2.5 ⭐️

A grief-stricken Lenny has found herself struggling through her daily life, taking on only temporary nannying gigs and having no plan for how to get her life back on track after a major loss in her life. Miles is no stranger to grief and loss and feels he has what it takes to help Lenny through this stage.

I think the premise of this book was promising, it had a lot of elements I think could have been woven together to create something wonderful, but it fell a little short for me. I admittedly struggled with the first 15-20% of the book, and considering not finishing, but my curiosity led me to continue. The writing felt very disjointed to me, and Lenny (although in her late 20s) felt very immature. As I continued reading, I started enjoying a little more of the banter and general storyline, and honestly the little girl, Ainsley, pretty much stole the show for me. There is one major aspect missing from this story for me, and maybe I’m more sensitive to it than other readers, but there was a MAJOR opportunity to promote the importance of seeking mental health treatment. Lenny desperately needed professional help with her grief, and although she didn’t feel she had the strength to seek it out, there were many other characters (specifically Miles) who could have helped push her in that direction or even set it up for her. I would have been even slightly more satisfied if at the end, when she was out of the darkest days, she decided to seek counseling or a psychologist. I mean her seemingly loving and supportive parents didn’t even suggest it?! Maybe that’s too much of a realistic take, but it was on my mind through the entire book.

I also felt the grief sort of overshadowed the romance aspect throughout the story- which is ok, except that made some of the romance feel forced or out of place. This is one of those occasions I think a “fade to blank” intimacy scene would likely have had a better impact on the story (and I have zero issues with open door scenes). I will however admit that I think Miles was a very patient and likeable MMC!

Overall, I wasn’t as wow’d by this story as it appears many other readers were, but as we all know reading enjoyment is always subjective, and who knows you might like this story a lot more!

This novel is a poignant exploration of love, loss, and the power of friendship. Lenny is grappling with the profound grief of losing her best friend, Lou, when she takes on a temporary babysitting role for Ainsley and crosses paths with Miles. Despite a promise to Lou to embrace life again, Lenny finds herself struggling to complete the special checklist they created together. Unable to face returning to her apartment, she spends her nights riding the ferry, lost in her sorrow. Miles, with his perceptive nature, quickly realizes something is amiss and offers to support her through her grief, asking in return for her help in building a stronger bond with his niece. This heartfelt story beautifully captures the challenges of healing and moving forward.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book may be one of my favorite depictions of grief. I've read plenty of stories where someone is grieving a parent or a spouse, but never a best friend that felt like the other half of your soul. Lenny's grief was a character, New York City was a character, and my god, Miles Honey, the ultimate character. The palpable pain, the ability to have a human being see and recognize the crater that grief creates in you and to not judge you for how you're getting through, but to take your hand and say I'll go with you is something incredible that many of us do not get in our day to day lives, but we can have it through Miles Honey. While Lenny's grief journey is a very large part of this story, I appreciated that Miles was not just a means to an end for healing and that we got to see him on his own journey. It took me almost two months to read this book because I savored every chapter and I didn't want it to end. I can't recommend this enough.

Lenny is deep in the depths of grief after the loss of her best friend and roommate. She takes a temporary babysitting job for a single mother, Reese, and her daughter Ainsley. While babysitting, she meets Ainsley's Uncle Miles. After spending some time together, Miles can see that Lenny is going through something and makes a proposal: he will help Lenny work through her grief (he's been through a lot of loss himself) if she helps him figure out how to connect with Ainsley.

This book is a really beautiful story about love and loss. Miles is one of the best MMCs I have read in a long time! Cannot recommend this one enough.

A beautiful and painful love story with the main characters learning to navigate grief. I wish I got more from the ending, but this story was so relatable and raw. I found the love story itself to be heartwarming and I adored the banter.

Wow what an emotionally charged book! Going into this, I expected a happy sappy romcom. What we get are two grieving and imperfect characters that bond and share their trauma. I love Lenny so much and I could feel the grief in her character. Miles was so unlikeable at first but he really grew on me with the way he cared for Lenny.

A fantastic read that deals with life after loss and grief.

This was devastatingly beautiful and perfectly captured the specific manic, untethered feeling of deep grief and deep love. Definitely a new favorite book of all time. Now excuse me while I go sob some more.

This was a beautifully written, tender story about a woman learning to live again after a devastating loss.

