This novel offered a great premise with the promise of a glimpse of a pre Civil War free city (Philadelphia) with all the hope yet prejudice of the times. The setting was particularly well done, and I quickly brought up a map of Philadelphia to follow along with the characters as they walked the city. I liked the contrast of the three women, Nell, Charlotte and Evie, but it took a long time for the tensions and sympathies between them to develop. Charlotte's relationship as a maid to her white-passing father was horrifying but believably written.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Who knew that living in a northern city before the Civil War was so contentious. Set in 1837 Philadelphia, Charlotte and Nell are two young Black women from very different backgrounds who have become friends. Charlotte is an escaped slave whose father is "passing" as White and she as his maid while Nell comes from one of the most prestigious Black families in the city. Nell is unaware of Charlotte's past but sees her as someone she can help better her life.

One day at the market, Charlotte sees someone who looks like another slave from back home, but she can't imagine what Evie would be doing in Philadelphia. Turns out it is Evie and she desperately wants to escape the woman who owns her. While Nell and Charlotte try to plot how to help Evie, turmoil in Philadelphia grows as protestors accost Blacks, free or not. As Blacks come together with Whites who believe in ending slavery there is violence in a free state.

There is a lot going on and Lattimore does a great job with his research about how people with competing viewpoints dealt with the period. You really got to see how things were during this time period.

All We Were Promised by Ashton Lattimore comes from three different perspectives to form a story about a housemaid who conspires with a burgeoning abolitionist to free an enslaved girl. The housemaid Charlotte now resides in Philadelphia in the time between the Revolutionary War and Civil War and was an escaped slave herself. She meets a wealthy and free Black woman Nell who educates her on the freedoms that the housemaid is entitled to and how they can help more individuals become free.

With a mountain of research, the author paints a picture of each girl's life and their perspective on slavery and freedom. Charlotte hides from her past yet seems hopeful for a new future once she meets Nell. Nell has enjoyed more freedoms and feels it is her personal responsibility to help others. The enslaved girl Evie turns out to be the surrogate younger sister that Charlotte left behind at the White Oaks plantation who she spots at what is now the Reading Terminal Market, I believe.

At first, I didn't realize how much of the story stemmed from the history of Philadelphia. I thought that some instances were more fiction than fact, but if you choose to read this book, read the author's note. It's eye-opening and surprising how progressive Philadelphia was while so many other individuals fought to keep things the same, no matter how detrimental it seemed. Since I live so close the City of Brotherly Love, it made the story that much more effective because you could imagine the events that take place. Some that seem utterly horrifying.

Yet this story is not depressing and gives hope that things will somehow change. I liked the way it was written and found the descriptions of events, scenery, and lifestyles intriguing. I did wonder how far the author gave poetic license to the events, but they were indeed very closely entwined with the truth. I loved how the author brought a story to light that showed events of which I was not aware.

While the book slows down toward the middle, it picks up once some startling events occur when Nell and Charlotte initiate their plan, which goes awry. There is some action that speeds up the book to the end. Otherwise, it could be a little slow until you reach the climax of the book. Every once in a while, the language seems a little too modern, but it makes it more relatable to the reader instead of stilted English that's no longer in vogue. Also, some of the events during the climax seem a little far-fetched, and it resolves itself a little too easily. Otherwise, I enjoyed the book and liked the characters and how they change from the beginning to the end of the book.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for providing a free copy of this title in exchange for my honest review. This is a historical fiction novel following 3 different women in antebellum Philadelphia. While this was a good story, I found the differing views to be distracting from the heart of the book.

2.5

I wanted to love this and I'm really sad I didn't. All We Were Promised is a debut historical fiction novel that centers three Black women in 1830s Philadelphia. Charlotte is an escaped slave who lives as a maid to her white-passing father. Her friend Nell is a budding abolitionist from the wealthy Black elite of Philadelphia, and Evie is a friend from the plantation she ran from who is in the city with their previous owner.

There is a lot to love here and bones of such a fantastic story. All three protagonists highlight different experiences within the Black community and the time period and location are fascinating. Lattimore does a great job of showing how divided the country was in the lead up to the Civil War and that the issue of slavery (and Black equality) was not as cut and dry as "North = abolition, South = slavery".

Unfortunately, I really struggled with the writing and the pacing. Over halfway through the book, we were still following Charlotte and Nell as they tried to come up with a plan to save Evie. There are situations where I don't mind a plot that seems to meander or take its time getting somewhere, but that was not the case here, probably because we kept getting repetition of the same kind of details. It wasn't even that we were getting too many tidbits of "real" history, it was just that the same thoughts and character motivations kept getting repeated as if Lattimore didn't trust the reader to remember or to "get it" the first time.

While I didn't love this, I seem to be in the minority of reviewers so I think it's worth a shot if it sounds interesting to you, and I did like the concept enough to not write off whatever Lattimore publishes next to see if the writing and pacing complaints I had were simply because it's a debut.

The author's note is worth a read. I definitely did not expect Lattimore's inspiration to be a song from Les Misérables but after she said that I could definitely see it and I loved seeing the real-life inspirations behind this book.

