All We Were Promised is a fascinating look at Philadelphia in the pre-Civil War years. Told from the perspective of three young Black women, it encompasses Nell, a member of the elite Black society; Charlotte, a runaway living in the city; and Evie, a slave looking to escape her southern mistress visiting the northern city. The three women are all fully developed and I appreciated that Lattimore fairly presented the risks each faced, especially Charlotte.
The story points out how precarious the lives of all Blacks were in the town. Pennsylvania might have been a free state, but it had a variety of loopholes to allow southern owners to bring their slaves north. And those that were free still faced bigotry and violence. Lattimore does a great job of putting the reader in the time and place. It’s obvious she’s done her research. And her book meets my standard for historical fiction - I learned something about the subject being covered.
The story deals with the risks people are willing to take for others, on both large and small scales. For example, the women quickly learn that the Philadelphia Female Anti-Slavery Society is all talk and no action. Flip side, Charlotte is forced to confront what risks she’ll take to help Evie.
Other themes include classism, passing as white and the limited roles of women.
What starts off at a languorous pace picks up as the ending approaches. I was totally taken in and couldn’t wait to see how things would resolve.
An excellent book and this one is going on my “best of 2024” list.
My thanks to Netgalley and Random House/Ballantine for an advance copy of this book.

Thank you to Netgalley and publisher for an arc in exchange for my honest opinions.

Publication: April 2, 2024

Rating: 2 stars

Historical fiction is one of the few genres that I love and I get even more excited when it’s during a time period I know little about.

When I read the synopsis for All That We Were Promised, I knew I wanted to give this debut a shot!

Unfortunately, I could tell quickly that I wasn’t the right reader for this book. To have the POV be in 3rd person made it difficult to connect with any of the characters. The pacing was on the slower side but it’s filled with information about the time period of pre-Civil War.

Perfect for fans:
- Historical fiction
- Slavery versus free states
- Civil unrest
- Women friendships
- Differences in class
- Nonfiction vibes
- Informative of 1860’s

A deep and informative look at the happenings in Philadelphia pre-emancipation and the imagined lives of three women. The story relates the tense atmosphere in a city where freed slaves dwell-some in poverty, others rising to create an elite class. The women are from three different classes-Nell is rich, Charlotte is a servant to her father, and Evie is a slave desiring to be free. The city explodes almost daily from tension as Nell and Charlotte strive to find a way to free Evie.
Sometimes long and drawn out, the story slows many times as it progresses.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

All We Were Promised is a riveting historical fiction novel by Lattimore that is told through multiple point-of-views. The story follows Evie, Nell, and Charlotte as their lives intertwine in 1830s Philadelphia. The novel showcases the wide juxtaposition between the free and enslaved community as well as Abolitionists fighting for Civil Rights. I felt the alternating viewpoints gave readers a deeper insight into the characters and their backgrounds and how different their lives are from each other. Each character Is very vulnerable but also confident wanting to write the wrongs of their past and to help others. Nell especially sticks her neck out to help those even though it is frowned upon by the high society background that she comes from.

This novel is not about only powerful women but also gives a history lesson about America and what it was like, especially for Black women in this era. and. At times the novel is incredibly emotional and hard to read. The author does not shy away from many of the sad historical truths that played out in American history while some of the characters are based on real-life people in history (ex. Hetty Reckless was one of the Black founding members of the real-life Philadelphia Female Anti-Slavery Society). I appreciated how the novel focuses on the early activism aspects of Philadelphia and learning about the Black women and men who were involved in the early abolitionist movement of this time which I knew had Some knowledge of but learned a lot more after reading this book.

This novel also presents such powerful and inspiring female characters that the reader can admire and root for but even toward the end of the story you know that there is more work to be done and that there is no shining away from the harsh reality of their lives. I think many readers will be able to take away a lot of lessons from this book as well as learn more about history that they weren’t already familiar with. I think that will inspire them to research this topic more as it did for me.

I enjoyed reading this novel from beginning to end and Latimore’s writing is lyrical, and powerful, and keeps the reading engaged constantly with the narrative of the novel’s three main characters. I hope to read more novels from this author in the future and I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys delving into the history historical fiction genre.

In the story, we follow three Black women in pre-Civil War Philadelphia. Nell is an affluent Black woman raised in northern Society, whose life is untouched by slavery. She is beginning to support abolitionist efforts, but in a very safe and controlled way. Charlotte is a former slave who is still very much on the run from her past. Evie is currently enslaved woman desperate to break free of her mistress before there returned to the south. The three cross paths and their lives will be forever changed.

