What do you think?
Rate this book
The Loner #11
Crossfire
The Loner’s desperate search for his missing children ends—and the fight begins—in this Western adventure from the USA Today–bestselling author.
HELL ON FRISCO BAY
Conrad Browning is The Loner, a man on a mission, crossing the country—and crossing a lot of bad men—to rescue his kidnapped young twins. The trail has led him all the way to San Francisco’s perilous red-light district, where a crime lord is the proud father of newly adopted twins. The Loner knows his children when he sees them. But they’re hostage to a brutal, violent mob feud. Then, just when he needs it most, The Loner is no longer he is joined by his own father, Frank Morgan—the most notorious gunman in the West.
A family’s pain. A woman’s betrayal. A city exploding in violence . . . The Loner has come to the right place to save his children. But will they get out of Frisco alive?
“An excellent story that pulls you in . . . [A] terrific, twist ending. Top class entertainment that left me looking forward to reading the next book in the series.” —Western Fiction Review
HELL ON FRISCO BAY
Conrad Browning is The Loner, a man on a mission, crossing the country—and crossing a lot of bad men—to rescue his kidnapped young twins. The trail has led him all the way to San Francisco’s perilous red-light district, where a crime lord is the proud father of newly adopted twins. The Loner knows his children when he sees them. But they’re hostage to a brutal, violent mob feud. Then, just when he needs it most, The Loner is no longer he is joined by his own father, Frank Morgan—the most notorious gunman in the West.
A family’s pain. A woman’s betrayal. A city exploding in violence . . . The Loner has come to the right place to save his children. But will they get out of Frisco alive?
“An excellent story that pulls you in . . . [A] terrific, twist ending. Top class entertainment that left me looking forward to reading the next book in the series.” —Western Fiction Review
- GenresWesterns
337 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2011
About the author
J.A. Johnstone
450 books207 followersJ.A. Johnstone learned to write from the master himself, Uncle William W. Johnstone, who began tutoring J.A. at an early age. After-school hours were often spent retyping manuscripts or researching his massive American Western History library as well as the more modern wars and conflicts. J.A. worked hard and learned, later going on to become the co-author of William W. Johnstone’s many bestselling westerns and thrillers. J.A. Johnstone lives on a ranch in Tennessee and more information is at WilliamJohnstone.net
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
April 30, 2021
Title: Crossfire (The Loner #11)
Author: J. A. Johnstone
E-book: 337
Year: 2011
Publisher: Pinnacle
My rating: 5 out of 5 stars.
Conrad Browning is a young man whose prowess with a gun was unknown even to himself until his life was shattered in a night of violence. The Loner, book one in the series, tells of that fateful night and the path Conrad Browning is on. Now the mystery of his children being taken by his fiancée that started in the Trail of Blood ends. Audiences can read this book without having read the others because the author does a good job of giving background within the latest adventure. However, for me, reading the books in order has been entertaining and made for hours of enjoyment.
In Crossfire, Conrad is at the end of his journey in searching for his children and the ending was a masterpiece! The Barbary Coast is a dangerous place for anyone not invited, and Conrad is definitely not invited but he goes undercover in the hopes of discovering the who the initials D. L. belong to. What he gets for his trouble eventually is pain, beatings and maybe even being shanghaied!
When he least expects help, he gets it from his father, Frank Morgan, who was contacted by Conrad’s attorney after he comes up missing. Frank himself then goes to the Barbary Coast and is introduced to folks who form an alliance with Frank because they have a common enemy, D. L. Together, with their newest allies, Frank and Conrad set out to obtain custody of his children but it turns out to be deadly.
I have read the Loner series in order from the beginning to date and it has been worth every minute! Conrad Browning is a man who at one time hated his father, Frank Morgan, yet now at least considers him a friend. Each book has many different situations and dangers that at times Conrad faces with determination and grit. Crossfire is one book that I couldn’t put down and read in a day; it was that fun to read! The stories grab the attention of the reader and don’t let go! Even when readers are finished with the book, we are left wanting more!
To see the other books in The Loner series as well as other novels that await your enjoyment, visit the author’s website: https://williamjohnstonebooks.com
Note: The opinions shared in this review are solely my responsibility.
Author: J. A. Johnstone
E-book: 337
Year: 2011
Publisher: Pinnacle
My rating: 5 out of 5 stars.
