This is a gripping story. It gets off to a slow start, and the panic that Beth and Sally are in to find Carol seems a bit over the top. To employ the services of a private detective seems bizarre, but Matthew does quickly follow up a lead which allows the women to find Carol’s mother, so was clearly a good idea. The side story of Sally and Matthew becoming romantically attached is a good device to occasionally reduce the tension of the main story. Matthew is useful to the women as well because of his knowledge of police procedures.

About a third of the way through the book the pace picks up, and it becomes almost unputdownable. When the secret the women have kept since they were fourteen is finally admitted it is almost an anticlimax, I was imagining far worse. Indeed, there are things to be revealed that are perhaps even worse, certainly on their effects on the persons involved.

The author is very good at building the tension, and the characters feel very real, they act and react in the ways you would expect them to. An excellent read.

This is a chick lit thriler and one I really couldn't get into unfortunately. It starts off so well but the plot is quite immature and not sophisticated at all. Jist too much descriptin of other stuff not really relevant and i found myself skipping pages just to get to the end. I think this would be a good holiday read. Beth, Sal and Carol are high school friends. They have a secret which is also a promise they made that they would never break. It follows that they lose track of Carol and are desperate to find her before their school reunion

Secrets between teenagers ? Can they stay in the past? Unlikely. Read this rollercoaster of a book with no distractions. I devoured in one sitting. 5/5 on goodreads.

The Promise is full of surprises and shocking revelations. Imagine making a pact with two of your closest friends, promising to keep it a secret. Something so dark and horrible, you vow to never tell a soul. Will you be able to trust one another not to spill the beans and reveal your darkest secret?

I found this book to be a slow burn for me. The premise and plot of the book was interesting, but I found many parts to be quite slow paced and it took me some time to get into the book. I found the beginning of the book especially to be slow to lead up to the full plot, which is fine, but I found myself wishing the pace would pick up sooner than it actually did. I found myself struggling to get through the first part of the book because it was so slow paced for me, which is fine, but I personally prefer faster paced novels.

I found the dynamics of the three friends – Beth, Sally and Carol – to be interesting. When you are young and so close to one another and vow to keep something secret, will you be able to keep that promise some 30 years later? After all, they are no longer young girls but are now women. People change, don’t they? People grow up, personalities and responsibilities change, and so do priorities and values.

Dnf at 30%. The pace is glacial, the plot uninteresting, and after reading some reviews, it looks like it doesn't get any better.

Enjoyed this book, although I did find it a real slow burner. The secret is revealed around two thirds of the way through and I felt it lost some impetus after that. I've been a big fan of Teresa Dricoll's other books and am still looking forward to more in the future.

THE PROMISE is a character driven page turner that paints portraits with nuanced suggestions and inuendo. The well-crafted story makes you want to know more about the long-ago secret they are keeping. There will be times when you want to scream 'just tell me!' Then you will settle back to reading and absorbing details that taunt.

I imagine that this book falls squarely in the category of women's fiction, a category I tend to bypass on general principals. I avoid it in the same way I avoid men's fiction because to me a book is genderless, a story to be read by whomever is drawn to it. Along these lines, I would encourage men to read this book to better acquaint themselves with the psyche of women that so many find a mystery.

Driscoll has captured the very essence of the female thought process that has, for so long, be taught that they must be careful of what they say and do in the presence of men and/or male authority. The 'now' in this book is 2016. To think that women under the age of 40 are still so constrained defines the very reason for the feminist movement.

As you read, you will conjure up all sorts of scenarios to try and make sense of just what promise schoolgirls made some 20 years ago. When the male protagonist is introduced, with his own secret, a balancing act of whose secret is worse starts to fester.

The resolution is neither earthshattering nor is it anticlimactic; it is rather matter of fact and highly believable. The excellent writing and superb plotting make this an excellent choice for your next read.

This is third book by the author but first one that I have read.
It is a psychological thriller with three girls at the centre of a twisty turny and layered story. There is one promise that they need to protect at evwry cost.