I’ve read a lot of historical fiction focused on slavery, but I do not believe I’ve read one that focused on the northern efforts. Being from the Philadelphia area myself, I was very interested to see how this period of time progressed. I love the idea of mixing three people of completely different circumstance all fighting for the same cause I’ll be at for different reasons. I think at first all three women are hard to like, and then, as their layers are peeled back, you become so invested in them. I would say this is a bit of a freight train of a story, once it gets moving, you don’t wanna put it down.

It covers a very heavy topic, but also mixes in a lot of action, a little romance and leaves you with hope. Read this if you enjoyed the Yellow Wife or Night Wherever We Go.

Thanks to Ballantine Books for gifted access via NetGalley. All opinions above my own

An Historical Fiction set in Philadelphia in the 1830's. The story is told by three young female characters. The story of three young women from different backgrounds whose stories become intertwined.
A captivating story, slavery, family secrets, deception, friendship and the abolitionist movement.
The three young women showed me what life was like for Black people living in the South and North during that time period.
Learned about a time in American History that I really knew almost nothing about.
Well researched, history was fascinating.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House/Ballantine Books for the opportunity to read this book.

3.5⭐️s rounded up. Really interesting and enlightening perspective of Philadelphia in the 1830s and the diverse population of Black Americans, as well as the volatile political perspective towards slavery and riots at the time.

It’s crazy to me how many ebbs and flows the anti-slavery movement had - how you could have such stark differences in how black people were treated and lived across different states and cities - and how long it took to really make significant change. And even that took decades longer post-civil war with segregation.

I liked reading from the 3 women’s perspectives, each in different life circumstances, though the first 2/3 of the book was rather slow and sometimes repetitive.

Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced copy of this book. All opinions are mine.

Charlotte, Nell and Evie will keep you riveted as you join them on their journeys to true freedom. Charlotte and her white passing father escape one night from a plantation in the south and end up in Pennsylvania. Charlotte poses as her dad's maid and they mostly pull it off. Charlotte becomes fast friends with Nell who knows nothing of Charlotte's true past or secrets.

Nell is from an influential affluent Black family and has never experienced the true horrors of slavery or captivity. Nell is a budding abolitionist, the groups she is involved with although helpful, are not willing to get overly involved where they are considered to be breaking the law.

Evie arrives from Charlotte's past and is still enslaved. She is owned by Charlotte's previous plantation owner. As Charlotte and Nell try to help Evie secure her freedom, Charlotte and her father's secret become exposed and the slave hunters are brought in and the plot thickens.

I am a huge fan of historical fiction so this story grabbed me from the first page and didn't let up until the end. I was rooting for all three woman to have a positive outcome. They were smart and thoughtful, careful who they confided in. The descriptions of locations were detailed and I felt I was right there with them. My emotions ran the gamete; happy, fearful, sad, frustrated, excited, relieved. Excellent read, I really enjoyed it. Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher Ballantine Books for an advanced readers copy.

This is a great historical fiction based in 1837 with a relationship of crossing boundaries and building friendships as two women find their way out of a life that they felt they were bound to. They risk it all, including their freedom,
Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to review the book.

This historical fiction is set in 1830s in Philadelphia it deals with runaway slaves and emancipation in general. It is well researched and informative. The story introduces the reader to 3 black women who become friends. When Charlotte and her father escape the Deep South and make their way to Philadelphia her father who is light skinned passes for white. Charlotte is dark skinned and her father claims she is his maid. He becomes a successful businessman and they make a good life for themselves but she does not want to only be a maid. She meets other black women who are trying to take an active role in obtaining freedom for others like them. Charlotte meets Nell who is a social activist trying to further women’s rights and freedom for women. Charlotte accidentally discovers a childhood friend. Evie, who has traveled to Philadelphia with her mistress and does not want to return to the South and her life as a Slave. Charlotte and Nell make plans to help her Evie escape. The three women show us what life was like for Black people living in both the North and South at that time.
I found part of the book to be somewhat slow and unbelievable in their dialogue but I did feel a part of the story as they moved through their day to day lives. I really liked the Author’s Notes at the end and would urge all readers to read that part carefully. The story was very well researched and I loved the information about the Philadelphia Hall construction, use and destruction of such a promising venue. I look forward to reading more of her books.
I wish to thank NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine Books for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book. I have voluntarily read and reviewed this book and all thoughts and opinions are my own.

This is fascinating historical fiction novel set in 1837 Philadelphia. Three young Black women cross paths hoping to close the loopholes in Pennsylvania's antislavery laws. Nell is a wealthy socialite and abolitionist. Charlotte is a former slave trying to stay under the radar. Evie is a runaway slave hoping to remain free.

