429 books
—
1,369 voters
Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read.
Start by marking “The Promise of Amazing” as Want to Read:
The Promise of Amazing
by
Wren Caswell is average. Ranked in the middle of her class at Sacred Heart, she’s not popular, but not a social misfit. Wren is the quiet, “good” girl who's always done what she's supposed to—only now in her junior year, this passive strategy is backfiring. She wants to change, but doesn’t know how.
Grayson Barrett was the king of St. Gabe’s. Star of the lacrosse team, top ...more
Grayson Barrett was the king of St. Gabe’s. Star of the lacrosse team, top ...more
Get A Copy
Hardcover, 371 pages
Published
December 31st 2013
by Balzer + Bray
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Reader Q&A
To ask other readers questions about
The Promise of Amazing,
please sign up.
Popular Answered Questions
Chelsea (thepageprincess)
You can go to your local library, or try borrowing an ebook from Overdrive.
Community Reviews
Showing 1-30

Start your review of The Promise of Amazing

Is insta-love ever a good idea? One where with only a handful of pages two people have already felt that they are experiencing the beginning of something “real"? Something that would change their lives? Pffft! Well ok even if this stuff can - or so I’m told - happen in real life, I need a lot more substance to convince me in fiction. I have very rarely seen cases of insta-love - or instant somethings - where I could actually feel a genuine connection forming between two characters, The Promise o
...more

See more reviews at YA Midnight Reads
Thank you Balzer + Bray for sending me this copy. No compensation was given or taken to alter this review.
-So Melanie, I’ve heard a lot of mixed reactions towards Robin Constantine’s YA debut, The Promise of Amazing. What did you think of it?
*grumble* Lying piece of poop. Amazing my ass! What is it with the world? People break promises… and now book titles are breaking them?! *grumble grumble*[image error]
-I take it you were not pleased with what you got. It ...more
Thank you Balzer + Bray for sending me this copy. No compensation was given or taken to alter this review.
-So Melanie, I’ve heard a lot of mixed reactions towards Robin Constantine’s YA debut, The Promise of Amazing. What did you think of it?
*grumble* Lying piece of poop. Amazing my ass! What is it with the world? People break promises… and now book titles are breaking them?! *grumble grumble*[image error]
-I take it you were not pleased with what you got. It ...more


This will be short and I'll let the characters tell you why I had some problems.
The girl, Wren has, some issues. I mean, like the blurb said: she's average.
"Maddie (her friend) had her hair down, pencil in hand. It looked like she was taking notes too, but I could tell she was sketching. I hoped I wasn't her subject this time, because the look on my face was anything but pretty"

And the guy is a delinquent who tosses hot dogs in the air for a show because HE IS MATURE LIKE THAT. ONCE they saw ...more

2.5 stars
The Promise of Amazing was one of my most anticipated books. That cover alone screams; Adorable, read me! But at last, I just couldn't love this one.
Our story begins with Wren Caswell who is an average shy girl that wants a bigger life, but doesn't think that she can actually have one. Her family owns a reception hall called the Camelot and it's there that she unexpectedly saved the life of a boy who was chocking. Grayson Barrett. Thus begins a very rushed and somewhat confusing relatio ...more
The Promise of Amazing was one of my most anticipated books. That cover alone screams; Adorable, read me! But at last, I just couldn't love this one.
Our story begins with Wren Caswell who is an average shy girl that wants a bigger life, but doesn't think that she can actually have one. Her family owns a reception hall called the Camelot and it's there that she unexpectedly saved the life of a boy who was chocking. Grayson Barrett. Thus begins a very rushed and somewhat confusing relatio ...more

