Promise Me Sunshine is a masterfully crafted love story that seamlessly intertwines romance with the complexities of grief and healing. Cara Bastone delivers a narrative that is tender, grounded, and achingly realistic, capturing the quiet struggles of rebuilding a life after loss.

The relationship between Miles and Lenny unfolds with remarkable nuance. Miles, ever steadfast and selfless, devotes himself to understanding Lenny’s unique perspective, patiently meeting her where she is. Their connection grows through small, meaningful moments rather than grand gestures, making their love story feel authentic and deeply earned.

Equally poignant is the balance in their dynamic—Lenny’s eventual realization that Miles, too, needs support adds a profound layer of mutual care and growth. This is not just a romance; it’s a meditation on what it means to truly show up for someone.

A top-tier read for the year, Promise Me Sunshine is a beautiful exploration of love, resilience, and the quiet triumphs of the human spirit.

Ebook received for free through NetGalley

I absolutely loved this book. The slow burn romance and especially the how to attempt to walk through grief. Thank you

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️From Random House Publishing: Lenny’s a bit of a mess at the moment. Ever since cancer stole away her best friend, she has been completely lost. She’s avoiding her concerned parents, the apartment she shared with her best friend, and the ever-laminated “live again” list of things she’s promised to do to survive her grief. But maybe if she acts like she has it all together, no one will notice she’s falling apart.

The only gigs she can handle right now are temporary babysitting jobs, and she just landed a great one. The only catch: Ainsley’s uncle, Miles, always seems to be around, and is kind of. . . a walking version of the grumpy cat meme. Worse – he seems to be able to see right through her.

Surprisingly, Miles knows a lot about grief and he offers Lenny a proposition. He’ll help her complete everything on her “live again” list if she’ll help him connect with Ainsley and overcome his complicated relationship with Reese. Miles just won’t stop showing up for her. Turns out, sometimes your life has to end to find your new beginning.
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My review: Trigger warning for anyone experiencing grief over losing a loved one. This book dives head first into the despair, heartbreak and
trauma. Lenny can only pretend she is handling her grief. While not everyone believes her, no one can help. Except Miles. He has been through it. He gets it. As these two hurt people circle each other and then come to an understanding, the third main character (Grief) is ever present but becomes less front and center, bit by tiny bit. The patience that man had...

And Ainsley is the best, cutest side kick. Two thumbs up for her and the reminder that kids, laughter, and goofiness are always amazing balms.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for an advance digital copy of this book in exchange for my review.

Promise Me Sunshine is a heartfelt story about grief, healing, and finding unexpected love. Cara Bastone perfectly captures the messy, overwhelming nature of loss while balancing it with humor, hope, and moments of genuine connection. Lenny’s journey of trying to “live again” after losing her best friend feels raw and real, and Miles, with all his gruff charm, is the perfect match to help her rediscover life. Their slow-burn romance is beautifully written, filled with quiet, meaningful moments that feel authentic and earned.

What sets this book apart is its focus on relationships beyond just romance. Lenny’s friendships and her bond with the family she works and friends she meets along the way bring warmth and depth to the story. It’s a reminder that healing isn’t a straight line and that love—whether romantic or platonic—can show up in unexpected ways. With its emotional honesty and uplifting message, this is the perfect read for fans of slow-burn romances with a lot of heart. Thank you, NetGalley, for the chance to read this touching book!

If my neighbors were wondering why I was sobbing one moment and cackling the next, let them know it was because of this book.

Can I give this book 6 stars and tell you that Miles is one of my favorites and I want to have him?

I loved this book and this experience. It was perfection and I'm so thankful to have received an advanced reader copy. For those of you that have to wait, much like Miles and Lenny... let me tell you... it's worth it.

After a meet not so cute with a grumpy Miles and a barely holding it together grieving Lenny, we embark on one of the most beautiful stories I have read. And, since it's romance, we know it's going to end in joy and happily ever after.

Lenny's best friend died not too long ago and she's not doing great. She's an amazing person and gathers people around her who love her, but after losing her friend, roommate, bestie... she's broken and pushing everyone in her life away so she can grieve a truly devastating loss. Along comes Miles who stumbles across her and knows what it's like to lose those you love. He jumps into being her support and cheerleader/coach in her journey through grief. And, along the way, they become friends and eventually fall in love.

I cannot recommend this enough and I want you to read it and love it too. I might have to read it again when it comes out as an audiobook.

Safety deets
- They have both dated/been with other people. She's had a few not-very-serious relationships and he had a 5-year relationship. It's been a while for both of them.
- He's classic grumpy on the outside and the sweetest, kindest love on the inside. He doesn't totally how to do peopling, but he also does it so well.
- We see them together... not yet married, but heading that way. I really want to see them in the future. The book ends before I was completely ready, even if it was so so satisfying.
- Condoms used. This does have "open door" explicit sexy time, but not very graphically described. I love that it's awkward and sweet.
- She is constantly having crushes on strangers but they truly aren't serious... he does get in the way of them after it's pretty clear he/she want each other.
- Strangers to friends to lovers... soooo gooooooood.

