I, Sniper: A Bob Lee Swagger Novel (Bob Lee Swagger Novels) [Hardcover]

Stephen Hunter (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 29, 2009 | Series: Bob Lee Swagger Novels

Four famed '60s radicals are gunned down at long range by a sniper. Under enormous media scrutiny, the FBI quickly concludes that Marine war hero Carl Hitchcock, whose ninety-three kills were considered the leading body count tally among American marksman in Vietnam, was the shooter. But as the Bureau, led by Special Agent Nick Memphis, bears down, Hitchcock commits suicide. In closing out the investigation, Nick discovers a case made in heaven: everything fits, from timeline, ballistics, and forensics to motive, means, and opportunity. Maybe it's a little too perfect.

Nick asks his friend, the retired Marine sniper Bob Lee Swagger, to examine the data. Using a skill set no other man on earth possesses, Swagger soon discovers unseen anomalies and gradually begins to unravel a sophisticated conspiracy -- one that would require the highest level of warcraft by the most superb special operations professionals. As Swagger penetrates the deepest secrets of the sniper world and its new technology, Nick stands firm in the face of hardball PR initiatives and an inflamed media calling for his ouster.

Swagger soon closes in, and those responsible will stop at nothing to take him out. But these heavily armed men make the mistake of thinking they are hunting Bob, when he is, in fact, hunting them.

I, Sniper will satisfy Stephen Hunter's legions of fans and win him droves of new ones with its signature blend of brilliant plotting, vivid characters, razor-sharp dialogue, and extraordinary gunfights. And when Swagger and the last of his antagonists finally face each other, reenacting a classic ritual of arms, it is clear that at times there's nothing more necessary than a good man with a gun and the guts to use it.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Bestseller Hunter keeps Bob Lee Swagger, his home-spun, hard-charging hero, doing what Swagger does best in his sixth novel to feature the former Marine sniper: thwarting the authorities, staying loyal to a disappearing code of honor and hunting down evildoers who deserve everything they get. When a sniper shoots dead Joan Flanders (think Jane Fonda) and three other victims associated with the 1960s peace movement, the FBI decides the killer is the most famous sniper in America, Carl Hitchcock, who's gone nuts and decided to up his total number of kills. Swagger soon realizes that Hitchcock, a fellow ex-Marine and Vietnam vet, is innocent, while the real killer, who's using cutting-edge, electronic sniper gear, is still at large. After two inferior Bob Lee Swagger books, The 47th Samurai (2007) and Night of Thunder (2008), Hunter is back at the top of his game. He's the best on the subject of guns and what damage bullets can do to human flesh. (Dec.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

“…Hunter is back at the top of his game.”—Publishers Weekly, starred review

“It’s a troubling moral position, of course, the idea of the sniper as a man of courage, and Hunter makes the most of it, demanding that the reader rethink common cultural assumptions about good and evil. Those philosophical underpinnings give the narrative depth, but finally, as all Bob Lee fans know, it comes down to 'straight killing time.' And so it does, in a ramped-up, high-tech High Noon finale that will leave even unsympathetic readers gasping. As always, Hunter makes it work with precise, detail-rich prose that strips the faux glamour from gun fighting and leaves only the skills of the combatants set against the horrors they wreak.”—Bill Ott, Booklist, starred review

“In his guns-a-poppin’ latest, Hunter pits his series hero against a nest of sharp-shooting vipers. [D]ust off the OK Corral. Even the somewhat squeamish, and even certifiable gun-dummies, may once again find chivalric, heroic Bob Lee just about irresistible.”—Kirkus Reviews

“Hunter's thrillers are always taut, exciting, and well written, and his latest is no exception. There's also a lot of gun and tech talk as Swagger uses decades' worth of skills to stay a step or three ahead of the baddies. Swagger fans will not be disappointed.”—Robert Conroy, Library Journal

"Stephen Hunter’s I, Sniper brings back one of the great characters in modern thrillerdom, Bob Lee Swagger, everyone’s favorite lethal, dour Southerner. I kind of want Swagger to meet up with Lee Child’s Jack Reacher one day, in a contest to see who could say the least while doing the most damage."—Malcolm Gladwell

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 432 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster (December 29, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1416565159
• ISBN-13: 978-1416565154
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.6 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (195 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #114,007 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Stephen Hunter won the 2003 Pulitzer Prize for Criticism as well as the 1998 American Society of Newspaper Editors Award for Distinguished Writing in Criticism for his work as film critic at The Washington Post. He is the author of several bestselling novels, including Time to Hunt, Black Light, Point of Impact, and the New York Times bestsellers Havana, Pale Horse Coming, and Hot Springs. He lives in Baltimore.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

134 of 142 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A really interesting and worthwhile story...., December 31, 2009

By 

Robert Busko (North Carolina) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: I, Sniper: A Bob Lee Swagger Novel (Bob Lee Swagger Novels) (Hardcover)

I, like many others, gave up on Stephen Hunter. His last few books have left something to be desired, though, in all honesty, a lukewarm effort by Hunter is better than the best efforts of several celebrated authors. I Sniper is a return to the old Hunter. Fast paced, well developed plot, great characters, and suspense squared, I Sniper might make your palms sweat.

