Every Vow You Break

Hey book lovers! I’m here with a book review for Every Vow You Break by Peter Swanson. I read this for The Literally Dead Book Club in May. This was the first book I read by Swanson.

About The Book 📚

Title: Every Vow You Break

Author: Peter Swanson

Publication Date: March 2021

Publisher: HarperLuxe

Suggested Reader Age: Adult

Genre: Mystery, Thriller

Triggers: Misogyny, abuse, gaslighting, drugs, alcohol, sex, stalking, violence

My Review

› Abigail Baskin was the kind of person to always expect the worse. Until she fell in love and married millionaire Bruce Lamb.

“She first spotted him at Bobbie’s Coffee Shop on twenty-second street.”

› While on her bachelorette weekend at a winery Abigail met “Scottie”. She introduced herself as Madeleine. She drank too much and made a huge mistake, and slept with him. She decided not to tell Bruce and married him.

› Bruce is controlling. Not only did he pick the location for Abigail’s bachelorette, but he also planned the entire honeymoon. Abigail is whisked off to a secluded island where there is no cell service and no internet. This island is a strange place where there are only a couple of women surrounded by rich men. The food and drinks distract Abigail at first, until Scottie shows up. Every Vow You Break is a wild ride, suspend your disbelief and trust no one.

› I use the CAWPILE method to rate books.
0-3 Really bad
4-6 Mediocre
7-9 Really good
10 Outstanding

› Characters: 2
Flat, boring.

› Atmosphere: 3
My favourite part of the book was the setting, but there is a lack of world-building, atmosphere, and emotion.

› Writing Style: 3
Feels like it was written in the 90s. It might have been better as a novella. A lot of unnecessary info-dumping.

› Plot: 3
beginning: slow, lots of backstory
middle: things pick up a bit
end: action-packed, felt rushed.

› Intrigue: 2

› Logic: 1
What woman would let a man take her to an island with no cell service and no internet? Women are taught to be aware of dangerous men, how did Abigail not question this? You can tell this is a female protagonist written by a male author.

› Enjoyment: 3

Average 2.4

1.1-2.2 = ★
2.3-4.5 = ★★
4.6-6.9 = ★★★
7-8.9 = ★★★★
9-10 = ★★★★★

My Rating ★★

› Final Thoughts
• Predictable for experienced mystery readers. I’d recommend this as a beginner mystery, as long as you can get past the hatred and gaslighting towards women. This wasn’t for me. Many other people in the book club talked about Swanson’s other book, The Kind Worth Killing, his most popular book on Goodreads, so I think I’ll give that one a try sometime.