Review of 'The Broken Vow' by Luisa A. Jones

Review of 'The Broken Vow' by Luisa A. Jones

Release date: January 22, 2024

Publisher: Storm Publishing

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REVIEW

What an absorbing and inspiring novel by Luisa A. Jones! The Broken Vow latched on to my heart from page one and squeezed out every emotion imaginable with its incredible character developments, fast paced drama and nail-biting plot. The setting, of course, was unforgettable, too, as we are taken back to Charlotte’s stately childhood home. I loved Luisa’s first instalment of this series so was anxious to read the second and she certainly delivered above and beyond my expectations. I became totally invested in this stunning story right from the Eleanor Roosevelt quote: “A woman is like a tea bag. You can’t tell how strong she is until you put her in hot water.” What a brilliant line and so fitting for this novel!

Once I started The Broken Vow, I could not put it down and read even while I was eating! It is incredibly captivating to see the transformation of Charlotte who started as a spoiled self-centred young woman but eventually becomes a responsible and selfless one. Admirable strengths begin to surface when she is put in some difficult situations. Her development is astonishing—considering she is only nineteen years old and quite inexperienced in many areas of mundane life activities. But she is a fast learner and once she discovers her passions, she is able to throw herself into the challenges and accomplish some impressive things.

Charlotte’s relationship with the men in her life is an interesting study. She grew up without her mother so her father was everything to her. She felt safe in his presence (ironically the opposite experience for Rosamund—his wife). Charlotte is engaged to Eustace but she does not really know him well. Currently he is off fighting the war so she is alone, biding her time when she can marry this man of title picked out by her father before his passing. Her father is her idol and her loss of him is immense. Every move she makes initially is to gain and keep his approval—even after he is gone. During the interim, she lives with her aunt in London, rather than with ‘sour-faced Rosamund,’ her stepmother. Charlotte once revelled in her father’s ‘growing dislike for his wife.’ She felt Rosamund was taking precious time away from her. She wanted to continue to be the centre of her father’s attentions. It is a very negative description of Charlotte but this is how she was at the beginning—until life started throwing her some serious curve balls and then she begins to change and see things differently—even her opinion of Rosamund— a woman loved by many.

Charlotte’s wonderful friend Venetia is an incredibly positive force in this story with her upfront predictions, comments and criticisms. I loved her spiels on the importance of women’s voices, their intelligence, entitlement to sharing power and to bring about important changes. Venetia is a force of change herself and gets Charlotte to look at her own actions and motives. In many ways, she becomes Charlotte’s conscience. Then there is Venetia’s cousin Doctor Harvard who comes to visit and shakes up Charlotte’s world and emotions. He offers her a different perspective, appreciates her progress and makes her feel more like a productive human being. He is a product of high society and working society due to his parents’ backgrounds. But he leans to his common roots with his desire to save the helpless and offer assistance to the poor. When Charlotte decides to turn her home into a place for soldiers to convalesce, due to her fiancé Eustace and his injury, it is here she begins to learn what it means to help others and be useful in society. This provides her with some much needed self-fulfilment and purpose in helping the victims of war in her home. Charlotte and Doctor Harvard do some wonderful work together for the soldiers. What he prescribes for the 'shell shocked' men is brilliant and quite a different approach than what was normally taken back then.

I must add it is of help to read book one of the series. And why wouldn’t you as Luisa’s writing is phenomenal and her first book is as captivating as the second! You will learn of Rosamund’s early days, her difficult marriage to Charlotte’s father and its effects on her. You will also get a clear picture of what she was dealing with in trying to rear his challenging child. The child who adored her father to the point of never seeing or believing he could do anything wrong. Not to mention her exasperating desire to please him at her own expense. Charlotte is quite a different person in book one and to some extent, still similar at the start of book two but once she is thrown into some hot water, she begins to grow and we love her by the end.

There are some great victories in this novel but also some deeply sad and unfortunate events. I was moved by it all at both spectrums. The characters are so real I felt as if I knew these people by the end of the story. I had tears for some and smiles for others. There is so much to discuss about The Broken Vow (including what this title means) but I must cease and just say, get this novel and read it! It will melt your heart, break it and restore it, too. There is so much love flowing by the end you will feel uplifted.

Beautiful writing, captivating drama, incredible depth and exciting progress. In closing I will quote a line from Venetia that haunted Charlotte. It gave her the grit and confidence she needed to charge forward into change. “The biggest problem with women, my dear, is how vastly they underestimate themselves.” Wise words and something to remember! This novel makes a positive statement on the power of women, what they can do when given a chance and when they believe in themselves and start to value their contributions. An absolute must read for 2024! Cannot wait for the next one! 5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️