Thank you Cara Bastone for writing this gem of a book, thanks #netgalley for the ARC copy!!! For those reading this review, my words will not adequately describe how I loved this book. It just hit all the right notes from page 1 to the very end for me and I was wonderfully surprised and enraptured. There were perhaps two or three sentences that should be edited out because they read as intrusive thoughts that the author wrote and are a distraction but perfection is overrated anyway.

This is one of those books that will make you feel so much you'll want to cancel all your plans, hide in your bed and not come back out until you've finished it. Maybe that doesn't sound good to you, but I LIVE for books that pull me in like that and hijack all my emotions.

And this is truly a book to obsess over. It's such a beautiful story about learning to live again after a major loss, learning to grieve, and (re)connecting with the people around you. This book showed me why friends to lovers is my favourite trope, because they became such amazing friends first, which made me see exactly why they should be together. It also means that, even though this is kind of a slow burn, you see them spend so much time together.

If I could give this 6 stars, I would. And I think I'll have to work my way through Cara Bastone's backlist.

"Well, I can't promise the sunshine. But I can do everything else."
...And damn right did Miles Honey (not "huh-nee" more like "ho-nee") mean it.

I want to take a second to thank Net Galley and Dial Press for letting me review another early copy of Cara Bastone's latest release. This book is such a great treasure to the romance community. I've been in a bit of a depressive slump these past few months (like gets hectic, you know?) and I haven't really had many eye-catching experiences with romance books this year...until this. damn. book.

First of all, I have to commend Cara Bastone for being bold enough to create a book that doesn't really take the path of marketing off of tropes. Like, she wrote a book instead of a book about tropes. Does that make sense? She wrote something so unique and heart-warming and inspiring and sad and funny. It just blows all the romance books in 2024 (so far) out of the water for me and I've read a lot of romance books this year. I truly have not read anything like this before and I think that says something in the market of romance books right now.

This book follows such a beautiful journey for our two main characters Lenny and Miles who are just absolute gems of people and make me have a sliver of hope that nice people might actually live in New York City. They're entangled together on this journey to support Lenny after the loss of her best friend and they develop this beautiful friendship that blooms into a soul-crushing romance. They have banter like your favorite characters from Gilmore Girls and a love that will leave a blueprint for perfection in your brain for the rest of your life. Will it make dating real men harder? Yes, but Miles is worth that kind of risk.

I can't even really pack into a short few paragraphs what this book has done for me in the 48 hours it took me to absorb it and permanently attach it to my soul. I just feel a soulmate level connection to this book. Like it's the kind of book that you pick up expecting something light-hearted and simple then walk away considering whether you ever valued life and love as much as you should be. These characters, this plot, the intimate connection between Lenny and Miles just makes me want and want and want.

I think that's probably the one message Cara Bastone wanted to implement the most to her readers: Keep on wanting. There's something waiting for you out there. Keep on going.

Absolutely breathtaking.

I loved this book so much. It was so sad but also a huge warm hug at the same time. I think I was smiling the entire time I was reading.

I absolutely loved this. Although it felt different and heavier( in a good way) compared to Cara Bastones last novel, this one made you feel all the feels. Although a romance I felt like this book really hit so many emotions. It felt deeper than a typically romcom. I loved Miles and Lenny's chemistry and banter. Lenny was written so funny and also such a mess, which honestly made her feel so realistic. I can see this becoming a movie and would LOVE for that to happen. Total tearjerker great piece of fiction!

Cara Bastone's "Promise Me Sunshine" is a poignant and beautifully written exploration of grief, love, and resilience. From the very beginning, I was captivated by the raw emotion and authenticity of the narrative. I never thought I liked a slow burn, but I guess I do when Cara Bastone writes one!

The novel follows a protagonist who is grappling with the loss of a loved one. The plot is both heartbreaking and uplifting, offering a nuanced portrayal of the grieving process.

One of the most striking aspects of this book is the depth and complexity of the characters. Bastone has a remarkable ability to create characters who feel incredibly real and relatable. Each character is nuanced and flawed, making their journeys all the more compelling. I’ve never been so invested in a doorman who only appears a handful of times before!

