Vow Unbroken by Caryl McAdoo

Vow Unbroken by Caryl McAdoo

Genre: Fiction/Christian Romance

Pages: Paper Back 

Publisher:  Howard Books Simon & Schuster

Reviewer:   Jean Eastwood

Susannah Baylor’s vow is to never marry again without her father’s blessing. She hasn’t seen her father in over ten years and doesn’t even know if he is still alive. He has never answered any of her letters.

Susannah is a cotton farmer in Texas and lives with her young daughter Rebecca and nephew Levi who are a tremendous help with the farming and chores. It is time to take the cotton to harvest and get enough money to make it through another year. The local cotton buyer renegotiated on his original offer from 4 cents a pound to now only two cents a pound. Susannah told him that was way too low of a price to pay. She decided to load her cotton and hire a helping hand by the name of Henry Buckmeyer to take her family and cotton to the town of Jefferson where they were paying 6 cents a pound. 

There definitely is an adventure waiting to be experienced in this book. I could not put the book down for more than a day, and could not wait to find out what happens next. Henry, Susannah, Levi, Rebecca and Blue Dog begin a long suspense-filled journey of two mule-driven cotton-loaded wagons over hills and rivers, fighting off wolves, drunks, thieves, gypsies, bad weather and snakes to get to Jefferson to sell their cotton.

Once they get there, the cotton buyers have bought enough cotton and will return in nine days. Henry saves the day by selling the mules, making deals with the locals, and getting their cotton to New Orleans where they get 10 cents a pound for their cotton. With the money they get, they travel to Memphis, Tennessee to see Susannah’s father and get his blessing to marry Henry whom she has fallen in love with and he with her. Her father is still alive and gives his only daughter his blessing to marry Henry who has become “born again”. They get married at her father’s home in Memphis while visiting him. 

Excellent read! Easy to read and follow, keeps your suspense and can actually make you cry! Loved it!

The Jag Review has received a free copy of this book from Howard Books, for our honest review. The opinions expressed here are our own. 

The Bucolic Plague by Josh Kilmer-Purcell

Hilariously funny and satirically satisfying, Josh Kilmer-Purcell regales us again with a memoir of how two Manhattan Socialites give up the big city of New York for the 200 year old historical Beekman Mansion. Self described as an unconventional memoir perfectly titled as The Bucolic Plague; we follow Josh and his partner Brent as they navigate through Goat farming, a vegetable garden and the tyrannical demands of one Martha Stewart to become Gentlemen Farmers.


“Easy living” as described the world over through the looking glass of OmniMedia, both Josh and Brent discover that the demands between weekends at the farm and work in the big city is not as easy as two educated elites first thought. One part Green Acres and two parts Eva Gabor, the laugh-out-loud story of how Josh and Brent go from rubbing elbows with New York’s snobbish high society, to scooping out chicken coops and 3 feet thick hay and manure leaves you not only wanting, but also considering starting a farm of your own.

Brilliantly written, this manicured memoir reeks of charm, taste and down home Mid-Westerner sarcasm. A must read.

5 JAGS