Throwback Thursday - Tomorrow's Promise by Sandra Brown

Author: Sandra Brown

First Published in 1984 by Mira

It happened the way attraction happens best: suddenly, passionately, uncontrollably and unforgettably. 

Thousands of feet above the ground on a crowded flight to Washington, D.C., radio personality Keely Williams felt the irresistible pull of handsome congressman Dax Devereaux. They were speaking at the same congressional hearing about Vietnam soldiers listed as MIA. Tragically, Keely’s husband was among the missing soldiers. He had been her childhood sweetheart, her future, her love&#151:and then the unanswered question Keely dedicated her life to solving.

Until there was Dax. And the possibility of a new future. But could Keely allow herself to love again, and still honor the man of her past?

Given the content of Tomorrow's Promise, this book is definitely dated.  It's hard to ignore the time it was written since it deals with MIA soldiers from the Vietnam war.  I have mixed feelings about this book.  I loved Dax.  He is such a sweet guy and any woman would be a fool not to fall in love with him.  His attraction to Keely is instant and even though she fights it at first, it is instant for her as well.  I felt badly for him as I wanted to see him with Keely.

That was about all I liked about the book. In the end, I had a few issues.  Keely's husband has been missing in action for 12 years.  She has no idea if he is alive or dead.  She was married to him for 3 weeks before he went off to war and his helicopter went down over the jungle and his body was never found.  She has stayed faithful to him for 12 years.  While I'm not sure what I would do personally, all I could think in my head as I was listening to this was "It's been 12 years!! He's probably dead.  Isn't it time to move on?"  Keely's character annoyed me.  She was such a martyr and so depressing.  She says she feels guilty about having feelings for another man, but she keeps making out with the Dax.  The back and forth of her feelings got tiring.  Also, the whole idea of scandal was laughable.  Just because you are fighting for the MIA families to not have their spouses declared dead, doesn't mean you can't move on with your life. I doubt the general public would hold that against you.

I think in the end, this one was just OK for me.  There were other things that I didn't agree with in the book, but I don't want to turn this into a political rant.  It's a pretty fast listen as I was able to finish it in a day at work.  It's not her best, but see for yourself.