And this journey through grief… it’s what we do for the greatest loves of our lives.”

I have cried over this book exactly one handful’s worth of times and I’m ready to talk about it.

Lenny is grieving. And grief for her is more complicated than any grief I have experienced, transparently. But despite not having experienced it exactly like she had, I understand her. So deeply I understand her. I know I would be her, if I had a Lou and lost her.

Miles doesn’t look at something messy and run away. He is a man who has experienced different facets of life and just… blinks at them wordlessly and moves through.

The dynamic Cara has created in this book has burned its place in my heart. The way she has described and broken down some of the hardest emotions to ever experience, well I fear I won’t be able to adequately express how much it means.

If it wasn’t obvious that this was a five star read for me, here it is. Five “Live Again” stars.

Thank you so much to the publisher and NetGalley for the chance to review this book early.

Lenny is a mess. She lost her best friend Lou 6 months ago to cancer and she has been unable to move on. She is supporting herself by taking short term nanny jobs, and avoiding going to their apartment by spending her nights riding the ferry. During her latest job, Lenny meets Miles, the Uncle of her 7 year old charge, who recognizes her pain. He makes a deal with her, he helps her with her pain, she helps him get in the good graces of his newly discovered sister and young niece.

This is a slow burn romance, but mostly a book about grief. Both our protagonists have had terrible losses and we see them gradually help each other power through their difficulties as Miles helps Lenny get to the other side of her loss. It is sad novel, but also joyful, and the relationship not only between Lenny and Miles, but the side characters are beautifully written. I especially enjoyed the character of Lennys mother, even though she had a small part. I was also happy that there was no miscommunication/break up/get back together trope in this one, which is so common in romances. I was a bit disappointed by some of Lennys behavior at the very end, but overall I though this was great story with well written characters as well as a message to those of us dealing with grief.

Thank you to net galley and the publisher for the e galley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a wonderful story of a very hard subject. I thought the subject matter was dealt with so well and with so much care and respect. The main characters were well developed. I enjoyed reading this so much, and did t want it to end!

Lenny has lost the platonic love of her life when she first meets Miles, and first impressions aren’t great. But as time and circumstances create opportunities to know one another, Lenny and Miles discover that they share lots in common: grief, loneliness, and resiliency. At times, the grief work felt a little heavy-handed, but overall, I loved watching Lenny come back to life with Miles by her side. This slow-burn romance was so well done. And I loved seeing their relationships bloom with others in the story as well so that they were well-rounded characters we can fall in love with as readers. Another great one from Cara Bastone!

I absolutely loved this one. I enjoyed Cara’s last book, ready or not, and was super excited to read this one as well. I did expect it to be a bit more lighthearted like her last one, but it did deal with a heavy topic of death of a friend.
Lenny’s character was so well written and the banter between Lenny and miles was great.

Where to begin. I underlined and highlighted and cried over nearly every page in this stunning piece of work. Cara Bastone's voice is so unique, and her wirting style truly set the story up for success. Miles is an unbeatable MMC. His genuine care for Lenny is one of a kind, as his love for her grew from a shared place that both of these characters lived; their grief. To share something so vulnerable with someone, and to allow them to feel it with you... that is love in its truest form. Lenny's strength and determination to defeat the guilt she felt over still having a life to live was unmatched; her fortitude and willingness to run through the pain and not from it was new. To watch an FMC open her heart during the most closed off time in her life was special. Thank you Dial Press for the opportunity to live inside of Cara's words again. I can't wait for final publication!

This book is one that will honestly stick with me forever. Huge thank you to NetGalley and Random House for an ARC copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Lenny has recently lost her best friend in the world, Lou, to cancer and she’s navigating her grief while the world spins around her. She takes up temporary nanny jobs to get by which is where she meets Miles, the uncle of the sweet girl she’s annoying for, Ainsley. Miles is no stranger to the kind of grief Lenny is experiencing so he offers to help guide her through it in exchange for help connecting with his sister and niece.

This book is divided into three parts which I feel like my review should be as well. I’ll be honest, it took me FOREVER (like an entire month) to get through part one. It was extremely slow and so sad, but I understood why it was necessary. You spend a lot of time taking in the depth of Lenny’s grief in part one and I think I just had a hard time connecting with the book at this point, but that’s likely because I’ve luckily not experienced that level of loss in my own life.

Part two and three however, I flew through in a day. Part two spends time focusing on Lenny wading through the grief but making new friends while starting to fall for Miles and HOLY SWOON did I LOVE Miles.

By part three, Lenny has accepted her feelings for Miles. And while the love story in this is absolutely beautiful, the part that is really going to stick with me is everything else this book has going for it. Lenny coming back to her parents after shutting them out for so long, Miles dancing with Ainsley when Reece couldn’t be there, Lenny revisiting the same hairstylist that had shaved her head five years prior and being able to donate her hair to Locks of Love, etc.

