If you're a fan of Jojo Moyes, definitely pick up this book. This was a sweet and heartwarming read. It has a slow start but picks up halfway through.

The Promise of Tomorrow is a heartwarming mix of romance, heartfelt storytelling, and a touch of magic. The story follows Elena and her colleague, Rory, who become unlikely roommates while his apartment is being renovated. As they navigate this new living arrangement, the novel delves into Elena's urgent quest to achieve her dreams before her 30th birthday, driven by a promise she made twenty years ago that now weighs heavily on her mind.

Elena, usually cautious and risk-averse, embarks on an out-of-character journey, throwing herself into new experiences in a race against time. Rory, appears brave and spontaneous, but as their friendship deepens, we see the emotional complexity behind his thrill-seeking nature. Their growing bond is a highlight of the novel, and I thoroughly enjoyed watching them lean on each other as they faced tough challenges. Elena and Rory are both likeable and relatable, with their shared love of books adding an extra layer of charm. Their mutual affection for literature almost becomes another character in the story, bringing warmth and depth to their relationship.

This was my first Samantha Tonge novel, and I found her writing both emotional and uplifting.

The plot offers a refreshing blend of romance with a subtle supernatural twist, which kept me intrigued as the tension surrounding Elena's promise and its potential consequences unfolded. However, I felt the romantic relationship between Elena and Rory could have been more gradually developed. While their emotional bond was clear, the romantic tension felt delayed and somewhat rushed toward the end. In fact, given how strong their friendship was, the story may have been just as impactful, if not more so, if their relationship had remained platonic. Skipping the romance altogether and focusing on their deep emotional connection as friends could have made the story feel even more unique and satisfying.

Despite this, I thoroughly enjoyed the story. All in all, The Promise of Tomorrow is a touching, emotional read about facing fears, sharing burdens, and finding joy in unexpected places. I recommend it to anyone who enjoys heartfelt stories infused with romance and a touch of magic.

Thank you once again to NetGalley, Boldwood Books, and Samantha Tonge for the opportunity to read and review this book!.

This is an interesting, fun, entertaining read. Rory and Elena are interesting, complex, intriguing, relatable, wounded, feisty, smart, strong, entertaining characters. I enjoyed their romance and the path it took to get to their HEA. The mental health aspects of the story are powerfully written and very authentic. They show the experiences in different ways. The secondary characters – there are to many to name – added to the fabric of the story and my enjoyment. Each are like an ingredient in cake, adding to the best end result with just the right amount of each. The story is easy to read and get into.

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

Thank you to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for the advanced copy of this title.

As a young child, Elena's mother was involved in a horrific accident. Desperate and alone, Elena traveled into the woods and made a deal with a mystery fortune teller that she would sacrifice her life for her mothers. The deal was made that when Elena turned 30, she would die. The book begins 20 years later as Elena is approaching her "D Day." She has always been cautious, but realizes in doing so, she has wasted so much precious time. Elena goes to the extremes in living more dangerously. She does a complete 180 and haphazardly throws caution to the wind. Her new flatmate and coworker, Rory helps her to find meaning and balance in her life.

Rory was a great character, and I felt like he had more depth than the MFC, Elena. His journaling, coping with the loss of his mother, and attachment issues felt realistic and added a layer to this story.

The titular moment in the book is very anti-climactic. The entire book, the reader is to believe there is some type of magical realism going on behind the scenes. I do appreciate the authors attempt to highlight mental illness, but it caused the story to stutter along to the end. Instead of being a shocking twist, it caused confusion and derailed the storyline.

I will post to goodreads and amazon a few weeks after release date due to my review being below 3 stars.

Elena has spent the last twenty years thinking she would die when she turns thirty. Her best friend Rory comes to stay with her while his apartment is being renovated.
This was a nice predictable story. It’s easy to read and has a little mystery to it. It makes a good beach read

Argh I love Samantha Tongue books. And this one was dark and mysterious the start of it immediately made me want to read more and I had a brilliant time learning all about Elena.

Elena is on a mission. She's convinced that she's going to die shortly after she turns 30 in a few weeks. This propels her to take lost of risks and be more like her rookie, friend and colleague Rory.

Rory has some trauma from the past that makes him do many adventurous things. He needs this rush to "keep him alive". As he helps Elena navigate her new found goals, the two of them help each other with their hurts and issues to become more than friends.

This book was written well and did a great job of navigating through personal insecurities and quirks.

Such a lovely book. I don’t think this author knows how to write a dud! You can feel the warmth coming through the pages, and every book is like a comforting hug!
I really enjoyed the twist in this book, and loved the character arc of both Rory and Elena. I especially loved their friendship with their neighbour - that felt so authentic and just lovely.
Definitely another book to recommend to everybody!

Read and reviewed in exchange for a free copy from Netgalley. This was an enjoyable read, and I liked seeing Elena and Rory's relationship develop. The story was well-paced and revelations carefully made.

3.5 stars, rounded down.

Thank you Net Galley, Boldwood Books and Samantha Tonge for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This story is about Elena and Rory (written third person dual POV, which took some getting used to), two marketing colleagues who become friends when he moves in with her while his apartment is being remodeled.

Elena made a deal on her 10th birthday to save her mom's life by giving up her life on her 30th birthday. As her birthday looms, Elena, who is normally overly cautious, throws caution to the wind and starts doing all kinds of things that are out of character for her. As her friendship with Rory deepens, she shares her story with him and he shares personal information about himself that he hasn't told anybody at work.