Review from Ja čitam, a ti?
Honest and captivating young adult story. The Promise of Amazing is a book you should not miss - it reminded me of all the reasons why I love realistic, contemporary young adult novels so much. Where new adult goes more along a line of cliche romance, young adult combines story about growing up, making difficult choices, falling in love and realizing that nothing is set in the stars. Robin Constantine managed to include all of those in debut novel.
Expectations, insec ...more
Honest and captivating young adult story. The Promise of Amazing is a book you should not miss - it reminded me of all the reasons why I love realistic, contemporary young adult novels so much. Where new adult goes more along a line of cliche romance, young adult combines story about growing up, making difficult choices, falling in love and realizing that nothing is set in the stars. Robin Constantine managed to include all of those in debut novel.
Expectations, insec ...more

BEFORE: I sure hope so.
AFTER: This was a nice, heart-warming, learned-your-lesson type of book. While the storyline doesn't differ too much from your typical shy-girl-meets-the-hot-player, Constantine delivered a pretty good story about Grayson's past and his attempts to change.
My qualms about this book is that Grayson and Wren didn't fully sound like "real" characters to me.
I get that having been caught and temporarily losing who he thought were his friends made Grayson try to change his ways. ...more
AFTER: This was a nice, heart-warming, learned-your-lesson type of book. While the storyline doesn't differ too much from your typical shy-girl-meets-the-hot-player, Constantine delivered a pretty good story about Grayson's past and his attempts to change.
My qualms about this book is that Grayson and Wren didn't fully sound like "real" characters to me.
I get that having been caught and temporarily losing who he thought were his friends made Grayson try to change his ways. ...more

Reading The Promise of Amazing was a really fun experience for me! After reading a few darker fantasies, I was super glad for the breath of fresh air. This book had me smiling and rooting for the characters in the way I had hoped and needed!
I loved the alternating viewpoints of Wren and Grayson. Wren is the quiet student, looking for change, and Grayson is the social troublemaker in, you guessed it, a heap of trouble. I really am glad that they each had their own distinct voice, as I hate it whe ...more
I loved the alternating viewpoints of Wren and Grayson. Wren is the quiet student, looking for change, and Grayson is the social troublemaker in, you guessed it, a heap of trouble. I really am glad that they each had their own distinct voice, as I hate it whe ...more

The Promise of Amazing really gave me high hopes that it would deliver something amazing. It had a pretty cute cover, but also the premise to this sounded fantastic! I was hoping it would be the perfect autumn/winter book that I could snuggle with whilst drinking my praline mocha. But alas this wasn’t the case. Don’t get me wrong there were several adorable moments between our characters Grayson and Wren which I appreciated. But I was kind of left wanting more.
For me the attraction between Grays ...more
For me the attraction between Grays ...more

At a glance, The Promise of Amazing seems to have everything: a girl who is at a crossroad about her future, a guy whose life sucks; then one day they meet and BAM. Yes, we've all read similar books. But what makes The Promise of Amazing so different and why did it fail to deliver on that particular difference it tried to make?
Cutesy romances being held back by conflicts are sweet and enjoyable only as long as they don't stray too far from the adorability factor. I was not comfortable reading Th ...more
Cutesy romances being held back by conflicts are sweet and enjoyable only as long as they don't stray too far from the adorability factor. I was not comfortable reading Th ...more

Wren Caswell always the good girl who does what she’s supposed to do decides that she finally wants to do something for herself for a change, rather than what everyone else wants her to do.
Grayson Barrett had a good life until he messed it all up by being expelled from college after being caught charging people for test answers. Grayson is now back home and pretty unhappy. But when Wren and Grayson met after Wren saves Grayson’s life, the two find that they are attracted to one another and soon ...more
Grayson Barrett had a good life until he messed it all up by being expelled from college after being caught charging people for test answers. Grayson is now back home and pretty unhappy. But when Wren and Grayson met after Wren saves Grayson’s life, the two find that they are attracted to one another and soon ...more

This book was cute, but I hate a few problems with it. The climax was a bit anticlimactic and the story seemed a little one sided. I loved that we got to know Grayson and saw his internal struggle with what was going on with his family, school, and feeling undeserving of Wren. Wren, however, we only knew she had problems with being the "quiet girl" but once she crossed paths with Grayson he eclipsed everything. But nevertheless, it was a fast read. Just the right amount of light and fluff
...more

I was provided an ARC from the publisher via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review
Did I enjoy it?
Did I find it a genuinely good book?
Would I recommend it to my friends?
But...The book's called 'The Promise of Amazing' - and did I get that? Well, read on to find out.
Wren and Grays ...more
Did I enjoy it?
Did I find it a genuinely good book?
Would I recommend it to my friends?

