The Hunter

( 53 )

Overview

New York Times bestseller John Lescroart delivers a dark, intimate thriller about the price we put on family and the terrible costs of seeking the truth.

Raised by loving adoptive parents, San Francisco private investigator Wyatt Hunt never had an interest in finding his birth family-until he gets a chilling text message from an unknown number: "How did ur mother die?"

The answer is murder, and urged on by curiosity and the mysterious texter, ...

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The Hunter

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More About This Book

Overview

New York Times bestseller John Lescroart delivers a dark, intimate thriller about the price we put on family and the terrible costs of seeking the truth.

Raised by loving adoptive parents, San Francisco private investigator Wyatt Hunt never had an interest in finding his birth family-until he gets a chilling text message from an unknown number: "How did ur mother die?"

The answer is murder, and urged on by curiosity and the mysterious texter, Hunt takes on a case he never knew existed, one that has lain unsolved for decades. His family's dark past unfurls in dead ends. Child Protective Services, who suspected but could never prove that Hunt was being neglected, is uninformed; his birth father, twice tried but never convicted of the murder, is in hiding; Evie, his mother's drug-addicted religious fanatic of a friend, is untraceable. And who is the texter, and how are they connected to Hunt?

Yet in the present, time is running out. The texter, who insists the killer is out there, refuses to be identified. The cat-and-mouse game leads Hunt across the country and eventually to places far more exotic-and far more dangerous. As the chase escalates, so does the threat, for the killer has a secret that can only be trusted to the grave. Thriller master John Lescroart weaves a shocking, suspenseful tale about the skeletons inside family closets . . . and the mortal danger outside the front door.

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Editorial Reviews

From Barnes & Noble

Surrounded by an adoring family and loyal associates and friends, award-winning director Tallie Jones has a right to feel that at thirty-nine, her life is nearly perfect. Then, just when she is directing the most important film of her life, the bottom begins, at first gradually, to fall apart. As account discrepancies of ever-larger magnitudes emerge, she realizes that somebody very close to her has grievously betrayed her. Who is it: Her trusted personal accountant? Her loving college-age daughter? Her devoted personal assistant? Her producer live-in lover? To catch the thief in this endgame, Tallie puts herself on the line. Keep the nightlights burning; Danielle Steel is back in town. Now in mass-market paperback and NOOK Book.

Publishers Weekly
“How did your mother die?” For San Francisco PI Wyatt Hunt, that enigmatic text message triggers his biggest, and most personal, case—and it’s a great start to bestseller Lescroart’s outstanding fourth Hunt novel (after 2010’s The Treasure Club). Hunt, an orphan with few details of his birth parents, soon learns that his birth name was Wyatt Carson; that his mother, Margaret, was murdered; and that his father, Kevin, was charged with the crime but never convicted. He also receives, from the priest who married his parents, a letter from Kevin asserting his innocence. Lescroart deftly handles a large supporting cast and makes fine use of the city of San Francisco while cleverly incorporating a piece of real history into the narrative, the infamous Jonestown massacre in Guyana in 1978 (the “People’s Temple” leader Jim Jones had been active in San Francisco). This book succeeds on every level—as a mystery, as a thriller, and as an exploration of its appealing hero. Agent: Barney Karpfinger. (Jan.)
Kirkus Reviews
Time for San Francisco private eye Wyatt Hunt to confront the obligatory demons from his past as he searches for the killer of his birth mother. "How did your mother die?" asks an anonymous text message. The founder and principal of The Hunt Club, who's never known who his birth parents were, soon learns at least part of the answer: She was killed 40 years ago, only three years after her marriage to the man who was tried twice for her murder and set free twice by hung juries. Father Don Bernard, the priest who married Margaret and Kevin Carson, has more news for Hunt: an ancient letter from his father swearing his innocence and saying that he's leaving the Bay Area for a job in Texas. The ice-cold trail, lit at first only by the flares of further text messages, turns red-hot when Ivan Orloff, Hunt's newest investigator, gets killed after making what seemed like some pretty routine inquiries. The trail leads from Evie Secrist, Margaret's best friend, back to the Jonestown mass suicide a generation ago, and forward to Evie's ex-husband Lionel Spencer. But it ends again, frustratingly, with Spencer's own death, which Hunt's old SFPD frenemy, homicide inspector Devin Juhle, is all too eager to write off as suicide. Will Hunt and Tamara Dade, his veteran assistant and new lover, be able to pick up the scent the cops missed? Most readers will see ahead of Hunt where this is all headed. Nor will many of them consider the substitution of the hero's back story for Lescroart's customary sociological probe of San Francisco corruption (Treasure Hunt, 2010, etc.) an improvement. The scene in which Hunt finally comes face to face with his anonymous informant, however, is transfixing.
Library Journal
In Lescroart's latest Wyatt Hunt thriller, the successful San Francisco—based private detective receives a text message from an unknown party asking if he knows how his birth mother died. Orphaned and raised by a caring foster family, Hunt never had an interest in finding his biological parents—until now. The message sets Hunt on a touching and tragic quest for the truth, which may cost him everything. VERDICT Well read by Eric Dawe, the story contains enough twists and turns to hold the listener's interest. As in previous Hunt novels, the city is as much of a character as the wide range of police officers and PIs filling the narrative. Recommended to Lescroart's fans and others who enjoy fast-paced detective stories. ["Devoted Lescroart fans may enjoy the work, but thrill-seekers might want to look elsewhere," read the less-than-positive review of the New York Times best-selling Dutton hc, LJ Xpress Reviews, 1/20/12.—Ed.]—Stephen L. Hupp, West Virginia Univ. Parkersburg Lib.
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Product Details