Lenny’s best friend in the world, her person, passed away and her world is just absolutely rocked by it. She’s living in a cycle of temporary nanny gigs, afraid to make a commitment to anyone, and also afraid to return to her apartment she shared with her friend so she wanders the streets and sleeps on public transportation. She meets Miles, uncle to one of her charges, and he offers to help her work through her “live again” list, while she helps him bond with his niece.

The grief was handled so beautifully - both characters have suffered losses but are at different stages in the grief cycle and I just thought the representation felt so real and authentic. They bonded over their grief but also helped each other work through it. Despite all the grief, there was still humor and a bit of romance throughout.

The blurb says it’s a romance, and I’m not quite sure I agree with that - it definitely read more woman’s fiction to me, with a romance that kicks in ⅔ of the way in (at least for Lenny. Miles was obviously in lover with her from the beginning)

It didn’t quite top Ready or Not for me, but I did like it a whole lot!

REVIEW: Promise Me Sunshine by Cara Bastone

Lenny (Helen) recently lost her best friend and soul mate, Lou, to cancer. Lenny doesn't know what to do. She doesn't want to go back to the apartment they shared and can barely feed herself. She decides to take a short-term childcare job. There, she meets the kid's uncle, Miles. He wants help connecting with his niece and suggested that he can help her with her grief.

Promise Me Sunshine is such a beautiful story. Most of it is more contemporary fiction than romance, but it is so well done. This book is about depression and grief and how people process these things differently. Throughout the book, we journey not only through Lenny's grief but also Miles's grief as well. Promise Me Sunshine is also filled with themes of finding yourself and building relationships of all kinds.

Lenny and Miles's connection grows throughout the book so well. They are a great example of a grumpy and sunshine. They slowly start as friends until they develop stronger feelings for one another. I am not usually a slow-burn fan, but Cara Bastone knocked it out of the park. You can feel how their connection strengthens and changes throughout. There were many moments in Promise Me Sunshine where I laughed hard at the banter between Lenny and Miles. They had such a fun and teasing friendship between them. There were also so many sweet and romantic moments between Lenny and Miles. You could tell how much they truly cared about each other. There's a bit of spice at the end, but it is minimal overall.

I absolutely loved Promise Me Sunshine. It was so fun, insightful, and sweet. I definitely want to read more from Cara Bastone!

Thank you, Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group, for the free advanced copy for my honest review!

Promise Me Sunshine by Cara Bastone is a charming romance that pulls you in from the first page. The writing is witty, tender, and emotionally engaging. Bastone skillfully blends humour and depth - a great escape from reality. Overall, Promise Me Sunshine is a must read for anyone who loves a feel good romance. Thank you Netgalley & Random House for the chance to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for this ARC!

Five stars! Five stars! FIVE STARS!!
This book can’t even be described into words how much I loved this book. It was funny, had heart, romantic, emotional, and just a perfect read for myself personally. The premise is about grief and how to live after you lose your soulmate whether platonic or romantic. I have lost people in my life and seeing Lenny try to live after losing her soulmate brought me to tears. I have felt every single emotions she has felt and then some so I connected with her immediately
Luckily she had Miles in her life who helped her grieve and bring her back to life after his own loss. He has grieved he loses and I related to him because even when you heal you still feel the loss of those you love. These characters were so real and raw that I couldn't help but love them to death!
When it comes to their relationship as a couple they had me kicking my little feet. This is how you do a friends to lovers situation and make it feel authentic and real. I loved watching their relationship progress and how they learned about each other to the point where they relied on each other. However, even though they relied on each other it doesn’t mean that they expected each other to fix them and they knew they had to grow on their own as well which I loved!
I could gush about this book all day but you have to read it for yourself! This is going to be an author I will forever auto buy from after this book!

Promise Me Sunshine is one of the sweetest and most beautiful love stories I’ve ever read.

I mean, I have nothing else to say that hasn’t already been said by early reviewers. I loved Ready or Not, but this book feels like Cara Bastone shining in a whole new light for me. The way she took her time developing Miles and Lenny’s relationship allowed for a friends-to-lovers dynamic that felt incredibly real and truly beautiful.

But at the same time, this wasn’t just a romance, it was Lenny’s journey to healing after a major loss in her life and Miles’ path to finding his place in the world.

This book feels like a reminder that life can be shitty, but love is always there to bring you back, to help you heal. I know that sounds cheesy, but trust me, this book was everything 😭.

