I received a free e-copy of The Promise by Teresa Driscoll from NetGalley for my honest review.

Three friends, Beth, Sally, and Carol met at a Catholic boarding school. They formed a special bond. Their bond, however is set by a deep and dark secret that has haunted them throughout their lives. A secret they all swore to take to their graves.

Many years later, the girls get news that their former school is going to be demolished. Now they are in fear that their secret, long ago, will be discovered. Also, someone is watching them, but who? Is there someone out there that knows what they did?

The story is beautifully written and the characters are wonderful but the story moved along a bit slowly for me. It is told by four different points of view (Beth, Sally, Carol and Matthew).

Gosh, but, this is a really good read. I got lost in the excellent writing, great storyline and such well developed characters that I couldn't put it down.

Three schoolgirl friends have made a promise back when they were at boarding school together and it's something that continues to affect each of their lives, many years on. Now, they hear that the boarding school is to be redeveloped and their secret may be discovered. What follows is a woven tale of secrets, lies, friendships, family, grief and loss and it's so, so well written. It's got twists and turns and you're never quite sure who is honestly revealing themselves. I thought the character of Matthew was fabulous and brought an added dimension to the tension.

A fabulous read.


Thanks so much to Netgalley, Thomas and Mercer and the author for the ARC and the opportunity to preview.

The Promise was a very difficult story to get into. It was very slow going and nothing irritates me more than when characters refer to an incident in vague details throughout 50-75% of a story. The end of the book had some nice twists but I can't honestly say it was worth the wait to get there. The major event is nothing more than scared teenage girls, really. They made terrible choices, yes. It seemed like other events in the story were much bigger but this was supposed to be the main conflict. I would have enjoyed this more if there wasn't such a huge buildup to this big secret they all (only partially) shared.

The Promise – Teresa Driscoll

I received this book as an Advance Reader Copy from Netgalley, in exchange for an objective review.

Back in a private religious boarding school, teenagers, best friends & roommates Beth, Sally & Carol are unwitting accomplices in a death. Not knowing what else to do, they cover it up as best they can, and promise to never say another word to anyone about the events of that fateful night.

Years later, each have their own lives – Beth is happily married with two children, and she remains close with Sally, who is having relationship struggles of her own. Carol, however, for reasons unknown, has distanced herself from the group, partially due to her relationship with a world traveling businessman. And then the girls receive letters that their old boarding school is going to be sold and demolished – with the real potential of exposing a secret many years old.

As the girls search for Carol, in a desperate attempt to ensure that the promise isn’t broken, they also endeavor to protect the events of that night at all costs. As Carol is located and brought unwillingly into the fold with secrets of her own, strange things start to happen. Beth receives warnings in her email and via Facebook, and her husband is badly injured by a hit and run driver. But no one else knew of the long ago events of that night…or did they??

Told in past and present glimpses into the lives of these three women, their story gradually comes to light and just when you think you understand the events of that long ago night….another curveball or three are tossed in that have you frantically turning the pages to get to the very last page! This one kept me up well into the night. A great read from Teresa Driscoll!!

Teresa Driscoll’s latest psychological thriller starts slowly as she draws the characters and fills us in on some of their shared history, but it picks up in the second half.

Something terrible happened when these three friends were at boarding-school which still binds them together in secrecy today. Now that their old school is being bulldozed everything comes flooding back again. And it seems that somebody else knows what happened too…

I did enjoy The Promise, but it wasn’t my favourite book by this author.

Oh my! What a fantastic read by Teresa, I was totally hooked! Have read a few of her other books and they will not disappoint. I don’t normally read thrillers, but wow, just wow, I loved it!

Beth, Sally and Carol are three young teenage girls who meet at a boarding school - The Convent of St Coleman. The three of them become fast friends, spending all of their time together. But when something too intense for teenage girls to handle on their own occurs things change between them.

Fast forward about 25 years, Beth and Sally have kept their friendship and promises to keep secret what happened in the past intact. Carol’s contact with the two others has been sparse over the years.

