This entertaining western captured my attention from the beginning, and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it through the end. I very much admire Susanna Baylor and all that she accomplishes during her years of widowhood. Not many women of that day would have been able to put forth the hard labor and accept the responsibility that she chose to take upon herself. Her strong will and self-reliance continue to work against her in relationships, but without them, she would have faltered and lost her land many years prior. Sue struggles, as we all do, with our character flaws, but we see glimpses of the spiritual and psychological growth that is taking place in her life, as she strives to find a balance between being a woman and being the boss. All the main characters, in addition to Sue, are well developed and are integral to the story.

This wagon-train type story is much more interesting than some, since it takes place in Texas, rather than on a long haul from the Mid-West to the West Coast. Each day brings new challenges and often new people into the scene. The people and incidents seem very realistic, and are written in an engaging fashion.

Although the romantic thread, based on the vows, is a consistent thread throughout the novel, it seems to me that the story deals more with Susanna and her struggle to survive in Texas as a widowed woman in 1832.

Id recommend Vow Unbroken to readers who enjoy books with a strong female character set in frontier times.

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