Ready or Not was one of my favorite books last year, so I was very excited when Cara Bastone announced Promise Me Sunshine. Besides a gorgeous cover, the story sounds amazing. I knew I’d be in for an emotional ride. Today I want to tell you about this book and what I thought. Keep on reading to find out!

A big thank you to Netgalley and Dial Press for providing me with an eARC to read and review. This doesn’t affect my opinion in any way.

Grieving the loss of her best friend, a young woman’s life is turned upside down when she meets a grumpy stranger who swears he can help her live again, in this heartwarming, slow-burn romance by the author of Ready or Not

Lenny’s a bit of a mess at the moment. Her best friend, Lou, recently passed away after a battle with cancer, and her death has left Lenny feeling completely lost. She’s avoiding her concerned parents, the apartment she shared with Lou, and the list of things she’s supposed to do to help her live again. The only thing she can do is temporary babysitting gigs, and luckily, she just landed a great one, helping overworked, single mom Reese and her precocious daughter, Ainsley. It’s not perfect: Ainsley’s uncle, Miles, always seems to be around, and is kind of… a huge jerk. But if Lenny acts like she has it all together, maybe no one will notice she’s falling apart.

Miles sees right through her though. Turns out, he knows a lot about grief and, surprisingly, he offers her 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. Lenny doubts anything can fill the Lou has left behind, but she begins to spend more time with Miles, Lenny is surprised to discover that, sometimes, losing everything is only the first step to finding yourself, and love, again.

Review

Sometimes I just really need a book that hits me in the feels and Promise Me Sunshine was one I didn’t know I needed. Cara Bastone takes us along in Lenny’s life after losing her best friends. This book is the perfect combination of love, grief, family, healing, and learning to live again. I really appreciated how the author shows us that everyone grieves differently. There is no wrong or right way.

It’s kind of hard to review this one, because it’s one you won’t really understand until you read it yourself. Everyone who has lost someone close to them will be able to relate a bit to Miles and Lenny in one way or another I think. The little flashbacks we got with Lenny and Lou were so touching. Following Lenny while she tried to live again felt so realistic. Some things started going well and sometimes things just became too overwhelming. Miles was the best along the way. Knowing what grief is himself, he was there any time she needed someone.

Their relationship is very slow burn and that really felt right for this story. Slowly Lenny and Miles become very important to each other. Besides this story, we also get a glimpse of Reece and Ainsley, who Lenny babysits for. Miles just wants to figure out how to get close to his niece while they’re also grieving.

Promise Me Sunshine is such a touching story that I will think about often. No words can do this one justice. I already plan on reading this one again to annotate my favorite moments. Cara Bastone is officially an auto-buy author for me now.

 

Cara Bastone is quickly becoming a favorite/auto-buy author for me. Promise Me Sunshine will definitely end up on my favorite reads of 2025! Have you added any new authors to your favorites/auto-buy authors list? Let me know in the comments. I’d love to hear from you!