Abby Stern is doing just fine. She is set to marry her summer camp, sweetheart, has found friends in her bicycling club, and has {mostly} made peace with her plus sized body. But she can’t help but feel a lingering sense of unease about her future. And when her best friend asks her to fill in leading a two week bike trip along the Empire trail of New York, it seems like the perfect excuse to take a step back and evaluate her life. That is, until she realizes one of the riders is her one night stand from two years ago… and another is her mother, who has always made her feel less-than for being bigger.

Throughout the trip, secrets will come to light, hard truths are confronted, and broken relationships are mended.

This is Jennifer Weiner at her best! Loved the main character, the pacing was great and the author did an especially great job showcasing the complexities of different mother-daughter relationships. Thank you Net Galley and Atria Books for the e-arc.

While I appreciate the discussion of topics such as women’s rights (voting), abortion, eating disorders, and mother daughter relationships, I found that there may have been too many topics and dynamics at play. I would have loved to dig deeper into the plots and lives of the main characters and left some of the secondary characters from the bike tour group out.

Jennifer Weiner has been one of my faves for YEARS so imagine how thrilled I was to have gotten to read an advanced copy of The Breakaway! In true Jennifer fashion, she weaves a wonderful story. I love that her heroines are normal women. Not too thin or conventionally beautiful, but normal and all the more gorgeous for it!

Abby is in her thirties, happy and engaged to be married to a doctor… who she met as a child at fat camp. She struggles with her weight… or at least her mother does. She thinks her life is on track until she fills in for another instructor on a bike trip in NY and runs into Sebastian, the guy she had a one night stand with a couple years before.

Sebastian has never forgotten Abby.. The one who got away. He loves women. ALL the women. And one of his women posts about it on social media fueling a frenzy of hate directed towards him. But is he wrong?

Sebastian and Abby definitely feel something… but she’s engaged and he’s got other problems.

This book is funny and heartwarming and down to earth and SPECIAL.

I'm not much of a cyclist but this book made me want to experience the challenge, the scenery and the peacefulness of a long bike trip. I liked all of the individual character stories, and how connections were forged on their trip. I also really liked Abby's idea to empower girls and her description of how riding her bike brought her freedom and strength at a hard time.

Abby is 33 and somewhat stumbling through life. Her one steady presence is Mark, her long-time successful boyfriend, who is calm, kind, and predictable. Faced with having to decide on whether or not to move in with Mark, Abby escapes by agreeing to lead a bike trip through New York state. There she must face her past, her present, a former one-night stand, and her mother. This contemporary romance does not shy away from tough issues.

A Weiner book is always an easily enjoyable experience. I thought this was a fun plot and premise, the characters could have been developed a bit more for my liking, but overall this was a fantastic summer read.

🚴‍♀️“I think the bicycle has done more to emancipate women than any one thing in the world. I rejoice every time I see a woman ride by on a bike. It gives her a feeling fo self-reliance and independence the moment she takes her sea; and away she goes, the picture of untrammeled womanhood.” The Breakaway’s Abby Stern quoting Susan B. Anthony

It is not summer without a Jennifer Weiner release. After the summer book series, I was ready for something new, and The Breakaway hit the spot. Weiner’s newest release tells he story of Abby Stern, always a bigger girl, who in her 30s does not have her professional life together. Her friend who runs a bike trip company needs a last-minute guide to run a trip and Abby, a lifelong rider, steps up. An unexpected guest on the trip challenges her perception of self.

The book also focuses on the mother-daughter relationship that is strained because of weight. Abby’s mom sent her to fat camp and has been trying to get Abby to lose weight her entire life. There’s another strained mother-daughter relationship between two riders that has a somewhat political bent to it. I thought it was done extremely well and applaud Weiner for incorporating her beliefs into her fiction.

Thank you to Atria Books for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are honest and my own.

Abby Stern is confident in herself, but not in her life decisions. A 2 week bike tour with strangers, a former 1 night stand and her mother help her see what direction she. Neds in her life.

