What do you think?
Rate this book
Beyond the Promise
While on vacation in Cougar Valley, Oregon, with her best friend Annie, Boston lawyer Cat Browning meets charming Scott McCullough and marries him, but amidst the joy and wonderment, dark family secrets threaten their love and force Cat to make choices that will change her life forever. Reprint.
480 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1997
9 people are currently reading
59 people want to read
About the author
Barbara Bickmore
29 books36 followersBARBARA BICKMORE wrote her first short story at seven and has been writing ever since. Her dream to become a published writer came true when EAST OF THE SUN was published in 1988. As her heroines grow they become women who make a difference and don't settle for living life the way society dictates. Readers will experience sorrow, pain, happiness, romance, love and will enjoy growing with the heroines as they rise to life's challenges.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
September 8, 2025
Beyond the Promise by Barbara Bickmore
While on vacation in Cougar Valley, Oregon, Boston lawyer Cat Browning meets charming Scott McCullough and marries him. At first it’s all wonder and honeymoon bliss, but tragedy strikes and dark family secrets surface and threaten everything they’ve built. Cat is forced to make choices that will change her life forever.
Okay, confession: I read this as a teenager and loved it so hard it probably left an imprint on my DNA. Forbidden feelings, sweeping choices, and a heroine who falls headfirst into a life that both dazzles and destroys — what’s not to adore at seventeen? This book felt huge then. Re-reading it after years of bookshelf detours was like meeting an old flame: some things still make me weak in the knees, and some things make me wonder how my teenage self had such low standards for character development.
The core of the story is simple and effective. Cat is an ordinary(ish) Boston lawyer who goes on holiday and runs into Scott, the sort of man who shows up in romances with wind in his hair and promises of a golden future. They marry, and all the domestic bliss is deliciously immediate — the kind of couple-forming that reads like fate, not logistics. Then the cracks open after tragedy strikes: family secrets, power plays, and moral choices that force Cat out of the “romantic heroine” box and into “woman who must decide what she can and cannot live with.” It’s personal stakes elevated into life-altering consequences, and Bickmore leans into the emotional fallout in a way that’s both melodramatic and oddly satisfying.
What works:
The emotional punch. When the book aims for heartbreak, it lands. The scenes where Cat realizes that life can go on are written with a rawness that still moves me. You’ll feel the betrayal, the grief, the stubborn hope — often all in the same scene.
The romance’s immediacy. The honeymoon phase reads like a fever dream in the best possible sense. Bickmore captures the intoxicating rush of a whirlwind relationship, which makes the subsequent unraveling hit harder.
Nostalgic charm. There’s a certain old-school sweep to the prose and plotting that hits the soft spot for anyone who grew up on classic romantic tragedies. If you crave that kind of big-feeling storytelling, it’s a plus.
What doesn’t:
It shows its age. Dialogue and some plot mechanics are dated. Characters sometimes behave like they exist in a previous era’s idea of drama — which, fine, if you’re nostalgic; annoying if you want contemporary nuance.
Occasional melodrama. The book leans fully into soap-opera territory at times: heightened emotions, theatrical revelations, and decisions that are more “novel-worthy” than believable. Your adult brain will scoff at logic; your heart may still forgive it.
Thin supporting cast. Some secondary characters exist mainly to deliver secrets or create obstacles, not to be people. That flattens a few scenes that could have benefited from more texture.
Teenage me vs. adult me:
Teenage me: This was everything. Forbidden sparks? Check. Tragic choices? Double check. I wept, I swooned, I probably wrote a journal entry about how fate had spoken directly to my heart.
Adult me: Appreciates the emotional craft, but also raises an eyebrow. Still, when a book is meant to gut you, it usually does — even if I’m muttering about plausibility in between sobs.
Beyond the Promise isn’t a flawless modern novel. It creaks in places, the melodrama can go full throttle, and some character choices belong in a different decade. But it still retains a surprising capacity for feeling. The premise (holiday meet-cute turned lifelong consequence) is simple but emotionally effective, and the heartbreak elements are handled with enough sincerity that you'll forgive the book its more theatrical tendencies. If you loved it as a teen, rereading will be an odd mix of “oh my god” nostalgia and “really?” critique — and that’s okay. Books that make us feel huge things in our formative years deserve a place on the shelf, even if we can now point out the wobbly bits.
Nostalgia rating: high. Current-read rating: fond but critical. If you want a tragic, romantic ride that leans classic and isn’t shy about the melodrama, this will still give you the feels. If you want razor-sharp modern realism, maybe don’t start here.
While on vacation in Cougar Valley, Oregon, Boston lawyer Cat Browning meets charming Scott McCullough and marries him. At first it’s all wonder and honeymoon bliss, but tragedy strikes and dark family secrets surface and threaten everything they’ve built. Cat is forced to make choices that will change her life forever.
Okay, confession: I read this as a teenager and loved it so hard it probably left an imprint on my DNA. Forbidden feelings, sweeping choices, and a heroine who falls headfirst into a life that both dazzles and destroys — what’s not to adore at seventeen? This book felt huge then. Re-reading it after years of bookshelf detours was like meeting an old flame: some things still make me weak in the knees, and some things make me wonder how my teenage self had such low standards for character development.
The core of the story is simple and effective. Cat is an ordinary(ish) Boston lawyer who goes on holiday and runs into Scott, the sort of man who shows up in romances with wind in his hair and promises of a golden future. They marry, and all the domestic bliss is deliciously immediate — the kind of couple-forming that reads like fate, not logistics. Then the cracks open after tragedy strikes: family secrets, power plays, and moral choices that force Cat out of the “romantic heroine” box and into “woman who must decide what she can and cannot live with.” It’s personal stakes elevated into life-altering consequences, and Bickmore leans into the emotional fallout in a way that’s both melodramatic and oddly satisfying.
