This book is so, so freaking good! I loved every page between the covers; loved the characters within. Lenny and Lou’s friendship is something of a unicorn - how many people have a friendship that strong? That true of a friendship is a rarity in this modern world. If you’ve read the summary (which I’m sure you have), you know what the books is about. What you’re here to find out is - should I read it?
My vote would be - abso-freaking-lutely you need to read this book! Why? Let me give you the bullet points:
- super duper slow burn (so good)
- overcoming a real world problem in real world time
- solving family dynamic problems
- super sweet kid
- witty banter (really, really well written)
- a friend group to make anyone jealous
- a true love story
Just do yourself a favor and read this book if you’re a romance reader. Especially if you like your romance entwined with overcoming adversities.
An easy 5 star romance read!!

RATING: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Promise Me Sunshine by Cara Bastone is about Lenny, who lost her best friend to cancer and is trying to find a reason to “live” again, as she agrees to be a nanny for a little girl named Ainsley, while Ainsley’s uncle, Miles, offers to help Lenny fight through her grief.

This book was INCREDIBLE. It was so well written and truly just such an unbelievable story. Cara Bastone is 2/2 on 5 star reads for me!!

I loved Miles patience with Lenny, and the way he cared for her so deeply right off page one. Lenny was such an incredible FMC, and so being in her POV as a reader was emotional, but because you fell in love with her too so you found yourself feeling what she felt. Also, I really enjoyed all the side characters in this one!!

The plot in this one is really heavy, but the book is so beautiful.

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

This book broke me.

The conversation between grief and learning to live again was so beautiful and delicate.

Lenny starts as a nanny to a single mom and her newly known brother. She’s deep in her grief journey of the loss of her best friend. She grows as a person; allowing Miles (the brother) to help her live life. Little does she know, they’re both destined to grow their bond together.

This slow burn was so achingly good to read. Cara Bastone never fails to hit.

This book felt like a warm hug of grief but also the joy of a 90s rom com. There was not a single moment I was not rooting for Lenny. She was so relatable and such a ray of sunshine in her dark circumstances. And Miles was the most selfless and kind and awkward but lovable male main character. I felt like a friend in their grief journey that led to love.

It follows Lenny who is grieving the loss of her best friend as she figures out how to live again. She meets Miles who becomes her rock and her companion.

This book was everything I needed it to be! It does a fantastic job at discussing grief while also having lighthearted and funny moments. The characters felt so real and I loved all the side characters they meet along the way.

I absolutely cannot recommend this one enough!!

Book Review: Promise Me Sunshine
Rating: 4.5/5

This book has really smart writing and characters that feel familiar but fresh. I loved the banter—it’s clever and funny—and the emotional parts hit hard without dragging. The author does a great job showing grief without making the story feel heavy or too dramatic. Lenny’s sadness is written in a way that feels real, but not overwhelming. It’s more like something you carry with you than something that stops the story.

The dynamic between the four main characters is one of my favorite parts. Their friendship feels fun and real. I especially loved Miles trying to win back his niece and Lenny helping him in such an honest, kind way. It was sweet and made me smile. The audiobook is also really good if you like to listen!

After a long, slow burn, I’m really enjoying the connection between Lenny and Miles. He’s so soft with her, and it feels like he just wants to take care of her in the gentlest way. He honestly feels like an angel. And the last line from Lou’s list? It hit me right in the heart. So simple but so powerful.

New York at night is described in such a beautiful way in this book. It feels like a city that welcomes lost or hurting people. I’ve been to New York many times, and it really does feel like a place for dreamers, artists, and people who are figuring things out. The way the author captures that side of the city made me feel right at home in the story.

Thank you Netgalley and Random House Publishing for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review!!

I want to reread this immediately—it was incredibly raw and heart wrenching in the best ways possible. Cara is an auto buy author at this point, her characters evoke all the emotions and her story telling abilities? Chefs kiss.

I went into Promise Me Sunshine with high hopes, and Cara Bastone delivered something both delicate and powerful. The way she writes about grief is nothing short of poetic — raw, honest, and tender without ever feeling forced or overly dramatic. I found myself pausing at certain passages just to sit with the words. She captured what grief really feels like: messy, lingering, and sometimes unexpectedly beautiful.

I’ll be honest — I hated the male main character at first. He felt cold, distant, and frustrating. But as the story unfolded and layers of his past and his own pain were revealed, I found myself softening toward him. Bastone does an incredible job of showing that we often meet people in their most guarded forms, and only with patience and curiosity do we uncover the truth underneath. By the end, I didn’t just understand him — I cared for him.

