Hometown Hunters Series by Lane Walker

Summary

There are 6 books in this collection with each one following a different young person who is hunting a specific animal.

Book 1: Legend of the Ghost Buck.

This book follows a young teen (13 yrs old) who hears of this legendary buck that inhabits his small town. The whole city becomes intrigued by it as the young teen becomes motivated to hunt it with a bow vs. a rifle. While he faces obstacles such as fear of missing his shot, longing to spend time with his workaholic dad, who also use to hunt, and dealing with his mean neighbor – the teen leans on his faith in God through prayer and scripture meditation.

The book ends nicely with his dad realizing he needed to put his family first, the mended relationship with his neighbor and his confidence in successfully using his bow.

Book 2: The Hunt for Scarface

The main characters in this book are twin boys who are freshmen in high school living in a small town. They are involved in sports and hunting but become interested in the history of their town when their History teacher gives them an old map of their family’s piece of land which they believe will lead them to treasure. While they are discovering their land they come across a large male turkey and their desire to hunt it grows.

The boys have an inherited shotgun that they complain about using, so their dad teaches them about its history and this changes their perspective. While the boys have a good relationship with their parents, their extended family is strained due to their love of money and possessions. The book is heavily focused on their dad teaching them to be kind to their cousin while the cousin lies and steals from them. The end of the book represents a beautiful picture of forgiveness on both sides.

Book 3: Terror at Deadwood Lake

This book centers on an 18-year-old boy who goes on an Alaskan hunt for the infamous Kodiak brown bear named Samson. His father survived an almost fatal attack from Samson four years prior, so the two venture out with a family friend to hunt him down.

Book 4: The Boss on Redemption Road

Hunter, a 6th-grade boy, moves to a remote farmhouse after his dad loses his job. As Hunter adjusts to his new school, he learns a biblical lesson on not judging others as he befriends the town outcast. The book highlights an 8 x 8 elk that is a prized trophy that ultimately brings the whole town together.

Book 5: The Day it Rained Ducks

This story is told by an 18 yr old girl, Blair, as she writes a paper for school about an event that impacted her life. She takes the reader back to a memory of when she was in 7th grade going on a duck hunting trip with her dad. She had great success with the hunt but a storm approaches and separates her from her dad. She endured hypothermia but is determined to survive through her faith in God and the encouragement from her dad.

Book 6: The Lost Deer Camp

This story details Tucker’s experience going through his parent’s separation and moving to a new city & school. He becomes a trouble maker and his parents decide to send him to his uncle’s house to live for a while. Here he finds a love for hunting after he shoots his first deer. Tucker also begins to heal from the hurt of his parent’s separation. Along the way, he discovers that his uncle ran a camp for hunters that was abruptly closed due to a disagreement among his friends. Tucker decides to arrange a reunion for the campers out of love for his uncle and learns about forgiveness. Tucker forgives his parents, just as they announce they’ve decided to stay married.

Reading Level: Ages 8-14
Read Aloud Age: 6+

Mom Thoughts

Each book is written from the perspective of a teenager ranging from ages 11-18. I appreciated this because my kids are in this age range and they related so well to each character. I’m so thankful this book was written by a Christian author who developed his characters to rely on prayer and Scripture for guidance. I appreciated how the author made family a vital part of the main character’s life.

Things of which to be aware:

Book 2: Book two isn’t as exciting as book one, but I appreciate the struggles they faced and how they dealt with them: the boys see bullying, at their school, and they have the courage to step in and stop it. They experience disappointment in the hunt but don’t let it defeat them. These struggles stood out to my kids also and led us to talk about how they would deal with these same scenarios.

Book 3: This book is the most thrilling so far in the series as the main character, his dad, and a family friend encounter a plane accident, being stranded, inclement weather, wolves, and Samson on their 14-day hunt. This book may be a bit too intense for younger ages – possibly 6 years old and younger – as the author describes encountering Samson’s home which has bones with meat still attached. It also is full of suspense and life-threatening events. Later, a member of their group is described as being attacked by Samson as they find his coat with blood on it.

Book 6: Divorce is discussed and the impact it had on the character was extremely evident. He was impacted by a family member who brought him to church and reminded him of scripture in his time of need. My oldest son was emotionally impacted by this book, in a good way, and said it was his favorite because of how it ended (the parents decide to stay married!)

There was no bad language, dark undertones, or immoral behavior in any of the books. It’s a great series to purchase and allow your kids to devour!

This review was written by contributor, Ashley. To learn more about Ashley, click HERE.