The promise girls
Marie Bostwick
The promise girls
Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide
by Marie Bostwick
The text is written at a 7th grade reading level, the subject matter is intended for middle graders (ages 9–12), and the content has moderate intensity with some emotionally heavy themes.
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About This Book
Joanie’s fingers fly over the piano keys, Meg clutches her paintbrush, and Avery starts weaving a story — but their mother’s camera keeps rolling. The Promise sisters thought they left their past behind, but a new documentary brings secrets crashing back. What will happen when the truth they buried so deep comes to light?
Themes
Quick Assessment
This novel explores the complex lives of three sisters who were once celebrated child prodigies, now grappling with the weight of their mother's fame and expectations. It touches on themes of family dynamics, personal identity, and healing from past trauma, suitable for middle-grade readers around ages 9-12. Parents should note the emotional depth and some mature themes like family conflict and medical challenges, though these are handled with sensitivity.
Why we rated The promise girls 12ME
The promise girls is written at a Level 7 reading level across 346 pages. Strong independent readers around grade 8.0 can typically handle this book on their own; with parent or teacher support, The promise girls works for readers up to grade 9.0.
We rate The promise girls as 12ME ("Moderate — 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, 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, The promise girls explores family, sisters, gifted children, identity & self-discovery, and healing — these threads give the book room to mean different things to different readers.
Good fit for
- ✓ Children in the Ages 9-12 range — the maturity and attention span match the story's pacing.
- ✓ Patient readers who enjoy slower, character-driven stories.
- ✓ Kids drawn to stories about family, sisters, gifted children.
Maybe not for
- ! Readers who get easily upset by emotional or moderately dark scenes — the conflict here is real, not just background flavor.
- ! Reluctant readers who need a fast hook — the pacing here rewards patience.
For Parents
Content Intensity
12ME — Moderate — EmotionalReal stakes and emotional weight. May include sustained danger, loss, or bullying.
Was our "Moderate" content intensity rating accurate for this book?
Reading Insights
Hook Factor
1/10A steady, thoughtful read that rewards patient readers.
Discussion Potential
3/10A lighter read — great for independent enjoyment.
Book DNA
Multi-dimensional content fingerprint
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Details
Book Length
- ISBN
- 9781496709219
- Pages
- 346
- Publisher
- National Geographic Books
- Published
- 2017
- Type
- Fiction