  • ISBN-13: 9780525952565
  • Publisher: Penguin Group (USA) Incorporated
  • Publication date: 1/3/2012
  • Series: Wyatt Hunt Series , #3
  • Pages: 400
  • Sales rank: 253,878
  • Product dimensions: 6.50 (w) x 9.72 (h) x 1.32 (d)

Meet the Author

John T. Lescroart

John Lescroart is the author of nineteen previous novels, including The Betrayal, The Suspect, The Hunt Club, The Motive, The Second Chair, The First Law, The Oath, The Hearing, and Nothing But the Truth. He lives in Northern California.

Biography

John Lescroart has made a name (albeit an unpronounceable one!) for himself as the author of crime thrillers, most notably an acclaimed series starring the San Francisco lawyer-and-cop team of Dismas Hardy and Abe Glitsky. But the road to bestsellerdom has been paved with more than a few unexpected detours for this hardworking novelist, who has been writing all his adult life but who only started to chart big around the mid-1990s.

Lescroart (pronounced les-KWA) grew up with an equal interest in music and writing. After college, he concentrated his energies on the former, performing alone and in bands around the San Francisco Bay area and scribbling in whatever spare time he could find. But he set a deadline for himself, and when he had not "made it" by age 30, he quit music to focus on writing. Within weeks he finished up a novel-in-progress based on his experiences living in Spain. He submitted it to a former high school teacher who was less than dazzled; but the man's wife loved it and entered the manuscript in a local competition. Although it would not formally see print for another four years, Sunburn won the prestigious Joseph Henry Jackson Award, beating out Anne Rice's Interview with a Vampire for the best novel by a California author.

To support his art, Lescroart held down a dizzying succession of jobs -- from house painting and bartending to working as a legal secretary. At one point, just as he was ready to enroll in the creative writing program at Amherst, he was offered a lucrative gig he could not afford to pass up, and graduate school fell by the wayside. As the years passed, some of his books were published, but he never felt financially secure enough to write full-time. Then, in 1989, he contracted spinal meningitis after body-surfing in contaminated seawater. He emerged from his life-threatening ordeal with a new resolve, quit the last of his day jobs, and became a real working novelist.

It took a few tries for Dismas Hardy to become the fully realized character Lescroart's fans have come to know and love. Debuting in 1989's Dead Irish, Hardy began life as an ex-cop/ex-attorney turned bartender and did not return to the practice of law until his third appearance in Hard Evidence (1993). From then on, interest grew in the series, which has snowballed into a lucrative franchise for the author. In 2006, Lescroart introduced another San Francisco-based dynamic duo, private investigator Wyatt Hunt and homicide detective Devin Juhle, in The Hunt Club. Slightly younger than Hardy and Glitsky but drawn with the same humanizing brush, the protagonists of this series have proved immensely popular with readers.

