then the last 100 pages plot is rushing and you have to pull an all-nighter cause you just can't put it down and not know if Swagger won.
I finally came to conclusion that this is a detective stories where old sniper is playing a detective. First story was about himself, second was about his father and his death's secret and now it was time for Donny to tell his story. I wonder.
So many things could have gone differently then in 70's but they didn't. And it was really sad to read about those events and know, that they will not end well. I bow before author cause you couldn't tell the moment they were going to die. More then once I was pretty sure that this was it. But it wasn't. And to be honest I skipped part where Swagger gets drunk to remember that morning. I just couldn't read it. Couldn't make myself to do that.
Donny was so in love with Swagger. You could see that through the whole book. He idolized Swagger and put him on some kind of pedestal. I first thought that that's what killed him, but unless he hadn't been bitten and killed Solaratov that day... But even then there was a certainty that once at home some accident or another would happen to him. He was dead the moment the chose him to spy on his mates.
The great pretender was almost perfect. I didn't suspect him until the end even though I had thought about the perfect cover story. But I'm glad that Bob Lee was smarter and had a rabbit in his hat.
I think Swagger's file is marked R.E.D. in those archives of theirs.
I also was sorry to see eagle go. It sounded like a great picture. And what also made me think was if that number on the check had any significance? Or was it just a random number? He could just tell "They've got a check" But he specified the sum up to the last cent... Well, nevermind.
I finally came to conclusion that this is a detective stories where old sniper is playing a detective. First story was about himself, second was about his father and his death's secret and now it was time for Donny to tell his story. I wonder.
So many things could have gone differently then in 70's but they didn't. And it was really sad to read about those events and know, that they will not end well. I bow before author cause you couldn't tell the moment they were going to die. More then once I was pretty sure that this was it. But it wasn't. And to be honest I skipped part where Swagger gets drunk to remember that morning. I just couldn't read it. Couldn't make myself to do that.
Donny was so in love with Swagger. You could see that through the whole book. He idolized Swagger and put him on some kind of pedestal. I first thought that that's what killed him, but unless he hadn't been bitten and killed Solaratov that day... But even then there was a certainty that once at home some accident or another would happen to him. He was dead the moment the chose him to spy on his mates.
The great pretender was almost perfect. I didn't suspect him until the end even though I had thought about the perfect cover story. But I'm glad that Bob Lee was smarter and had a rabbit in his hat.
I think Swagger's file is marked R.E.D. in those archives of theirs.
I also was sorry to see eagle go. It sounded like a great picture. And what also made me think was if that number on the check had any significance? Or was it just a random number? He could just tell "They've got a check" But he specified the sum up to the last cent... Well, nevermind.
March 2, 2017
Fundamentally, this was a good book. It was well plotted, had interesting and well developed characters and moved along nicely. Much of the book was a flashback to Bob Lee Swagger's time in Vietnam, and that worked fairly well.
There was a big twist that was slightly unbelievable and the conclusion simply wasn't believable but, if you can suspend reality for a bit, you might enjoy it. I debated whether to give the nook a three or four star rating and went with the latter because 95% of it was a really good read.
The End
There was a big twist that was slightly unbelievable and the conclusion simply wasn't believable but, if you can suspend reality for a bit, you might enjoy it. I debated whether to give the nook a three or four star rating and went with the latter because 95% of it was a really good read.
The End
May 6, 2016
After a confusing but necessary slow start and setup this novel blasts into testosterone-laden overdrive with a retelling of Bob and Donny’s epic stand at An Loc Valley in 1972 and then a gripping cat-and-mouse game in the present day. Can’t stop reading these stupid-ass books for some reason. They’re just wonderful escapist well-written garbage and I love it.
November 21, 2009
Unlike authors of most fiction involving guns and shooting, Hunter knows and understsnds firearms, shooting, reloading, and all things associated. It's a pleasure to read someething where I don't find myself groaning about mistakes and confusion on the topic.
June 10, 2025
3.5 stars
October 9, 2020
Third book in the Bob Lee Swagger series is a major disappointment for me. Excruciatingly long and minutely detailed account of Swagger's last tour in Viet Nam. I love military-style action but don't really care for war books. Over half of this is a war story and I just find it tedious. There is some good stuff in here, including a decent mystery. But I had to slog my way through so much exposition to find it. I am hoping #4 is better.
July 6, 2022
Wow, what a thriller! What an ending! Again I have to say “Stephen Hunter is an amazing author with an amazing ability to tell story worth reading”.
