To say that I enjoyed this book would be a bit of an understatement. There was a great story, but it was the characters that grabbed me and took me for an emotional ride.

On the surface this book is great for someone looking for some steamy sex scenes, a great slow building romance within a complicated friendship. But it’s much more than that. Getting both Nate and Jessie’s points of view to tell this story allowed me as a reader to see each character for who they were and to not just have me speculate on each side of the story. I got the honest true, with no punches pulled. Especially from Nate’s POV, with the demons he’s battling throughout the book, a no holds barred account is what made me love the book.

This isn’t an easy story to digest either. A lot goes down that isn’t going to be easy for some readers to stomach, even I was tense for some scenes, but it’s worth it in the end. Great books for me are often those that pull at the heart while exploring uncomfortable sides of human nature.

If Promise Me This, with its character’s depths and lack of restraint on tough topics, is any indication of the rest of Lee’s Between Breaths series, I’m going to have some more books to go out and enjoy. This is a book that’ll stay with me for a while. ( )

Review courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales

Quick & Dirty: Very steamy romance that will pull at your heartstrings. I have really enjoyed this entire series and would recommend it to all New Adult contemporary fans!

Opening Sentence: I backed the brunette against the wall, my lips at her neck.

The Review:

Nate is quite the player when it comes to beautiful women. It’s not that he wouldn’t like to be in a relationship, but he doesn’t trust himself in one. His father was very abusive to his mother and Nate recognizes some of the same demons in himself. The only time he ever had a girlfriend was in high school and there was one night where things got a little out of control. Ever sense, Nate has always held certain parts of himself in check and that means never letting anyone get too close. But there is one girl he can’t seem to help but want to get close to and her name is Jessie.

Jessie is a beautiful girl who works in a tattoo parlor. She has crazy colored hair and tattoos all over her body. She has always dated a certain type of guy that is similar to her, but that hasn’t really worked out so well for her. Her and Nate have been friends for a while now and they always have a good time teasing each other. Jessie knows that Nate is not her type because he comes from a wealthy family and wears polo shirts. But one night Jessie walks in on Nate with another girl and it sparks an interest inside Jessie that she never expected. She knows that Nate is a player, but she can’t help being attracted him. They may be polar opposites in many ways, but there is no denying there is something between them that could be really great if they would both give it a chance.

Jessie was such a great character. She has a witty personality and she doesn’t care what other people think about her. She does what she wants and she is always very honest about how she feels. She currently works at a tattoo parlor, but she is also going to school so she can become a photographer like her father. She grew up in a very loving family, but her father passed away suddenly a few years ago and that has been really hard for her to deal with. I loved how open she was with Nate about her past and she never judges him. She is one of those people that is easy to talk to and it’s pretty much impossible not to love her.

Nate is such a great guy and I really felt for him and the situation he found himself in. Growing up in an abusive home affects everyone differently and it always leaves some type of scar. Watching as he struggled with all of his personal demons was really hard, but also inspiring. He doesn’t deal with everything perfectly, but at least he tries to do the right thing to the best of his ability. He wants to be a better person then his father even though he feels that he has a lot of the same weaknesses, and I really respected that about him. His relationship with Jessie is very hot, but they also complement each other extremely well. I loved how they could talk about anything and make each other laugh. It was a sweet romance and developed at a great pace. Overall, I thought that Nate was a great character and I enjoyed reading his story.

Promise Me This is a sexy story that tugs at your heartstrings. The character development was great and the pacing was perfect, but the story was a little forgettable. I read this about a week ago and I am having a hard time remembering everything that happened, but I do remember enjoying it while I was reading it. The romance was very steamy and well written. I was surprised by the fact that this was slightly more erotic then the rest of the books in the series, but it worked really well with the issues that were covered. I would actually recommend this to anyone that wants to try erotic romance, but doesn’t want to jump right into a full blown erotic book. This story just slightly scratched the surface of that genre and gives you a little taste of what you can expect from that type of book. I have read all the books in this series and I have enjoyed each one of them immensely. I think that Lee does a wonderful job writing stories that are full of raw emotions and lots of steamy moments. Overall, this was an entertaining, quick read that all new adult contemporary romance fans will really enjoy!