This book is a gentle reminder that grief and love are both complex and intertwined, and sometimes healing comes from the most unexpected connections. Promise Me Sunshine left me feeling full — like I had just finished a quiet conversation with someone who really gets it.

If you love stories that explore heartache with softness and give characters room to grow into themselves, this one will stay with you.

This was so good.
I go back and forth on whether this is 4⭐️or 5, but the more I think about the story, chemistry, and advice behind it all, it stays a 5 ⭐️
Thank you to the author and publisher, and NetGalley, for this ARC. It honestly was surprisingly VERY GOOD.
I read it during a time of grieving, so if it was almost a little self-help book for myself.

The characters are unique and wholesome.
The storyline was easy and pleasant to relate to.
My only knock is the SLOWEST burn, but i could stand it because of Lenny and Miles' situation, and if Miles was real, I would have SO MUCH respect for him.

Definitely recommend 🧡

Thank you so much for this ARC!

I've been very interested in Bastone because I've heard exclusively wonderful things about Ready or Not, but it is a trope I unfortunately refuse to read so I just had to wait for her next book. So when I saw this book announced I immediately requested it and added it to my TBR. I was so excited to read it and am happy to say it did not disappoint.

This book should absolutely be up there with Emily Henry and Abby Jimenez's books of stories that tell beautiful, believable love stories that almost feel like they are a subplot to the problems the main characters are going through. I was so, so invested in Lenny's grief and her finding her way in life again. Her return to normalcy and the little victories along the way had me tearing up every time. There were so many of those moments that were barely even addressed and it felt so real - not every change comes with fanfare and a parade. Sometimes you do something again and it's so normal that you don't even notice.

I also adore Miles, I love him so much, easily one of my favorite male main characters of the year. I love the vulnerability he showed without restraint, his desperation to be close to his family, and his desire to help Lenny get through her grief. Sometimes you read romance books and it feels like the love interests do these things to help the main character out of desire for a relationship, but with Miles it felt like he just knew it would be impossible for her to get through it alone and that she needed a friend. He had no ulterior motives, just a desire to help.

This book will absolutely be a go to recommendation for me. I hope more people read it, it is such a beautiful book.

Absolute Perfection. What a beautiful story, I cried, I laughed. I felt all the feels. I just adore Cara's writing & how she brought these characters to life.

Promise Me Sunshine was a deep dive into grief all through the eyes of "Lenny", our lovable protagonist. With the help of Miles, Lenny goes on a journey of discovery about herself and what her life will now be without here best friend and companion.

Promise Me Sunshine was very different from Cara Bastone's other titles. I loved the relationship between Lenny and Miles and that we as the readers get to see their relationship grow and change. I also enjoyed the wonderful banter and dialogue between all the characters. I personally felt like the depth of grief felt by Lenny over the loss of the relationship between her and her best friend was a little extreme. Everyone feels grief differently, but I think my struggle was the glimpses we get of the backstory through the book perhaps isn't enough to fully explain how paralyzed she is by the absence of this friend in her life. I think the why for all that was what was missing. At times I felt like Lenny was perhaps struggling so much that I resented her family or the family of her friend for not intervening more and earlier.

Cara Bastone knows how to write a book that makes you hopeful AND devastated. Loved it. Thank you for allowing me to read! This is one I would reread!

Cara balances humor and lightness against the darkness of loss and grief— a reminder that the two can coexist. Through Lenny and Miles, Cara reminds us that there is an after in heartbreak, that we’ll break through the fog of pain… and that it’s okay to laugh and smile in the process of grieving. In fact, I was alternating between laughing and crying with every page turn.

Promise Me Sunshine does an incredible job in normalizing coping mechanisms, understanding how grief can manifest in a range of behaviors and feelings, and addressing the many unexpected and unanswered questions we might have about the unknowns of loss and life after. It’s so human and raw that I found myself revisiting my own grief and being gentler with past self in how I navigated that journey.

And then I’d turn the page and breathe in the fresh air and the relatability of Lenny’s meet cute HEA fantasies. I swooned and giggled at the ridiculousness of it all, but I also felt so seen. Is anyone else an absolute hopeless romantic just waiting for true love to knock you off your feet in that first moment? Well, maybe it’s just me because I had that instantaneous swooping feeling the day I met my husband. I just knew he was it. So, this little mechanism (on top of the fact that I’m obsessed with romance novels and HEAs) might reveal my bias for this romance. But I stand by this love story!