Another strength of the novel is its exploration of grief. Bastone handles this sensitive subject matter with great care and sensitivity, offering a honest and compassionate portrayal of the grieving process. The novel is not afraid to delve into the darker aspects of grief, while also offering moments of hope and healing.

While the novel is undoubtedly powerful, it is also a challenging read due to its themes of loss. The emotional intensity of the story may be difficult for some readers to handle.

"Promise Me Sunshine" is a poignant and thought-provoking novel that will stay with you long after you finish reading. Bastone's writing is both beautiful and heartbreaking, and the characters are unforgettable. While the novel is not for everyone, those who are willing to embrace its emotional intensity will be rewarded with a truly unforgettable reading experience. Cara Bastone will forever be an auto-buy for me and I cannot wait for her next one.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Random House for sharing a digital reviewer copy with me in exchange for my honest thoughts.

4.25 stars!- First off, I am obsessed with the beautiful cover! This book wrecked me in all the best ways. I felt like I was constantly holding back tears and feeling all the feels. I couldn't put the book down- reading about Len's journey dealing with her grief and Miles helping her along the way. I also liked how Len helped Miles to connect with his family. I liked the cute moments with Ainsley. I really loved how their relationship progressed into friends and then lovers.

Thank you, NetGalley and Random House, for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

One of the best books I've read in a long time. Although it's a romance book, it focuses more on grief and healing with a love story ingrained. This book had me laughing but mostly crying. Cara's writing is authentic and vulnerable. Lenny has lost her best friend/soulmate to cancer and is just trying to survive but isn't living, not until she meets Miles. Miles is no stranger to grief, and his story is tragic. It's not the greatest start when he meets Lenny, but he knows she's grieving, and as he's been there before, he agrees to be the person she can go to any time and day. She also has a list that needs to be completed, and he decides to do that for her. As the book progresses, their acquaintance becomes a friendship that turns into love. This book is a love letter to grieving people and shows that surviving is not living. It's not about moving on but moving through. The ending felt more "happy for now," with no epilogue. I usually hate that with books; however, this story had the best possible ending.

This book was heartfelt and heartbreaking. It demonstrates how complex grief is. You won't get it unless you've been there, but this book will help you understand it.

I tried to read her previous book "Ready or Not" but I ended up abandoning that read. I wanted to give her another try but I am once again not pleased with her writing. I've come to the conclusion that she's simply not the author for me.

Book # 78 of 2024
Promise Me Sunshine by Cara Bastone
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️

Over the summer I saw all of the rave reviews for Ready or Not and I decided to read it and LOVED it. Cara’s writing just really gripped me and I loved the book (and the men in it!) so so so much. So when I saw that her newest book was available on NetGalley I requested it and crossed all of my fingers (and toes).

I was delighted when I got the approval and started it as soon as I finished my current read.

I didn’t think it was possible but I loved Promise Me Sunshine MORE than Ready or Not???

This book follows Lenny shortly after her best friend in the world dies from cancer. She’s lost in the world without the person who anchored her to it. The only tether is her last tie to Lou which is a list of things to do to live again and her temporary nannying gigs.

When she shows up for her latest job, she meets Miles who seems to immediately distrust her and puts her on edge. Despite their differences, he finds out about her quest and agrees to help her not only with her list but help her process her grief since he knows a thing or two about it himself.

I cannot say enough good things about this book. Maybe it’s because grief and I have been acquainted for far too many years than I’d like to admit but I also thing it’s the beautiful way that Cara writes about it that helped me not feel so alone with it, or the dark humor I’ve acquired because of it.

Read this if Abby Jimenez is an author you enjoy for her ability to balance the dark and light and if you are willing to sit with the dark and uncomfortable parts of the human adventure to get to the beauty of it.

Thank you to NetGalley and The Dial Press for an eARC copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

I absolutely loved Ready Or Not and was very excited when NetGalley and PR accepted me to read this ARC. I absolutely loved it. Cara Bastone has become an auto-read author for me.

