''High Hunt'' is the first published novel of

David Eddings David Carroll Eddings (July 7, 1931 – June 2, 2009) was an American fantasy writer. With his wife Leigh, he authored several best-selling epic fantasy novel series, including ''The Belgariad'' (1982–84), '' The Malloreon'' (1987–91), '' The ...

. It was first published in 1973 by

G. P. Putnam's Sons G. P. Putnam's Sons is an American book publisher based in New York City, New York. Since 1996, it has been an imprint of the Penguin Group. History The company began as Wiley & Putnam with the 1838 partnership between George Palmer Putnam an ...

, its copyright was renewed and it published in New York by

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in 1993, and then in 1994 by

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. ''High Hunt'' is Eddings' first novel, written while he was serving jail time for a

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charge. ''High Hunt'' was one of only two "mainstream novels" he wrote during his career. While it is not fantasy, as are most of Eddings' other books, it still shares similarities with most of them as the book focuses on the main character maturing, falling in love, and overcoming personal tragedy. The story is written from the first person perspective though the eyes of Dan Alders, a soldier back from army duty in Germany and on a hunting trip with his estranged brother Jack and some "friends": Cal, Lou, and Stan. The theme of the returning soldier was also in Eddings' novel ''How Lovely are the Dead'' (1953) submitted as his undergraduate thesis at

Reed College Reed College is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Portland, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1908, Reed is a residential college with a campus in the Eastmoreland, Portland, Oregon, E ...

and later his own experience returning from service in Germany. During the hunt, tensions and old hatreds rise and escalate into open fighting. The story takes place in the

Cascade Mountains The Cascade Range or Cascades is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as many of those in the ...

, in

Washington state Washington, officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is often referred to as Washington State to distinguish it from the national capital, both named after George Washington ...

, U.S.

Plot

The prologue begins the story by introducing the characters of Dan and Jack as children as their father tells them a story.

Reception and reviews

While this book is generally rated lesser in comparison to Eddings' later and more popular works, it has nonetheless enjoyed modest popularity, though this is largely by Eddings fans who see it to be a welcome break from the general fantasy offerings of the author. The story is generally well received on

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with fair ratings (as of July 2015) on

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, though many readers comment that the dated language and descriptions detract from the enjoyment of the book. Those who strongly praise the book do so for its honest representation of mankind and its vivid descriptions of the mountain settings.

References

Sources

Teehan, John D. "Eddings, David 1931–." ''Supernatural Fiction Writers: Contemporary Fantasy and Horror''. Ed. Richard Bleiler. 2nd ed. Vol. 1. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 2003. 323-330. Scribner Writers on GVRL. Web. 29 Oct. 2014. {{David Eddings 1973 American novels American thriller novels G. P. Putnam's Sons books 1973 debut novels Novels set in Washington (state)