A friends-to-lovers story like no other, I promise you don’t want to miss this beautiful romance.

I think I may have found a new favorite romance author🤭

I absolutely LOVED Promise Me Sunshine! It was such a sweet and emotional story, and the slow burn, grumpy/sunshine romance between Lenny and Miles was so precious. Lenny was so quirky, and Miles was such a cinnamon roll under his grumpy exterior. The setting was so authentically New York (which made me so excited to be going to NY for the first time in a few weeks!!). And I think the author did a great job of handling grief and the aftermath of a loved one’s death. If you love books by Katherine Center or Abby Jimenez, I think you’ll really like this book, and I will definitely be putting Cara Bastone’s other books on my tbr.

Content Notes: Heavy focus on grief and the loss of loved ones. Open door scene in chapter 32, as well as sexual innuendo throughout. Some use of strong profanity.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for sending me an eARC of this book! All thoughts and opinions above are my own.

Thank you NetGalley & Random House Publishing Group for providing this ARC! All opinions are my own.

Promise me Sunshine is a slow-burn romance that explores grief, healing, and unexpected connections. Lenny is struggling after losing her best friend, Lou, to cancer. To avoid dealing with her parents and her empty apartment, she throws herself into babysitting jobs. Her latest gig is watching Ainsley, the daughter of Reese, a single mom—but it’s Ainsley’s grumpy uncle, Miles, who keeps catching Lenny’s attention.

I like to go into books without knowing much about the premise because I enjoy being surprised. As someone who is currently grieving the loss of my sister, this book hit home. I saw so much of myself in Lenny—her emotions felt like my own. Even though this is fiction, at times, I took it as a self-help book for my grief.

The ending left me wanting—needing—more, and it felt a little rushed. But one of my favorite takeaways is a new mantra: “The only way out is through.”

This is the second book I’ve read from Cara Bastone, and I can confidently say she’s becoming one of my favorite authors.

I had high hopes for this one after seeing it everywhere but unfortunately it was only okay. We have Lenny who is grieving the death of her best friend. She meets Miles through a nannying gig and he promises to help her through her grief and help her learn to find joy again. Having lost my dad less than two years ago, I was intrigued by the theme of loss and processing grief. Unfortunately, I felt Lenny’s grief to be very surface level and not very raw (unlike what Kennedy Ryan’s Before I Let Go). She felt juvenile in her reliance of Miles, but I do understand what the author was doing with the importance of support during difficult times.

On top of the grief and loss theme feeling shallow,I felt Lenny and Miles’ romance went from 0 to 100 in the last 30%. I would have liked more development between the two of them.

Overall, I enjoyed the book but it wasn’t anything gut-punching or emotional like I had hoped it would be. If you’re looking for a sweet romance with a likeable male main character and found family, I recommmed this read.

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

Thank you to @netgalley and @randomhouse for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

Such a touching and fun romance. The novel touches on grief in a relatable way that doesn’t pull you down but leaves you hopeful for all the life left to live and who you can live it with.

Cara has knocked this book out of the park!!!!! Delightful and emotional, I fell in love with Lenny and Miles. Unputdownable.

Wow. What a beautiful, heartbreaking novel. This was by far my favorite this month! The author addressed grief in such a real, raw manner - my heart absolutely broke for Lenny and Miles as they shared their stories of loss. And yet- the joy these two characters found in each other was so pure and I love them so much 🤍🤍🤍
(Also the side characters are all wonderful and I just loved everything about this entire book)

Read if you love:
🤍 supportive, sweet book boyfriends
🤍 books that make you cry
🤍 found family

Promise Me Sunshine was a genuine, breath of fresh air with a beautiful plot line that explored the grief of loosing a loved one. The book was incredibly sweet and loved the chemistry between the two characters. The writing was so fun and easy to understand while getting to difficult topics, such as grief. Both characters really explored the grief and supported each other, and I loved how the book transitioned from a life of instability to a life of joy, which was so exciting to watch unfold.

The first fifty or so pages were a little bit slow, but after that point the plot really intrigued me and I couldn't put the book down!

Thank you so much to Cara Bastone and NetGalley for providing me with this ARC!

Ohhhh this was SO good. I really liked Ready or Not but this was even better. It was so emotional and beautiful and the characters were complex and loveable.