Incidentally, Lescroart's writing success has allowed him to return to his other love: He has founded his own independent label, CrowArt Records, which showcases some of his own music and produces CDs by a number of artist/friends. At long last, John Lescroart is able to enjoy the best of both worlds.

Good To Know

In our exclusive interview, Lescroart let us in on some fun and fascinating insights about himself and his life as a writer:

"First, it's Less-KWAH. Here's a tip -- don't have that name. Get a pen name that people can pronounce and remember. Just this Saturday, I gave a talk at a well-attended writers' conference. There were probably a hundred people in the room, and the talk went very well. Five minutes later, I was in the bathroom washing my hands and around the corner, I heard a guy tell another that he'd just heard the greatest talk by John le Carré. 'You know, The Tailor of Panama and the Smiley books? Good stuff. I'm going to go buy all his books.'"

"Second, I didn't have to quit the day job to keep writing. One of the most productive times in my early writing life was while I had a full-time job as a word processor in a law firm and also worked part-time at night, often working until 11:00 p.m. How did I do any writing, you might ask? Well, I did it between 6:00 and 8:00 in the morning, four pages a day, and published five books in six years. But because a) I was making some money doing 'regular' work and didn't have to be scrounging for coin and b) I was panic-stricken at the little time that was left in the day to write, I wound up becoming more efficient."

"Third, I don't wait on inspiration, and I refuse to acknowledge 'writer's block.' I simply sit down and put words on the paper. It's like being a carpenter -- writers build things. Carpenters don't wake up and say, 'Hmm, I'm not in the mood to drive nails today.' No, they go to work and do the job. It's not very romantic, but that's how I approach writing."

"If you have a good relationship, nurture it. The great god of Writing with a capital "W" isn't the only thing in life. It can be a great part and a big part, but it shouldn't consume you on a daily basis and shouldn't make your life miserable all the time. Try not to get nuts about the greater success of other writers -- we're really not in competition with other writers. We're only trying to outdo ourselves, to get better at our jobs. Go on dates. Spend some time outside (fishing is good, so is skiing, hiking, swimming, jogging). Stay in shape -- writing is a marathon. Don't drink too much. Have as much fun as you can."

Lescroart used to perform as "Johnny Capo" in a group called Johnny Capo and His Real Good Band. Although he no longer performs with that outfit, he still pursues music as the founder of his very own independent label called CrowArt Records. The first project on the label was Date Night, a CD of his own compositions performed by master pianist Antonio Castillo de la Gala. Followers of Lescroart's writing may recognize the in-joke in the album's title. As he explains on his web site, "Fans of Dismas Hardy will know that Diz and Frannie (Dismas's wife) set aside every Wednesday night for some time alone together -- it's their date night."

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    1. Also Known As:
      John Lescroart
    2. Hometown:
      El Macero, California
    1. Date of Birth:
      January 14, 1948
    2. Place of Birth:
      Houston, Texas
    1. Education:
      B.A. in English with Honors, UC Berkeley, 1970

Customer Reviews

Average Rating 3.5
( 53 )
Rating Distribution

5 Star

(21)

4 Star

(12)

3 Star

(4)

2 Star

(7)

1 Star

(9)

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See All Sort by: Showing 1 – 20 of 53 Customer Reviews

  • Anonymous

    Posted January 16, 2012

    Lescroart DoesIt Again !!!!!!!

    I love the way that Lescroart develops Wyatt Hunt's character in this book. He makes you feel like you know him and are rooting for him as the plot develops!!!!! Wyatt opens himself up and lets you feel his frustrations and successes as the plot develops. John Lescroart keeps you involved and emotionally connected throught the entire book.

    3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

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  • Posted January 11, 2012

    Two Words.... Soap Opera

    Two words... SOAP OPERA. So disappointed. I use to love John's books and was hoping that this would be a good one.

    2 out of 5 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted December 16, 2012

    Starrysky

    *smacks greenshadow in the face and yells I HATE YOU.*
    ~ Starrysky

    1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted July 22, 2012

    Recommended, but with reservations

    Good story, but too long and tortuous plot.

    1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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  • Posted June 24, 2012

    a good read

    always good characters, and a puzzle to solve. One of my favorite authors

    1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted April 26, 2013

    Highly recommend.

