Rescue

The Last Gunfighter #7

by William W. Johnstone

THE GREATEST WESTERN WRITER OF THE 21ST CENTURY William Johnstone single-handedly shaped the landscape of frontier fiction with his classic Mountain Man series. Now he returns to the West with a gritty, realistic tale of blood struggles, revenge, and honor—the saga of a man whose legend would spread across a brave new land. Rescue  In California, Frank Morgan nearly found a home. But now he's pulled up stakes and hit the road again, aiming to reach the high desert of Arizona. For Frank, the plan changes when he steps into a saloon in a dusty boomtown called Los Angeles. That’s where he learns that his nemesis, Val Dooley, has found a new the selling of young women into prostitution, with the victims as young as twelve years old, and the survivors ending up drugged and beaten. Frank wastes no time tracking his enemy, traveling from California to New Mexico and West Texas. What he doesn’t know is that Val Dooley has been waiting for him all for one last chance to bring the last gunfighter down—in a hail of lead . . .

Genres: Westerns

324 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 1, 2003

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

[Malum · Rating 4 out of 5]

"I want to go to heaven and see my mama and papa."
"You can wave up to 'em," the ranger said. "That'll have to do."

Rescue continues the story started in the last volume. Frank is on the trail of Val Dooley-his veritable doppelganger-to put an end to his kidnapping and child prostitution ring.

Lots of gunplay and a little humor here, making this a pretty fun ride. Fair warning, though: while not as shocking as the last volume, there are still some pretty sensitive subjects here, so Western readers with more sensitive dispositions beware.

[Mike (the Paladin) · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story from the last book continues here with Frank trailing the outlaw who looks so much like him. Val Dooley is the worst of the worst. he's a murderer, a rapist and a slaver. He's made a business from kidnapping women and children and selling them. Frank is told these poor victims are sold into Mexico and to places in America. Children are sold into sexual slavery or into slavery where they are simply worked to death.

Frank has promised to find and rescue the daughter of the woman he's already rescued if at all possible.

The book is another reliable actioner with a large amount of dust, blood, gun smoke, etc. I can recommend it and there's not a lot more to say. Good fast action.

Now I do want to mention something. He does use language from the era and I'm sure some of the terms may annoy some readers. Just be aware that it's story telling. Hope it doesn't bother as the stories are good.

[Rob Smith, Jr. · Rating 2 out of 5]

This volume is a continuation of the book in the series before it. However, a very different writer...or writers. There's so many inconsistencies and repetition throughout the book, it appears a number of writers may have been involved. Maybe one writing one part and others writing others and all cobbled together. Sections of the book really don't connect with another and the last few chapters really don't make a lot of sense. There really isn't an ending. Or there are many endings that ends once and then twice and then once more again.

The repetition is irritating. During various chapters the situation of the main character's land purchase is presented. Each chapter with the included are written a bit differently. A few entries are nearly identical. Each time the land buy is presented as a new idea. Similar repetition involved reference to the main bad guy, Morgan's son and his dog.
The worse are the showdowns. Over and over and over there is a challenge for Morgan to draw. The chapter ends. The next chapter finishes the showdown.Then, over and over again, the challenger is mocked and the challenger curses and asks for favors.

What a mess. Which is unfortunate as the plot is good. All poorly executed.

A hallmark of the Johnstone Clan series are the characters. here, the repetition also presents itself. Way too many characters repeated in the book itself. Bad guys, good guys, kids, etc. are too similar and very different from other Johnstone books.

Settings are OK. Except near the end the cast finds a structure that is well detailed. Off this doesn't happen otherwise.

Writing is also poorly handled. This could also be due to the obvious poor effort to edit the book.

Bottom line: I don't recommend this book. 3 out of ten points.

[Truitti · Rating 4 out of 5]

24-49. Great writing but didnt appreciate the subject matter. It dealt with owlhoots who kidnapped, rapped, and sold women and children into slavery. It is a distressing topic. It disturbs me that there are animals posing as human beings who are so dehumanized that this type of action is acceptable. I know the novel is not a depiction of actual historical events, however it probably did occur then and certainly occurs now. I gave this novel 4 stars because the writing was very good. I thought it didnt depict how it destroys a persons soul for the rest of their lives. I borrowed this e-book from the Sacramento Public Library through the Libby app.

[Violet · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am reading as much of this author's works as appear at our local library. I guess you could say they are replacing the cowboy matinee movies that we attended in the 40's. The story does not vary much from book to book. It's the good guy against the bad. This one finds Frank Morgan rescuing women and children from a ruthless gang that use them and have intentions of selling them. I was a little disappointed in the last few chapters after that job has been done, when he is "drifting" again. Just filler.

[Ishtiaque Alam Russel · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Rescue" by William W. Johnstone delivers an action-packed Western adventure that keeps readers on the edge of their seats with relentless gunfights and daring rescue missions across the rugged frontier. The witty banter between Frank and old grizzled mountain man Dowey lightens the tension between intense shootouts, making even the grittiest moments enjoyable. The author's signature style shines through in his portrayal of ragged outlaws and weathered casts who must navigate both bullets and terrains in this fast-paced tale of survival and justice.

[Daniel Visger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not bad

Pretty much standard 😁
I don't u understand the minimum word requirement. It is a pretty good book. A fictional western where so e really bad folks get killed by the good character.
Not great, but not bad


C

[Bill Shupe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Frank "the drifter" Morgan has another great adventure. This time to rescue women and children kidnapped by the notorious criminal gang led by Val Dooley. Yes, he is back from the previous novel and more evil then ever.

[larry brashear · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outstanding!

Great story from start to finish. It is exciting and interesting just like a fine western book should be. It is all that can be expected from this fine author.

[Eric Mayes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dewey made a really interesting partner for Frank for a while.

[Terry L. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another s venture with Frank Morgan

Frank is off on another adventure and really starts to show his compassionate side. I am really enjoying this series!

[Jason · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another solid Frank Morgan tale. Not much else to say, really.