Book Review: The Bounty Hunters by Mason Macrae

I was provided this book free for an honest review.

Title: The Bounty Hunters

Author: Mason Macrae

ASIN: B01FJSO6N4

Link to Authors web site: Unknown

Genre: Western

Print Length: 162

Plot synopsis: The notorious outlaw Speed Caslin and his troupe of renegades are hot property amongst the bounty hunters either side of the Rio Grande. Enter Nick Goodsight, former lawman, entrusted with the task of rescuing the ranger Henry Morris and his daughter Gwen, who have both been kidnapped by Caslin. Little does Nick know that this time, the job’s personal when his path crosses with a notable figure from his past.

Cover: Love the cover colours, maybe the figures look a bit too static.

While I would not call this a fast paced novel it is intriguing enough to keep you reading until the end. The overarching plot is fairly classic in nature – a notorious gang has some hostages and a bounty hunter is out to free them. However, there are some clever nuances that add extra twists and the freeing of the hostages is by no means a simple task. The narrative is easy and generally flowing, although I found some of the description of historical relationships a little forced. The introduction of new characters frequently requires a short divergence while their historical relationship with the main characters is described.

The characterisation was well written and the characters are well rounded and plausible. The dialogue was well integrated into the story and helped develop the characters. Macrae has bravely included some accents and they work well, although they are sometimes a bit stereotypical (especially for the Mexicans). The descriptions of the setting is very good and I got a real sense of the landscapes in which the action took place, although the weather which plays an important part in the story did not come over quite as strongly to me.

A nice easy read that I would recommend to readers of this genre.

In respect to editing, there were a few minor typos, but nothing to ruin the story.

In reviewing what others thought of the novel, I found there were none on Amazon.co.uk or on Amazon.com. There were no reviews on Goodreads.com and a single rating of three stars.