This book started off slowly, but picked up about halfway through. This book is women's fiction and romance with magic elements. There are some otherworldly phenomena that occur and leave you wondering what will happen. As an avid reader, I thought I had it all figured out, but I was 100% wrong. It held my interest, but wasn't a quick read for me. I felt like I had to slog through about 60% of it before I really started to enjoy it. The remaining 40% was really good (solid 4 stars), it just took a while to get there.

Unfortunately this one was not for me. I wouldn't say there was anything wrong with the book itself I just wasn't pulled in

Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for this ARC.

Elena Swan is 29 and works for a biscuit company in Manchester, together with her friend and temporary housemate Rory Bunker. She is convinced that she will die on her 30th birthday because on her tenth birthday she made a pact with a fortune teller to swap her life for that of her mother who was critically ill in hospital. Her mother survived and since then Elena has been overcautious, not taking any risks. It's only when Rory moves in with his two stick insects Brandy and Snap a month before her birthday and she has three accidents that are near misses on her life that she starts living a little more until she goes too far and takes unnecessary risks while bungee jumping and driving too fast.

This beautiful story about complex characters is told in dual POV with Rory's part told through his quirky diary entries full of numbers of the day. We learn so much about both their families, backgrounds and childhood traumas. Rory does a lot of extreme sports but realises that there is a specific reason why, and Elena is a lot more adventurous and daring inside than her cautious actions make you believe.

I loved how they started looking after their elderly widowed neighbour Tahoor, bringing him out of his shell while not letting him get away with his old-fashioned views about the roles of men and women. Also, how sweet is it how attached Elena got to Brandy and Snap and even bought them a bigger tank! I also loved the short trip to Paris.

Rory is a lovely guy who does his best to help Elena with trying to find the old fortune teller and he is the one who finally figures out what's really going on. As MMC's go, he's a smasher. Elena's battling with a childhood promise makes her a bit irrational in the run-up to her fateful birthday, but she is a big book lover and therefore obviously a good person, and she had even me convinced about the concept of broken biscuits!

However, we were left waiting way too long to clear up some mysteries about ten year old Elena's night in the woods, Rory's Mum and where Elena goes when she disappears (although the latter is very cute).

Also, this is a British author writing a book in a British setting, so why is the most often used word in it "takeout"? Those people sure eat a lot of take-away!

This was my first book by Samantha Tonge but it won't be my last after she surprised me by incorporating mental health issues including OCD with knowledge and skill.

Altogether, this is an intelligent, life-affirming read for the cold season with a beautiful cover and great characters. Recommended.

4.25 stars

I DNF'd very quickly. I was interested in the premise, however it read like a middle-schoolers first foray into creative writing. I was shocked by the rudimentary approach and descriptions. A blueprint of the setting is not necessary and distracting.

I really enjoyed reading The Promise of Tomorrow by Samantha Tonge. This is a beautiful story told in the point of view of Elena and Rory who work together. When Elena was younger she made a deal that makes her believe that her life will end at the age of 30. I loved seeing Elena grow as a character. These characters are so well written and very lovable. I’m so happy with how it ended. I highly recommend this book.

Thank you so much to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

What a beautiful story of Elena and Rory. They are best friends and work colleagues but are polar opposite personalities.......Elena is preparing to die before her 30th birthday (even though she isn't sick.......no spoilers given) and Rory is daredevil who tries every extreme sport known to man.

As the story progresses, we find out the history of both characters and what has made them become the people they are. Can they deal with the past and step into the future that awaits them?

Highly recommended.

4.25 ⭐️

Loveeeedddd this book. I’m 30, so I can definitely relate to what she was feeling. I somewhat did the same, lived my life as best as I could before I turned 30- a lot of self finding and facing things were scared of. So it definitely resonated me.

The Promise of Tomorrow by Samantha Tonge is a unique and engaging read. The story follows Elena, who made a mysterious promise years ago that she now fears will lead to her demise when she turns thirty. As her birthday approaches, she decides to live life to the fullest—falling in love, bungee jumping, and visiting Paris. The book alternates between Elena’s cautious approach and her friend Rory’s adventurous spirit, adding great depth to the story. I deeply resonated with Elena’s journey of overcoming her fears and chasing her dreams. Although I did find it a bit slow at the start but once things were being revealed I was intrigued. Samantha Tonge delivered a captivating and memorable story that’s both heartwarming and thought-provoking.

The Promise of Tomorrow is a heartwarming story about facing fears and finding hope. The story follows Elena who is haunted by a promise she made as a child and believes her life will end when she turns 30. As her birthday approaches, she decides to live life to the fullest and heads off to Paris with Rory, her co-worker turned housemate.

The characters feel relatable and real. Elena’s journey of personal growth, alongside Rory’s bold personality, keeps the story interesting and engaging.

This book is perfect for those who enjoy books about overcoming personal challenges, friendship, and embracing life’s uncertainties.

What a gorgeous romantic mystery. Elena and Rory are multilayered characters and their relationship is sweet and authentic. I desperately wanted their connection to flourish and for them to end up together.

The prose Is accomplished, the plot intelligent and a few twists in the narrative that are surprising yet feel believable.

I absolutely adored the book themes that were threaded throughout and thought this was a magical book.

This was my first book by Samantha Tonge and I will definitely look into her other works! I enjoyed the writing and the premises of the book. Aswell as the main plot and the characters. It was definitely an un usual story and it kept me intrigued to read further.
I enjoyed reading about the character own fears, and their own development. As well as learning to share your burden with others.
I think my only issue with this story was that i felt like there was no romance or tension in most of the book and then it just felt all quite rushed in the end. I think it was missing some of the buildup. Like yeah it was kinda there but i feel like it could have been more. Atleast more tension could have added to the story!

All in all I did truly enjoy this read and will recommended it to others.

Thank you Netgalley and Publisher for this eARC in exchange of an honest review.