Ugh Cara Bastone does it again!!!

Promise Me Sunshine is an incredible story of grief and loss of a friend. I thought the romance was incredibly sweet and the feelings truly made me ache in my bones. I wanted Lenny to find her peace so badly it was like she was someone I knew.

This is exactly what I look for in a romance: slow burn, grumpy/sunshine, and set in NYC!!! There's just something classic about a romance set in New York, all the best romcoms are tbh.

Overall an absolutely beautiful story of finding life again after loss. Please read this!

Looking for an epically emotional yet heartwarming romance? Promise Me Sunshine was the perfect mix of both while handling the topic of grief in a beautiful manner.

Lenny and Miles need each other right from the moment they met but not romantically. Both are so drastically different from each other but somehow get along like the best of friends. Friends to lovers while navigating debilitating grief and loss made for such a beautiful story.

for a book centered around grief, I sure laughed my ass off

Put this off for a while cause I wasn't in the mood to cry and shockingly haven't laughed so hard at a book in a long time. Don't get me wrong, there are emotional moments that had me teary but Lenny is walking proof that trauma really makes you funny.

I was so hooked on this story immediately, seeing Lenny try to function while secretly falling apart had me rooting for her instantly. As soon as Miles entered the picture their banter, connection, and friendship became addicting. Miles is such a sweetheart; all he wanted to do was ensure Lenny was happy, healthy, and safe and it truly made me melt. "Girl-a-mess and Man-who-just-wants-to-take-care-of-her" trope is my kryptonite (let's not read into that) and boy does this one deliver. The growth between these two on both of their grief journeys was so special and heartwarming and per usual Cara Bastone's writing just leaves me so full of love. This felt like a love letter to the power of friendship.

I will also always always love a book that takes place in New York City.

"He treats you well?"
"He walked into hell and dragged me back out."

The dialogue was ridiculous. I found myself getting annoyed. I enjoy books based on whether I’d be friends with the characters or not. In this case, absolutely not.

Achingly Tender and Completely Perfect ❤️

Cara Bastone blew me away with Promise Me Sunshine. This book is achingly tender, deeply moving, and somehow still uplifting—a new all-time favorite for me.

At its heart, this is a book about grief—the kind that swallows you whole. Lenny has lost the love of her life, her best friend Lou, and she’s completely drowning. But like so many of us, she doesn’t want to burden anyone else with her pain. Instead, she isolates, barely making it through each day, just going through the motions. That is, until Miles shows up.

And wow, I have never read a male main character quite like Miles. He’s gruff, a little cranky, and definitely a know-it-all, but he takes one look at Lenny and decides he’s not going to let her keep spiraling. He bullies her (in the gentlest way possible) into taking care of herself, not letting her disappear into her grief. He’s steadfast and caring in a way that never feels overbearing, and the way he quietly, consistently, and stubbornly refuses to let her slip away is beautiful.

One of my favorite things about this book is how unique it felt. It didn’t just lean on familiar tropes—I had no idea where the story was going at times, and I loved that. The Staten Island Ferry scenes, the found family elements, the little moments of humor and warmth woven between the heavier themes—it all made for such a special and unforgettable reading experience.

And despite the heavier themes, there is so much fun, humor, and joy in this book. There were moments that made me laugh out loud, right alongside the ones that brought tears to my eyes.

Even though this book deals with grief, loss, and learning to live again, it never feels crushing. There’s a hopefulness to it, a sense that even in the darkest moments, there are people who will pull you back into the light.

This is one of those books that wraps around you like a warm hug, and I adored it. The heavier elements shouldn’t scare anyone off, because at its core, this book is about love, resilience, and finding your way forward.

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

I'm generally not a fan of the friends to lovers trope but this book did it in such a way that it crept up on you and made you love these two characters and want them to have their hapoy ending! The author takes you on quite the journey as Lenny navigates her grief and comes to terms with her new reality while also finding her heart. ❤️ The characters really get to know each other, the good, bad and ugly, through dealing with the FMC's grief and the MMCs desire to connect with his newfound family.

