Panther Gap: Book summary and reviews of Panther Gap by James A. McLaughlin

Reader Reviews

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Linda L. (Pickerington, OH)

Suspenseful page-turner
Panther Gap is a riveting, dramatic story, set in the breath-taking mountains of Colorado. The author reveals a deep knowledge of the flora, fauna, and geological features of the area. It's an intelligent, challenging read that will surprise you at every twist of the plot. I could not put it down. Chronological flash backs add to the understanding of the characters, their motivations, their family history, loyalties, and conflicting emotions. Prepare for imperfect characters, an ecological bent, violence, and more than a touch of mysticism. The back cover notes that this is a follow-up to McLaughlin's Bearskin. Rice and Apryle, from Bearskin, appear in the second half of the book, but one does not have to have read Bearskin to enjoy Panther Gap. I highly recommend this book. Fans of Richard Powers and Peter Heller would enjoy this gritty, suspense novel.

Amy E. (Delaware, OH)

wow
The legacies of the Ancestors, conspiracy theories, drug cartels, environmental concerns, hidden sums of money, prison gangs, spiritual visions and more contribute to a real thriller.

McLaughlin is a wonderful storyteller with excellent use of language to develop his settings and characters. His balance between the past and the present and the spiritual and the practical draws the reader in to explore some very interesting ideas.
I loved the book!

Patricia G. (Washington, DC)

A gripping story by a talented author
I generally try not to judge a book by how quickly it draws me in—some books just build slowly—but within the first 20 pages of Panther Gap I knew I would have a hard time putting this down. Full disclaimer: this is not my normal genre of reading, but I sincerely hope that James McLaughlin is working on another book.

Panther Gap revolves around the lives of siblings Bowman and Summer, who, for reasons that unspool throughout the story, were raised by their father and two uncles on an isolated property in Colorado. McLaughlin moves back and forth in time to explain how and why each of them react to the immediate threat to their existence: an unknown and unexplained inheritance from their grandfather. Bowman is the more mystical of the siblings, able to commune with animals and overwhelmed by the modern world outside of their ranch. Summer is the more practical, but needs her brother to keep the ranch and themselves safe. At one point a seemingly random passerby, Sam, is thrown into the mix, but McLaughlin blends him into the story well.

The book is a skillful blend of mysticism, mystery, international drug dealing, family and survivalism, and McLaughlin pulls it all together so well, with compelling characters, that it's hard to put down. The reader is compelled at the end of each chapter to simply keep reading--and them McLaughlin goes back into the past to help explain the present. At times this seemed a bit convoluted, and then it all becomes clear and drives toward the dramatic ending.

My only complaint is that I felt I had picked up the third book in a trilogy, and missed out on a lot of the backstory. McLaughlin just gives hints at the fascinating lives of Leo, the father of the sibs, their long-deceased grandfather and mother, and their uncles Darwin and Jeremy (who play major roles in the present day dilemma). Note to Mr. McLaughlin's editor—please, give us at least one prequel to Panther Gap!! These characters—especially the older family members--are so rich and engaging that they deserve their own story. Fingers crossed!!

Janis H. (Willow Street, PA)

About that trust fund
I finished this book almost two weeks ago, but a reread of several sections had to happen before I could write an honest review. The author likes to jump into a scene as the action is happening, especially in Chapter 1. He moves quickly from one scene to another with no reference link to the previous one. When I reached Page 61, I decided to return to the beginning because hints as to whatever happened in the past. Why do the descendants of the grandfather live in a fortified house carved into a cliff in a mountain cliff with no apparent entrance from the outside world. How much so the uncles who raised the sister know about the money? What happened to the father in Africa? Why is the brother living off the grid on the Pacific Coast of Costa Rico. Is the lost tourist a part of a group that also wants the money or is he really lost? The grandfather's, father's, and brother's paranoia stems from money, a lot of money swindled from the Las Vegas mafia and the Mexican Cartel. Once the action begins James McLaughlin keeps the reader on the edge of the seat; however, the flipping between past and present is like watching a suspenseful television show interrupted by twenty minutes of commercials. Book Browse sent this book to me as an Advanced Reader's Copy. I am sure fans of McLaughin's first book Bearskin will multiply when they read this book. He does write action very well; but. new readers should read the first pages very slowly. The rock falls slowly from atop the mountain but does gain speed as it nears the bottom.

J. deSimas

Dances with Wolves Meets Hawaii Five-O
Here is an engrossing page-turner -- a solid choice for mystery fans or devotees of "Yellowstone."

In "Panther Gap," siblings Summer and Bowman have inherited a huge sum from their long-dead grandfather, who may or may not have had nefarious connections. That they are anywhere near this wealthy has never occurred to them -- their father raised them on an isolated ranch in Colorado, teaching them about the Others (animals) and practicing the "old ways" of the region's original inhabitants. The bulk of the novel describes Summer and Bowman's long-awaited, frequently-thwarted reunion interspersed with flashbacks that fill the reader in on their lives up to this point. Summer, the older of the two, is beautiful, resourceful, and tough – but not invulnerable to love. Her brother Bowman, on the other hand, studies the metaphysical world and is prone to having visions. He frequently does a sort of mind-meld (often under the influence of hallucinogenic substances he has grown, foraged, or purchased) with nearby wildlife, mentally travelling or flying along on their journeys and hunts. Two uncles, a lost lawyer, a two-faced ex-boyfriend, and the memory of the siblings' heart-broken father complete the cast. Once reunited, Summer's and Bowman's task is to claim their gazillions before any of the cartel / mob villains get to it. The result is non-stop action and plot twists.

McLaughlin's oft-praised lyrical style and soaring descriptions of the southwest are here, as is his simple, conversational tone. His characters become more fleshed-out as the novel progresses, and by the end we feel we know their general mindset and motives. The dialogue, however, often feels clunky and trite -- the characters' actions are from "Dances with Wolves" but their conversations are from "Hawaii Five-O." Where McLaughlin's landscape descriptions are lush and evocative, his characters, for all their education and self-awareness, speak in disjointed and unreal phrases. Andrew becomes The Joker toward the end of the book -- kidnappers don't talk like that.

Maybe McLaughlin will put the sincere, soulful tone he uses for his mountain-scapes into the voices of the people who inhabit them. In the meantime, "Panther Gap" is an entertaining and action-packed read.

Stephanie K. (Glendale, AZ)

Panther Spirit and Drug Cartel Violence
Panther Gap by James A. McLaughlin is a wild ride to a deceptively quiet, remote Colorado ranch. Hippie-spirit Bowman and his academic-track sister Summer grow up knowing there's more than what meets the eye in their idyllic existence. Behind the scenes, their family has amassed shocking wealth, and their secret inheritance brings a frightening array of suspicious characters and cartel operatives into their young lives. Bowman utilizes psychedelic rites and Summer ecological knowhow in an attempt to rescue their ranch from a selloff. What the siblings fail to realize is that several powerful drug cartels in the area are far more interested in offshore funds, at the expense of Summer's and Bowman's lives. Their story becomes more involving and fascinating as the chapters roll on, and the last few contain more than a couple of nail-biters. The author ties up the many loose ends very effectively at the conclusion and he has us genuinely caring for the welfare of his well-drawn characters.