"Hunter's Moon" by Don Hoesel

A historically wealthy and influential family is dealing with a lot of drama from within. CJ Baxter - a prodigal son of sorts - heads back to the town of his youth to attend his grandfather's funeral. As he begins to re-involve himself in the affairs of the Baxter clan, it is clear that he is bitter towards his family. And they pretty much all hate him. I mean HATE him.
When I first began reading "Hunter's Moon", I was expecting a thrilling story, a mystery, a conspiracy - something along those lines. For this reason, the book falls below my expectations. It is a decent book, and I half-heartedly recommend it - just don't expect a nail-biter story.
My next issue was the pacing and plot development. Have you ever been with a friend at their family reunion, where everyone is telling stories and inside jokes or reminiscing about memories? You know that uncomfortable feeling you get, because you realize you are an outsider? That's the feeling I had for about HALF of this book, literally. There is so much space dedicated to CJ's past and memories...
You know, I'm not really sure what was the MAIN plot....more specifically, what was the big SECRET that the back cover talks about. We never find out in the book. There were also many details and side issues left unresolved at the end of the book - which I find unforgivable. If you are going to lead people along for close to 400 pages - and several hours of their life - you had better clean up your mess at the end. This author failed to clear the mud at the end of this one.
And about the little matter of it being a "Christian Fiction" book.... well, the main character refers to God in between his beers, poker playing, and trying to seduce a married woman. CJ Baxter talks like he became a Christian, but we never hear a salvation theme, or a redemption theme, or a repentance theme.
Good things to say about it: Um... I laughed out loud a lot; there was some good humor. That's pretty much one of the only good things I can say about it. The story was decent, that's all.
In short, it's not a bad book...just not a great one.