When the school informs all their former students of its upcoming closure and the fact that it will be demolished Beth and Sally attempt to find Carol.
Beth and Sally are very anxious that secrets from their time at the school will be uncovered.

The pace of this book started a bit on the slower side, flashing back and forth from present day to events that occurred while the girls were attending the school. I really idea no idea what could have happened to them that cause them to have kept their secrets so long. When I finally found out in the second half of the book what their secret was it wasn’t what I was expecting. Things really picked up in the late few chapters of the book and the secrets and lies kept coming, and from places I wasn’t expecting. Overall I enjoyed this enough to read it quickly, but it was too thrilling or suspenseful. I give it three stars because it kept me curious and interested but it didn’t give me any big shocks that I would hope for from a thriller.

I really liked the sound of this book and was looking forward to reading it,however I soon started to struggle with the pace of the book and the characters.It was so slow, I know I am an impatient reader,but I do want some thing to happen.The characters were hard to click with as well,I struggled to identify with them.I really didn't take to this book, I thought the potential with the plot was wasted I am afraid,and it wasn't for me.Thanks to netgalley and the publishers for an ARC.Sorry I can't give it a better review.

This book had me from page 1. It was so full of twist and turns all I wanted to do was get to the end to find the truth. Half way through I guessed what I took to be the main plot. But that was only the beginning. There were so many more question and answers still to come. 3 friends from a very young age met at boarding school. Something happens at school which affect their whole lives. I truly recommend this book.

#ThePromise#Netgalley allowed me to have an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review which I really appreciate.
The Promise is basically about 3 young girls who while living at a Catholic boarding school, after experiencing something horrific they agree to promise to never tell another soul.
This is a character driven book that was very well written and I was pulled in from the start. It was fast paced and a.great psychological thriller. It had alot of suspense, twists and turns that kept the story interesting. What I liked the best was the storyline although it was dark, it was unique. I want to give this a 4 1/2 star.

The Promise was an engaging and character-driven story that I felt compelled to read quickly. Over the course of a few days, I became engrossed in the past of Beth, Sally, and Carol and was nearly desperate to know what they could have done that was so haunting. I was certainly surprised when the origins of their promise were revealed, but was doubly surprised that there was an additional layer to the mystery of the story. I appreciated that this story wasn't predictable, and the varying layers of time and perspective that contributed to the story made it a compelling read.

Sally, Beth and Carol went to a nun school. They made a promise there - to take the truth of what they they did to the grave with them.
Thirty years later Beth and Sally have tried to move on while Carol has distanced herself from her friends they are still adamant that the truth must never come out. But when some news comes out, that rocks them to the core Beth and Sally have no choice but to hire private investigator Matthew Hill to help them reconnect with Carol before the act they committed as teenagers is revealed.
Beth is starting to wish she could take back the vow they had made but now someone is watching and will stop at nothing to make sure the secret stays buried. Now Beth’s family is in danger is she still going to be able to keep the promise?
This was my first read by this Author, makes me wonder why I haven’t read any of her work before!
This was a quick paced read and it is told mainly through Beth in both past and present tense. It is easy to follow though and as the story progresses Matthew and Carol’s chapters are added in too. It was a very well written story, the characters were well developed and the descriptions and settings were brilliant.
Many thanks to Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

The Promise by Teresa Driscoll is about three friends Carol, Beth and Sally. When at boarding school, something terrible happened between them and they promised each other never to talk about it again.
Present day, all three girls have gone their separate ways until they hear, that their old boarding school is being re-developed and there is a party, to honour the school and the girls who attended it. But they are all panicking as the secret from their past, will come out. Also, someone is watching them and warning them to leave things alone.
This is my first book by Teresa Driscoll, that I have read and I have heard great things about her books. I am also an avid Psychological thriller fan. I thought that, although I like the premise of this story it started rather slow. But as we learnt more about each individual t starts getting more interesting and I wanted to carry on reading. I will now look out for more of her books.
Thank you NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for a copy of this book.

