Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing for providing an E-ARC in exchange for my honest review!

What a beautiful story, I absolutely LOVED this book! 5 glowing stars!!

This is a story about grief, friendship, family, and love. This book made me feel ALL the feels. I laughed, cried, kicked my feet...The love story was so sweet and tender, an absolute slow burn, but so very good!!

"I'm never sleeping when I close my eyes like this with you."
"Then what are you doing?"
"Committing the moment to memory."

I loved Ready or Not, so I was so excited to see this book on Netgalley. This book gutted me, but I LOVED it. 4.5 stars, half a star off for the first part of the book feeling slow to me.

I really appreciated Cara's attention to Lenny's grief about her best friend passing. It wasn't romanticized, it was raw and gritty and relatable. I found myself crying with Lenny and really rooting for her.

Then there's Miles. There is a huge skill in writing a MMC as quiet confident. Miles has all of that and more on top of being a great book boyfriend. He never tried to mansplain to Lenny, never tried to make it her be anything that she was not, he just accepted her exactly as she was. I liked that he too had been through his own trials and tribulations and we were able to watch both Lenny and Miles grow through this book.

Would definitely recommend to my friends!

5 ⭐️

After Cara Bastone’s “Ready or Not”, I was thrilled to receive this eARC from NetGalley! I sat down to read, and didn’t get back up. Completed in one sitting.

Lennys’ life is a bit of a disaster after the death of her “person”, her best friend. Struggling to cope with the loss, Lenny is afraid of committing to anything, let alone long term jobs. She takes on a short term gig of nannying a precocious young girl named Ainsley… who is closely shadowed by the grumpy and distrusting Uncle Miles. One thing leads to another and Miles, who recognizes something in Lenny - offers to help her with her bucket list, a list of things to help come back to life.

What follows is poignant, moving, silly and feet kicking-ly sweet novel of grief, the unending power of friendship and finding a way forward. I laughed and cried, and wanted more. This was perfect.

Cara Bastone delivers a poignant, slow-burn romance with Promise Me Sunshine, blending heartache and hope into a story that lingers in your mind long after the last page.

Lenny’s grief is raw and palpable, making her journey toward healing both realistic and moving. While I adored her vulnerability and moments of quiet strength, I found her behavior occasionally frustrating—her scatterbrained ways sometimes made her difficult to keep up with. That said, her imperfections made her feel all the more real.

And then there’s Miles. Dreamy, grumpy, and quietly kind, Miles is a standout. His guarded demeanor hides a deeply empathetic heart, and watching him navigate his own grief while helping Lenny tackle her “live again” list was beautiful. Their banter felt natural, sometimes sharp, often tender, and always compelling. The way their relationship evolved—from wary allies to friends, and eventually something more—was a joy to read, even if the romance itself didn’t fully bloom until later in the book.

This story is more about the journey than the destination, and the balance between grief and love is handled with care. While the slow-burn romance won’t be for everyone, I was fully invested in watching these characters heal and grow together.

If you love grumpy-sunshine dynamics, heartfelt banter, and a romance grounded in shared vulnerability, this book is a must-read.

I could not put this book down! I fell in love with the FMC so fast. There was grief in this book but it was touched so delicately and humorously and I loved that. The character growth and depth had me from the get go and I was invested. The romance was a slow burn and I was here for every single step of their friendship and the messages throughout are heartfelt.
And…Miles. Need I say more?
*There is one open door scene near the end of the book

Cara Bastone writes fully fleshed out characters. She tackles hard subjects and gives us a window into grief and losing a love of your life. While Lenny isn't like me at all; I understood her and her friendship with Lou. I wouldn't say I love this book because it feels wrong to use "love" for such a serious topic, but I will say I felt all the feelings and rejoiced to see Lenny learn how to live through the grief. I don't think this is the right book to read when immensely grieving yourself, but it would be if your person is and you needed to know how to gracefully support them. On the writing itself, I wanted a little bit more of the memories of Lou or none at all. I also felt it was a little slow to get into it. Finally, I smiled when I read the line that the title originates from. Well chosen title. Overall, another hard but hopeful book from Cara Bastone.

Lenny feels like her life is over. Her best friend died of cancer, she doesn't want to go home (too many memories), and is currently between jobs. When the part time babysitting gig of a lifetime falls in her lap, Lenny's life gets infinitely more complicated. Reese and Ainsley are awesome, easy, and the pay is good. What's not to love is Miles, the grumpy uncle who has achieved lurker status.

Striking up a simple friendship, Lenny and Miles agree to help each other. Miles will help Lenny find joy and live again after her tragedy and she'll help him repair the relationship between him, Reese and Ainsley. The book is deep but sweet, a good read.

Cara Bastone is quickly becoming an auto-buy author for me: Promise Me Sunshine is such a beautiful, heartbreaking look at grief. It’s messy and honest and raw, while managing to be light-hearted and funny in all the right places.

*Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.*

I loved this book so much! I loved Lenny and my heart broke how she struggled so much. I loved how both her and Miles helped each other overcome their struggles. They were so sweet together and I couldn't wait for them to finally get together. I felt impatient like Lenny waiting for Miles to make a move. This book was a sweet and laugh out loud hilarious.

✨𝐁𝗼𝗼𝐤 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰 | Promise Me Sunshine ☀️
✍️ Cara Bastone
💕 Romance
📖 Releases March 4, 2025 thank you @netgalley and @dialpress for the advanced copy!

