I couldn't put this book down. I liked how it was told from the 3 boys perspectives but also had inserts of people known to the boys 'statements' about 'who did it'
A great few twists and I was really kept guessing who actually committed the crime before it was revealed, I kept changing my mind throughout.

An enjoyable, fast-paced YA mystery that tackles corruption, racism, and toxic masculinity, Promise Boys trades in some of its potential subtlety for satisfying payoffs, likeable characters, and a slim but decently-constructed teen whodunnit.

3 students became the main suspect killer of the school's founder and principal. they have motives, they have unusual records, but they insist that they're innocent and everyone close to the suspects also believe that they didn't do it.

So who's the killer? is one of them just so good at lying and covering the evidences?

They were accusing each other at first, but when nothing came out of it, they finally teamed up with the help of their friends but it only started to happen on around 65% mark.

This is a nice fast-paced high school mystery, with various narrative sources (interrogation records, news, character's PoV) and multiple voice of characters. Not mindblowing whatsoever but it's nice nonetheless.

YA books today are so much more advanced than when I was in my teens. They are willing to explore more interesting and important topics such as classism and nature versus nurture. This was a very interesting read and very powerful with its words.

I've been reading this book for 6 months, thanks to yet another slump, but I enjoyed my time reading this!
Promise Boys deals with really important social commentary and I think it would be a good book for schools as it opens up many different race and social class discussions.

Promise Boys is utterly brilliant. Well plotted and perfectly nuanced. You feel for all the characters and become deeply invested in them and the overall story.

Five stars all the way! This book was insightful and deep, with a unique plot and a narrative that had me turning every page with anticipation. I wholeheartedly adored it and I'm so grateful to the publisher for the opportunity to read it!

Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to read and review this book.

This book was written very differently to anything I have ever read before. I enjoyed the story enormously but even after finishing it I am not sure if I liked the writing style at all. The book followed 3 boys who are assumed to have shot and killed their school Principal. I did enjoy all of the various points of view in each chapter and enjoyed how even towards the end I still had no idea who was guilty or not guilty. It was so interesting reading each of the boys' story. The only downfall was that it seemed to end really quickly. Definitely recommend.

Brilliant book. I got a free copy from netgalley but on release of this book I got the Waterstones Exclusive Edition Sprayed Edge Cover.

Told in many character perspectives,newspaper and tv reports, to keep the suspense up throughout. I could not put it down. With what's happened this week in Nashville as well it got a bit too tough to read at times with the thought that this happens to much in America.

What can you say though America will never change. Guns need to go, don't care that it's in their constitution. Say what you want to them though always falls on deaf ears. Guns will always be a problem in American schools.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

I must say I was a little disappointed by this book. I expected it to go further in making its point about racism inherent in the education system, and I saw the twist coming a mile off. However, it was still an enjoyable read with an interesting narrative structure, and gives some much needed diversity to the YA detective noir genre.

Promise Boys is a Young adult, dark-academia novel which teaches us a lesson about assumptions and false perceptions.
The story is told in short chapters, one for each of the three major suspects; we hear from peers, family members, people who don't know them but have heard rumours about them, school staff, and so on. The multi-perspective works really well and adds to the suspense of the story - who knows the truth? How harmful will all of the incorrect beliefs and gossip be? Similarly to how the three boys are viewed by others (with many important points about prejudices about race, background, class, and so on), Urban Promise Prep school has an outside perception and a very different reality.
I really liked this novel. It is full of tension because of the riddle of who the murderer is, but it also makes you think about what you unfairly judge people about and the effect this has.
I was also lucky enough to be part of a webinar with author Nick Brooks where I learned more about his writing and this book. I will definitely pick up more of his work in the future.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the advance copy of this title in return for an honest review.

I am a big YA fan and I am always on the lookout for new and exciting books to recommend to my friends and their teenage children. Promise Boys is one such book that I have been recommending to just about anyone who will listen, and is a book that I feel will appeal to avid and reluctant readers alike,

Each part of Promise Boys starts with a collection of short snappy sections, each from a different point of view (these would work brilliantly as the start to each episode if Promise Boys becomes a TV series, which I really hope it does), before moving into longer chapters told from the perspective of each boy. These “soundbites” really grab the attention of the reader, making Promise Boys one of those books where it is easy to fall into the “just one more chapter” trap because some are only a couple of sentences long, and before you know it, you haven’t moved for hours. Despite the brevity of each of the short sections, I found each voice to be so distinct that I had a vivid image of the person speaking, both in terms of appearance and personality.

Following from such vividly written minor characters, as you would expect the three main characters in this book are beautifully created and heartbreakingly human. Are they perfect? Most definitely not, but it is this that makes each of them so believable, and I am sure that every young reader will relate to at least one, if not all, of these boys on some level.

Nick Brooks has a wonderful writing style that really draws you into the heart of the story, and it is easy to see that he is writing not from the point of an outsider looking in, but as someone who understands the very heart of the boys he is writing about. When Promise Boys released, I had the chance to attend an online book launch with the Nick, and he speaks so passionately about the unheard voices of Washington – the real life Promise Boys. He is truly a champion of building young people up to be the best that they can be.