But even after having so many turns and characters it is relatively easy and flowing read. Never at a point you have to stretch your memory to link chapters and events.

Writing is simple and author creates scenes clearly with simple sentences.
Characters are developed nicely and you could see the whole thinking process of each.

What I didn't like was first half of book where sometimes book stands still and looses all flow. Not a leaf in garden moves. But afterwards it picks up pace and suspects keep changing rapidly in second half of the book.
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It is nice that author has avoided going into complex minute details of everything and there are few things that reader has to imagine.

But at last you feel everything is clearly clarified and explained. One could never suspect till end who the main offender was and all links connect at last.
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One whole chapter dedicated to what happens to each character after the justice has been delivered.
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I liked the book but wish its first half could match second half. Looking forward to read other two books of author.

Thanks netgalley and author for review copy.

The Promise by Teresa Driscoll is a wonderful, psychological novel that will test the very lives of Sally, Beth, and Carol. Thirty years ago, Beth, Sally, and Carol made a deep, dark promise and with one phone call, it is about to rear its ugly head. Carol would rather truly forget about that night, put it behind her, even if means cutting ties with her two best friends.
Beth and Sally have remained best friends. However, Beth and Sally know that the three of them have to deal with the secret together whether or not Carol wants too. Beth then hires a private detective to find Carol
Truly an exceptional read that had me absorbed in from the first day. As I read, I tried to figure out what could have happened to cause three-aged girls make such a secret. Why after thirty years does the secret come "back to life"? The secret threatens to change the lives of the now women once again, Once the secret is out, can all of the girls finally move on, and let go of the past?

Thank you to netgalley and St Martins Press for an advanced e-copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This was my first by Teresa Driscoll and did not realize it was her 3rd psychological thriller. I read this in 2 days so it's a quick read. I definitely read faster at the end as the pieces started unraveling. I'd recommend it and will probably take a look at her others.

Secrets and friendship in this great thriller that I really enjoyed. Another good read from Teresa Driscoll

Teresa Driscoll is a master storyteller. This was a story about three childhood friends with a terrible, dark secret that they make a pact to take to the grave with them. However, after they get older, events take place that threaten to reveal the secret. How awesome does that sound? I am here for that! This is a common story line that I have enjoyed seeing played how. It reminded me of I Know What You Did Last Summer (movie) and The Lying Game by Ruth Ware. This book grabbed my attention from the beginning, and I was curious to see how it played out. I find myself picking up this book every possible chance to see what was going to happen next. We know there is a secret, but we don't know what the secret is. This element of suspicion kept me engaged and guessing until the very end. I would recommend this book if you like thrillers that are centered around friendships and secrets. Thank you NetGalley for providing me with a free e-copy of this book to review.

A good story, realistic characters. A promise made by three very different girls in boarding school. Years later the school is scheduled to close and two of the girls who have remained friends try to find the third. She really does not want to be found. Then the plot twists and turns. Well written, enjoyable read.

I was absolutely blown away with this book. I am really afraid to even start to talk about it because I would just give it all away. Loved it!!

3 <b> Three girls. One dead. </b> Stars
This book started out with some serious “promise” . it was about three women who all attended a catholic boarding school and now they are all facing forty and their secrets they left at the boarding school. Going into the book you know it’s a thriller so every crumb in the book you pick up to overanalyze it. The book oddly leaves many crumbs in its wake that have no explanation which just leave you confused at the end of it. The story is a slow build as most thrillers are. The book read very well but it was soo slow and boring. This is one of those books if I had set it down I would have DNF but I had plenty of time on my hands to move forward with the book. I was left with far too many unanswered questions to be able to like this book truly.