This was an interesting historical fiction book about a topic I didn’t know much about. Set in Philadelphia before the Civil War, it’s told from the point of view of an enslaved woman, a runaway slave, and a Black woman who was born free. Their stories all intersect and come together in a really interesting and gripping way. If you liked historical fiction you will enjoy this book. I received a free copy of this book from netgalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

To be honest, this was an incredibly boring book. I really thought that the subject matter would be more exciting than it was, but it was just a lot of repetitive family drama, without the denoument one needs for this kind of story. The character development was okay, but transition from character to character was not smooth and it was a little hard to tell one character from the other. Not my favorite historical fiction of the year or even recently but not a horrible book.

Philadelphia, 1837, Charlotte escaped from the run down plantation, White Oaks, down south, she thought it would feel different, better. It isn’t turning out that way, her father is passing as a white man and has her playing the role of his servant. They have to hide in plain sight from the slavecatchers, who are constantly looking for slaves that have escaped.
Charlotte wanting to get out from her father’s hold, befriends Nell, a young black woman, who is finding her own way in the abolitionist movement. The two, become fast friends and they find a common cause in freeing one of Charlotte’s fellow slave from White Oaks. She was brought up to Philadelphia to help her widow mistress of White Oaks. They want to help her escape before the widow gets remarried and moves back south. This was such a great read. I loved the characters and how the author developed the girls friendship. I also loved how each girl, in their current situation, worked together to help each other. They had a large task to accomplish and they never seemed scared or deterred by it. This was a four star read for me. I want to thank Netgalley, Ashton Lattimore and Random House Publishing Group/Ballantine for my copy of All We Were Promised, for an honest review. It was my pleasure to read and review this book.

All We Were Promised by Ashton Lattimore. Pub Date: April 2, 2024. Rating: 4 stars. Set during the 1800s during pre-Civil War America, this story follows three young women who come from different lifestyles but all connect for the same mission. One woman is more elite, one woman is an escaped slave turned house worker and another is a slave who recites with the escaped slave and wants out of her current situation. The story follows all three women in their strength, fierceness and ability to endeavor whatever they need to in order to survive and live how they want to. I really enjoyed this debut and think it is the perfect read for historical fiction readers. Thanks to #Netgalley and #randomhousepublishinggroup for this e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

I absolutely loved this book. I love the lesser told stories in historical fiction, hearing aout the abolitionist work that was being done in Philadelphia during the Civil war. The different perspectives were well done. I appreciated the historical accuracy and research, and the characters were strong.

This was an interesting book, and I liked learning more about pre-Civil War Philadelphia. The story is told from the points of view of three black women - one from a wealthy family, one escaped slave, and one slave longing to be free. The three women had different voices and different problems. It was also interesting seeing the varying perspectives of the abolitionists - everything from "throw money at the problem but don't get too close!" to "help them escape at the risk of my own life." Ashton Lattimore did a nice job on this book.

I liked this book but I read a couple other similar books this year that I liked better, so unfortunately to me it didn't rise to the top in a pack of similar recent books. There wasn't really one thing I could point to to do better on and if it had been a different season I might have had higher feelings for it.

This is a story is an interesting look at Philadelphia before the civil war. It is bout three Black women. They are telling there story about what is happening in their world. It was interesting as they are supposed to be living in a free state , however it is not free for all of them. It really opened my eyes about the history.
I enjoyed this book!

Set during the 1800s, ALL WE WERE PROMISED features themes of friendship, courageous women and well developed and memorable characters.

I loved the authors note at the end too!

I paired the book and audiobook for a truly immersive reading experience and loved to be whisked away to this time period.

*many thanks to Ballantine Books/PRH, prh audio and Netgalley for the gifted copy for review

Charlotte “Carrie” and her father James escape from a plantation and make their way to Philadelphia. The book opens with their new life in Philadelphia where James, an accomplished carpenter, is passing for white and Charlotte is his house slave for her own protection. Charlotte meets free black woman Nell and the two join the anti-slavery movement. Evie is still enslaved but travels to Philadelphia with her mistress and encounters long-lost Carrie at the local market.

A wonderfully crafted text that portrays an integral (yet underrepresented) aspect of history. A must read for historical fiction lovers and those who appreciate strong, brilliant characters.

3.5 stars adjusted to 3 Goodreads stars. I really wanted to love or at least really like this book. The premise is great with it taking place in the early pre-Civil War years with the 3 main characters being women of color: a slave who wants to escape, a former slave who escaped when she was young with her father, and a free black woman who belongs to the black upper class in Philadelphia. I listened to this and felt somewhat confused at times Basically, the book is not bad; it probably is better to read than listen to on audiobook.

I was excited to learn more about this time in history. I liked the characters and think they were well developed. The history was interesting and well researched. There were parts that felt very repetative. I really liked the author's note and finding out this was inspired by a lyric from Les Mis. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an eARC of this book.

I was drawn in right away by lattimore’s great writing. This book was well written, steeped in history, romance, and mystery. This was a gripping tale of women and freedom as they were bound to forge their own destinies in a society of injustice and inequality.

Set in Philadephia just before the US Civil War, All We Were Promised gives us a glimpse into lives of 3 young Black women. Dell is from a wealthy family and is active in antislavery groups. Charlotte has escaped slavery and started a new life as a free woman. She's trying to find her place in society and navigate her changing relationship with her father, who has made their escape possible by passing as White. Finally, we have Evie who is still enslaved. I think this book would be an excellent introduction to historical fiction for a young girl. It has a good mix of actual historical events in an unforced way. I really enjoyed it.