All We Were Promised

A Novel

By: Ashton Lattimore

Published: April 2, 2024

Publisher: Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine/ Ballantine Books

General Fiction (Adult)/Historical Fiction/ Multicultural Interest

#AllWeWerePromised#NetGalley

200 Book ReviewsProfessional Reader

I would like to thank both Random House and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this book. All opinions are my own.

Book Review:

I really enjoyed this book, and I gave it 4 stars. This book is set in Philadelphia, Pa in 1837. In this time period Pennsylvania was a free state but it did allow the southerners to bring their slaves with them for a limited amount of time. If they were there past the allotted time, then they became free, and the owners couldn’t take them away. The time limit was six months. Everyone knew this and they worked around it by changing out the slaves within the time period. Even most of the slaves knew this law. In this book it talks about three young ladies. One who is free and from a very well-off family. The second one is an escape slave, and the third one is a slave. The well-off lady is getting involved with the abolitionist and tries to find ways to help her fellow citizens. She has befriended the escape slave and shows her around town. One day the slave young lady accidently runs into the escaped slave and knows who she is and ask her to help her. How do they know each well they were from the same plantation. This is their story, and it is quite interesting, and I learned somethings that I didn’t before. Things are never what they seem even when you wish for the to be. The free lady has an experience, and she learns what it feels like to be a slave even though it was only for a short period of time. the escape slave learns how to relay on herself and not to be too hard on the people she loves. The slave learns that she is stronger than she thinks and about the law of Pennsylvania.

Award-winning journalist Ashton Lattimore’s first novel, “All We Were Promised,” is a well-written, enlightening tale of life in America’s so-called cradle of liberty for its black inhabitants during the late 1700’s and early 1800’s. It contains within its hefty pages all of the ingredients of a great novel: interesting, diverse characters, plenty of plot twists and intrigue, morality issues, social issues, and political issues, with enough real life historical accuracy and characters to make it feel grounded in reality. Most of the characters are sympathetic, though few without shortcomings, and the reader easily can forgive them those as they seem to be based on good intentions. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this novel and look forward to reading more from this new author.

Thank you to Ms. Lattimore, NetGalley, and Ballantine Books for providing me a free, advanced copy of “All We Were Promised” to read. My review is voluntary.

It takes a bit to get into this novel, but once in it is entertaining and educational. Lattimore plays with the often ignored experiences of run away enslaved people in Philadelphia pre-Civil War. The themes are interesting and the story line is well defined. The ending is a little forced, but still worth a read.

A father and daughter escape from a plantation. The father is light-skinned, so he passes as white, but keeps his daughter, Charlotte, posing as a slave in his new home. He enjoys being accepted into society. In Philadelphia, there is a movement to abolish slavery and Charlotte gets involved with one of the groups with her new friend, Nell. Charlotte later sees her old friend, Evie, who is still a slave, and Charlotte attempts to save Evie along with Nell.
A pre-Civil War novel about the plight of black Americans. Interesting story.

This is the story of three young, black women in Philadelphia - Charlotte, an escaped slave living as a servant to her white-passing father; Nell, an abolitionist from one of Philadelphia's wealthiest black families; and Evie, a house slave and former friend of Charlotte's from their time together at White Oaks. We hear POVs from all three women in alternating chapters as they meet each other and make a plan to liberate Evie. There is a lot of information to keep straight and I feel like the book could have been shorter. Then again, the discomfort of reading extra pages is nothing compared to being unfairly enslaved against your will. It wasn't until the last third of the book that I really found my interest in the women's stories. Please do not skip the author's note as she provides excellent context that clarified what I had read in the story.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for my copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.

I found this historical fiction novel full of interesting information about the lives of Blacks in Philadelphia prior to the Civil War. As a northern city, there was a well-to-do segment of the Black population in addition to those who’ve just escaped to freedom. The novel looks at the abolitionist movement and the different goals of those involved in. There is a lot of history to take in, making this an interesting and educational read.

A lot happens in this pre-civil war consideration of free Black citizens of Philadelphia, former slaves passing for white, and how their continuing relationships with family who cannot pass for white can hold them back. . .

A reader is put in the middle of all the layers of complication in this story of Charlotte, her father Jack, surprise visitors that bring back the past, and a fierce abolitionist who has passion for her work, but needs more understanding in order to gain ground in her fight. A well-told tale, that kept me interested.

*A sincere thank you to Ashton Lattimore, Random House Publishing Group - Ballentine, and NetGalley for an ARC to read and review independently.*

The book, All We Were Promised, illustrates the trials faced by people of color in American history. Imagine having to pretend to be your own father’s slave so he could deceive the townspeople into believing that he was a white man! I admired the courage portrayed in those characters who risked all to gain their freedom.

I know many have raved about this book but the best thing about it was the setting. I did love following the characters along and learning about the city back then but overall just an ok read

Thank you to netgalley.com for this ARC.

I really enjoyed this one. Such an interesting and informative story about the lives of free black women, slaves, and escaped slaves in Philadelphia years before the Civil War took place. I enjoyed the story told from the perspectives of three different women with different stories and how their lives all intertwined. It was interesting to read about the times and peoples attitudes were then.

I will definitely recommend this book to all historical fiction lovers.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. All opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I loved the last quarter or so of this book when Nell, Charlotte, and Evie all became clear on what their goal was, and truly worked together. Due to the fact that there are three points of view in this novel, I found it difficult to connect with each character, and found myself confusing them in the beginning. I ultimately connected with Evie the most throughout the novel, and loved when everyone came together to help her, and each other.

