Point of Impact
by Stephen Hunter
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Book Reviews of Point of Impact
Book Review: dead on target
Summary: 5 Stars
I was first introduced to Stephen Hunter while browsing through book shelves looking for something new. I saw the authors name and immediately picked it up since he had the same name as my son. I was intrigued by the cover so I gave him a try. I was not disappointed.
The main character Bob Lee Swagger was a loner who hid in the mountains of Arkansas.
Some complain that he is a bit weird for a protagonist but I say anyone that had an upbringing like him and did three tours as a Marine sniper in Vietnam would have to be flawed to some degree. Anyways after 20 years in the mountains he is drawn out by some seamy characters that use him as a patsy in a political assassination plot and he vows vengeance on those responsible. Wrong move on their part. This southern boy don't miss when he aims his gun. He enlists the aid of a down on his luck FBI agent and together they move through all the twists and contortions of a plot you can't really figure out until the end.
Hunter plots like Ludlum, does his research like Clancy and builds characters like King in this best of his efforts in my Opinion. That puts him in mighty good company and worth the price of admission folks. And he also has a pretty good name too, at least I think so.
Larry Hunter author ofThe Mission: A Redemption of the Past
Book Review: The Tom Clancy of Firesticks
Summary: 4 Stars
It could be persuasively argued that Stephen Hunter is the Tom Clancy of the gun culture- His novels don't read so much as novels as technical manuals.It's true that POINT OF IMPACT is a solid, gripping novel that should've been made into a motion picture long ago, but the plain fact is, in this technology-driven day and age, where authenticity is the key to success, Stephen Hunter veers dangerously into the realm of fantasy.
Reading the exploits of Bob Lee Swagger (Swagger?!), a thoroughly unlikable man who outwits local police, state police, the FBI, and a shadowy outfit that specializes in assassinations, one is reminded of James Fenimore Cooper, whose own Leatherstocking was the victim of Twain's infamous dismembering.
In POINT OF IMPACT, Bob Lee Swagger and his colleagues drop people from 1500 yards, almost a mile, seemingly without the aid of mil dots, a revolutionary invention that's used in conjunction with a scope and greatly aids the sniper in establ! ishing range and tabulating drops and spirals for those who know their ballistics tables.
Yet, Swagger and his rivals down their targets with almost superhuman prescience and body control. In real life, snipers just aren't this good.
However, judged as straight fiction, it's to Mr. Hunter's credit that he makes the outrageous plausible and crafts a good tale. I can't wait to read TIME TO HUNT.
Book Review: One Shot, One Kill
Summary: 4 Stars
I kind of read this one out of order with "Black Light." But that still didn't stop me from enjoying this novel as well. Maybe a little more. Although its interesting to note that Nick Memphis has not made an appearence in any of Hunter's other tales. He's about run out of usable time for the two Swagger men. Unless he plans to cover Earl's service years in the Marines. Anyway, back to "Point," Hunter's knowledge and research into our sub-culture of guns is astounding. I myself own a few, though I don't get to hunt or shoot as much as I used to, I still consider myself a part of that sub-culture, so I guess what I'm trying to say is, is that I enjoy the gun details, the bullet grains, the droppage, and the assignment of an actual manufactured firearm to a character.
Oh yes, once again someone has double crossed a swagger, but just like his father before him, Bob Lee is nearly uncrossable, eventhough they try not to they always under estimate him, his opponents consider him a country hick, a bumpkin who doesn't know much more than shooting, but alas they get it everytime, the Swagger men are smart as they come as well as deadly as they come.
Read enjoy, live the action and join "Bob The Nailer," as he is nearly framed for an assassination then hounded throughout much of the U.S. until he seeks his revenge and begins to the hounding.
Book Review: Hunter has really hit the nail on the head this time!
Summary: 5 Stars
The book, Point of Impact, is a book that is about a couple of ex-Special Forces soldiers that deal with underhanded military deals that include assassination, mercenaries, murder, and blackmail. The two leaders of this illeagal organization design a plot to kill a high profile archbishop from San Salvador that is trying to reopen the investigation into the mass murder of some 200 civilians in San Salvadore. The only hitch in their plan is that they need a world-class rifleman man to do it. They pick Gunnery Seargent Bob Lee Swagger USMC (ret). Bob is an ex-Marine Corps Scout/Sniper that was one of the leading Marines in Vietnam for confirmed kills. Only thing is, Bob won't kill anymore, so they design a plan to set him up to take the fall for the murder. The only mistake they make is to underestimate Bob Lee Swagger because that is one country boy that holds a grudge. The only allies Bob has through this ordeal is a discredited FBI agent that idolizes him and the wife of his long dead friend from Vietnam. This book is not only an interesting piece of fiction, it is also technically correct and describes no superhuman feats that are not possible. Those are the very reasons why this book is so engrossing, because it really could happen! I would highly recommend this book for those interested in realistic fiction.Book Review: Hard Corps
Summary: 5 Stars
Bob Lee Swagger is the ultimate anti-hero. He served his country as a Marine Corps sniper in Vietnam, with 87 confirmed kils. Now Bob just wants to be left alone to his peaceful existence in the Arkansas wilderness, but certain people have other plans for him. Swagger is lured away from his home, back in to action with the promise of the oppurtunity to take revenge on the man who tragically ended his career twenty years ago, and killed Bob's best friend. Swagger is duped by a shadowy government agency, set up as a patsy in one of the greatest assassination attempts of the century. He must then fight to prove his innocence with the help of disgraced FBI agent Nick Memphis, the only way he knows how: with the cunning mind of a sniper, and plenty of 150-grain slugs.This book is absolutely my favorite novel ever. I have re-read it 3 times since I first bought it a year or so ago, and was my first read of Stephen Hunter's work. He knows what he is writing about, for a fact. As a bit of a rifle collector and a Marine myself, it is very rewarding to read a book where both are presented accurately. Hunter must have put in plenty of time researching benchshooting and the Marine Corps, and it shows. This novel is a superbly written thriller, and the pace is non-stop. Point of Impact is a great read, and well worth your time and money.