Night of Thunder by Stephen Hunter (2008, Unabridged, Compact Disc)

Somehow, a Stephen Hunter book has never winked at me from the remainder bins or stacks of old library books where I usually find my fiction. Night of Thunder popped up in my consciousness somehow, I found it at Half.com, and after reading it will go looking for Hunter's other book.

Where some suspense writers require that we suspend disbelief, believe new things, or overlook this or that issue to enjoy their characters & story, in this book Hunter relates dialog & details that ring as true as if the book was researched, like Capote's In Cold Blood, and not imagined by a retired film critic.

Hunter tangles a Good Ex-Marine, a bad Country Preacher & his incestuous clan, meth freaks, local good guys, the sheriff's office, and race day at Bristol Motor Speedway into a story where we know who's done something bad from the outset, but keep turning pages to see what else gets done, what motivates the evil-doers, and how the good guy will prevail.