I enjoyed reading this novel even though the basic premise/set up was both classic Jennifer Weiner and a bit far-fetched -- a plus-size, funny woman with a skinny, fat-phobic mother is asked to lead a bike tour and discovers both that one of the riders is her gorgeous one-night stand from years earlier with whom she had an electrifying connection and that her mother is on the trip, invited by a friend who meant well. But I have to confess that I skimmed throughout and found the plot thread about a teen-ager's abortion to be oddly uninteresting and out of place. Not that it isn't a valid issue but it stuck out as a point that the author wanted to make more than being integral to the story.

As someone who hoped to ride RAGBRAI this summer, I was excited to see a book featuring a multi-day bike ride. For it to be from Ms. Weiner also made me think it would include well developed characters and serious social commentary. The past few books from Ms. Weiner have been terrific in their inclusion of contemporary topics but I think perhaps this one went too far. Not that the topics included here (which I won't spell out because some might be considered spoilers and you are welcome to read the publisher's blurb for some of them) aren't important but just that there were too many shoved within the same book leading to a lack of focus on any of them specifically and too many times where it felt like characters were giving speeches instead of being developed as multi-level characters. And yes I understand that there is an overlap between a lot of the issues included here, but again, too much. And is it weird to also say that there wasn't enough drama? Everyone seemed to be just fine with everything. The issues that should have brought about some polarized discussions just fizzled out. Finally, while I recognize that Abby's self-esteem and weight issues were primary in this book, it got really annoying. And also, again, became another little ending tied up in a pretty ribbon. Guess I needed a gravel bike ride instead of a road ride.

This was a great mix of some of Weiner's original books (young woman finding herself/looking for love) and her more recent books (older women dealing with teenage and young adult daughters.) As someone who has been on bike trips and who has lived and traveled in New York, I loved that a bike trip from NYC to Buffalo was the bulk of the book. This is an easy, enjoyable read that seamlessly includes a few heftier topics.

📖 Rating:⭐️⭐️⭐️✨ (rounded to 4 on here)

Jennifer is amazing at staying true to her writing style & themes, but can still give a fresh spin with each new book. And this one was no exception!

I felt for Abbey as she tries to find her life’s purpose while navigating a relationship that seems to good to be true. She met Mark in her teens while at a weight loss camp. Years later they reconnect and while their love makes sense, it feels like he is her only option. Ahhhh…..then of course the one night stand from so long ago is signed up on her first group ride she is leading.
Abby now has to deal with her group of bikers, Sebastian, her mother, and her feelings all while trying to act like a professional. All she wants to do is literally break away from everything.

It’s quite a ride with a lot of characters. It was hard at first to keep track of the individual stories of the riders. Parts felt rushed, forced, and a little unfinished. But, it’s hard not to enjoy everyone and the way they support each other, especially Abbey. Just wanted a little more for her and us as readers.

❗️Take note that Jennifer often sprinkles in heavy topics in her books. Abortion is part of a storyline that is weaved into multiple chapters so it can’t be avoided.

👉🏻This book has:
•Romance •Close Proximity •Mother/Daughter Relationship •Multiple POV •Family Relationships •Body Positivity •Women’s Rights •Trauma

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for an #gifted copy in exchange for my review! 💕

Review is posted on Goodreads & Instagram

In Breakaway, Jennifer Weiner chose an unusual setting for her book. She captures the prejudice in the way many larger people are treated by people who don't even know them. Most of all, the message to love yourself cones through.

So many fun characters in this & several tougher topics covered too (body image/fat shaming, abortion, family issues). I loved Abby & Sebastian’s story, but I also enjoyed all of the other dynamics (mother/daughter, friends) and the multiple viewpoints throughout the bike ride. Definitely entertaining, but also a book that relates to a lot of hot topics/struggles that so many face today. Thank you NetGalley for this ARC!

I am a huge Jennifer Weiner fan— I love her character driven storylines, and The Breakaway is no different. Even at 400 pages, this book flew by.

