Who else grew up watching Little House on the Prairie? I read the books, too. And then there were all the John Wayne Westerns Dad watched. When I opened Dark Vow by Shona Husk the setting sprang vividly to life — Western but with a fantastic distopian twist. I was immediately hooked.

No, that’s not true. It wasn’t the setting that hooked me…brilliantly conveyed though it was, using enough of the stereotypes plus a twist to have all the world building rocking in a novella length story. What made it impossible to put the book down was the heroine and the conflict she was plunged into from the opening. Jaines Cord is a strong woman, a survivor, in a world of danger and, as it turns out, heartbreak.

Summarising a story is not my strength, besides in Dark Vow, the unfolding drama really doesn’t need spoilers. The twists in the plot are unexpected, but natural. Jaines’s journey is an emotional one as much as a physical one. For the reader, there is also the fascination of discovering the world Shona Husk creates.

The story gripped me. Be warned: You won’t want to put it down once you’ve started — and you’ll remember it after you’ve finished.