    Always enjoy John Lescroart's books. I appreciate the way he develops his characters from book to book, the believable plots, and fresh story lines.

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  • Posted December 27, 2012

    MYSTERY / THRILLER

    ENJOYABLE READ. RECOMMENDED.
    JOHN LESCROART. WHAT MORE TO SAY?

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  • Anonymous

    Posted September 30, 2012

    Starrysky

    *she yawns and stretches lazily, looking up into Greenshadow's eyes.* "Can we go back to camp?" she whispered softly. ~Starrysky

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  • Anonymous

    Posted October 1, 2012

    Greenshadow

    Sure.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted July 7, 2012

    Free books

    Free books

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  • Posted May 18, 2012

    Seeking the Past

    The Hunt Club, the private investigative agency in San Francisco headed by Wyatt Hunt, has been the focus of several novels prior to this one, exciting mystery-thrillers. While the present volume is both a mystery with some elements of thriller, the reader has to painstakingly plod through a lot to find them. It basically is more of an introspective look at Hunt, his birth and his development as a mature person.

    Hunt’s mother was murdered when he was three, his father twice tried for the deed but not convicted because of hung juries. While on trial, he let Hunt go through the system, passing through several adoptive families before hitting success with the Hunts. Then one day, now a middle-aged man, he receives a text message: “How did your mother die?,” thus setting him on a journey to rediscover his routes, with almost no memories or information to guide him.

    Uncovering strange and unexpected information along the way, Hunt follows a trail, often led by additional text messages, not to mention additional murders. Too often, there is much repetition, and the physical reaction by Hunt to the pressures seemed superficial, leaving one wondering if there is some basic physical ailment or just plain old anxiety affecting him. Perhaps some judicious editing, or even a rewrite, could have improved the novel, which in its present form is quite interesting but to this reader lacks the spark of the predecessors in the series. Perhaps that’s what the author strove to achieve - - who knows? With that caveat, the novel is recommended.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted March 27, 2012

    Hooked on John Lescroart

    As always a fantastic read! You will not be disappointed

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  • Posted March 24, 2012

    Definitely Recommend

    Excellent writing as usual... a must read

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  • Anonymous

    Posted February 24, 2012

    Worst Lescroart Ever

    I have read nearly every other Lescroart novel and this is, without a doubt, worst ever. Minimal mystery, no suspense, predictable outcome, and way, way too much soap-opera "emoting". And were we not supposed to notice same last name of the rich-lady in Chapter 1 to the suspect unveiled just a a short while later ? What a pretentious un-compelling soap-opera. Publisher, author, and Dismas Hardy should be ashamed of this one...

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  • Posted February 14, 2012

    Definitely a Page Turner

    The best parts of Lescroart,s character driven books are the relationships the reader maintains with the characters. I was thrilled to see Wyatt Hunt return and loved the idea of delving into his past with him. The book centers around the questionable death of Wyatt's birth mother. Of course it turns out to be a murder to be solved, and of course Wyatt and his "band of merry men and women" are on the job. Enter a mysterious texter and ties to Jim Jones, and a great story unfolds. Upon following his adventures we learn more about the characters we want to share a dinner with, so all in all this was a successful venture for a top author.

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  • Posted February 9, 2012

    A Struggle Through a Muddle

    The biggest reward of this reading experience was getting through it.There are sections you can skip and there is nothing compelling in the plot that feeds on being so repetitive its annoying. I won't bother with his next work. He must have been paid by the word in this one as he used alot of them to tell us the same thing over and over again.

    0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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  • Posted February 7, 2012

    Highly recommended !!

    Enjoyed all the John Lescroart books I've read and this one did not disappoint !!

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  • Posted February 6, 2012

    BORING!!!!!!!!!!!!

    I loved John Lescroart"s DAMAGE and was excited to learn he had a new book out. The Hunter is not near as exciting and riveting as other novels by this author. In fact, The Hunter is down right BORING. It tediously drags along without real suspense or pathos. Not a good sign when I begin skimming - just to get through the book. Very disappointing.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted February 4, 2012

    Highly reommennded

    I love all John Lescroart's books.

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  • Posted February 3, 2012

    Boring

    Loved previous books, but this one is slow and boring. Hope next one is better.

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