But...The book's called 'The Promise of Amazing' - and did I get that? Well, read on to find out.
Any time I checked off the reasons to avoid him, I'd picture him in front of school, leaning against his faded car. Hands in pockets, swoon-worthy grin, deep brown eyes full of the promise of amazing
Wren and Grays ...more

Nose Graze — Young Adult book reviews
I am absolutely drowning in indecision. Did I like The Promise of Amazing ? Was it only okay? UGH! I don't know!!
I started out on excellent terms with The Promise of Amazing. I thought Wren was funny, had a great personality, and I could completely relate to her.
YES YES YES! Agreed! Some people just aren't loud and chatty. Some people ...more
I am absolutely drowning in indecision. Did I like The Promise of Amazing ? Was it only okay? UGH! I don't know!!
I started out on excellent terms with The Promise of Amazing. I thought Wren was funny, had a great personality, and I could completely relate to her.
The NHS evaluation made [being quiet] sound like a character flaw. Something I could improve. That's just not how it worked.
YES YES YES! Agreed! Some people just aren't loud and chatty. Some people ...more

3.5 Stars
A little bit Cruel Intentions, and a little bit Pretty in Pink, Robin Constantine’s debut novel The Promise of Amazing introduces us to Wren Caswell and Grayson Barrett, two kids searching out the answer to one question: who am I?
As the summary says, Wren Caswell is average. She’s never thought of herself as anything special. She’s the youngest of three, and the middle of her class. But one chance meeting—involving cocktail weenies, of all things—changes all of that forever after she sa ...more

2.5 stars.
Look at that cover!
Oh, how I want to join those two fresh-faced teenagers in their tiny little love bubble. I want to giggle and be generally adorable with them. I want him to call her “short stuff” and her to tease him about his awkward lankiness and the fact that he’s ugly in the same way as Paul Dano, and then I want to squee as they touch their frosty noses together.
And the premise–girl working in her family’s Medieval Times-style banquet hall falls in love with a boy after saving ...more
Look at that cover!
Oh, how I want to join those two fresh-faced teenagers in their tiny little love bubble. I want to giggle and be generally adorable with them. I want him to call her “short stuff” and her to tease him about his awkward lankiness and the fact that he’s ugly in the same way as Paul Dano, and then I want to squee as they touch their frosty noses together.
And the premise–girl working in her family’s Medieval Times-style banquet hall falls in love with a boy after saving ...more

This review is also posted on my blog, Anatea's Bookshelf
The only thing amazing about this book is its beautiful cover, everything else is pretty much the opposite. The Promise of Amazing is not so amazing after all, so don't get your hopes up with this book and disregard the title.
The Promise ofAmazing starts when Wren performs Heimlich on Grayson and that's how they meet. The rest of the book is pretty much about how they love each other. Insta-love, you ask? Unfortunately, yes. You could eve
...more
The only thing amazing about this book is its beautiful cover, everything else is pretty much the opposite. The Promise of Amazing is not so amazing after all, so don't get your hopes up with this book and disregard the title.
The Promise of

I'm not going to lie to you, I went into this book knowing that I probably wouldn't like it. I had heard tales of instalove and that is never good. My instincts were correct, this wasn't a good book. Which is a shame, because I had high hopes for it before all the reviews started coming out. And the cover is awesome.
My main issue with The Promise of Amazing is the characters, and how I didn't feel connected to either of them as a result of the stupid instalove. We barely got the chance to get t ...more
My main issue with The Promise of Amazing is the characters, and how I didn't feel connected to either of them as a result of the stupid instalove. We barely got the chance to get t ...more

