White Star [Mass Market Paperback]

James Thayer (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 1996

A former Vietnam sniper who is determined to leave the past behind him, assistant district attorney Owen Gray is targeted by a stalking sniper from his past who kills innocent people in order to force Gray to fight. Reprint. NYT.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Slickly paced suspense, droll humor and extreme violence are deftly balanced in Thayer's (Ringer) new thriller, a tale of sniper vs. sniper that's the literary equivalent of shooting the rapids in a tiny canoe. Manhattan-based federal prosecutor Owen Gray loses his big case against mob boss Carmine "Chinaman" De Sallo, but the don loses an even bigger stake when he's shot dead at the post-trial press conference-by a rifleman stationed several blocks away. Gray's good friend, NYPD detective Pete Coates, draws the case and taps into Gray's experience as a Marine sniper in Vietnam to pinpoint the high-rise firing site. There, the cop finds the shooter's "signature," a shell with a red ring painted on it. When the shell is identified as Russian-made, Gray and Coates turn to the beautiful Adrian Wade, a State Department security expert stationed in Moscow, to help ID the sniper; he turns out to be the mentally unstable Nikolai Trusov, who long ago was bested by Gray in Vietnam and who's now come to the States to force the ultimate grudge match. After Trusov plays nasty cat to Gray's mouse, including threatening the lawyer's adopted children, Gray lures the Russian to his childhood ranch in the wilds of Idaho for a shooters' showdown; meanwhile, Coates and Wade set up every high-tech trap possible against Trusov. But the Russian outsmarts his electronic trackers, setting the stage for a duel in a granite-ridged valley that is soon stained with both men's blood. Featuring reasonably believable plot devices and characters, as well as some informative sniper lore and witty banter to periodically relieve the tension, this deft thriller should win Gray a new host of fans.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Owen Gray is a New York City district attorney and the adoptive father of three orphaned Asian children. Previously, Gray was the premier marine sniper in Vietnam, where he was credited with 96 kills. The past is mostly forgotten, though, at least until a Mafia chieftain standing with Gray in front of a courthouse is killed by a sniper. Days later, a petty crook is shot through the head while Gray is walking with him toward a waiting police van. Unbeknownst to Gray, the sniper is a figure from his past who nearly drove him to suicide. What starts as seemingly random violence on the streets of New York is actually an invitation to a deadly duel between the world's two best snipers. This latest suspense yarn from the author of Pursuit (LJ 3/1/86) provides plenty of excitement for action fans and their libraries.
--Charles Michaud, Turner Free Lib., Randolph, Mass.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Pocket (January 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671528173
• ISBN-13: 978-0671528171
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.5 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #967,493 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I served as a physician in the British Army during the Boer War. Wait. Sorry. That was Arthur Conan Doyle. I was raised in Spokane, and went to school in Pullman and Chicago. My wife Patti, our two daughters, and I live in Seattle. I'm trying to learn to play the tenor saxophone, but Coleman Hawkins needn't be looking over his shoulder. I teach novel writing at the University of Washington extension school, and maintain a blog about fiction writing (www.novelpro.net), where I discuss writing techniques each day.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great read, as good as Stephen Hunter, May 4, 1999

By 

David Henderson (Provo, UT) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: White Star (Mass Market Paperback)

I'm not a huge gun person, but I've enjoyed most of Stephen Hunter's books as well as White Star. It ranks up there with my favorite Hunter book, Point of Impact.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Game of Death, February 16, 2001

By 

Ayman (Sydney) - See all my reviews

This review is from: White Star (Mass Market Paperback)

Owen Gray is a retired Sniper who was known as the "White Star" back in Vietnam. Gray now lives at home with a family of three children whom he has fostered. Trusov is also an expert Sniper from the same era, and draws Gray into a game of death. Soon, professional hits are carried out on people close to Gray, and he is pushed to pick up his weapon once again and plunge into action. Trusov runs the show until both snipers are alone, left to settle the score man to man. Thayer hasn't done a bad job, some reviewers have put his novel down by saying there's no touch of reality, but putting those aside; it is a decent and enjoyable action/adventure story with a few thrills added in. There are also some truly interesting points and details about the methods of professional sniping. The ending is brutal and long, concerning the final shoot-out, but it doesn't seem to ruin anything at all. In fact, being fond of action novels, I found it entertaining- although I do realize it was hard to believe that some of those things would happen the way it was portrayed. Still, a great way to fill in your time!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Unrealistic and totally unbelievable., January 18, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: White Star (Mass Market Paperback)

James Thayer has clearley not spent too much time in the woods, if ever at all. As an avid outdoorsman, I find his depiction of the wilderness contradictory at best, and unrealistic at worst. Apparently the author knows nothing of firearms, specifically military firearms. His description of the story's hero, Owen Gray, holding the WOODEN stock of a modern Marine Corps M40A1, is laughable, as all current USMC sniper rifles have composite stocks. Finally, none of the characters are believable or even sympathetic. Don't waste your time on this one. If you want to read an excellent fictional book about a former Marine sniper, check out Stephen Hunter's Point of Impact. If you want to read about the real thing, check out "One Shot, One Kill", which is about Gny, Sgt. Carlos Hathcock, an American hero from the Vietnam war, with 93 confirmed kills.