I did find it took a long time for Miles to become something other than the grumpy and gruff MMC. But you learn that he's a guy who's quiet and a little awkward and dealing with his own issues. And he's such a steady and grounding person to Lenny that you can't help but love him. I also found that Lenny was so all over the place that it was sometimes hard to distinguish between what were her personality quirks and what was the grief... but I guess that was the point. The grief can take over who you are and change you.

Overall, it was a wonderful and sweet love story and I would 100% recommend!

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Random House for allowing me to read and review an eARC of this book.

Wow, what a beautiful read. As someone who has lost a best friend, I saw myself a lot in Lenny. Grief is not easy, or palatable to live with, but having at least one person to safely feel all those messy feelings with is healing within itself. Cara Bastone, you have a new fan (it's me). I was so immersed into this story. Yes, I read it in 17 hours (there were reading breaks) but I felt like I was a fly on the wall through everything that was happening. Obviously I was a teary-eyed mess all throughout. Both Lenny and Miles healed me. I would highly recommend reading this one. Thank you to NetGalley and Dial Press for sending me an arc!

Cara Bastone is a mastermind for writing realistic romances that take everyday challenges throughout life and showing you how love can unexpectedly find you when you least expect it, but need it the most!

I absolutely loved Ready or Not so I was excited to receive the privilege of reading an early copy of Promise Me Sunshine and it did not disappoint. This book was an amazing depiction of grief and how it can take such a big toll on many aspects of your life. I cannot imagine the weight of losing your best friend and soulmate. I really loved the use of the Staten Island Ferry to depict how her grief felt almost like a never ending ride of devastation, but how this act was also molded into a powerful and positive light by the end.

I absolutely adored the character of Miles. I loved that his relationship with Lenny felt raw and realistic, rather than very love bombing. I really felt an emotional connection between them and loved how he pulled her out of the deep waters of her grief and showed her how to live again through using the list that Lou left. I really enjoyed how they were able to teach each other how to feel the joys of life through both having the understanding of what grief feels like.

This plot had so much emotional depth and power that I really enjoyed. I loved that there were no specific tropes or themes that it was based off of. It took everyday experiences that individuals go through and showed how love can blossom in a completely normal and realistic way. Cara Bastone is an amazing author that I will continue to read as her romances always hit the right spot!

3.5 ⭐️

Promise Me Sunshine is a beautiful, unique, realistic story about the complexity of grief and finding yourself again after loss. Lenny’s best friend, Lou, recently passed away from cancer, and Lenny is struggling to navigate life, and taking care of herself after losing the person she loved most in the world.

Lenny and Miles have very real, raw, and important conversations throughout the book and the patience that Miles had while Lenny navigated her grief was very sweet. Miles’ initial awkwardness and his little fumbles were cute and endearing, too. I do love a realistic portrayal of kids, and this book did a wonderful job of that with Ainsley, Miles’ niece.

Cara Bastone does a wonderful job exploring the complicated emotions that you experience through losing someone close to you, and how unpredictable that journey can be. There are some parts of the book that are incredibly emotional and sad, but she brings in both cute and funny moments throughout it that create a great balance of emotions.

While the relationship between Lenny and Miles was adorable, they aren’t a memorable couple for me. This does a fantastic job painting a realistic and relatable grief story, but in terms of a romance novel it fell a bit flat for me.

Overall, this left me wanting more. I wanted more of Miles’ story and his experience navigating grief, more of his relationship with Reese and Ainsley, more flashbacks with Lou, more of a relationship between Miles and Lenny beyond their similar experiences of losing loved ones.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House for the ARC!

This was my first book by Cara Bastone and I cannot wait to read more by her!
Promise Me Sunshine was a great contemporary romance with characters that were immediately lovable and ones that you rooted for. This story portrayed grief in a realistic way and took us readers on a ride through Lenny's hard days. I felt like I was grieving Lou along with Lenny and their friendship reminded me so much of mine with my best friend. Miles is a top-tier book boyfriend and deserves all of the awards (if this was an actual thing). He was patient, shy, a great listener and would give anyone the shirt off of his back. I really loved getting to know more about Miles and his past as well. All of the side characters (Jericho, Ainsley, Reese, Lenny's parents etc) were all great and really brought the story together.

My only reservation with the book is that the pacing felt off for me and I wanted more focus on the list that Lenny was working towards. Once I hit 50%, it was hard for me to put the book down but before that, the story's pace was rather slow. I also wish we had more at the ending but that's always a sign for me of a great book because I want more and more!

Thank you to Penguin Random House & Cara Bastone for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you NetGalley for an early copy of this wonderful book. I was really excited to receive a copy after ready Cara’s other book Ready or Not, which I also really loved. Promise me Sunshine was so emotional and sweet. As someone who has lost a loved one I felt like I was right there with Lenny during her emotional journey. And Miles what a sweetheart❤️ I want a miles in my life! Again thank you Cara for writing this heartwarming book, I can’t wait to purchase a physical copy for my bookshelf!

I absolutely adored this book. Miles and Lenny were top notch friends to lovers. There is so much depth to this book and I don’t want to say anything that will give this amazing book away. But Cara Bastone has written a masterpiece such a heartfelt and emotional book wrapped in a lovely bow. Everyone needs a Miles Honey in their life.

*thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for early access to this title in exchange for an honest review*

3.5 rounded up. This book deals with some very serious issues, including SU ideation, loss, and grief. I think these are very important issues which some may find quite triggering.

I kinda liked this, particularly the first half. It really dragged for me and I'm not sure why since I really did love Bastone's previous work. I think the I found the highs and lows of Lenny believable but exhausting. I also felt like the writing often changed tones from really hitting the mark, to doing weird things (like breaking the fourth wall and acknowledging the reader).

I loved Bastones inclusion of a list at the end was a nice choice.

↪ ★★★ stars

☀️ | mini review!
----> i can absolutely see why people would be OBSESSED with this book! the premise is so refreshing, the babysitting aspect of the story gives you so much insight, the characters are polar opposites and we see our fmc struggling to battle the grief of losing her best friend. all along, miles, the uncle of the girl she's babysitting, helps her get through this journey. lenny is our classic quirky, fun, extroverted and wears-garfield-tshirts kinda girl while miles is the fan-favourite socially awkward, patient, understanding and wears-glasses typa guy. they both complimented each other SO well. the only thing that bugged me a little was the sorta off-handed way that the grief felt by lenny was expressed in the book. it felt a bit ... stoic to me. i understand that SO many people loved this with their whole heart, and i can see where that's coming from, but this book just isn't very memorable for me. i loved all the side hustles and hidden family bondings and depths, though. however, this book is definitely a book i'd recommend !!

💌 | some quotes!
----> i don't have time rn to type all the quotes i highlighted while reading this, but i'll mention my personal favourites !! (no spoilers)

❝ but the thing about lowing the person you love the most on earth is - somehow - you still have to do mundane things like tie your shoes and make enough money to continue to exist in this punishing world.❞
> i'm tearing up this is so sad and i'm sure it hits harder for people who have actually gone through this

❝ home is where the heart is.❞
> it truly is 💔

❝ kids are scary. they're ruthless.❞
> bro u said it RIGHT

❝ everyone loves each other in a new and special way. i'm falling but for the first time in a long time i'm not terrified of the concrete. maybe there is no concrete. maybe there's just all this brilliant color in messy strokes. leaves and sky and air and water water water, rushing by. maybe i've been wrong this whole time and the entire world is not through my eyes. maybe i've been trapped in a painting all along. smeared and brilliantly applied. every color is from the eye of someone who knows exactly what the hell they're doing.❞
> oh. my. gosh.

❝ it must be truly exhausting to live in your brain.❞
> well said, miles

❝ lenny, i'll do anything you ask me to.❞
> HE DIDNT JUST-

❝ you gotta eat the best ones first, obviously!
no, len. you gotta save the best for last!❞
> the never ending debate...

❝ i've been gifted with this day. frozen in time. a day where everyone moves slowly and carefully. where the world is cast with diamond. where the sunshine, never promised, is achingly bright and cold and there's nowhere to hide.❞
> AWWWW

❝ every time i fall in love with you, there's lightning.❞

❝ mom, he walked into hell and dragged me back out.❞
> that, ladies and gentlemen, is miles !!

❝ lenny, when i look at your face, i feel like i'm finally home after a really ong day at work.❞
> that's so simple yet so profound

this was the first book i've ever read by cara bastone, and i think it's safe to say i'll come back for more!

many thanks to NetGalley and the published for an e-arc copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

xx
almas.

Our story follows Lenny, who loses her best friend Lou to cancer and is having a hard time finding her feet again as she’s wading through the grief of its. She picks up odd nannying jobs when one day she meets the Uncle of the kids she’s sitting. He’s grumpy and comes off a bit hard but wants to better connect to his niece, so they make a deal. Miles helps Lenny cross items off her “ways to live again” list and Lenny helps Miles connect with his niece.

Turns out they have one of the cutest love stories I’ve read about in a long time 🥹

This book beautifully depicted the stages of grief, and how a good support system can get you through just about everything. Miles’s character ARC was one of my favorites, and the character development in accompaniment with their relationship development was everything. This book tackled a lot of hard topics and was an emotional story, but still light and funny in places. Definitely would recommend reading 💖

This is the most accurate portrayal of both a relationship and handling grief. Not one second of this was rushed or seemed ridiculous. Lenny is probably the most realistic FMC I’ve seen in a long time and Miles growth was also so natural. I loved how even as we finished the story there was no rush to a resolution. You can’t hurry grief and loss that large but you can take concrete steps towards living with it.

3.5* rounded up to 4

Thank you to Netgalley for an early copy in exchange for an honest review. Lenny is deep in grief after the loss of her best friend to cancer and she meets Miles in an unconventional way. He brings her back to life and they have a super slow burn romance.

I enjoyed how lighthearted this one was given the heavy background and how realistic the characters were but I thought it got a little bit long for the genre. I definitely liked her other book Ready Or Not better!

This is in my Top 5 books of all of 2025 and it’s only February, that’s how good it is.

This book resonated with me so much, and Lenny is quite possibly one of the most relatable main characters I’ve ever read, coming from someone who lives in New York, is around the same age, and has had her fair share of loss in life. Everyone absolutely deserves a Miles in their lives, and he’s shot right up to the top of the book boyfriend list. I LOVE him. The chemistry between the two of them was so good, and I never wanted their story to end. This is one that I’m going to be thinking about for a long time and one of my new favorites that I’m sure I’ll come back to and rereading often.

Cara Bastone, you have a fan in me for life!

I loved this book. Normally in a romance I am desperately waiting for the main characters to finally get together in some form and going crazy when it's not happening by 30-50% of the way through.
But this story is a master piece of the slow burn, the steady build up was so essential and enjoyable in this novel. The character development and relationship development was so well done, and so important in the face of grief. Miles helped Lenny learn to survive her grief, equal parts saved her and helped her save herself. Their relationship was built on trust and friendship and understanding not a tumultuous trauma bond.
This is one of the best books I've read in several years. It was heart breaking and heart warming and the characters were unique but also managed to be extremely endearing and relatable. Reading the dedication it's clear the author has gone through grief. While painful loss isn't wished upon for anyone it's a very real part of life, and having an author who can do masterfully capture the micro and macro emotions of grief and trying to find a way to live again after loss is a truly relatable and moving experience for the reader.
I look forward to reading more of Cara Stone in the future.

Though the romance in Promise Me Sunshine was extra slow-burn, I fell in love with Lenny and Miles right away! This friends-to-lovers romance was everything I love about this trope- their genuine emotional connection made my heart so happy.

Their friendship progressed completely naturally as Miles helped Lenny navigate grief and Lenny helped Miles connect with his niece. I loved how easily they understood and accepted one another.

Though the friendship progressed naturally, I’m conflicted in how I feel about the romance. It was a little hard for me to accept their transition from friends to lovers because so much of the story was spent showing Miles taking care of Lenny, almost to the point of a caretaker.

That said, there were little hints throughout pointing towards Miles’ feelings that helped it from feeling completely unbelievable. And there is something beautiful about someone who can fall in love with you, even when you’re at your lowest.

Thank you to Dial Press Marketing for a NetGalley copy. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

4 out of 5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

(This review is also posted on my Goodreads and will be posted on my Instagram @bookishlee_kaci soon)