The Promise of Amazing. I read that title to myself about a dozen times, and felt compelled to read this, while on break. And there was something strangely hypnotizing about this story; I did like Wren up to a certain point.... But, I can't say the same for Grayson.
I loved how they met, and the kind of character Grayson was- but it was ultimately unbelievable. I guess people don't usually read these kinds of books b/c it's "realistic" per se, but it has to make sense. I just couldn't get past Gr ...more
I loved how they met, and the kind of character Grayson was- but it was ultimately unbelievable. I guess people don't usually read these kinds of books b/c it's "realistic" per se, but it has to make sense. I just couldn't get past Gr ...more

I love contemporaries, love the cover and was so excited about the 80s movie references. I was really looking forward to reading a YA contemporary about an ordinary girl falling in love with a bad boy in need of redemption. But after reading to the 50% mark, I've decided that this one just isn't for me…
I wasn't able to connect with the two main characters, couldn't see what they saw in one other, and just didn't feel the plot heading anywhere I wanted to go. I would LOVE to read the story that t ...more
I wasn't able to connect with the two main characters, couldn't see what they saw in one other, and just didn't feel the plot heading anywhere I wanted to go. I would LOVE to read the story that t ...more

1.5 stars
The Promise of Amazing promised amazing things. ZING. I had to get that out of the way. I just had to. Now that we've gotten the title pun in here, let's see... did it deliver on its promise? Tragically, no. But I won't say that this book was completely terrible either. I mean, it has a pretty cover. Look at that! Ain't it purty?

If one enters this book in the right mood, it can be quite enjoyable. Let me clarify what I mean. When I started reading The Promise of Amazing, I was desperate ...more
The Promise of Amazing promised amazing things. ZING. I had to get that out of the way. I just had to. Now that we've gotten the title pun in here, let's see... did it deliver on its promise? Tragically, no. But I won't say that this book was completely terrible either. I mean, it has a pretty cover. Look at that! Ain't it purty?

If one enters this book in the right mood, it can be quite enjoyable. Let me clarify what I mean. When I started reading The Promise of Amazing, I was desperate ...more

I never do this. I always make sure I write my review well within twelve or a maximum of twenty four hours after having finished reading a book. And honestly, this might be the first time I'm finally getting to write a review after nearly two to three days after reading the book. Not because it has been difficult to incorporate a review in my schedule but because I don't really know what I feel about author Robin Constantine's The Promise of Amazing. When I don't know what to say in reviews, I t
...more

The Promise of Amazing was a fun, cute read that will leave you wanting more! For those of you who know me, I’m not big on YA contemporary. It’s just too.. rainbows and kittens for my taste. But The Promise of Amazing surprised me in such a good way!
Wren was a great character. I found her to be real, down-to-earth and relatable. There’s a big thing in the beginning where Wren talks about being quiet – how being quiet is not a conscious protest, nor a character flaw that can be fixed. As someone ...more
Wren was a great character. I found her to be real, down-to-earth and relatable. There’s a big thing in the beginning where Wren talks about being quiet – how being quiet is not a conscious protest, nor a character flaw that can be fixed. As someone ...more

Twitter | Blog | Instagram
3.75 Stars
Its an underrated YA which deserves all the attention for every YA Contemporary fan out there.
____________
Blurb : It's a story which starts with the girl saving the guy from dying (literally and figuratively). It's about two people their own problems and how they end up helping each other. The girl is tired of everyone considering her quiet. And the guy , well lets just say his last school suspendef him because he had opened up a flourishing business of tradi ...more
3.75 Stars
Its an underrated YA which deserves all the attention for every YA Contemporary fan out there.
____________
Blurb : It's a story which starts with the girl saving the guy from dying (literally and figuratively). It's about two people their own problems and how they end up helping each other. The girl is tired of everyone considering her quiet. And the guy , well lets just say his last school suspendef him because he had opened up a flourishing business of tradi ...more