Conrad Browning is a young man whose prowess with a gun was unknown even to himself until his life was shattered in a night of violence. The Loner, book one in the series, tells of that fateful night and the path Conrad Browning is on. Now the mystery of his children being taken by his fiancée that started in the Trail of Blood ends. Audiences can read this book without having read the others because the author does a good job of giving background within the latest adventure. However, for me, reading the books in order has been entertaining and made for hours of enjoyment.
In Crossfire, Conrad is at the end of his journey in searching for his children and the ending was a masterpiece! The Barbary Coast is a dangerous place for anyone not invited, and Conrad is definitely not invited but he goes undercover in the hopes of discovering the who the initials D. L. belong to. What he gets for his trouble eventually is pain, beatings and maybe even being shanghaied!
When he least expects help, he gets it from his father, Frank Morgan, who was contacted by Conrad’s attorney after he comes up missing. Frank himself then goes to the Barbary Coast and is introduced to folks who form an alliance with Frank because they have a common enemy, D. L. Together, with their newest allies, Frank and Conrad set out to obtain custody of his children but it turns out to be deadly.
I have read the Loner series in order from the beginning to date and it has been worth every minute! Conrad Browning is a man who at one time hated his father, Frank Morgan, yet now at least considers him a friend. Each book has many different situations and dangers that at times Conrad faces with determination and grit. Crossfire is one book that I couldn’t put down and read in a day; it was that fun to read! The stories grab the attention of the reader and don’t let go! Even when readers are finished with the book, we are left wanting more!
To see the other books in The Loner series as well as other novels that await your enjoyment, visit the author’s website: https://williamjohnstonebooks.com
Note: The opinions shared in this review are solely my responsibility.
Read
October 9, 2011Conrad Browning, aka Kid Morgan, is nearing the end of his quest. He's tracked his two children, twins, across the country, following a convoluted trail full of traps laid down by his vengeful ex-fiance. She's dead, killed by one of her own traps, but she left a letter delivered after her death, telling Conrad that he had twins he never knew about and that she'd hidden them from him.
Now in Carson City, he finds a clue that confirms what he already suspected. They were somewhere in San Francisco and he had a pair of initials of the man paid off three years before, before her death, that might have the final clue to their location.
But he's still going to have a gauntlet of killers to go through before he finds the twins.
About halfway through the book, Conrad's father, Frank Morgan, The Drifter and star of his own series, shows up to help.
And there's one final surprise in the climax.
Whatever author is under the house name J. A. Johnstone, and I have my suspicions, is obviously a comics fan. Conrad's lawyer, Turnbuckle, assigns him a bodyguard named Dugan, described as a large man wearing a derby and sporting a red handle bar mustache. Dum Dum Dugan has long been associated with Nick Fury, from their days as Howling Commandos in WWII to Fury's directorship of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Good one.
Now in Carson City, he finds a clue that confirms what he already suspected. They were somewhere in San Francisco and he had a pair of initials of the man paid off three years before, before her death, that might have the final clue to their location.
But he's still going to have a gauntlet of killers to go through before he finds the twins.
About halfway through the book, Conrad's father, Frank Morgan, The Drifter and star of his own series, shows up to help.
And there's one final surprise in the climax.
Whatever author is under the house name J. A. Johnstone, and I have my suspicions, is obviously a comics fan. Conrad's lawyer, Turnbuckle, assigns him a bodyguard named Dugan, described as a large man wearing a derby and sporting a red handle bar mustache. Dum Dum Dugan has long been associated with Nick Fury, from their days as Howling Commandos in WWII to Fury's directorship of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Good one.
Want to read
January 14, 2013They need to make this series into a movie love Kid Morgan he's a hunk!
October 6, 2020
Best One Yet
A gripping tale back and forth across the New Mexico and Mexican border as Kid Morgan risked his life once more to help the female survivors of a wagon train massacre. Facing a hundred of Apache warriors determined to take their female hostages to a Rurale Warlord who will sell them as slaves, the Kid fought the Apaches
, the unbearable heat of the desert, and a gang of killers out to collect Apache scalps, the Kid pretended to join the gang in 9per to free the captivating s. A great story with turns and twists.
A gripping tale back and forth across the New Mexico and Mexican border as Kid Morgan risked his life once more to help the female survivors of a wagon train massacre. Facing a hundred of Apache warriors determined to take their female hostages to a Rurale Warlord who will sell them as slaves, the Kid fought the Apaches
, the unbearable heat of the desert, and a gang of killers out to collect Apache scalps, the Kid pretended to join the gang in 9per to free the captivating s. A great story with turns and twists.
