Pat Kelly: Rifle Season

Mace Winters is one of Colorado’s most in-demand big-game guides – until a single catastrophic mistake on a hunt leaves a man dead and Mace convicted of involuntary manslaughter. His reputation is ruined, and his guilt is beyond repair. He numbs himself with vodka and weed, and watches his marriage fray.

An unexpected job comes his way, to escort photo-tourists Vanessa and Clay into his mountains for a “shoot” of a mountain lion. Mace takes the job but feels uneasy – there’s something too slick about them, too… something he can’t settle his thoughts on.

On the opening day of Colorado’s rifle season, the pair returns with another proposal and a tight timetable. Mace finally grasps the truth: they’re using hunting season as cover for an assassination, targeting a notorious criminal in the country for trophy elk.

Mace fights for survival, redemption, and the chance to protect the only life he can’t afford to lose.

Rifle Season is a strongly crafted thriller that takes you smoothly thru the highs and lows of the ridges of Oregon, and the emotions of a damaged man. Excellent debut!