Notable Scene:

Nate laughed and clapped Bennett on the back, reminding me of how alive and unreserved he was in every other way. With his friends and his sense of humor he lived out in the open—even with his daredevil antics, how he always talked about his next rock-climbing or snowboarding adventure—but there was that one area in his life that was most cryptic.

I’d just figured he was immature, given too much too early from his wealthy family. But tonight in the bathroom, I saw a flash of something different. Something that resembled a deep ache—an unfulfilled longing in his face—a split second before he’d pushed that girl away. It was there. I knew I hadn’t imagined it.

Regardless, Nate was way too straight-laced for me with his perfectly tailored jeans and buttondown shirts, even if they did hug his muscles in all the right places. And the girls he spent his time with probably all looked the same—privileged and gorgeous.

I liked at least a little gravity to the guys I dated, so I never paid Nate much attention beyond our easy and playful friendship. But tonight I’d admit it was the first time I could picture myself up against that sink, with his hot lips against my neck.

FTC Advisory: Intermix/Penguin provided me with a copy of Promise Me This. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review. ( )

Mixed feelings for me on this one. It started out really promising. The back and forth between Nate and Jessie was awesome. They are friends who both are attracted to easy other and the teasing between these two builds up the chemistry just right. However, felt like the tone changed too quickly just after that.

As a favor to Jessie, Nate agrees to show her some bridges in his old neighbors she can photograph for a project. This road trip seems to immediately take a serious tone. Gone is the teasing, straight into inner turmoil. (Don't want to say much more without giving it away.) It doesn't necessary affect the chemistry of the characters, I just went from completely hooked to interested.

It's a good new adult read. (Low angst, decent amount of steam with a side of alpha male.) This book is a part of a series but can be read as a standalone with no problems.

I received this book in exchange for an honest review. ( )

WARNING: NEW ADULT. ABUSIVE TRIGGERS (parental) BDSM Type situations (handcuffs and "orders" during sex (all consensual). Read review at own discretion.

I wanted to read Promise Me This because I have loved the Between Breathes series. They are all friends so can be read separately, but I will admit I am a little fuzzy on a few of the characters but remember other pieces of stories.

I like that Nate is conscious of his past, and that those who are abused is more likely to be an abuser. But I think that at times he is being overly cautious. He has desires to be more wild in sex, but he restrains himself because of a negative encounter as well as his fear of losing control. It was a journey for him to realize the difference. He is more straight laced in day to day life, but has his reputation of being a player. He had his own limits such as no kissing, etc, and he doesn't do long term.

Jessie is more of the wild girl, blue haired and tattooed. She is fiesty and can hold her own. Nate likes this and they try to maintain a friendship where they are bantering back and forth and giving each other a hard time. One night when she admits to having been handcuffed and it stirs Nate's lust but again he is afraid. She calls him square and has heard rumors of his one night stand ways, but when she sees him pushing a girl against a sink, she thinks there is more there than she thought instead of money bags boy.

When they take a road trip for Jessie's photography project we get to see them open up to one another while they drove and then exploring some of their feelings and attractions for each other. Nate holds back so much, and Jessie realizes it, and helps him to realize that its ok to be rough and bed and do the role playing when both partners are consenting and it stays healthy--only in the right context. This one did push some of my buttons because I have been in an abusive relationship that actually started as a bdsm type arrangement. So I don't know if it was truly more explicit or if it came from a bit of my sensitives.

From the trip everything got pretty tense because of his fear, their mutual attraction and the back and forth. There were some pretty hot moments right along side some bravery, arguments, and trying to figure out how it will work for him. Nate really started standing up for himself and trying to be more open about what he went through. He also tries to get his mom to see the light and eventually had a stand off with both his dad and his brother Luke.

The ending was sweet and I am glad that things worked out in some ways. It was realistic though and nothing was easy about it and some of the secondary characters still were in a place that was not so bright. But Nate was able to realize the difference in his thinking and how it is okay and not to be with Jessie and how he thinks outside of the bedroom is what shows his beautiful and kind heart.

Bottom Line: Steamy but also riddled with Nate having to come to terms with his passion and what he fears he could become. ( )