The story begins with the assassinations of four prominent and rapidly aging Viet Nam anti war protestors. One, Joan Flanders, a Jane Fonda knock off, is killed on the second page. The others happen in quick succession leaving the reader wondering where the story is going.

As the book moves on, the FBI feels the killer has to be a Viet Nam vet with an axe to grind and a very specific set of skills. The list of prospective suspects isn't that long and the authorities settle on Carl Hitchcock. But Hitchcock throws them a curve when he commits suicide. Bob Lee Swagger, a Hunter regular, doesn't believe that Hitchcock was the culprit and for reasons of his own decides to prove it but eventually finds himself in the real killer's sights

Hunter takes his shots (no pun intended) at the New York Times as well as the antiwar protestors as well. Interesting!

I Sniper won't disappoint the reader. With a mix of international intrigue and just plain down to earth imagination, Hunter delivers big time.

A five star read for sure.

51 of 54 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fun, Fun, Fun... Straightforward and Simple Storytelling, January 4, 2010

By 

Brian Baker (Santa Clarita, CA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: I, Sniper: A Bob Lee Swagger Novel (Bob Lee Swagger Novels) (Hardcover)

Is it "great literature"? No. Is it a puzzling whodunnit? No. Is it a classic Bob Lee Swagger tale?

Most definitely.

The top Vietnam War Marine sniper, Carl Hitchcock, seems to have gone off the rails, murdering liberal icons from the Vietnam era and ultimately taking his own life.

Enter aging Rusted Knight on Tired Steed Bob "The Nailer" Swagger, himself one of the top Vietnam Marine snipers, who doesn't believe Hitchcock could come so completely unglued, and who decides to look into the affair with the help and sanction of his FBI compadre Nick Memphis.

Swagger puts his life at risk - as usual! - to probe for the truth, coming up against political hacks, rogue killers, and a self-indulgent billionaire intent on burying the investigation in order to protect their own agendas.

This is a fun book chock-full of figures who will be easily identifiable to those of us who lived through the Vietnam Era, especially if you're a "gun guy" and/or a veteran yourself. Hunter clearly takes delight in skewering the liberals of the era (and those of the modern era), as well as paying homage to the real heroes.

Carl Hitchcock (Carlos Hathcock, the actual top Vietnam Marine sniper); "Hanoi Joan" Flanders ("Hanoi Jane" Fonda) and her ex-husband T.T. Constable ("T.T." as in Ted Turner), the "Times" (as in "New York"), several others. Part of the fun in the book - if you're a conservative - is in identifying the characters and enjoying this device.

Another thing that appeals to me is that Bob Lee doesn't suffer from Peter Pan Syndrome by seeming to be immune to the realities of advancing age, a shortcoming in several other series, most notably Burke's Dave Robicheaux and Crais's Elvis Cole characters (as much as I love those books). In both those series, the central characters are also Vietnam vets, but neither seems to age, somehow. That war ended for the US in 1975 with the fall of Saigon - almost 35 years ago - and even then we had very few troops in-country, and those were pretty much all in Saigon. That means that even the youngest person alive today who could have possibly been there would be at least 53, and the reality is that if the character saw field combat he'd be even older, as we stopped ground operations in 1972. We vets are a graying bunch. No matter how much I'm still a stud in my mind's eye, every time I catch a glimpse of myself in a mirror, I'm reminded of the harsh reality of the situation!

So, if you want to read a fun book with lots of action, suspense, gun stuff, and conservative politics, this book's for you!

45 of 48 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Better Buckle up: Bob Lee is back. He's angry and he's out for blood!, December 29, 2009

By 

W. E. Smart (Montana, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: I, Sniper: A Bob Lee Swagger Novel (Bob Lee Swagger Novels) (Hardcover)

Bob Lee Swagger is back in the game and Stephen Hunter is at the top of his form. One of Bob Lee's fellow snipers is the prime suspect in a series of horrific shootings and the press and the public want him brought down. No need for jury and judge. The guy is guilty: Just put him away!

The deal is, the whole thing just doesn't sit right with Bob Lee. Once again, it's time to hunt. From the opening pages of this latest Hunter work to the edge-of-your-seat ending, readers are in for a fast, furious and violent ride. The characterizations are vivid and entirely believable. Bob Lee looks at things as black or white, but much of this story is colored in shades of gray. Things are not always what they seem, or are they?

As usual, Bob Lee is operating on his own much of the time. He's working for the good guys but they don't always see it that way. Some of the good guys actually may be bad guys. The opposition includes at least one very likable assassin. He even fools eagle-eye Bob.

Hunter is right on in development of his characters, and the gunfights and other action scenes are superbly believable. There is much in the story line that should please many, many Vietnam veterans. Members of the so-called gun culture will be delighted, and rightly so.Hunter gets guns right!

I like to ration myself to a chapter or two a night of Hunter's new works, stretching out the pleasure they bring for as long as possible. Sometimes I even manage to do that for two or three evenings. Impossible with "I, Sniper"! I went to bed, picked it up, read two chapters, got out of bed, went to the study and, several hours later, finished it.

Now I can take it again, a chapter or two a night.

Thanks, Hunter, but why couldn't the book have been published in time for Christmas gifts?