Blood Bounty of the Mountain Man

The Last Mountain Man #52

by William W. Johnstone, J.A. Johnstone

JOHNSTONE COUNTRY. WHERE VENGEANCE IS GOLDEN. Shot in the head and left for dead, Smoke Jensen wakes up to find a bounty on his head, a target on his back, and a trigger-happy lookalike pretending to be him . . . SMOKE WANTED DEAD OR DEADER Reece Quaid doesn’t want to be known as “The Man Who Killed Smoke Jensen.” But when the legendary mountain man shows up in the middle of a stagecoach robbery, Quaid has no choice but to shoot him. He didn’t even know his victim was the famous Smoke Jensen—until he goes through his pockets and finds his papers. That’s when Quaid comes up with a plan. Since he resembles Smoke, he’ll simply assume his identy. Rob some banks. Hold up more stagecoaches. And shoot anyone who tries to stop him. Soon the whole world will be asking . . .Has Smoke Jensen gone bad? There’s just one Smoke is still alive. Rescued by a lovely stranger and recovering from the head wound, he’s still a bit blurry about what happened—and who he even is. The only name he can come up with is that of a fictional bandit, which only adds to the confusion. Soon, the law is on the lookout for two outlaws now. But by the time Smoke comes to his senses, it may be too late. His lookalike is wanted for murder. His trail is getting bloodier every day. And Smoke is gearing up for the craziest showdown of his life—with a force of nature called Smoke Jensen . . .

Genres: Westerns

352 pages, Mass Market Paperback

Published November 26, 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

[Abibliofob · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was pleasantly surprised by Blood Bounty of the Mountain Man by William W. Johnstone and J.A. Johnstone. It almost felt like Smoke was back although without a memory who he is. It was an entertaining western and I do like westerns but still the authors doesn't reach all the way. Still I had fun for a few hours and that is the point. I must thank Netgalley and Kensington books along with Pinnacle for supplying me with this advance copy.

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

Blood Bounty Of The Mountain Man by William W Johnstone and JA Johnstone when the book starts smoke is returning home after selling his cattle True to smoke Jensen way of life he runs into some sidewinders robbing a stagecoach. when one of them tries to assault, the lady on the coach smoke saves her only to be hit in the head and knocked unconscious. The leader of the crew Reese Quaid believes he has just killed smoke Jensen, but when smoke wakes up, the outlaws are long gone. Smoke has no memory of it, nor who he is or what he’s doing there. He starts going by the name Buck West. he is in a town called hopeless Falls, Montana, living with siblings Allister and Hazel, who own the Mercantile and have problems of their own. in Colorado Cal and Pearly show up to the sugar loaf ranch to let Sally know smoke is riding back on his horse. The only problem is he never shows up. This is when Sally sends Cal and Pearly in search of her missing husband. somewhere else in Montana read Quaid and Dick diamond are trying to regroup because smoke killed most of their gang members and Reese is trying to get up enough money to retire from sidewinding. when he does get up enough men, he is going to pretend he is smoked Jensen. When all of these pov’s come together, it will just be the cherry on top of an already violent cake that the real smoke is trying to fix. No matter if you call him smoke or buck the one thing you can always call him is a fighter for Justice and he will lend his guns to any good cause for those he deems worthy. there’s many books in the smoke Jensen series, but I must admit I believe this one will be my favorite for a while. Even though I knew what was happening I didn’t know how it would end although I wish there would’ve been more time with Sally and smoke reuniting I still thoroughly enjoyed it always top notch read with the John stones. #NetGalley, #PinnacleBooks, #WilliamJohnstone, #JAJohnstone, #SmokeJensen, #BloodBountyOfTheMountainMan,

[Jacqui · Rating 5 out of 5]

William Johnstone's Blood Bounty of the Mountain Man, from the Smoke Jensen series, starts with the usual--Smoke Jensen rescuing a damsel in distress--but in this case, his fortunes change. After charging into the middle of a stagecoach robbery, Smoke is shot and left for dead by the thieves. When they realize who he is, they steal is name and set out on a series of crimes under the guise of his good reputation. But he isn't dead, is nursed back to health by the woman on the stagecoach. Though his physical wounds heal, he has amnesia and doesn't remember his personal history. All that remains of his past life is his incomparable shootist skills, an unwavering sense of justice, and a refusal to let evil stand if he can knock it down. Though Smoke is eager to find out who he is, the woman's hometown is being over-taken by a power hungry man intent on destroying the people and their businesses. Smoke can't leave until he has helped these people who saved his life.

This is another excellent book in the Jensen family Universe. It never slows, always has me guessing what will happen next. Highly recommended for those who love the quick action of classic westerns.

[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.

[David Burnworth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sadly it appears the series has come to an end.
Smoke is shot in the head and left for dead and making matters worse the man who thinks he killed Smooke takes his name, and reforms his gang, making everyone believe Smoke is committing the crime.
Smoke is found and saved by a lovely lady with a hidden past. Smoke wakes only to find he has amnesia. Slowly, very slowly his memories come back in faded pictures in his mind. The name Buck West pops in hs head and he believes that is who he is.
Smoke helps save the little town and gets revenge almost at the same time.

[Margean S. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read every Smoke Jensen series and was thrilled to read this last one which was completely different with him losing his memory! Great creative ideas - please continue.

A very please fan for many many years!

[Nolan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good story although part of it has been done many times in Johnstone clan books. Some bad guy has hired bad men to take over a town. The bad man wants to own everything in town and will do all he can to get it.

Still enjoyed the story and read it in one day.

[Thomas K. · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Johnstone's Did it Again!

Smoke Jensen is by far my favorite western hero. The character is selfless, generous and deadly. My kinda guy. Thanks to the Johnstone clan!!!

[Truitti · Rating 5 out of 5]

25-18. Great western. Love the adventures of Smoke Jessen. Liked the plot so much. I borrowed this ebook from the Sacramento Public Library through the Libby app.

[RICHARD LEWIS · Rating 5 out of 5]

Destination Sugarloaf

Outstanding story! A truly GREAT western. Action packed,realistic characters, believable story line .I would highly recommend it! Hard to put down!

[Ike Lajoie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent

[Rob Smith, Jr. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the track the Johnstones should be traveling! A solid story with a very good plot. The writing is great and ends up being one of the better Smoke Jensen novels in a few years.

To those of us who have read too many of these may remember that Smoke has lost his memory before. This version seems a bit forced for storytelling purposes and to bring back the Buck West character, which as has an interesting place in the Johnstone mythology.

Once the memory lost is in place, this book reads more as an early, actually written William Johnstone novel then most all since he stopped writing. The plotting and tenor of the story hearkens back to the old days a couple plus decades ago. That is a good direction to go in.
The typical secondary characters are way in the background, as well defined Johnstone characters share the stage with Smoke/Buck. The rest of the the tale is a good Johnstone story.

A complaint: As the Johnstone Clan reaches out further and further to create titles to connect to the books written, the wording gets more outrageous. The title to this book really has nothing to do with what's inside. Maybe it's time to just number them.

Bottom line: I recommend this book. 7 out of ten points.
I got to read the book prior to publication thanks to NetGalley.com.