I’ve read a lot of romance books (hundreds), so I feel pretty confident when I say there are a few things that make a really, really good one.
• characters that are relatable and feel real
• events that are fun/interesting/unique/funny (who wants to just read about people who work, make dinner, watch tv, and sleep like the rest of us?)
• a little angst or drama
This book was super solid on the first two, and a little bit lacking on the last one for me. I loved the characters in this book. They’re quirky, loveable, unique, but so real feeling. Lenny is totally weird and not like anyone I’ve met in real life, and yet she feels like someone I could meet in real life. The things they do in this book are so fun (and sometimes sad or emotional or heartbreaking) and made it feel like I got to experience so many different things as well. I loved how their relationship went from somewhat hostile strangers, to friends, to lovers, and I loved how they took care of each other in so many sweet ways both big and small. The only thing I was missing was a little bit of drama. I just needed a bit of tension in their relationship, because the book started to feel too slow for me. I think the journey of healing from Lou’s death was the “problem” that needed to be solved, and while I liked the progression Lenny made from being swallowed by grief to being able to live with joy and feel like herself again, I just needed a little something more to move the story along. I still really liked it, and I love the way Cara Bastone writes such tender, comforting love stories.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 ⭐️ for me rounded up. There was some open door parts at the very end of the book that I feel like could have been better if it was closed door. BUT that’s just a preference of mine. Everything else was perfection.

This was my first Cara Bastone book and trust me—it won’t be my last! This story hit me right in the feels, diving into the raw, unfiltered reality of grief when you lose your person. There’s no sugar-coating here; it was heavy, it was real, and I felt every bit of it deep in my bones.

But what really made it special was how beautifully Bastone showed the journey of learning to live again after loss. And don’t even get me started on the romance! It wasn’t just thrown in, it was woven perfectly into the story, making it all the more powerful. I love a good rom-com, but this book made me crave romances with real depth—and boy, did it deliver!

Lenny and Miles had the perfect mix of banter, chemistry, and heart. I cried real tears more than once, and I know this book is going to stay with me for a long time. If you’re looking for a romance that’s got both heart and chemistry, add this to your list!

Cara is such a talented and special writer. The way she wrote this book, it felt like I was inside of her heart. Lenny is deeply relatable and I wanted to take her pain away with each passing page. It's a great writing choice not to have another POV in this, it feels relentless, in an important way. Grief itself is relentless. We will all experience its many waves. Just as we'll experience love. Lenny and Miles' love story is brave and effortless. They are simply present to each other's humanity and in seeing each other so fully they can't help but fall in love. The build-up was done so well, it was a true slow burn. By the time they got together, I was positively GIDDY watching them collide. I am only giving this 4 stars because in my stupid mind, I have to differentiate it from Ready or Not (my favorite book of last year!), which was a full 5 star journey. But in reality, this book defies ranking. It's simply a gift to those who have lost someone or will lose someone. I BIG TIME cried at the end.

Thank you to NetGalley and to those at Dial Press for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

~Contemporary, Romance, Grief, and more!~

Promise Me Sunshine by Cara Bastone follows Lenny trying to navigate life after losing her best friend, Lou. Feeling lost and avoiding her problems, Lenny takes a short-term gig as a babysitter. Faking a smile and pushing through, she babysits for single mom Reese and her daughter Ainsley. What seems to be a normal gig takes a turn when Miles, Ainsley's uncle, constantly hangs around. Lenny can't help but notice the indifference Reese has towards her brother and the distance between him and Ainsley. So when Miles notices that Lenny is concealing her grief, he makes a deal with her. Help him get closer to Ainsley and Reese, and he will help her get through her grief and finish Lou's list on how to live again. After all, who will understand her feelings better than someone who has been through the same thing?

4.5| This was a sweet yet heartbreaking book with grief, friends, family, and romance. The whole book is written in such a beautiful way that it was hard to put down. I loved Miles's character (despite the 2-in-1 shampoo). He was sweet and patient and never pushed Lenny. He understood how people deal with grief differently and was always there for her no matter what. I enjoyed that this book was such a slow burn. While it's typically not my favorite, it worked perfectly here. I absolutely loved Ainsley's character. I looked forward to every scene she was in. It was great seeing her relationship with Miles grow throughout the book. I also enjoyed how she and Lenny interacted. Lenny is a unique character, and unlike one I have ever read before. Throughout the story, I got to see her walls go down as she progressed in her journey with grief. Her internal monologue was great and said a lot about her character. While I am not typically a fan of flashback scenes, the ones with Lou added a lot of context to the story and allowed me to better understand Lou and Lenny's relationship. One of my favorite parts of this book was that Lenny went out and made new friendships. This was an important part of her journey, and I was glad to see it highlighted.