July 23, 2016
I am quickly becoming a Stephen Hunter fan. This is the fourth book I've read from Mr. Hunter, and probably the one I've enjoyed the most.
There are no real spoilers here. The book starts with a man, woman, and child riding their horses towards a cliff edge to enjoy the view. A sniper, across the canyon, draws bead on them, and the man is blown out of the saddle. We then flash back to the end of 1971 and beginning of 1972. We finally get to hear the back story (spoiler alert if you haven't read previous novels) of how Bob Lee Swagger's spotter (and then husband to Swagger's now wife) gets killed. Forty percent of the novel tells this story. When we come back to the present, the who and why of the sniper shooting the group of horse riders seems obvious. It is anything but. This is great conspiracy story telling, especially as it doesn't really stretch the bounds of plausibility much. Additionally, Swagger is just a great hero, a moniker he constantly disdains. He is a man who is wired just a little differently than everyone else, which allows him to process information in a way that has him seeing trouble around every corner, and in Columbo-esque fashion, has him thinking ahead of his enemies.
Hunter doesn't bog us down in detail, but I find the detail welcome. A great example is the Claymore mine that says "This side toward enemy". Swagger, a marine, figures this is helpful for the army.
Very much looking forward to the next one.
There are no real spoilers here. The book starts with a man, woman, and child riding their horses towards a cliff edge to enjoy the view. A sniper, across the canyon, draws bead on them, and the man is blown out of the saddle. We then flash back to the end of 1971 and beginning of 1972. We finally get to hear the back story (spoiler alert if you haven't read previous novels) of how Bob Lee Swagger's spotter (and then husband to Swagger's now wife) gets killed. Forty percent of the novel tells this story. When we come back to the present, the who and why of the sniper shooting the group of horse riders seems obvious. It is anything but. This is great conspiracy story telling, especially as it doesn't really stretch the bounds of plausibility much. Additionally, Swagger is just a great hero, a moniker he constantly disdains. He is a man who is wired just a little differently than everyone else, which allows him to process information in a way that has him seeing trouble around every corner, and in Columbo-esque fashion, has him thinking ahead of his enemies.
Hunter doesn't bog us down in detail, but I find the detail welcome. A great example is the Claymore mine that says "This side toward enemy". Swagger, a marine, figures this is helpful for the army.
Very much looking forward to the next one.
April 5, 2020
This book has an old nemesis after Swagger. He is still holding a grudge from Vietnam when they were both snipers. He is a Russian snipper and has thought he shot Swagger but instead hit someone on a horse. Swagger though becomes more intense when his wife and daughter are in danger and now, he goes on the hunt for the Russian snipper himself.
You get flashbacks with his time when he was in Vietnam which actually helps with the character and only adds to the story for me. I liked everything about this story and would recommend it to anyone it only adds to the Swagger character. A very good book.
You get flashbacks with his time when he was in Vietnam which actually helps with the character and only adds to the story for me. I liked everything about this story and would recommend it to anyone it only adds to the Swagger character. A very good book.
February 7, 2017
Twenty Five years after the end of the Vietnam War Bob "The Nailer" Swagger is back in
the war zone. A Russian sniper with whom he dueled in the jungle and who killed his friend
Donny Fenn has tracked him down to the remote mountains of Idaho. Soon one man is
dead and Swagger's family is under threat. Why has this Russian resumed the conflict, is it
revenge or does it go back further to a secret buried in the extraordinary times of the late
sixties. This is book three in the Bob Lee Swagger series from 1997. This is one of Stephen
Hunters better ones. It has a lot of action and I gave it a 4.
the war zone. A Russian sniper with whom he dueled in the jungle and who killed his friend
Donny Fenn has tracked him down to the remote mountains of Idaho. Soon one man is
dead and Swagger's family is under threat. Why has this Russian resumed the conflict, is it
revenge or does it go back further to a secret buried in the extraordinary times of the late
sixties. This is book three in the Bob Lee Swagger series from 1997. This is one of Stephen
Hunters better ones. It has a lot of action and I gave it a 4.
October 6, 2018
Great tour de force for swagger
Hunter at his best, vivid descriptive prose painting pictures of physical pain, emotional turmoil and geographic nuance. Plot twists and turns with sacrosanct loyalty to Bob Swagger for his human traits of strength, tenacity, and weakness,yet. moreover his self taught ability to survive.