Yes, there’s the element of instant love, but this is very much a story of friends-to-lovers. It’s very much a story of grief and life after loss, finding one’s place in a world that’s moving forward when all you want to do is stay still or go back in time. It’s about finding and embracing lightness and humor and a future when all you want is to be engulfed in darkness… Its about finding your person, someone who grounds you, who slowly builds you up, lets you feel safe, helps you find yourself in a new world. This book is so much wrapped in a romance.

I feel like this is a book I’m going to pick up multiple times on my life — when I need quick childcare tips, when I feel down and dejected and need a breakthrough tips, when I need reminders on how to show up for friends

“Promise Me Sunshine” by Cara Bastone is a heartfelt journey through grief, healing, and unexpected connections. The story follows Lenny, who, after losing her best friend Lou to cancer, is struggling to find her footing and her sanity. Enter Miles, a grumpy yet endearing stranger, who becomes an unlikely companion in her path to rediscovery.

This book really captures the ups and downs of grief and shows how healing isn’t always a straight line. I really appreciated how real the characters felt, and the depth of their connection. The chemistry between Lenny and Miles is genuine - it’s a true a slow-burn romance that feels both authentic and deeply moving. Their interactions are filled with warmth, humor, and raw honesty, making their journey all the more compelling.

Overall, “Promise Me Sunshine” is a beautifully written story that will stay with me long after finishing it. Thank you so much to the publisher, Cara Bastone, and NetGalley for the eARC!!

I didn't like this book; I LOVED it!! One of my top 10 books I think! I laughed, I cried (and I hate to cry!), and I couldn't put it down! I fell in love with the characters, and I can't stop thinking of them days after finishing the book. I'm not going to say anymore-just go read the book!! Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. I've already purchased a physical copy for my bookshelf, because this in one I will read over and over again!

Wow! This one took me awhile to read but mostly because life got busy and I wanted to savor it. This is a beautiful and heartbreaking portrayal of grief and Cara Bastone wrote it so well. I loved that it was so realistic, with moments of sadness, missing that person, moments of feeling better, the challenge of feeling like yourself, and feeling guilt at feeling better. She also portrayed depression well. The friendship aspect was so touching but so heartbreaking. It was so hard to read about Lenny losing her sister, her confidant, and the love of her life. I love that their friendship was portrayed this way, as even more important than her love life. Bastone knows how to make my heart ache, loving and wishing for that connection but also feeling so broken-hearted by/for the main character.

I loved the love story, but would have enjoyed learning even more about the girls together. However I loveeee Miles and how he supported Lenny through so much and was the drop everything and help friend to her. He was swoony and romantic but also funny and sullen. They both brought the best out of the other and it was so fun to be along for the ride. Their relationship being built on a foundation of emotional connection and friendship was great. Bastone is great at the slow burn, but loving romance I would’ve liked to see more of them together at the end! But that’s just my romantic heart and loving these characters, and not being ready to say goodbye.

I just really enjoyed the depth, the characters, the banter, the story, the niece and all of it.

I absolutely loved Ready or Not, and I was anxiously awaiting her newest release. It did not disappoint! I loved everything about this book. No one does friends-to-lovers as well as Cara Bastone. I laughed. I cried. I kicked my feet in the air. Grief was done so so so well. I felt seen by Lenny. And Miles was the sweetest steady boy. Grief can feel so lonely and isolating, especially when everyone else goes back to their life and your whole world is still stopped. I loved that Miles was there for Lenny, in any way that she needed, every step of the way. I couldn't put this book down, and I'm already recommending it to everyone I know. I will forever be a fan of Cara Bastone.

Promise Me Sunshine is a heartfelt exploration of grief, healing, and unexpected connection. Cara Bastone crafts a touching slow-burn romance with raw emotion and well-drawn characters. Lenny’s journey through loss feels authentic, and Miles’ gruff yet understanding nature adds depth to their evolving relationship.

However, while the premise is compelling, the execution sometimes lags. The pacing can feel uneven, with some moments dragging while others resolve too quickly. Miles and Lenny’s dynamic is engaging but occasionally frustrating, and some side characters—especially Reese—could have been fleshed out more.

Overall, it’s a moving, character-driven story with emotional highs and lows, but it doesn’t fully hit its potential. A solid read for those who love slow-burn romances with a heavier emotional core.

This is such a beautiful story. The way Cara writes about grief and loss is so incredibly relatable and real.

The relationship development between Miles and Lenny was so natural and realistic.

I so wish we could have seen more on-page development in the sibling relationship between Reese and Miles