While this was a fantastic book I do wish certain aspects were highlighted a bit more. For example, Lenny cleaning out her apartment. While this was discussed near the end, I wanted to see it happen since it was one of her last big obstacles. I also wish we had seen Lenny visit Lou's grave. Without these scenes it felt like we only got a glimpse at part of her journey without seeing the rest. I did enjoy the descprtions in this book, not only of the scenery but also of who Lou was. The flashbacks were nice, but I loved hearing Lenny talk about Lou. I do wish we had gotten to see the full list at the beginning of the book to get a little more structure on what was happening. Things felt a bit random at times, which, while wasn't necessarily bad, could have been fixed with a little more outline. I also wish we had more of an epilogue in this book to tie everything up. The romance was nice, a little sudden at the end, but it seemed very fitting with Lenny's character, so I didn't mind it.

Overall, this was a sweet and heartfelt read. The characters were great, and the story was fantastic. Lenny's grief was realistic and dealt with in a tasteful way. I loved the side characters and how much they added. Both Lenny and Miles went through tremendous character growth, which was lovely to read. This was a great book that made me cry, laugh, and smile! While I wish some things were wrapped up a bit more, this was an amazing read that beautifully showed and described how complex grief is.

Five stars aren’t enough. I’m becoming a Fangirl of Cara Bastone. She captures how messy real life is, while still giving us a happy ending with a delightfully grumpy but caring male lead.

This review has been published on Goodreads, 25th September 2024.

Grief is such a difficult topic to portray, and I do think Sara Bastone did a fantastic job writing about it. However, although a great story, I found myself with the same problem I had when I read Ready or Not. I was quite hooked at the beginning of the story, but halfway through I found myself wanting to reach the end.

I loved Miles, I loved how he was there for Lenny all throughout her journey, and how he didn’t belittle her feelings, I just wish he wasn’t portrayed in such a perfect way because this way you can see the other characters faults’, which is exactly what happened to me with Ready or Not. I understand what Lenny was going through, but at times I found her just found her unbearable.

The ending was really cute, and again, it was a great story but I found myself a bit bored, which honestly might be just my mood.

Thank you Sara Bastone, Random House Publishing, and NetGalley for the review copy of Promise me Sunshine!

I’m so surprised by this book! I haven’t read a book that oscillated so brilliantly from gut-wrenching grief to utter joy and back again. I feel like the author was able to show that healing is not linear—some days you feel like the world is ending and you’ll never be okay but then the next day turns out to be a damn good day.

The romance in this book was spectacular. I loved Miles so so much and the banter between him and Lenny was so entertaining! They continuously showed up for each other without question and it was a fantastic example of loyalty in a friendship. Highly recommend!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

What an amazing book… so well written. Often heart-wrenching and this romcom-loving girl had a couple of solid cry sessions while reading it, but it was also sweet and funny. A good balance throughout.

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review. Watch for Promise Me Sunshine to come out March 4, 2025.

I was invited by the publisher to review this book. Lenny and Lou were best friends, but Lenny is left empty and without her best friend when Lou dies of cancer. Lenny feels like she cannot feel alive again and avoids her former life. She winds up taking a job babysitting to help a single mom; she babysits Ainsely, but there is one catch - her Uncle Miles seems to be around a lot, and he is not the friendliest person. Miles recognizes grief in Lenny and offers to help her - he wants help to connect with his sister and niece, and in exchange he will help Lenny live her life again. It is through this, that Lenny learns there can be another side and she does have the strength to get there.

This is a wonderful book, despite the heavy element of grief and loss. But the characters of Lenny and Miles were so strong, and their time together helping each other was very realistic; nothing builds a good foundation for any relationship than starting out at the bottom and working to the top. I loved that the characters built each other up. And, despite the heavy element, the book also managed to be light with the chemistry and banter between Lenny and Miles.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group and Dial Press Trade Paperback for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.