What works:
The emotional punch. When the book aims for heartbreak, it lands. The scenes where Cat realizes that life can go on are written with a rawness that still moves me. You’ll feel the betrayal, the grief, the stubborn hope — often all in the same scene.
The romance’s immediacy. The honeymoon phase reads like a fever dream in the best possible sense. Bickmore captures the intoxicating rush of a whirlwind relationship, which makes the subsequent unraveling hit harder.
Nostalgic charm. There’s a certain old-school sweep to the prose and plotting that hits the soft spot for anyone who grew up on classic romantic tragedies. If you crave that kind of big-feeling storytelling, it’s a plus.
What doesn’t:
It shows its age. Dialogue and some plot mechanics are dated. Characters sometimes behave like they exist in a previous era’s idea of drama — which, fine, if you’re nostalgic; annoying if you want contemporary nuance.
Occasional melodrama. The book leans fully into soap-opera territory at times: heightened emotions, theatrical revelations, and decisions that are more “novel-worthy” than believable. Your adult brain will scoff at logic; your heart may still forgive it.
Thin supporting cast. Some secondary characters exist mainly to deliver secrets or create obstacles, not to be people. That flattens a few scenes that could have benefited from more texture.
Teenage me vs. adult me:
Teenage me: This was everything. Forbidden sparks? Check. Tragic choices? Double check. I wept, I swooned, I probably wrote a journal entry about how fate had spoken directly to my heart.
Adult me: Appreciates the emotional craft, but also raises an eyebrow. Still, when a book is meant to gut you, it usually does — even if I’m muttering about plausibility in between sobs.
Beyond the Promise isn’t a flawless modern novel. It creaks in places, the melodrama can go full throttle, and some character choices belong in a different decade. But it still retains a surprising capacity for feeling. The premise (holiday meet-cute turned lifelong consequence) is simple but emotionally effective, and the heartbreak elements are handled with enough sincerity that you'll forgive the book its more theatrical tendencies. If you loved it as a teen, rereading will be an odd mix of “oh my god” nostalgia and “really?” critique — and that’s okay. Books that make us feel huge things in our formative years deserve a place on the shelf, even if we can now point out the wobbly bits.
Nostalgia rating: high. Current-read rating: fond but critical. If you want a tragic, romantic ride that leans classic and isn’t shy about the melodrama, this will still give you the feels. If you want razor-sharp modern realism, maybe don’t start here.
September 3, 2017
Barbara píše zaujímavo, pútavo, a hoci spočiatku sa mi videlo všetko až priveľmi zidealizované, niečo ma poháňalo čítať knihu ďalej. Čakala som na moment, kedy sa tá sladkosť, tá všetka dobrota zlomí, kedy ju jednoducho niečo naruší. A dočkala som sa (musím priznať, že v niektorých momentoch som si pomyslela, že tých nepríjemností je zrazu akosi priveľa).
Páčilo sa mi, ako spisovateľka vybičovala emócie - najmä vo vzťahu Cat a Reda. To bolo až na neuverenie. Stále som si hovorila: teraz to príde. No nechodilo... (ako inak, nakoniec som sa dočkala ;-) )
V každom prípade prekvapivé, príjemné čítanie a rozhodne odporúčam zaradiť autorku do knižnice. Dokáže aj zo zdanlivo nenáročného deja vykresať zaujímavú pointu. Ja už mám na nočnom stolíku rozčítanú ďalšiu Bickmorovej knihu ;-)
Páčilo sa mi, ako spisovateľka vybičovala emócie - najmä vo vzťahu Cat a Reda. To bolo až na neuverenie. Stále som si hovorila: teraz to príde. No nechodilo... (ako inak, nakoniec som sa dočkala ;-) )
V každom prípade prekvapivé, príjemné čítanie a rozhodne odporúčam zaradiť autorku do knižnice. Dokáže aj zo zdanlivo nenáročného deja vykresať zaujímavú pointu. Ja už mám na nočnom stolíku rozčítanú ďalšiu Bickmorovej knihu ;-)
June 16, 2019
My favorite Barbara Bickmore book is The Moon Below but I plan to read them all.
I love reading about strong woman. I am captivated with their ups and downs as I go through life with them.
I love reading about strong woman. I am captivated with their ups and downs as I go through life with them.
April 29, 2018
This bordered on being a "romance" novel but I liked it anyway. Family drama set in Oregon with lots of twists and turns. Enjoyable read. Would be a great series for TV.
August 25, 2020
Although this was enjoyable and captured my attention, it was certainly full of some strange twists and turns.
September 29, 2007
I love all of her books. Strong women, saga's, historical, very discriptive. I can't put them down and have several of them two or three times.
June 19, 2012
Good beach read. A family saga with just the right amount of characters (easy to follow), intrigue,loss,devastating secrets, and lots of romance(!)
Read
August 8, 2013Read 2/01
March 28, 2016
I love, love, LOVE this book!
I got it when i was 14 years old, and i have read it at least once every year since.
It's a fantastic love story, with wounderful twitst asnd turns :D
I got it when i was 14 years old, and i have read it at least once every year since.
It's a fantastic love story, with wounderful twitst asnd turns :D
March 2, 2017
Nederlandse boektitel: Catherine
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews