Time to Hunt

By: Stephen Hunter

Narrated by: Beau Bridges

Length: 5 hrs and 55 mins

Publisher's summary

“Stephen Hunter is in a class by himself. Time to Hunt is as vivid and haunting as a moving target in the crosshairs of a sniper scope.” (Nelson Demille, author of Mayda)

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 best sellers, Point of Impact and Black Light, introduced millions 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.

Praise for Time to Hunt:

“Stephen Hunter is simply the best writer of action fiction in the world and Time to Hunt proves it.” (Phillip Margolin, author of The Burning Man)

“The best straight-up thriller writer at work today.” (Rocky Mountain News)

Please note: This is the abridged edition. An unabridged version is also available.

©1998 Stephen Hunter (P)1998 Bantam Doubleday Dell Audio Publishing, Bantam Doubleday Dell Audio Publishing, A Division of Random House, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Stephen Hunter is in a class by himself. Time to Hunt is as vivid and haunting as a moving target in the crosshairs of a sniper scope." (Nelson Demille, author of Mayday)

"Stephen Hunter is simply the best writer of action fiction in the world and Time to Hunt proves it." (Phillip Margolin, author of The Burning Man)

"The best straight-up thriller writer at work today." (Rocky Mountain News)

One of his best

I always enjoy Stephan Hunter's writing. This was the first of his titles I read and one of his best. Fast action, flawed but very capable characters, make this much more satisfying than some of the cartoon like heros one finds in much of the modern action genre

Really enjoying this series

I really like that these are not formulaic. The writing is smart and unpredictable. The richness of the stories and the narrative are excellent and keep you engaged chapter after chapter.

a very good Swagger story

love Stephen Hunter. this book was shorter, roughly 6 hours. good story though. I highly recommend it

I wish it was unabridged

I really enjoy the Bob Lee Swagger books. I have read them all ad "real" books and am also enjoying the audio.
Yes, the unabridged goes into much detail into the world, the mind, and the equipment of the sniper.
I find this interesting and educational. I missed that in this abridgment but always recomend this author and this character to anyone who likes an intelligent adventure read with depth.

Great story

Beau depicts a wonderful imagery of the story. When Julie states "Daddy's home" it makes you want to scream for joy. I have listened to this many times.

Outstanding

After reading "Point of Impact" and "Black Light" this book did well to tie the story together in a compelling fashion. The rough figure Bob Lee Swagger is yet again a pleasure to follow around root for as he takes on his enemies.

Bob Lee

only reader is Bob Lee Sswager, Beau Bridges. No other reader does Bob Lee justice

Great

A great story with a number of twist and a satisfying ending. Readers of Stephen Hunter will totally enjoy this book I highly recommend.

High Caliber

This is a fast paced gut grabber, the scenes are just wild enough to fire the imagination.
The main character, AKA "Bob the Nailer" lives by a creed of his own, methodical, rigid and as cold as a cadaver he sees the world in absolutes, good/bad, right/wrong, hit/miss. While in Vietnam he becomes a one man army with two reputations, one for killing the enemy at an alarming clip, the other for having an uncommon number of his team mates sent home in body bags. The Vietnamise have a bounty on his head and one bright morning death comes calling in the form of a soviet sniper with skills that match his own. Bob assumes the bullet that kills his partner Donny is meant for him... Years later, after marrying Donny's widow and having reverted to a life of simplicity, privacy and peace Bobs worls is shattered when his nemisis returns to shatter the serenity if his mountain home.
The action picks up as Bob works to identify why, after all these years, they still want him dead...
The same skills that kept him alive in the jungle re-emerge and "Bob the Nailer" returns and the hunted become the hunted.

This is a great read, once started you won't want to stop.

Suffers from Abridgment

This is Hunter's most panoramic book, weaving together plot elements from "Point of Impact" and "Black Light" into a satisfying denouement for Bob Lee Swagger. Beau Bridges does a capable job with the narration. His voice adds continuity to the three audio books. (Aside: Has anyone else noticed that Beau Bridges sounds remarkably like Ed Harris?) My sole complaint, and the reason I gave this book three stars, is the abridgment. Bantam Doubleday was desperate to keep this recording at six hours and left much material on the cutting room floor. The result is choppy and fragmented. If you enjoyed this recording, buy the book. There is much more good material in the unabridged version.