TW: grief and loss

✨𝐒𝐲𝐧𝗼𝐩𝐬𝐢𝐬 | Lenny must learn how to love life again after the death of her best friend. In the midst of her grief, she meets Miles, who turns out to be her lifeline and helps her navigate life after Lou.

✨𝐌𝐲 𝐓𝐡𝗼𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 | This book was really good! It deals with some heavy themes, but I loved the characters and the romantic relationship. There was a lot of character development and plot building. I wouldn’t characterize this book as a “page-turner,” but overall it’s a great book that explores what life is like after losing someone and the milestones to finding oneself again in the aftermath. I would recommend to anyone who likes literary fiction and romance.

✨𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐢𝐟 𝐲𝗼𝐮 𝐥𝗼𝐯𝐞
💕 friends to lovers
🫶🏼 character driven books
💓 slow burn (little spice)

This is my first Cara Bastone book but it definitely won't be the last. I adored this book even though much of it was centered around the ways deep and profound loss, and the resulting grief, can throw a person off their axis and sending them spiraling. Watching Lenny and Miles' relationship evolve and shift over the course of the story was beautiful and heartwarming. Throw in some family drama, a charming niece, and 30 second romantic fantasy, and this was a pretty perfect read.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy of this book.

Cara Bastone has done it again. First read of 2025 has set the standard high!
4.5 ⭐️
The discussion of grief in this book was done extremely well, it felt raw and real. The exploration of coming back into the new version of yourself post loss was done so well, anyone who’s experienced loss can relate to this aspect of the book. The romance was slow but naturally built, the flirting was honestly top notch and had me smiling to myself while reading. I also enjoyed the take of jumping back into a sexual relationship with nerves and anxiety, it felt more real!

Wow, I absolutely adored this book! The characters were quirky, funny, and full of life, with such incredible chemistry and dynamics that they felt entirely real. Each character was so unique and authentically themselves, which made them deeply relatable and memorable. Lenny’s story was especially captivating—her journey through grief added depth and emotional resonance that elevated the entire book. I found myself rooting for both characters and feeling deeply invested in their happiness. I didn’t want this story to end, it has all the components of a perfect romance book!

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for an ARC in exchange for my honest review!

I adored this book. Cara Bastone’s style of romance suits me perfectly. If you enjoy slow burns and sweet romances, you’ll love this story of life after loss.

This was a beautiful book that explored the deep emotions of grief in a way I’ve never experienced before. I enjoyed this book immensely!

I appreciate this books insight on overcoming grief. I am lucky to have not had to go through that yet in my lifetime - but even while reading it was humbling to realize that I would probably be reacting the same as Lenny if I lost someone that close to me.

I really wish I got the butterfly feeling for Lenny and Miles - but it just wasn't there for me. Maybe because their relationship blossomed over shared experiences with grief. I did think that Miles was a good balance for her with his quiet loyalty. But Lenny's overwhelming anxiety where she would make awkward word vomit kind of ruined a lot of tender moments.

Think there also should have been some discussion of going through some real grief therapy. Miles helped pull her through, but there is still a lot Lenny should work on without him - as well as helping provide readers with multiple resources for helping navigate going through the stages of grief.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Off the heels of her book "Ready or Not", which I loved, I jumped into this book. It started off slow and the characters took me a minute to figure out. Lenny has these fantasies about men and my first impression of her was similar to Molly in Uptown Girls. But then you learn of her best Friend Lou and the ferry, and I couldn't wrap my brain around her not going home and what that life is like. There was a bit too much time spent with Lenny sort of baby sitting and spending a lot of time with Miles and the family and it seemed sudden and forced, and the book moved slowly.
Around 60% in it picked up and I liked the slow burn of Lenny and Miles and their real connection.
It was cute but heavy on death and moving on past a big loss.

This book deals a lot with grief and working through your loss, but in a beautiful way. I thought our main character was very realistic and relatable in her actions, and the MMC was unknowingly funny and a solid rock for her. I loved their relationship, the ending made sense, nothing was rushed, and everything in this book for me had conclusions and thought put behind it.
Also loved the characters humour. Even the child had good one liners, and added to the plot.

4.5 stars. I’m a huge sucker for the “two broken people help each other heal” plot, so I was predisposed to love this book (especially as a Cara Bastone fan).

Lenny is a very broken woman, after the death of her lifelong best friend — she’s avoiding family, other friends, her apartment, and long-term work. After a disastrous first meeting, Miles learns of Lenny’s grief and offers to be her grief coach in exchange for advice on how to connect with his niece, as Lenny is her nanny. What follows is a really tender slow burn, while they both work on their relationships with others. There is not really any 3rd act conflict, just two people learning the right way to communicate with one another. I love Lenny and her growth, I love Miles and his steadfastness. This was just a really lovely read.

Thank you to NetGalley and The Dial Press for the ARC!!

Cara Bastone once again delivers a truly heart-squeezing romance. The story masterfully explores grief in all its raw, aching honesty, while weaving a tender and deeply emotional love story. The chemistry between the characters is electric, their feelings so tangible it’s as if you’re living them yourself. Bastone’s writing makes Lenny and Mike’s’ love feel achingly real, and by the end, I was left completely undone. I’ll need at least 5-7 business days to recover from the emotional journey this book took me on. Highly recommend for anyone who loves romance that lingers in your soul.

Thank you NetGalley and Dial Press for the advance copy!!