This is a part of history previously unknown to this reader. I was unaware how slippery the antislavery laws were because of commerce between the South and the North. The abolitionist movement in Philadelphia tried to combat the problem. It is obvious the research Ashton Lattimore did to write this compelling novel.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group Ballantine for the chance to read prior to publication.

Ashton Lattimore’s 𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘞𝘦 𝘞𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘗𝘳𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘦𝘥 is a fascinating look at pre-Civil War Philadelphia. Set in the late 1830s, the historical fiction novel follows three young black women as they fight for change: Nell, a social activist from a elite local family; Charlotte, a runaway slave posing as a housemaid to her white-passing father; and Evie, a slave traveling with her mistress from Maryland. At this time, slavery was outlawed in the North, but there were areas where white visitors were allowed to bring their slaves with them under certain rules. Further complicating the landscape were class divides among free black people. Though the action is a bit slow at times, 𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘞𝘦 𝘞𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘗𝘳𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘦𝘥 is an interesting glimpse of racism and classism in the U.S. during this period as well as a valuable exploration of the importance of active civil engagement. 3.75 stars rounded up. Thank you to Ballantine Books and NetGalley for an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

DNF @ 10%

Really slow start. Writing style felt disconnected from the characters. Kind of saw where it was going and knew it wasn't for me.

This book was wonderfully written and researched. A tale of fights for freedom, family, and humanity. Le Mis, but in Philadelphia during the continued fight for Black freedom.

All We Were Promised is an outstanding example of historical fiction. The pace and interest level never falter as the lives of a wide range of characters with multiple secrets cross paths in 1837 Philadelphia. Most of all, I appreciated the way author Ashton Lattimore seamlessly weaves all of her research and historical facts into the plot. Never once did I feel yanked out of the lives of the characters by didactic facts, though the book is filled with plenty of information. Facts range from the small - bowls of soup cost a few pennies- to fashions and politics. I found myself stopping a few times and searching online for more information on a reference in this book.

It does not do the book justice and would be an extreme oversimplification to say that this is the story of conflicting interests in pre-Civil War America. Yet to tell more would involve spoilers, and part of the enjoyment for many books is discovering the characters and peeling back the layers on the falsehoods with no advance information. There are characters of various socio-economic levels, and readers may be surprised at everything they learn about society at that time, for the divisions are many: poor and wealthy, race, and gender. The tension and fear are palpable in many scenes throughout the 43 short chapters, and lives are in danger.

A really strong debut - well written and researched. Switching narratives between these three strong black women to tell the story worked well. However, a good portion of the novel (the middle third) moved too slowly for my taste with a little too much rumination. I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This story is about 3 young women in the abolitionist era of the United States. It is told from their three different perstpectives. I liked the way it was done. I didn’t like that it seemed to take too long to tell the story. It was an enjoyable story and I think most people will find it an enlightening read.

This story focuses on three women during the height of the abolitionist moment, all which have different experiences but that come together for the common cause. Nell is fortunate to be born into a well off black family that has devoted herself to the abolitionist movement. Charlotte is a free slave that thought when her and her dad left Maryland she would live the life of a free women only to find herself working as a servant in her fathers home. And Evie a young enslaved girl fighting for her freedom.
I found the story to be interesting in the history but the 3rd person narrative made it harder to relate to the characters.
Thank you to Netgalley and to the publishers for the chance to review this advanced copy.

I received an advanced copy of Ashton Lattimore's new book All We Were Promised from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The story is set in Philadelphia and revolves around three black women. Nell is an abolitionist from a wealthy black family living in Philadelphia. She befriends Charlotte, an enslaved woman, who escaped to Philadelphia with her father. Her father can pass for a white man. He starts a business, and Charlotte is left at home to act like his servant. Nell invites Charlotte to some abolitionist meetings she attends. While at the market one day Charlotte finds Evie, a slave she knew from the plantation she lived on who has been brought to Philadelphia with her mistress. Nell and Charlotte realize they have to find a way to help Evie achieve her freedom - which isn't as easy as one would think - even in Philadelphia.

Thank you to Net Galley and Random House Publishing Group for the chance to read and review this book. All opinions are my own.
I enjoyed this story that takes place in 1837 before the start of the Civil War. Charlotte, along with her father James, is an escaped slave settling in Philadelphia. She becomes friends with a free young lady named Nell. These two young friends are also involved in helping another slave, Evie, escape. There is a lot of adventure in this story. I was rooting for their safety all along the way. This is a very well-written story about friendship and courage.