On The Royal Range is the third book in the Forever Texas western series by William W Johnstone and JA Johnstone. Shep once again leaves the Royal Ranch for the army but this time he gets all the way to boot camp. While digging a latrine he gets caught woolgathering by sergeant Cawley. The sergeant is a tough military grade old SOB and gives the young private a”what for” but he has the best of intentions. So later when Shep hears gunfire and saves the sergeants life they instantly go from Frenemies to a mentor mentee relationship. This is how the new Corpol Shep Royal finds himself heading to Texas with the sergeant and his family. Bone McGraw gets attacked by a mountain lion and comes close to dying but this doesn’t stop his best friend Regis from asking if he will run his cattle to Colorado and he does it at the side of bones sickbed. Bone absolutely tells him no because he has already gave his oath that any free time he has will be given to the Texas marshals with the Civil War revving up regis can no longer drive his cattle to Kansas and must take the long treck to culling Colorado and if he doesn’t sell the cattle he could lose his beloved royal ranch with so much riding on the Longhorns for the first time in Regis’s life he is going on a cattle drive. While the boss man is learning lessons on the trail, bone McGraw is better and heading to Corpus Christi to report for duty this is when he meets Jarvis. Jarvis is a black man with a sad story to tell and because of that wants to be a Marshall after Bone hears his tale of woe he believes a better man couldn’t hold the position and instantly takes him on as his new pard. If you think I have told you basically the whole story then you have never read a Johnstone novel before because trust me when I say this isn’t even half the story. I haven’t even mentioned Thomasina Valdes, the Marshall who were rest Regis not to mention Regis‘s new love and his partner carbon and that still isn’t most of the story there is so much to this book and it’s all based on the king ranch in Texas right around the start of the Civil War. These authors really pack a lot in their books and it’s well written and expertly told. There’s not just action and great gun fighting but more than one romance, tragedy and so much more at the end of this book I was just wishing the book would’ve been longer I really didn’t want it to end I love these characters and despite seeing some of them and other books they’re the type of characters when you see them it feels like sing a long lost friend. This is a great book and one I definitely absolutely 100% recommend. #NetGalley, #KensingtonPinnacleBooks, #WilliamWJohnstone, #JohnJJohnstone, #OnTheRoyalRange,

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.

This entry in the 'Forever Texas' series was disappointing and continued the frustration with the first two in the series. All 3 accessed via NetGalley.com

The book strays in different directions and then strays split and stray again. Then outside characters stray into the strays and ...This is a herd of characters that get lost by the middle of the book and waaaay too cleanly get tied up within less than 10% of the book. All to set up another in the series.

I more and more sense trouble in the Johnstone Clan of books. The books have gotten longer and longer, with writers extending books longer than needed. I could read in this book where the writer had added unneeded narrative and dialogue. Moreover, this book reads as 3 books smooshed into one. I'll, again, write that the Johnstones should have, at least, some of their books turned into compilations of 2 or 3 new stories a book. This book would have benefited being three stories involving the Royle Range.

It should be mentioned, despite the title, 98% of the book does not take place "On the Royle Ranch.".

About the dialogue, this entry has done a bad job including current phraseology. I usually excuse a bit in the Johnstone books based in the 1800s. This one had far too many more current phrases.

The biggest problem with this book is the wrapping up of all the story lines. The characters really go far afield in different directions. Each has encounters that could fill an individual book. After getting through each story, which add new characters, suddenly everyone is home and the book ends with a kinda resolution of something that happened in the earlier books...that ALSO could've been a separate book.

The individual tales are all good and, with the Johnstone Clan touch, would've likely been even better individual books.

Bottom line: I don't recommend this book. 4 out of ten points.