Abby is 34 and balancing a few different odd jobs to make ends meet, but hasn’t yet found her purpose in the world. She’s about to move in with her boyfriend of two years, who she met at a weight loss camp in her young teens when her best friend asks her to lead a two week bike trip from NYC to Niagara Falls in which her only one night stand ever, resurfaces along with some other surprise appearances.

This book is layered, and covers a wide variety of topics through various characters who are all imperfect and flawed, thus relatable. It covers fat phobia, serial dating, mental health, self-discovery, abortion, and challenging parent/child relationships. If you are a mid-30’s millennial, a lot of these topics will really hit home.

Thanks to Netgalley + Atria Books for the ARC!

The Breakaway is a continuation of hit novels for well-known author Jennifer Weiner! In true Weiner fashion, this novel encompasses so many complex topics, but in a narrative that moves quickly and tugs readers in. Abby Stern is back with her childhood love, things are moving quickly and she knows she should be over the moon. Mark is everything she ever wanted, but something is holding Abby back. In an effort to have some space, she agrees to lead a bike tour across New York State. In the most unlikely turn of events, Abby finds out her estranged mother is on the trip and a one-night stand from years ago, Sebastian. Abby was sure she’d never see him again, but being together will force her to acknowledge truths she hid from even herself. The trip is complicated by a slew of characters that have each found themselves along for a ride of lifetime and Abby is thrust in as a fearless leader to them all. Readers should be aware that The Breakaway has topics that include: COVID pandemic, body-shaming, obesity, women’s reproduction rights and mental health issues. The Breakaway is my next choice for my women’s only book club and I cannot wait to discuss.

A sincere thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really liked this book! It was very well written and I liked all of the characters. The plot centers around a two week bike trip and now I am desperate to go purchase a bike!

My biggest grievance with the book was several off hand mentions of the pandemic and Covid, with other social issues like the mentions of the suffragettes, women's health issues, and other social issues. There was a character who crossed state lines to have an abortion. So many big social changes happened during the pandemic and a lot of authors wrote during that time period. We are now seeing their art emerge into the world and there have been so many mentions of Covid in recent fiction. This book briefly touched on several different things but none of them necessarily contributed to the plot, it just felt like so many ideas all smushed into one book. I really enjoyed the book though, it just seemed like so many ideas were on the authors mind!

Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy of the book to read and review.

Greatly enjoyed this book. Loved the characters in this book. Lots of character growth as well . I am not really a biker, but it still was hard to put down. I received an advanced readers copy from NetGalley (thanks!) but my review is unbiased. This is the fifth book (including a novella) I have read by this author and have loved them all. I definitely plan to read more of her books and hope she continues to write.

Another wonderful, heartfelt novel by Weiner. Abby is a young woman who has struggled with her weight and her mothers criticism of said weight her entire life. Although she does several part time jobs to make ends meet, she’s reasonably happy with her fiancé and her life in general. When Abby has to chance to lead a bike group on a trip she is hesitant to do it, but ultimately accepts the challenge, not knowing her mother is part of the group. With her mother, a one night stand that she has never stopped thinking about, and a teenager in crisis as part of her bikers, Abby has her hands full. Funny, heartwarming story that sheds lights on extremely serious topics with humor and compassion.

Abby is in a nice place. She is comfortable with her small gigs in lieu of a job and her boyfriend is kind, despite their differences. When she leads a cycling trip, she will use it to think on those differences but a few things happen during the trip to shake it up.

Another Jennifer Weiner book that I couldn’t put down! She’s definitely one of my top five authors. No matter what she writes, it’s unputdownable. I always love her characters and the drama that ensues. This book is full of it but also has some very meaningful and important subplots as well. I especially loved the mother/daughter relationships in this book and how it showed we only see what we know, and there’s often more.

“There aren’t girls like you. There aren’t guys like me. There’s just you, and me.”

The Breakaway comes out 8/29.