This book was just “meh” for me. I felt like I was reading it because I had to finish it instead of reading it because I wanted to finish it. I can’t quite put my finger on what it was.

All We Were Promised is an engulfing novel, rich in historical detail and character. In Philadelphia, pre-Civil War, two young women are connected socially, which leads to their collective fight politically. While Nell is of the upper class, Charlotte is stuck in the reality of posing as her father’s housemaid, with very little autonomy. This is a book to be savored—it is a slow read because of its richness, and Lattimore sometimes lets the heartbreak and beauty of the detail weigh down the pacing. It’s a worthy investment of a read though.

This is a notable historical fiction debut about abolition in pre-Civil War Philadelphia in 1837, focusing on the lives of three women , two of whom are runaway slaves. It’s complicated to get one slave freed with the help of another runaway and a well to do black woman . These are strong female characters whose determination, caring and sense of moral duty makes an impact . Reminiscences of life on a plantation and the present hold on this young girl raise fears of being sent back south and present a tense atmosphere.

It’s well written and I appreciated how the author in her note puts the events in the novel in historic context illustrating how well researched it is . She also gives the reader one of the things in the author’s note that I love to read about - the inspiration for the story. I’ll be watching for what Ashton Lattimore does next .

I received an advanced copy from Ballantine Books through NetGalley. Life happens and I’m late in getting to this , but glad I finally did.

I only speak for myself when I say this, but in school growing up, I was taught about the concept of abolition and abolitionist movements through a very white lens—which is not all surprising now that I know that the people in power dictate the narratives of history. But it was taught to me through a very white savior sort of perspective. All of the textbooks basically painted this picture of how abolitionists were brave white people with consciences who leveraged their social status to help Black people in need. Basically positioning abolition as allyship, if that makes sense.

That’s why I deeply respect the project of this debut, because a majority of the abolitionists in the story are Black. It’s about Black people helping to free other Black people—which is a huge part of abolitionist history and an incredibly different dynamic. And because the story is set in such a distinct time period, it’s able to capture this almost forgotten period of time between the rise of chattel slavery and the Civil War, the Reconstruction period, the later advent of segregation and Jim Crow laws. It’s this space right as the bubble is gonna burst where it’s equally plausible for Black folks to either be free or enslaved, wholly depending on their circumstances.

I think this story works so well because it beautifully brings in all those differing levels of freedom with the main characters—one of whom is currently enslaved, one of whom is a free runaway slave whose family is respected in society but not ultra wealthy, and one of whom is an extremely wealthy socialite. So that really complicates everything, because they’re all coming at the concept of abolition from such different places. Their experiences overlap in some ways, but there’s also places where those Venn diagram circles do not touch.

I love how the story is allowing the characters to confront the gaps in their respective experiences, to re-frame their concept of freedom—especially if their freedom is so fragile that it can’t extend beyond themselves. If it’s that’s limited, that constrained, that tenuous, then what is it really worth? In that way, the story’s ultimately telling us that the purpose of freedom is to fight for those who don’t yet have it. If we can’t do that much without fearing retaliation, then are we truly free to begin with?

I do think the story spells things out a little more than I think is necessary towards the end. But all in all, I would definitely recommend it. Very curious to see what Ashton Lattimore's next project will be!

What a moving book! I loved this glimpse into a tragic time in US history. The author did a wonderful job of researching and adding depth to these characters.

I had a hard time getting into this story for and that reason I didn’t finish the book. I’m a mood reader and that has a lot to do with how I connect to a story, it is possible that when I picked this book up I wasn’t in the right mental head space.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! No spoilers. Beyond amazing I enjoyed this book so very much. The characters and storyline were fantastic. The ending I did not see coming Could not put down nor did I want to. Truly Amazing and appreciated the whole story. This is going to be a must read for many many readers. Maybe even a book club pick.

This book is set in Philadelphia in the 1830s. It is the story of the early struggles of Black Americans who were born free- run away slaves - and (or) people hoping to escape the many pitfalls of a racist American society. Secondly, this book retells the unforgettable struggle between southern whites who did not want to forfeit their ownership of slaves or compromise their profits and superiority over Blacks in comparison to other whites who found slavery to be a major atrocity in America.
James Vaughn and his daughter Carrie who’s also called “Charlotte” were escaped slaves from a plantation in Maryland. Living and passing for White, James & Charlotte who is now his housekeeper are living in “peaceful”fear in Philadelphia as a carpenter/business owner! However once abolitionists come to town for a convention, Miss Kate their previous”owner” appears and things become very troublesome for the pair.
Additionally, as a result of the vagueness and inadequacies of the “anti-slavery laws” during that time period to be Black in Philadelphia was a MAJOR challenge. Consequently, I think the author did an amazing job telling this story and navigating the painful yet necessary journey of our triumphs during that era of extraordinary hardship. Job Well Done!

This is an engrossing and passionate story about slavery, family and freedom.

The POV were just wonderful in this one. Charlotte, Nell, and Evie each give you a different perspective of the city, of slavery, and how life works. I loved Charlotte's passion, Nell's stubbornness, and Evie's fight to survive. I was immediately drawn into this story and rode the wave of the adventure and horror of being held, unable to control your own freedom or life. I loved the little moments of co-cooking, the comradery of Alex, and the forged friendships of the women. This was a powerful story, I loved it!

A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.