Jenniferreads

by Ashton Lattimore

Historical Fiction | 4.5⭐️ | 4/2/24 | Ballantine Books

Ashton Lattimore’s Debut novel, “All We Were Promised,”  is a fascinating look at Pre Civil War Philadelphia. A young housemaid with a risky secret befriends a wealthy abolitionist and works together to help an enslaved girl escape. 

While the characters are fictional, Lattimore has captured Philadelphia at a time when tensions were simmering just below boiling. Each character was well developed and thought out to bring a unique perspective to the narrative. While at times the pacing was a little slow, the book provided a spectacular insight into that time and place. Overall a 4.5 rounding up to a 5. This would make a great book club read given all the characters providing different insights and perspectives.