December 17, 2020
Another one continuing the story established a few books ago. This one has a guest appearance that is definitely of interest. Also, this one has a more city vibe and gangs, which is pretty different style for most of the westerns I've read. It was enjoyable.
December 18, 2023
Murder and mayhem with a stupid ending.
December 28, 2023
It's terrible how evil people can be. If I can't have you nobody can have you. Revenge no matter what, even in Love and hate. A journey through hell all because of a lie. Excellent read.
November 17, 2021
The culmination of multiple volumes of 'The Loner' series is worth the wait. Wasn't sure if this was going to drag to the end of the series at times and a few volumes could have been done without. In the end, the volumes were were the reading.
This finally pitches the star and his side kick into San Francisco, where the main character alters his ways. In other instances, when a threat is leveled, he pulls his gun and discards the threat. In this episode, he doesn't. Many times. Some of which include convenient times he doesn't have a gun. Obviously this is all to get the story wanted. The irregular character as a story device was disappointing. Though does make the character more realistic.
There's a cacophony of activity included. Quite a load of characters and locations. The approach is more pulp than western, which is refreshing, but inconsistent from the previous books.
Overall this is a fine tale and a step above the previous entries.
Bottom line: I recommend this book. 7 out of ten points.
This finally pitches the star and his side kick into San Francisco, where the main character alters his ways. In other instances, when a threat is leveled, he pulls his gun and discards the threat. In this episode, he doesn't. Many times. Some of which include convenient times he doesn't have a gun. Obviously this is all to get the story wanted. The irregular character as a story device was disappointing. Though does make the character more realistic.
There's a cacophony of activity included. Quite a load of characters and locations. The approach is more pulp than western, which is refreshing, but inconsistent from the previous books.
Overall this is a fine tale and a step above the previous entries.
Bottom line: I recommend this book. 7 out of ten points.
August 9, 2016
The final wrap up story for Conrad's quest to find his supposed children, ending in San Francisco. It was an interesting device for a series, but the events in some of the books really pushed the boundaries of plausibility and reason in terms of someone being able to set all of it up in a matter of weeks.
The story here brings Conrad's father, another book series main character (The Drifter) into the tale and resolves a long chain of events, leaving Conrad ready for a new series. Overall it was interesting enough but not particularly compelling and missed a lot of terrific chances to tell period details and the fascinating city that SF was at the time.
The story here brings Conrad's father, another book series main character (The Drifter) into the tale and resolves a long chain of events, leaving Conrad ready for a new series. Overall it was interesting enough but not particularly compelling and missed a lot of terrific chances to tell period details and the fascinating city that SF was at the time.
January 6, 2017
"VENGEANCE FROM THE GRAVE"
Conrad Browning aka "THE LONER", fighting bushwackers left and right. In fact, it seems "trouble" just simply follows him. Just a simple stroll, enjoying the fresh weather minding your business, you feel something buzzing by your ear..dang if it ain't some back shooter, this seems to be Conrad's typical day. If your a follower of "THE LONER", u know he's had a saddle full of saddness brought on by a so call scorned lover
Patricia Tarleton, u should read "CROSSFIRE", it will give you answers, that I'm sure you want. All I'll say is, do u really know your lover??? Think about it......
Conrad Browning aka "THE LONER", fighting bushwackers left and right. In fact, it seems "trouble" just simply follows him. Just a simple stroll, enjoying the fresh weather minding your business, you feel something buzzing by your ear..dang if it ain't some back shooter, this seems to be Conrad's typical day. If your a follower of "THE LONER", u know he's had a saddle full of saddness brought on by a so call scorned lover
Patricia Tarleton, u should read "CROSSFIRE", it will give you answers, that I'm sure you want. All I'll say is, do u really know your lover??? Think about it......
December 31, 2019
I binge read the series in one month, 12 books. That makes my 2nd western in one year and I loved it. This one takes place during the Wild Wild West and it was such a great adventure that I loved every minute of it. I recommend this to anyone who likes a fun adventure in the West .
October 1, 2011
Excellent ending to the running storyline! Didn't see the twists and turns coming, but thoroughly enjoyed it right to the end! Really enjoy this series!
October 16, 2011
Omg i loved loved loved this book I cried even :( haha
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews