Fair warning: I am still riding the epic, giddy, flaily high this book gave me. There may be gushing. Lots of it. But whoamygoshyouguys - this book was so good!
While Robin Bielman has been charming her way onto my favorites list for a while now, this was my first book by Samanthe Beck and there is some magic in this author duo, I swear it. This is the sort of unicorn story where everything balanced perfectly. I laughed out loud, my belly filled with those coveted butterflies, and my heart ached for Vaughn and Kendall - and all those feelings (and more, GAH - so many feels!) flowed so seamlessly, I felt like I was part of the story. I was so invested. So completely held in thrall. And I am so hopelessly smitten, I can't even...
Vaughn and Kendall are...everything. I mean this is a story about a rising star/male model who falls in love with the mysterious girl-nobody who is house-sitting for his neighbor - and there is literally nothing I should be able to relate to about that, and yet I 100% felt like these were my people. I mean, I freaking adored them. They're funny and kind and...complicated. They're playful and sexy and absolutely adorable. My heart hopped on board from the original and unexpected meet-cute, and it never waivered - not once - while these two sorted themselves out throughout the story. I feel like these authors got everything right in Promise Me, and well, I warned you there'd be gushing. I'm so in love!
On top of this basically perfect love story, there lies a secondary story of the relationship between Kendall and her sisters. Actually there are a few different family dynamics explored here and the layers they add took this book to an emotional level I really wasn't expecting. Overall - I felt like this book was so much more than I had bargained for - in all the very best ways. The secondary characters are compelling in their own rights, and I felt like there was set-up here for follow-up books. Trust me when I tell you that all my crossables are crossed that there will be more where this came from.
The writing was smart and engaging, the story was compelling and interesting, and I can't even tell you all the ways this book touched my heart. I can't shake this giant smile. I'm still over the moon with all the ways this story made me happy. There are some emotional punches for sure, and some more serious storylines threaded through all this happiness - but in the end it is a feel good story and - as if there were any question - I cannot recommend it highly enough!