I absolutely loved Ready or Not by Cara Bastone and after reading this one she’s been cemented as one of my favorite authors that I know I will read every book she releases going forward.

Part grief instructional manual, part heartwarming love story, I have found a new comfort book. Cara Bastone has perfected the art of the slow burn in contemporary romance and no one is doing it like her. Also I would be remiss if I failed to mention the appearance of characters from Ready or Not? in my review of Promise Me Sunshine. This book was so wonderfully written and heartwarming, and I found myself hoping and wishing for Lenny to find her peace with losing Lou, but still appreciate the time they had together. Miles and Lenny have a wonderful relationship with the most solid of foundations, and I will forever be wishing for a future glimpse of their lives in other Cara Bastone books.

I’ve never read a book by Cara, and wowwwww I will read anything she writes. I went into this thinking it was a romance book, but it’s not really that at all.

This book is absolutely stunning, and it’s truly a story. I felt like I was taken through a journey, and these characters felt so real. Life is messy, chaotic, imperfect and this book showcased everything with the ups and downs.

A huge thanks to Netgalley for this one! Absolutely ate this up, and it was something special.

Omg, I love this book that I completely asked for as a whim. I knew from chapter one I was in for a ride. I cannot wait for this book to be published so I can force my book friends to read it. Lenny by herself is a treat-grief striken and stumbling through life. She has met her match in Miles, uncle of her latest nannying charge. They go on a journey that made me laugh and cry and run to buy this author’s other books. I have not been this emotionally invested in a book in a long time. I want to watch Lenny and Miles forever.(Honorable mention to Lenny’s mom-serious perfection of mom energy). Read this for all the feels. A thousand thank you’s to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Thanks to Netgalley & Random House Publishing Group for the E-ARC! Loved this so much! Great characters & storyline. Also actually liked the tropes too. Will definitely read more from this author.

Lenny is grieving her best friend's death the best way she knows how, by avoiding everything. When she lands a new job babysitting the adorable Ainsley, she finds herself face to face with Miles, Ainsley's grumpy uncle.

Cara Bastone really knocked it out of the park with this one. It's a romance, but there's so much more layered under the surface. These characters are messy and dealing with complex issues, but they are so lovable. Lenny and Miles balance each other out so well, and I love how quiet their love story is. It's a slow burn, but it's so worth it when they finally get together.

I also have to give a shout out to the real star of the book, Ainsley. I found her character to be so funny and endearing. She added so much to the book without even being the real focus.

My only complaint is that some of Lenny's behaviors felt a little unrealistic. I know she was grieving, but there were times where it felt more like a caricature of someone grieving than a potential real life scenario.

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

Ugh I dont know how to rate this one. I think 3.75? I loved miles our MMC and how he would literally do ANYTHING for lenny and I really understood the depiction of grief but i feel like at times lenny was a little too out there for me? This book also felt similar to cara bastones last novel, Ready or Not.

*Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the eARC!*

There's books that you finish reading, a smile on your face, tucking it back into the empty spot in your shelf-satisfied and content.

Then there are books like THIS ONE. When turning the last page and closing the book feels like a breakup. Happy tears streaming down your face, heart battered and taped up after the journey from page one to the last.

From the first chapter I knew Promise Me Sunshine was going to make us work for that sunshine. Starting after the death of her best friend, Lenny's journey is raw, messy (but not a mess!), and just too damn relateable. It felt like I was grieving with her, learning how to live–with her. And that's when I knew I was reading one of my new favorite books.

Yes, it's a romance, there's love in every page, there's a happy ending. But it was so much MORE. Miles and Lenny’s love was slow, it was carefully crafted within the safety that was their friendship, and it was beautiful to read.

Miles was a pillar, a lifeboat, and watching Lenny lean on him, survive with him... was absolutely amazing. I will be thinking about this one for a while now. This review is jambled and not much of a review as I don't want to give too much away but I am awe of Cara's writing and most definitely will be purchasing this on release day for its permanent spot on my shelf.

If you're looking for a tearjerker, something to bring you on an emotional journey but within the caring grasp of a romance novel, definitely pick this one up!

Is it too late to pick my favorite book of 2025 if its still 2024? because WOW this book really was everything.

It was so human and dealt with grief in such a real way but it was also light hearted and funny.

Cara really hit on so may different topics and weaved such a beautiful story about healing into this book. She also created such amazing characters that you cannot help but fall in love with.

Miles and Lenny are true soulmates. While Miles is helping Lenny through her grief from losing her best friend, she is also not only helping Miles get closer with his niece and half sister but she's also helping him through his own grief. These two bring out the best in each other and are so unapologetically themselves while also so accepting of one another.

It is no secret that friends-to-lovers is my favorite trope and this book is exactly why. I believe in their love SO much because they have such a strong foundation built on their friendship.

There is no third act break up or any romantic drama but buckle up because this is a SLOW burn but it pays off and is SOOOOO worth it.

I cant wait to reread this the minute it releases.