Fort Buzzard

Preacher & MacCallister #6

by William W. Johnstone, J.A. Johnstone

They were innocent men, slaughtered in the Rockies. A party of land surveyors who met their grisly fate at the hands of the Crow Indians—or so it seems. Some folks think the story is a lie. And now it's up to US Army Lieutenant Ron Stanton to figure out what really happened up there in those desolate, blood-soaked mountains. As his guides, Preacher and Jamie McCallister agree to retrace the footsteps of the doomed party—come hell or high water—but first they'll have to pass through a particularly nasty piece of purgatory known as Fort Buzzard . . .

Fort Buzzard—officially Gullickson's Fort—earned its nefarious nickname because of the human vultures it attracts. Namely the brutes and brawlers hired by Gullickson to protect his interests. When a nearby trading post is suddenly attacked—and two young women carried off by Indians—Preacher and McCallister smell a rat. The Crows swear they're not responsible for the attack, the abduction, or the mountain party massacre. Preacher and McCallister believe them—but proving it won't be easy. This road to justice only leads to more dead ends—and the biggest, bloodiest showdown in Rocky Mountain history . . .

Genres: Westerns

316 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 20, 2024

About the author

William W. Johnstone is the #1 bestselling Western writer in America and the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of hundreds of books, with over 50 million copies sold. Born in southern Missouri, he was raised with strong moral and family values by his minister father, and tutored by his schoolteacher mother. He left school at fifteen to work in a carnival and then as a deputy sheriff before serving in the army. He went on to become known as "the Greatest Western writer of the 21st Century." Visit him online at WilliamJohnstone.net.

Reviews

[Bill Riggs · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fairly average outing for Preacher and MacCallister as the two agree to help the army investigate the slaughter of a group of railroad surveyors. What follows is a pretty typical Johnstone tale as the two play detective. It’s a straightforward story and predictable, luckily the characters make it an interesting read.

[Abibliofob · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jamie MacAllister and Preacher are two of my favorite characters created and written by William W. Johnstone and J.A. Johnstone. Fort Buzzard is the newest adventure with these two. It is a rather entertaining western it has what it's suppose to have when it comes to good guys and bad guys, throw in some indians and some gunfighting and there you have it. I will always enjoy a good western, sadly some of the newer ones from these author varies too much in quality. I thank Pinnacle Books and Netgalley for supplying me with this advance copy.

[Denice Langley · Rating 5 out of 5]

There is no such thing as a bad Johnstone western. Each series is built around main characters whose belief in the law and family is absolute, even if they've had to be reformed to get there. From Preacher, the original mountain man to the Jensen family to Perly Gates, to.....well, you get the point. Many times, characters from one series will show up in another as supporting hands. The communities are true to the era, clothing, guns, food and troubles are all what you'd find if you looked them up in the history books. No two stories are the same, each character or set of characters is unique and so are their stories. The writing is skillful, readers are pulled into the story and you will laugh and cry right along with the characters. I made the mistake of picking up a Johnstone western my uncle was reading. Ive been hooked ever since. Now I share them with my reading family and will continue as long as new Johnstones are released.

[Janalyn, the blind reviewer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ford buzzard by William W Johnstone and JA Johnstone, preacher, and Jamie investigate the deaths of railroad workers for the army But true to form the murdering side wonders aren’t the only one they gotta pull the irons out for and it makes for another great read. I love Jamie McAllister and preacher and when they’re together, it just makes the book that much better. I love the way each hero from the wild West and the Johnstone country books can always gang up with another hero And make the adventure so much better. Whether it’s Luke, smoke preacher or whoever the new Texas lightning parts with I will definitely be there to read about it. Love these books and highly recommend them. They’re like romances, You know how they’re going to end but it’s everything between the beginning and the end you want to know about.#NetGalley, #PelicanBooks, #WilliamWJohnstone, #JJohnstone, #FortBuzzard,

[Donald Paulsrud · Rating 4 out of 5]

Typical Preacher book. He is the superman of mountain men. He never misses a shot and is always right on his hunches. I enjoy the Preacher series and always look forward to the next one. Johnstone is the best western writer in the business as far as I am concerned. This book is full of action and interesting characters as usual with Johnstone. He has other really good series as well. If you are looking for a good western, you cannot go wrong with a book written by Johnstone.

[Neil Campau · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good read again from William w Johnstone and Co. I really like Jamie and Preacher sharing experiences, A time of good and bad, I really look for more as the weeks go by.
Two heroes who make the stories exciting and wanting more every day.
Thank you Jo for putting these two together, A great idea.

[john o'reilly · Rating 5 out of 5]

preacher is the man

Love to read about the preacher and Mac allister two great people and of course dog and horse these William John stone books are expensive you always get a good story

[Keith Tomaszewski · Rating 5 out of 5]

The rugged West.

Mountain Men, Soldiers, Indians and Settlers, what’s not to like. There was plenty of action in the story. Also, a great amount of real life fiction.
Thank you for the entertaining read.

[Nancy Brady · Rating 4 out of 5]

i always enjoy the Johnstone books. fairly predictable but that's ok. Preacher is my favorite.

[Jenifer Muñoz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very Good Read!!

[Dirk Stone · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's a good read

It's a good read, always enjoy reading a Johnstone book. Plenty of action, good storyline. I would recommend this book to everyone

[RICHARD LEWIS · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Preacher's Surveyors Mystery

Excellent story! Another Johnstone hit! Well written, easy to follow and so detailed and so descriptive. I would definitely recommend it!

[Maria Isabel Perez · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it, Jaime and Preacher make a good team. Hope there are more books with them.

[Ashley Stadel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fast-moving and easy to read

Johnstone always paints a good story. I feel like I'm in the mountains with the people in his stories. His books are hard to put down.

[Mike Dietz · Rating 3 out of 5]

a fresh storyline ...

[Bob Hernandez · Rating 4 out of 5]

A easy read with Trappers, adventures, and Solders who are sent to investigate a massacre of surveyors and a Army escort and come across a rouge Fort run by a nefarious Trader.

[Reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Grabs you so that you can’t put it down until you reach the last page.

[Rob Smith, Jr. · Rating 3 out of 5]

This volume by members of the Johnstone Clan covers territory covered before, but not as well.
This one has Johnstone characters investigating troubles at a place called 'Fort Buzzard' (or something like it). Unfortunately, after arrival to the fort, the course set is pretty obvious along with the conclusion. There are some red herrings, but not well thought out. I'm more than glad the johnstone Clan endless line of books haven some placing characters in, basically, a detective role. The approach adds to the interest and suspense. In this case, a better plotting would've helped.

Still, the story is good and, otherwise, worth reading. Though, there are other Johnstone Clan books that do a better job in writing and plotting similar tales.

Bottom line: I recommend this book. 5 out of ten points.
This book was made available by Netgalley.com for an honest review.