In the middle of the Arizona desert somewhere is Fort Benjamin Grierson the men posted at the Fort though have named it Fort Misery. For they are the forgotten men of the Calvary. Most are there because of being in some type of trouble. Captain Peter Kellerman once had a promising career until he made a mistake now he is in charge of the Garrison. Standing in the way is outlaw Santiago Lozado who is after Kellerman because he killed Lozado’s son. Most of the story goes back and forth between the two as to what is going on in both camps until Lozado decides he has a superior force to attack the fort. This is a really good story and the characters are all very good, and very much worth the read.

An interesting premise for a series. The next book has already been announced, and I am interested to see where it goes

Quite a turn from the typical trail the Johnstone Clan takes. After reading a couple hundred Johnstone books, none take on the foundation of an ensemble cast, basically, trapped on a deserted island in a desert. Seems a new writer joined the stable, as the prose also has a different take. This book reads closest to a Zane Gray-type book than any of the others I've read. It's very involved and intriguing throughout.

The story is well trod territory in fiction. Here, with the Johnstone touch. A staple of the Johnstone Clan of writers are very good characters. In this volume, the effort is kicked up a few notches. Recent Johnstone novels have found characters a slight less strong. 'Fort Misery' is a crowning achievement is character creation for the Johnstone Clan of writers. Each of the very large crowd is distinct and interesting. Not an easy task to pull off.

Adding to that is the dialogue. Recently Johnstone Clan books have had the characters sounding more alike than not. Here, there is even a cadence is found in voices. Specifically, the character, Kellerman is wonderfully written in vocal dialogue. I kept picturing, Englishman, Leo McKern as the character.

The pacing is also tough involving a tale of communities of characters in conflict. This novel paces very well and each chapter over laps with the next in a way making the story even more involving.
I like how the author has characters separated by distance not knowing what had happened at one place and speaking as if something else had happened.

This is an excellent book to post during the 20th anniversary of the death of William Johnstone.

I had access to preview this book through NetGalley.

Bottom line: i recommend this book. 10 out of ten points.

This was a great story that certainly kept my attention throughout. I just loved all the battles. There was so much wonderful description. I loved how with the introduction of the Mexican fighters and the swords. This novel took on a more ruthless blood thirsty fighting. Chop, chop, slash the poor Indians didn't have a chance. What I thought was brilliant is that this book actually contained a real recipe near the end so you could actually make food from this time. What a delightful addition. I loved all the complaining and then sucking up to the cook it really made me chuckle. This was a great start to what will be an interesting series. I definitely recommend reading this book. Horses, fighting, and action with unexpected twists. What more can you ask for in a great Western book.

So much praise goes out to the authors and publishers for creating this brilliantly paced action-packed story. I can't wait to read more from this series.
The above review has already been placed on goodreads, waterstones, Google books, Barnes&noble, kobo, amazon UK where found and my blog today https://ladyreading365.wixsite.com/website/post/fort-misery-by-ja-ww-johnstone-kensington-books-4-stars under my name ladyreading365

YAY!!! A new Johnstone series! I love any of the many books by William W and JA Johnstone. There are many Johnstone series, each centering on one "family" or group of individuals who have drawn a line and dare the really bad guys to cross it. Fort Misery is an Army installation located in Arizona Territory during a period of time when every day brought new challenges, none of them easy, all of them life threatening. Fort Misery is populated by a crew that chose misery over prison. Each character has a story and these 5 star authors are well known for the back story that brings these desperate men to their current hell.

I have yet to read a Johnstone title that I would not recommend to any and every one looking for a great western/ action read.

Fort misery is a Civil War‘s version of Hogan’s Heroes. It is run by a Man name Captain Joe Kellerman his rank was once higher than a captain but no one gets sent to Fort misery because they’re doing great in the army. Fort Benjamin Grierson a.k.a. fort misery is the last stop for those struggling to stay in the Army. You are usually given a choice between prison and fort misery because most people don’t know better they pick the fort. It sits in the desert hundreds of miles from civilization and when we meet the soldiers at Fort Missouri there caught between the Apache and an outlaw gang ran by a psychopath named Santos say it toast hates Captain Kellerman because he killed his only son but when he sends a scout to politely ask the captain to take his soldiers and leave the captain sent him back with the peace flag in his mouth dead mounted on his horse. The captain knows he has a threat and it gets even worse when a man name wolf who is a hat scalper joins up with the gang. He is known for cutting the scalps off of Mexicans and trading it in for money claiming it to be Indian scalps. Despite being in the middle of nowhere Santos in his gang Will not be the only thing that will bothered the captain and his men. Professors show up saying there was gold buried smack dab in the middle of the forts parade ground and even though the captain wants to send him packing he has a letter from the president saying he must assist him in his endeavor. That’s not to say Captain Kellerman is a heartless uncaring man when he found out that the bandits had 40 Mexican slaves and we’re going to scout them for the money him and 15 of his troops went in at night time and kidnap them. There is so much more to this book and it’s all good any book that has the name William Johnstone on that you can trust will be a great western and I love when he does funny books like this one I love it and although there was no reference to it being a Siri‘s I really hope it will be. I love the little historical note at the end of the book and if you love great westerns then you need to report misery by William and John Johnstone. You would think with authors that put out Brooke so frequently they all wouldn’t be as good as they are but every book I read it 99% of the time a five star read this one included. I received this book from NetGalley and publisher but I am leaving this review voluntarily please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

Fort Misery
What do you get when you take a bunch of misfits that are the dregs scraped from the bottom of the barrel, or are at the least an embarrassment to or a thorn in the army’s side, a misplaced fresh officer school graduate,in about the worst living conditions one can think of, top that with a bunch of outlaw Comancheros and Apaches out for blood? You get a crew of fighting men like no others, because they have nothing but misery to lose. A rough and raw read that has a lot of action, more than a little (albeit dark) humor, and a lot of grit it will keep your attention.

At first I was not sure what to think about Fort Misery by William W. Johnstone and J.A. Johnstone but soon I got into it and it was very funny. I liked the premise of the story and the characters is well made up. It is a western of sorts and it's a rather dark story. It has most of the elements required and as it should be it's all about good versus evil, sort of. Sometimes the bad aren't so bad. I must thank Kensington Books, Pinnacle and Netgalley for making this advance copy available and the author for making this stuff up.

So exciting to have another new Johnstone Western novel in my hands. Fort Misery is just what I needed. I loved it.
Five stars.

This is not one of the finest Western novels of the Johnstone syndicate. It seems more along the lines of a comedy like the old TV drama called "F Troop." There are a bunch of misfits in this aptly named fort.

There are parts where there is some high adventure but the misery of the fort is caused by marauding Comancheros, Comanche, and Apache. There are some interesting moments where the misfits stationed there acquit themselves very well and others less than admirably.

Additionally the last chapter seems to be added in with little or no connection to the rest as archeologists arrive to dig looking for lost items from earlier Spanish explorers.

Not a totally bad book but, in my view, far less than I have come to expect of the Johnstones.