Published by: Thomas & Mercer (7th February 2019)



Source: Netgalley



Rating: 5*



Synopsis:

It was their darkest secret. Three schoolgirls made a promise – to take the horrible truth of what they did to the grave.

Thirty years later, Beth and Sally have tried to put the trauma behind them. Though Carol has distanced herself from her former friends, the three are adamant that the truth must never come to light, even if the memory still haunts them.

But when some shocking news threatens to unearth their dark secret, Beth enlists the help of private investigator Matthew Hill to help her and Sally reconnect with estranged Carol ­– before the terrible act they committed as teenagers is revealed.

Beth wishes she could take back the vow they made.

But somebody is watching and will stop at nothing to ensure the secret stays buried. Now, with her beloved family in peril, can Beth still keep the promise?



Review:

I've previously read and thoroughly enjoyed the author's previous psychological thrillers and had been eagerly anticipating this, her third novel of the genre. Although seemingly initially slow, with time spent carefully constructing the background and present day characters to ensure no attention to detail was left out, the story of #ThePromise begins to build as we meet the three schoolgirls and some of the supporting characters that also play a part in this deftly tangled and emotionally fraught web.



As the story of the three friends progressed and #ThePromise itself was revealed, it was clear that this tale was about to get a whole lot darker. It doesn't matter that I guessed the awful truth, the fact that this novel kept me up all night reading far negates that! The heart racing, dreadful feeling in the pit of your stomach moments that books like Teresa's give you come from great storytelling talent, which Ms Driscoll has in droves. I'll never look at a magnolia tree in the same way!

The Promise by Teresa Driscoll was a quick read for me. The story was a bit slow to begin with and I found the ending to be quite rushed. So much happened and quickly in the last 30% or so. It was a good story that has you wanting to know what has happened and who knows.

3 school friends - Carol, Beth and Sally did something horrible at boarding school. Something that they will never speak about again - the secret they promise to take to their graves. But the news that their former school is being demolished has them nervous and scared that their secret will be revealed. They are being watched and targeted - but who else knows about their past?

Thanks to Thomas and Mercer and Netgalley for my advanced copy of this book to read. All opinions are my own and are in no way biased.

This book was a mixed bag for me - and I don’t really know which genre I would place it. It would not, however, be a psychological thriller. It slowly tells the story of 3 convent girls with a secret. A secret they all promise to keep (hence the title) , but when the news comes that the convent is to be demolished the girls know there secret will soon be uncovered. So slow at times I almost gave up - there were some parts of the book I felt had only been included to fatten it out a bit - or add a back story where one wasn’t really needed. I am, however, glad I persevered as it was on the whole a reasonable read.

Took me a little while to get into this book and understand who everyone was but when I did I was hooked wanting to know what the promise. How bad could One promise be to have so much power in three grown up women. The writer takes on a journey and you go places you did not expect. 💜

Teresa Driscoll has done it again with another brilliant book.
Boarding school brings together three girls and from the first day they strike up a bond that is unbreakable. Or is it?
Beth, Sally and Carol are not only close during term time, they spend holidays together too. That is until they turn 14 and their lives are turned upside down. Things are never the same again but they must never speak about what happened all those years ago.
How long can they keep The Promise?

The Promise is a story of a three friends who have been hiding a terrible secret since their days at a school run by nuns. Beth, Sally and Carol have coped in different ways with their promise not to tell anyone about that happened when they were younger. When Beth starts receiving threatening messages from someone who claims to know about the past, she and Sally try to reconnect with Carol before the secret gets out. What they don't realize is that Carol has been hiding something else that could put them in terrible danger. A solid book, but not as good as her previous effort I Am Watching You. I would still recommend it to readers who are willing to wait for the story to build slowly to the final twist.

This was so disappointing...I'd really enjoyed previous books by this writer but it was SO slow, SO drawn out that I gave up and didn't finish. I found I just didn't care. Sorry.