I might not be a good person to review this book because there has never been a William Johnstone book I didn’t like. This has everything a western should have but one more thing I really enjoyed...a little humor.

I would love to say these three men, the Jackals, had no heart, but Keegan, MacCulloch, and Breen showed that their hearts weren’t as cold as they projected. It was a harsh place, but I liked how things turned out for Charlotte, and I cannot forget that little buzz of attraction between her and MacCulloch. This book ended as it began, pretty darn entertaining, exciting, and exhilarating.

Stand Up and Die is among one of my favorites I have read by William W. Johnstone. I am giving it five plus stars.

One of the best things about a Johnstone western is trying to choose who would play each character if the books were made into movies. Each series has so many unique characters, where else would you find a mountain man named Preacher or a dusty, dirty cowboy named Perly Gates? The western genre may not be as popular as some others, but I would bet money that these characters would change that with very little effort as their lives played out on film. The only reason to read the jacket synopsis of a Johnstone book before buying it, is to see which character is going to be entertaining you during your next read.

The Jackals...a trio of maybe lawmen who became famous for defeating an outlaw gang thought impossible to catch. Each is a unique version of a lawman who has their own reason to hunt the less desirable of criminals. Following the trails of the bad guys, their paths will cross again, leaving them to team up for safety and sanity as their adventures multiply along with the number of guns pointed in their directions.

Every...and I do mean every...Johnstone book I have ever read, and I've read many of them, has been defined by the sense of the western life and the principles the lead characters live everyday of their lives. It was men just like these who settled the wild west and made history while just doing their jobs. Thank goodness there are authors such as the Johnstones to entertain and educate us along the way.

William and J.A. Johnstone’s book Stand Up and Die is about as quintessential a western as you can find. There are all sorts of actions that one would expect to find in a novel set in the rough and tumble old west including a shootout at a whore house, an escaping prisoner while a marshal gets killed, a hanging, an Indian fight, and many more.

This is a fast-paced book that sort of gets started slowly as each of the three main characters, loving called jackals, makes their place in the story known. They come together to transport two prisoners, one of which is a lovely woman but who has a penchant for poisoning people who cause her trouble.
During the transport a young Comanche who was helped by one of the jackals and affectionately called Wooden Arm along with the rest take it on themselves to dispatch a few bad guys who have been trailing one of the jackals to kill him and then they get caught in supporting a wagon train set upon by some scoundrels pretending to be Indians. They are actually in Navajo territory and this leads to some interesting consequences along with the fact that Wooden Arm is being trailed by other Comanche. Fake Indians and real tribesmen lead to interesting interactions.

Lots of adventure and a fast-moving storyline makes this an easy read after all the players get introduced, which happened pretty slowly and in a sort of disjointed fashion in the beginning of the book. It was a little different from other Johnstone books that I’ve read and thoroughly enjoyed.

William Johnston's Stand Up and Die (Pinnacle 2020), Book 2 in the Jackals series, starts in perfect Western fashion. A shootout in a whore house, a Marshall killed while a prisoner escapes, and an Indian fighting a white man in a vicious battle. It doesn’t get any better if you love Westerns. These events left no doubt that the three western gunslingers--known informally as the Jackals--were mighty talented fighters with unbendable moral cores. These events convinced the Jackals to join forces herding a band of wild mustangs to a ranch where they would be tamed and sold. That doesn't sound too hard but turns out, one of the partners in the ranch is a teenage Indian whose father wants him back. One of the Jackals is bringing two prisoners who must be dropped off at a sheriffs along the way. And, a clan of angry killers wants to kills another of the jackals--and is happy to include anyone with him--to revenge the hanging of their cousin. Oh, and then there’s Annie. This is a good read and a wild ride to the very end.

--will be published on my blog Sept. 2020

When ever i need a book i can get lost in i tend to choose books by William W.Johnstone because no matter what the book is i know i can get lost in the story as well as characters , especially his westerns because their like the old movies i watched when i was a kid .