One of those case when YA or children's book is just a marketing category because the book is more and cannot be classified.
A good and solid thriller, a coming of age story, friendship. There's a lot in this gripping and well plotted story.
The author is an excellent storyteller and can't wait to read the next book.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

A pacy mystery, focusing on the murder of Principal Moore and the prejudices at play as his murder is investigated.
Promise School was founded as a place to support those boys who have difficulty fitting in elsewhere. The book opens with its focus on the school and the strict environment created to control its students. Our main focus is three boys - Trey, JB and Ramon - who are all in detention on the evening Moore is shot. In the frame for his murder, they have to overcome their own prejudices to work together and find out what really happened.
The story is split into clear moments building up to the crime and afterwards. We see the different viewpoints of the boys, and it soon becomes clear that someone is trying to set them up.
The identity of the one responsible was not quite the surprise you might have thought. Unfortunately it says a lot about the kind of environment created for these boys and the way society often exploits our inner fears for others’ gain.
Thanks to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read and review this before publication.

J. B., Trey and Ramon are students at Urban Promise Prep, a school run to draconian rules by principal Kenneth Moore. When Moore is shot to death on school premises, these three boys, who are in detention at the time of the murder, instantly become the police's prime suspects.
The three boys must take matters into their own hands to find the killer and prove their innocence. But can they trust each other?

Promise Boys was a gripping mystery, and an eye-opening portrayal of the challenges young people of colour face in a world that does not give them the benefit of the doubt. However, Nick Brooks also shows us the dreams and ambitions of the three protagonists: J.B.'s blossoming romance, Trey's future of playing basketball at college level, and Ramon's plans of opening a restaurant.

A powerful read, and what better time to pick it up than during US Black History Month?

Thank you, NetGalley and the Publisher for providing me with a free eARC in exchange for an honest review!

This book was something. I loved the format and how it first started with each of the characters' perspectives of the day, and then onto the main mystery. I will say this book is hard-hitting and deals with many important topics. I liked how the story was short but long enough for the author to get their point across. While I saw the main plot twist coming, it didn't impede my enjoyment of the book. This is definitely a book I would recommend everyone reads!
(*3.5)

J.B., Trey, & Ramón are 3 of the pupils at Urban Promise Prep School - J.B. lives with his mum who works all hours to provide, he likes to write songs & is in love with Keyana, a girl from another local school. Trey is a basketball hopeful who could possibly get a scholarship for college, he lives with his Uncle & their home is almost as strict as school. Lastly, Ramón has a side hustle selling pupusas at school, & he wants to open his own restaurant one day, but will his family's gang affiliations help or hinder him?

The school has strict rules & an even stricter Principal. Principal Moore swears by the results that his disciplinary methods produce, but he seems to be unravelling, jumping on the tiniest infractions of the rules & even threatening good students with expulsion. J.B., Trey, & Ramón all have run-ins with Principal Moore, & all 3 are given detention, but in the time whilst they are momentarily separated on the school grounds, Principal Moore is killed. The police suspect one of the boys is the killer or maybe they all worked together. To prove their innocence, the boys must work together to solve Moore's murder, but can they even trust each other?

The 3 main characters were well-fleshed out & it was easy to distinguish between them as you are reading. This is surprisingly difficult for an author to achieve, 3 characters who have their own unique voice, & I thought it was well done here. There are also some very powerful statements throughout the book about the challenges of being BIPOC in America. The narrative is told from each of the 3 main characters' points of view, but there are also other viewpoints such as blogs & articles about the case, as well as chapters from the boys' friends & families. All the chapters are short & concise & this helps keep the narrative flowing. The issue I found was that the investigation part of the story was rather inconsequential. There were a few places, such as when one of them hacks into the school computer system, but otherwise it consisted mainly of meeting up a couple of times & wondering who else had a motive. It was also resolved very quickly, & there were certain points that were not fully explained, i.e. was the Detective related to Miss Hall? Overall I enjoyed it, but I don't know, I just expected a bit more. 3.5 stars (rounded up).

My thanks to NetGalley & publishers, Macmillan Children's Books, for the opportunity to read an ARC.

A headmaster shot and three pupils accused of his murder as they all reasons for doing so, a very good murder mystery style of book and you don’t know who is going to be until the last possible second as there is so much motivation behind each possible suspect. I didn’t initially think I was going to enjoy this but this was a good read.


Clever format of having the police transcripts and the witness style statements from family members, classmates, teachers and sponsors, this mixed in with the main story really helped give a better background on some of the characters.

It always the types of books that I don't usually read that I end up absolutely loving. This was such as amazing read and this will be such as amazing audiobook, which I hope it does turn into. This is one of my best reads of 2023.

When high-school Principal, Kenneth Moore, is murdered, three boys had both motive and opportunity. Working together to prove their innocence, the boys (J.B., Trey and Ramon) find all is not as it should be behind the scenes. Their school had started out as a beacon, but as time as gone by, Moore's strict discipline has alienated both the students and the staff, and all is not how it seems. A great choice for fans of Karen McManus and Jason Reynolds.