<spoiler> Matthews backstory needed to better developed and really what was his purpose?
Who was sending the FB taunts and why?
Why did there need to be a motorcycle accident?
Why did NOTHING happen for sooooo long.
Carol’s character was promised to be so elusive .. and yet big let down there.
</spoiler>

Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
The Promise by Teresa Driscoll, published 2/07/2019
Normally I like this kind of book but this one really dragged for me. I read it between other books to try to keep it fresh but just was never grabbed by it.
The premise of three classmates with a longtime secret was a good one, it just never came to light like it should have in an interesting way.
The background descriptions were boring and trite. When we finally got further into the story, I was quite tired of it by then. There were no good twists or turns either.
I am sorry to say that I would not recommend this book.
** stars.

It begins by describing Beth, Carols and Sally’s arrival at boarding school. The story goes to the present and flashes back to the past. The girls made a promise to protect each other from a secret. This story takes you on a whirlwind ride to find out about Carol. The middle of the story lags a little, but the ending more than makes up for that. It was a great book with a surprise ending.

The Promise is a well written novel, but lacks that all encompassing fear of the unknown that makes a psychological thriller really stand out.

I enjoyed this tale quite a bit, but found there wasn’t a great deal of surprise in the way things played out and each characters roles.

There’s a main event that happens early on that I’m struggling to come to terms with. There’s just a touch of unanswered questions that are heavy on my brain. You don’t get the full details until the end of the book, but I’m still missing a few pieces of info that would help complete the book.

At the end of the day I would recommend this book, it’s a good read and entertaining.

Beth, Sally, and Carol became best friends when they met in boarding school. Their friendship was tested one fateful night when something horrible happened. Something that they vowed never to speak of again.

Thirty years later, the boarding school is being demolished. Terrified that their secret will be exposed, Beth and Sally try to contact Carol. Instead, Beth is warned to leave it alone. She is finally ready to face the past. But someone doesn’t want the past brought up. Someone is prepared to kill to keep the secret. But who is it? And what lengths will they go to ensure Sally and Beth stay quiet?

The plotline of The Promise did take some time getting going. Like I said in my WWW Wednesday post, I wasn’t a fan of the book at first. There was so much going on that I had an issue keeping storylines/characters straight. The author merged everything down to two main storylines. What happened to the girls at boarding school in the past and what was happening to them in the present. She was able to merge the two at the end of the book.

My dislike of Beth didn’t turn to like immediately. But, she acknowledged that she needed help. She also knew that telling people about the secret would be a weight lifted off her shoulders. I didn’t like how she handled what Carol told her. I thought that she could have handled it better. But when push came to shove, she was there for Carol.

Carol sideswiped me. I was with the majority of people in the book. I thought that Carol was being a snot. Talk about something that came out of left field. I also was taken aback by her confession to Beth in the hotel room. Again, out of left field.

I liked Sally. The secret she had to keep affected her more than she let on. Her home life when she was younger was awful. The tidbits that she told Matthew and what I read in Beth’s flashback, she didn’t have it good. I did have a good cry about her news at the end of the book. All I have to say about that is that she deserved it.

The Promise fit right in with the mystery/thriller/suspense genre. The author was a master at throwing out red herrings and false leads. I would have never of guessed at who was sending the messages to Beth and who ran Adam off the road. Never would have guessed at all. And what happened at the end of the book. That all came out of the blue for me.

The end of The Promise was one of the more intense ones that I have read to date. The author had a couple of huge plot twists thrown in there that made me go “WTH.” Like I mentioned above, I didn’t see them coming. I also liked that the author was able to wrap up all the storylines. Everyone got what they deserved and then some. Loved it!!

I would give The Promise an Adult rating. There is language. There is violence. There are mentions of sexual acts but no graphic sex.

I would reread The Promise. I would also recommend this book to family and friends.

**I chose to leave this review after reading an advance reader copy**

I would like to thank the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review The Promise.

All opinions stated in this review of The Promise are mine.

Have you read The Promise?

What were your thoughts on it?

I found this an easy book to get into, although I did feel it was a very drawn out story.
The "mystery" part of it took forever to unravel and I started getting a bit bored halfway through that I still wasn't getting any hints. I also feel like the characters were a little two dimensional. The most engaging, interesting character was Carol and she's very much a secondary character in the story. Beth and Sally felt more like plot devices than real people.