Down Range : A Novel
Author(s): Taylor Moore
“A riveting thriller with a family in crisis at the core. It's my kind of book.” —Brad Taylor, bestselling author of American Traitor
In this action-packed debut thriller for fans of C. J. Box and Jack Carr, DEA agent Garrett Kohl fights to protect his home on the Texas High Plains when a vicious criminal enterprise comes after his family.
As a decorated undercover DEA special agent, Garrett Kohl has traveled the world—and fought in most of it—but it’s the High Plains of northwest Texas he calls home and dreams of returning to one day. Kohl is in the middle of an assignment in Afghanistan when his commander orders him back to Texas on a short mission expected to take a week at most. But Kohl is unsettled to discover that he’s moving from one kind of war to another.
The once-peaceful ranching community he loves is under attack by a band of criminals who have infiltrated law enforcement and corrupted local businesses, and are now terrorizing Kohl’s own family. Hoping to prevent bloodshed, Kohl tries to resolve matters peacefully. But when the group strikes first, he has no choice but to go on the attack.
Unfortunately for the crew of criminals, Garrett Kohl, besides being an elite undercover officer for the DEA, is a battle-hardened Green Beret who spent the better part of his career hunting terrorists. Although outnumbered and outgunned, Kohl knows the wild and forsaken Llano Estacado region of Texas better than anyone. And like so many trespassers before them, these murderers will find out the hard way that the only thing tougher than this land is the people who call it home.
Review(s):
“Down Range fuses the classic Western with the modern thriller. DEA operator Garrett Kohl has big skills and an even bigger heart that drives him to a pulse-pounding showdown as good as anything you’ll read this year—and maybe ever.”
“Having lived it, Taylor Moore hits every bit of the cost of counterterrorism in Down Range, but this story is much more. It’s a riveting thriller with a family in crisis at the core. It's my kind of book.”
"Taylor Moore's Down Range is an intense, authentic, and spellbinding powerhouse that pulls no punches. With high-octane action as well as genuine Texas lore and bravado, readers will be wanting more from hero Garrett Kohl and author Taylor Moore, and soon!"
“A stunning debut, as wild and beautiful as the Texas High Plains in which it’s set, Down Range turns the thriller genre on its head. Stretching from Kabul to Amarillo, Moore’s yarn is chock-full of gripping action, white-knuckled suspense, and, most important, heart.”
"Combining the suspense and intrigue of a Tom Clancy thriller with the action and grit of a hard-hitting western, Taylor Moore's Down Range is sure to entice fans of both genres, as he weaves a wild tale of betrayal, vengeance, and death on the Texas High Plains."
“A rough neo-Western about family lost and found… A propulsive story of survival... [Kohl’s] slice of Texas is sparse and beautiful, but it’s also deadly… A powerful entry in the reluctant warrior subgenre, in which a dangerous but decent man is pushed past his limits.”
“The result is a masterwork of classic storytelling: a man defending his own in the best tradition of a John Wayne or Clint Eastwood film. Think “No Country for Old Men” with Box’s Joe Pickett taking over for Ed Tom Bell. Down Range is downright awesome.”
“[A] powerful debut… Moore melds the thriller and western genres in Down Range, punctuating frequent action scenes against vivid scenery that adds to the suspense. But he also concentrates on his believable characters…. [Garrett] makes for a forceful hero in “Down Range,” the beginning of what should be a long-running series.”
“It took me about 25 pages before I got sucked into this exciting thriller featuring Garrett Kohl, a DEA agent who has been working undercover…. This book offers lots of excitement, but also has its funny moments as well.”
“[A] strong debut… Things culminate in an exciting, Texas-style showdown between Kohl’s family, cartel sicarios, and a host of other bad actors. Fans of J. Todd Scott and C. J. Box will want to check out this propulsive, character-driven thriller.”
ISBN: 9780063066502