Cowgirl Come Home

Cowgirl Come Home by Debra Salonen

At the age of eighteen Bailey Jenkins was cursed by her broken-hearted boyfriend at the top of a Ferris Wheel.  Told that if she went through with the gut wrenching decision that she was about to make, then he would call down his grandmother's gypsy curse on her for the rest of her life.  Unfortunately, it seems like the curse might have been real, because Bailey has had nothing but bad luck ever since.

Fifteen years later there is nothing Paul Zabrinski regrets more than cursing his first love...whom he has never really gotten over.  But how can he still love a woman that made a decision that affected them both all by herself?  Now that she is back in town, broken in every sense of the word, to help her mother care for her cantankerous father, can both of them find it in their hearts to forgive each other and move on?  Or is the curse too strong to allow love to win?

This was such a refreshing book.  Not exactly a "feel good" book, it transcends its own concept and comes out as a shining example of great writing and masterful character building.  With its heavy subject matter, it was always going to be an emotional book.  You can't discuss subjects like abortion, addiction, theft, grief, and recovery and still remain shallow and lighthearted.  But this book takes those subjects and removes the melodrama, making them raw and powerful without making them sob-worthy.  In a word, they are honest.

The main characters are both flawed and broken by a life that proved that life itself is not fair.  However, they are both strong and willing to pull themselves up by the boot straps and keep trudging along.  These are admirable qualities and very well received in this book.

The supporting characters are where the true magic in the story lies.  Ms. Salonen took a character who is basically an abusive bully on a power trip, and is candidly described as "the town drunk", and completely makes him likable.  She is actually quite fearless when it comes to making unlikable characters sympathetic.  That kind of gumption is just too admirable not to recognize and applaud.

Overall, I needed this story.  I had been rather disappointed with my own opinion of the last few books I had read, and was actually worried that I was burning out.  This book revived my soul and gave me a reason to keep on reading and reviewing.  Thank you, Debra Salonen!

Ratings:

(1=unacceptable, 2=poor, 3=acceptable, 4=good, 5=excellent)

Continuity/Flow – 5

Sex – 5 

Language – 4

Storyline – 5

Overall – 5