Stephen Hunter
Stephen Hunter was born on March 25th, 1946 and is currently 79 years old. Stephen Hunter was born in Kansas City, Missouri, USA. Hunter attended Northwestern University where he received a degree in journalism.
Stephen Hunter is the author of the Swaggerverse series which currently consists of 23 novels. The Swaggerverse series started in 1982 with the novel The Second Saladin. The most recently released novel in the Swaggerverse series was Johnny Tuesday which was released in 2024. There is an upcoming novel for the Swaggerverse series entitled The Gun Man Jackson Swagger which is being released on December 2nd, 2025.
Stephen Hunter has also written the Bob Lee Swagger series which has 12 books including Point of Impact and Black Light.
Stephen Hunter has made the
Kono Mystery ga Sugoi list in Japan a few times. The first time was for
The Day Before Midnight in 1989, which made #2 on the list. In 1998,
Dirty White Boys was listed at #8.
Black Light made 1999's list at #3. Point of Impact topped the list at #1 in 2000.
Stephen Hunter began his career as a journalist. He has written for
The Pentagon News,
The Balitmore Sun and
The Washington Post. He worked as a film critic for both the Sun and Post, and in 1998, was the winner of the Distinguished Writing Award, given by the American Society of Newspaper Editors.
Stephen's mother was an author. Her name was Virginia Ricker Hunter, and she wrote books for children.
Hunter had said in an interview with
Outdoor Life that old-time gun magazines were his inspiration as a writer, growing up. Storytellers such as Bill Jordan and Charles Askin really helped inspire him.
Stephen Hunter: Awards & Accolades
Stephen Hunter won the Pulitzer Prize, Criticism, in 2003.
Stephen Hunter books have been nominated for multiple awards, Hot Springs was nominated for the Hammett Prize, Best Crime Novel, in 2000. Pale Horse Coming was nominated for the Audie Award, Best Male Narrator, in 2003. Night of Thunder was nominated for the Barry Award, Best Thriller, in 2009.
Stephen Hunter: TV/Movies Based on Books
In 2016, there was a TV show made based on Point of Impact. It was called Shooter, the same name as the 2007 movie based on the same book. It starred Ryan Phillippe as Bob Lee Swagger. It aired on the USA network and lasted three seasons. Season 3 had strong influences from the novel Time to Hunt.
The book Point of Impact was made into a movie in 2007. It was titled Shooter and it starred Mark Wahlberg as Bob Lee Swagger and Michael Peña as Nick Memphis. On Goodreads, Hunter said that he was happy with Marks portrayal although missed the fact that Bob wasn't a 'nam vet, and his complex family past weren't part of the story.
Related Authors
The most common authors followed by users who also follow Stephen Hunter are:
- Lee Child, author of the Jack Reacher Series.
- Michael Connelly, author of the Harry Bosch Series.
- David Baldacci, author of the Amos Decker Series.
- John Sandford, author of the Prey/Lucas Davenport Series.
- Harlan Coben, author of the Myron Bolitar Series.
Stephen Hunter: F.A.Q
When was Stephen Hunter Born? How old is Stephen Hunter?
Stephen Hunter was born on March 25th, 1946. Stephen Hunter is currently 79 years old.
Where was Stephen Hunter Born?
Stephen Hunter was born in Kansas City, Missouri, USA and is American.
What awards has Stephen Hunter won?
Stephen Hunter has won the following awards: Criticism at the Pulitzer Prize (2003).
What was the first book Stephen Hunter wrote?
The first book written by Stephen Hunter was The Master Sniper, published in 1980.
What was the most recent book Stephen Hunter wrote?
His most recently released work was Johnny Tuesday (a short story) on January 23rd, 2024.
Will there be any more books by Stephen Hunter?
Stephen Hunter has a new book coming out on December 2nd, 2025 called The Gun Man Jackson Swagger.
How many books has Stephen Hunter written?
Stephen Hunter has written 36 books across 11 series.
- 12 books in the Bob Lee Swagger Series
- 4 books in the Earl Swagger Series
- 1 Swagger Collections
- 2 books in the Ray Cruz Series
- 9 Standalone Novels
- 2 Short Stories/Novellas
- 3 Non-Fiction Books
- 23 books in the Swaggerverse Series
- 1 book in the Bibliomysteries Series
- 1 book in the Mysterious Profiles Series
Is the novel Dirty White Boys part of the Bob Lee Swagger original trilogy?
No it is not, however it does take place in the same universe as it. It's advised that you read Dirty White Boys prior to Black Light as it is essentially a prequel to it.
What is the chronological order of Stephen Hunter novels?
You would read the Earl Swagger series first chronologically, meaning The Bullet Garden first. Then you would read the Bob Lee Swagger series, also reading the standalone novel Dirty White Boys prior to Black Light.
Also after Dead Zero, be sure to read Soft Target prior to The Third Bullet just for completeness. We have a complete listing of the chronological order of the "Swaggerverse" above.