Break me like a promise

Name: Break me like a promise
Author: Tiffany Schmidt
ISBN: 9780802737830

Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide

Once Upon a Crime Family

by Tiffany Schmidt

Reading Level 4-5 ME · Moderate · Emotional Ages 13+ Matched

The text is written at a 4th grade reading level, the subject matter is intended for teens (ages 13+), and the content has moderate intensity with some emotionally heavy themes. Its HootRating code, ME, means moderate content, mostly emotional.

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About This Book

Did you know there's a hidden world where secrets can save or break a family? Maggie's family runs a risky business that most people don't even know exists, and when new rules come along, everything starts to change. But meeting Alex, who knows something Maggie never expected, is only the beginning.

Themes

FamiliesOrganized CrimeSickFriendshipEthical Dilemmas

Quick Assessment

Maggie, raised to take over her family's black-market organ business, is forced into a bargain with a blackmailing computer whiz as new laws threaten her family's operations. Expect organized crime, the death of a former love, a character's declining health, and a slow-building romance. Its moral gray areas and emotional stakes suit older teens who can discuss them.

Why we rated Break me like a promise ME (Moderate)

Break me like a promise is written at a Level 4-5 reading level across 404 pages. Upper Grades (Ages 13+) is the typical interest range for this book — readers in that age band have the maturity and attention span suited to the story, separate from whether they can decode the words.

We rate Break me like a promise as ME (Moderate, mostly emotional) because the content sits in the "Moderate" range — moderate conflict that may involve loss, scary scenes, or interpersonal stakes. The strongest signals come from emotional weight, social complexity, thematic difficulty — these are the dimensions parents should evaluate against their reader's tolerance.

No specific content flags were raised by community reviewers, which is consistent with the moderate intensity score.

Thematically, Break me like a promise explores families, organized crime, sick, friendship, and ethical dilemmas — these threads give the book room to mean different things to different readers.

Good fit for

✓ Children in the Ages 13+ range — the maturity and attention span match the story's pacing.
✓ Kids drawn to stories about families, organized crime, sick.

Maybe not for

! Readers who get easily upset by emotional or moderately dark scenes — the conflict here is real, not just background flavor.

For Parents

Content Intensity

ME · Moderate · Emotional

Emotional

Moderate ←

Physical

Mild

Social

Moderate

Thematic

Moderate

Reading the HootRating code: the first letter is the content intensity (C = Gentle · L = Mild · M = Moderate · I = Intense · V = Very Intense); the second, when there is one, is the kind of content that drives it (E = Emotional · P = Physical · S = Social · T = Thematic). Reading level and age range are rated separately. How we rate

Real stakes and emotional weight. May include sustained danger, loss, or bullying.

Data confidence: high

Was our "Moderate" content intensity rating accurate for this book?