Having heard nothing about this, the cover is honestly, adorable. And that title.
So, I went in, ignoring reviews for this.
A friendship that leads to something more. All because Wren saves Grayson's life.
I liked the moments where Wren was working at Camelot, hanging with her best friends, confiding in them, Grayson wanting to get to know Wren and change his ways, character development for the two as the story goes along, etc.
Oh and later on in the book, they communicate at least. Thanks for that ...more
So, I went in, ignoring reviews for this.
A friendship that leads to something more. All because Wren saves Grayson's life.
I liked the moments where Wren was working at Camelot, hanging with her best friends, confiding in them, Grayson wanting to get to know Wren and change his ways, character development for the two as the story goes along, etc.
Oh and later on in the book, they communicate at least. Thanks for that ...more

It's really cute and light, I'll give it that. But everything else sucked.
Full review to come ...more
Full review to come ...more

With a title like The Promise of Amazing, the jokes come all too easy - particularly when the book isn't quite what was, well, promised. To cut right to the point, the book fails to deliver on its intriguing premise. If you're a long-time reader of the blog you might recognize the phrase Matthew Pearl Effect, a term I've applied to novels that sound fantastic, but just don't live up to expectations (after numerous attempts at Matthew Pearl's novels I've finally come to terms that it's definitely
...more

Wren Caswell is average. Ranked in the middle of her class at Sacred Heart, she’s not popular, but not a social misfit. Wren is the quiet, “good” girl who's always done what she's supposed to—only now in her junior year, this passive strategy is backfiring. She wants to change, but doesn’t know how.
Grayson Barrett was the king of St. Gabe’s. Star of the lacrosse team, top of his class, on a fast track to a brilliant future—until he was expelled for being a “term paper pimp.” Now Gray is in a dow ...more
Grayson Barrett was the king of St. Gabe’s. Star of the lacrosse team, top of his class, on a fast track to a brilliant future—until he was expelled for being a “term paper pimp.” Now Gray is in a dow ...more
topics | posts | views | last activity | |
---|---|---|---|---|
What's the Name o...: SOLVED. YA Romance: 2013-2014. Girl studies at an all girl high school and doesn't know what to do with her life. She meets a boy at her mother's restaurant and he eventually works there as well. [s] | 4 | 598 | Sep 22, 2019 11:16PM | |
What's the Name o...: SOLVED. Searching for a YA book with the main protagonists facing each other? [s] | 2 | 29 | Aug 14, 2016 11:05PM | |
Crazy for Young A...: The Promise of Amazing by Robin Constantine → Start Date: December 20, 015 | 11 | 14 | Dec 30, 2015 08:40PM | |
What's the Name o...: SOLVED. she works at her family's medieval-styled banquet hall where they host parties and stuff (it's how she and the main guy meet when she saves his life there) [s] | 6 | 99 | Feb 04, 2015 10:22AM | |
Young Adult Conte...: #26 The Promise of Amazing by Robin Constantine | 3 | 21 | Nov 30, 2014 05:58PM |
Robin Constantine is the author of The Promise of Amazing, The Secrets of Attraction and The Season of You & Me. A born-and-raised Jersey girl, Robin likes to spend her days dreaming up stories where love conquers all, eventually, but not without a lot of peril, angst, and the occasional kissing scene. She loves swoony books, flip-flops, dark chocolate and the full moon.
You can find her online a ...more
You can find her online a ...more
News & Interviews
The idea for The Gilded Ones came to author Namina Forna in a dream. The recurring image was one of a young girl in armor walking up a...
96 likes · 9 comments
No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »
“I kept thinking of her eyes, the depths of them, the way she looked right into me, and I wasn't afraid of what she'd find.”
—
18 likes
“That grin was pulling me into the deep end of the pool. The scary part, the part that made me search desperately for some other task I could lose myself in, was that there was a small, insistent voice urging me to dive right in.”
—
13 likes
More quotes…