Buck Fever

Publisher's Summary

Edgar Award-nominated author Ben Rehder's Blanco County comic mysteries have made best-of-the-year lists in Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, Kirkus Reviews, and Field & Stream. The novels have been optioned by Warner Brothers Horizon Scripted Television for development as a cable TV series.

Buck Fever: It's the week before deer hunting season, as close to a statewide holiday as you get in Texas, and the locals are getting restless. Game Warden John Marlin has his hands full with poaching complaints coming in faster than he can write out-of-season tickets. Then a call of a different sort comes in. A man dressed up in some sort of deer costume has been shot at the Circle S ranch, and witnesses are reporting a massive wild-eyed buck prancing about the pasture in a lovesick frenzy. Marlin's seen a lot in his years, but this is wilder than he could have imagined: the man in the deer suit is a good friend, and the whacked-out whitetail isn't exactly a stranger either.

It's the beginning of a mad, frantic weekend in Blanco County, one that will see a few more men shot, an invasion by Colombians with more than hunting on their minds, and damn near the end of Marlin's life. Ben Rehder serves it all up with a huge helping of humor in this debut comic mystery that will firmly establish him as the funniest crime writer in Texas.

©2002 Ben Rehder (P)2013 Ben Rehder

An absolute delight.

Would you consider the audio edition of Buck Fever to be better than the print version?

The narrator was one of the best I've ever heard. He navigated a wide, wide range of characters and made each of them distinctive and individual. He also portrayed some dumb and dumber characters with great humor but not an ounce of condescension. He was brilliant at making the characters often hilariously funny without making fun of them.

What did you like best about this story?

As humor, a traditional cozy, procedural, or thriller, “Buck Fever” joyously succeeds on every level. It begins as a delightfully humorous cozy mystery about a game warden in rural Texas. It then transitions smoothly into a crime story and then a thriller while maintaining a great sense of humor throughout. Creative, engrossing, often hilarious, and never condescending toward even its most absurd characters, “Buck Fever” richly deserves the acclaim it has received, including starred reviews in both Library Journal and Publisher’s Weekly.

Any additional comments?

NOTE: the Kindle version is currently FREE and you can purchase the excellent, hilarious audio book for only $1.99. Get it while you can. It's a great introduction to a great series.

4 of 4 people found this review helpful

Texas redneck mystery featuring deer!

This book is the first in the game warden John Marlin series. I have listened to much worse, but there are too many really good mystery/thrillers out there to waste time on this. The novel was funny at times. The narration was excellent.

5 of 6 people found this review helpful

Ended Better Than it Began

I struggled to continue after the first couple of chapters. After a very slow beginning into which a ton of characters were thrown, this book settled down to a very interesting story. I was. completely surprised by the unexpected twists and turns.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

A Sporting Try

While there are much better mysteries out there this was engaging and a nice way to spend a few hours. The only part that irritated me was the sex scene. Oh, look, we're captured by Colombian drug lords, let's have sex! Gimme a break. Interesting way to smuggle drugs though.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Highly Entertaining

What made the experience of listening to Buck Fever the most enjoyable?

The distinct Western twang and Columbian accent that Johnny Peppers gave each character was spot on.I could see each person clearly in my minds eye, even the women.

Who was your favorite character and why?

My favorite character had to be the 300 lb bumpkin. He had me laughing out loud more than once.

Which scene was your favorite?

I got a big kick out of the discovery of vet in the dear costume after he was shot. Or later when he was sent to tranquilize them.... tranquilize one dear, snort one line LOL

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I think when the game warden let the poacher slide because he knew the man would use every oz of his kill to feed his family.

Any additional comments?

This story was enjoyable from beginning to end. Hat's off to Ben Rehder for a job well done. I'll definitely be reading more of his work in the near future.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Wrong Narrator

Enjoyed the story very much. As
written it had quite a bit of humor in it, but narration was very dry almost dull. I purchased this with whisper sync and I enjoyed reading the story more than listening too it.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Ben Rehder's Buck Fever

I enjoyed this book as a member of the law enforcement community and Native Texan. I related to the story.

Good read

I hope the rest of his work is this good. It's gold. It was a good read.

enjoyable mystery

A vertical well written mystery-adventure. the story holds the audience well as the events unfold.

Good Book

It took a while to get interesting, but this book was a decent read after that.