Hunter at his best, vivid descriptive prose painting pictures of physical pain, emotional turmoil and geographic nuance. Plot twists and turns with sacrosanct loyalty to Bob Swagger for his human traits of strength, tenacity, and weakness,yet. moreover his self taught ability to survive.
November 19, 2007
This is one of the best novels he's done and I really enjoyed it. It's better than Point of Impact with action, love, guns, revenge, all the good stuff.
June 13, 2017
4 1/2 stars. Story has an epic sweep to it and a very compelling plot. Started reading this series because I was out of Jack Reacher books. I thought Point of Impact was very good and clever, but this is something more special.
August 31, 2012
First rate. I will read all of the Bob Lee Swagger books Hunter ever writes.
July 30, 2015
This book took forever to get off the ground, with a 109 page introduction of sorts. I did not like it. I've liked all of Hunter's other books that I've read, so I won't toss the rest of them.
November 9, 2019
Bob Lee Swagger definitely makes sure those who hurt others pay in the end. Totally awesome ending!
Read
March 7, 2024Backstory on Donny, and the Russian sniper. As a peace loving baby boomer, I found the whole VietNam section unbearable - and then decided to skip the rest and move into book 4 at some point.
November 8, 2019
Six-Word Review: Swagger hunting the hunter, saves family.
An excellent extension of the Bob Lee Swagger series. In it Swagger's past exploits in Vietnam seem to catch up with him when a friend is shot and killed and his wife almost assassinated, also.
The book's plot gets more and more complicated as Swagger digs into why he is being targeted by a Russian sharpshooter. While much of the story is unrealistic and Swagger's exploits unbelievable, Hunter is so good at what he does, that it was easy to suspend my disbelief and just go with the flow of the story. Swagger is a human super-hero.
As you might imagine, Swagger finally figures out what is really going on and in the end, is able to save his family as they are attacked by the Russian marksman.
While it's not necessary to have read the previous books in the series, it helps to understand Swagger if you've read at least one of them but don't let that keep you from reading this one.
An excellent extension of the Bob Lee Swagger series. In it Swagger's past exploits in Vietnam seem to catch up with him when a friend is shot and killed and his wife almost assassinated, also.
The book's plot gets more and more complicated as Swagger digs into why he is being targeted by a Russian sharpshooter. While much of the story is unrealistic and Swagger's exploits unbelievable, Hunter is so good at what he does, that it was easy to suspend my disbelief and just go with the flow of the story. Swagger is a human super-hero.
As you might imagine, Swagger finally figures out what is really going on and in the end, is able to save his family as they are attacked by the Russian marksman.
While it's not necessary to have read the previous books in the series, it helps to understand Swagger if you've read at least one of them but don't let that keep you from reading this one.
October 9, 2013
This book as the others by Stephen Hunter was brilliantly written. There were many sub plots within plots. You finished one chapter and you were compelled to continue to the next. Bob Lee Swagger was a Sargent in Vietnam and single handedly held off an enemy battalion. His best friend was later killed by a Russian sniper. Bob Lee thought the sniper was after him but no he was after His best friend Lance Caporal Donny Fenn. The plot grew to years later when Bob Lee had married Donny's widow and he learned a Russian sniper was after her. The plot became very intense until the very end when it all came together. This book is an excellent read.
March 27, 2018
Moving back and forth through time in a book isn't something I am a fan of, but it works (for the most part) here.
I enjoyed the author's acknowledgement at the end that there were inconsistencies between this and earlier books in the series, but it was a good read, with only a bit of manipulation obvious.
I will be continuing with this series, after a pause to catch up with other titles/series.
I enjoyed the author's acknowledgement at the end that there were inconsistencies between this and earlier books in the series, but it was a good read, with only a bit of manipulation obvious.
I will be continuing with this series, after a pause to catch up with other titles/series.
October 21, 2017
This is the third book in the series of the Swaggers. And, since some of it takes place around my home town of Mena, Ark (aka Blue Eye) I am always interested in reading another good story. There are some very good twists in this story, taking us back to Viet Nam in May of 1972 and the forward into the 1990's. I recommend the book in spite of very little sex or sexual situations.
July 7, 2019
Loved it! My first Bob Lee Swagger thriller and I was sucked in after the first paragraph, “We are in the presence of a master sniper. He lies, almost preternaturally still, on hard stone. The air is thin, still cold; he doesn’t shake or tremble.” I was on the edge of my seat throughout! Will be picking up many Stephen Hunter thrillers in the near future.
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