Hannah continues to outdo herself with each new release. This book was perfection. Loved Sarah and Caleb!! Hits you right in the feelers. This marriage in crisis was done SO well. I needed and wanted so much more, and for it not to end!! Easy 5 stars.

Incredible. This book was just so good. I knew HBY wouldn’t let me down! Sarah and Caleb’s story is so real, so raw, and so heartwarming that I found myself crying (more like sobbing, lol), laughing, and anxious all at once.

I loved getting to see Sarah and Caleb (and Win too!) basically grow up and become the people we know them as in Out on a Limb. While it was devastating to watch Sarah and Caleb struggle with their marriage and the inevitable changes that come after 14 years together, it was also deeply moving to see them work through it—learning new ways to communicate, grow together, and find their way back to each other.

This felt like such a real portrayal of love. It’s not all sunshine and rainbows 24/7—it comes with pain, loss, and so much growth, both together and individually. All that to say, this was amazing, and everyone should read it immediately.

Huge thanks to NetGalley and Dell Publishing for sending me an early copy of this book! Hannah, I can’t wait to see what you write next!

As a huge fan of second chance romance and Out on a Limb I was very excited for this release. But it felt a bit flat for me. I was hooked at the beginning of the novel and was enjoying the premise and the way the book was going but as the book progressed it started to lose me.
Rather than feel like a marriage reconciliation story it felt like a self discovery journey for Sarah, at no point did I feel like the marriage between Sarah and Caleb was in peril, it felt more like a big fight. While I did enjoy some of the past chapters with Sarah, I think it would have helped the whole story if we got a bit more of the build up of Sarah and Caleb’s relationship. This juxtaposed with them being separated in the current timeline would help to build more tension and intrigue for their relationship.
I also found the end to be a bit gimmicky, I think a person getting hurt is such a cheap plot device to bring characters together.
Then the ending with Sarah being some kind of famous play writer felt very far fetched to me. Especially within the plot of the story, we see Sarah go from a house wife who wants to go to college in one chapter and then be so famous in the next chapter.
I did find the relationship to religion to be interesting but it was not fully flushed out in a way that made sense to me. Like it just kept showing up in the same way and then she resolves it at the end, it was weird.

5 - ⭐⭐⭐⭐ ⭐

“Don’t think for a single second you could ever truly leave me. You can go as a far as you need to, but you’ll always me a part of me…”

Out of the Woods is an adult contemporary romance and interconnected standalone to Out of a Limb . You don't need to have read the first book but it can add to the story. In this story, though, we follow Sarah and Caleb who, despite being dubbed the happily married couple (childhood sweethearts in fact) in their friend group, are experiencing marital problems that have them second guessing their lives together.

Sarah has been feeling this sensation of dependency and incapability in her life for awhile. She struggles to think of any accomplishments she has done on her own and when she attempts to do one thing on her own her perfect husband inevitably saves the day when it fails.

Caleb has become struck in a rut and he's unsure what to do. Having experienced all the ups and down with Sarah he is finally faced with a problem he can't seem to solve. When Sarah suggests a hiking trip meant for couples struggling they quickly realize this may be their last chance to fix things before they break...

This book was beautiful and had me tearing up on THREE different occasions.

Sarah and Caleb are absolutely beautiful together. Using flashbacks we get to explore their lives together up to the present and, through it, we see how much they have been through together. Sarah is struggling to find herself after thinking back on her life while Caleb is struggling to meet the changes his family so desperately needs. Their love is powerful and beautiful but the heartache of knowing that love is not the only thing was a message needed.

There are amazing side characters that help this novel from the iconic Win and Bo from the previous book to the crew at the camp - Gina, Jai, Helen, Libby, and more! These characters saw our main characters at their lowest and supported them in their rise with kindness, teasing, and empathy. Without them our characters would not have been able to find themselves a way forward and I loved every interaction with them.

“We have the rest of our lives to fuck each other’s brains out. I’m here to get your heart back first.”

There is spice in this novel - I would say 2.5 spicy peppers out of 5 spicy peppers. This is an already established couple but we don't see full spice until the second half as they work through the marital struggles. I thought this was well done for the romance as the mix of present day and past showed their relationship grew and thus made the spice feel meaningful when it occurred. The spice itself is a bit feral with all the pent up feelings finally let go. Spice involved dirty talking, risk of being caught, and a whole lot of outdoor shenanigans. I had a lot of fun with it! There are about 2-3 scenes with some foreplay moments as well.

The story itself is a truly moving journey. We not only see Sarah and Caleb attempt to work through their differences in the present but also explore how their relationship grew and evolved from 14 years old onwards. There are a whole lot of ups and downs that help reveal how the characters ended up where they are today and some powerful heart to heart chats that unpack these. I really felt the setting was beautifully chosen (not just because it is my home province) but also the balance of Sarah and Caleb working through things together in addition to talking things through with others. There is excellent banter, camaraderie, and tearjerker moments that punctuate a pretty climatic moment I was not expecting but I really appreciated it tying everything together and letting our two characters shine.

Overall, I adored this book. It was truly a wonderful read that moves the soul. I need more couples like Sarah and Caleb!

Thank you Dell for this arc!

Note: This book does contain references to illness and death of a loved one. Be kind to yourself.

I was kindly provided by the ARC of this book by NetGalley and the editors in exchange of an honest review, thank you ✨

5⭐️

I laughed, I cried, I blushed, I felt Sarah’s grief and pain and love, I was having the greatest time reading this book 😭❤️‍🩹

Since the moment I read Out on a Limb, I fell in love with Sarah and Caleb and reading their story was just beautiful and overwhelming too, how she was trying to find herself after all she been through from her teenage years and how Caleb was so afraid of losing her, it’s was so so beautiful seeing how the two of them grow together and as individuals and how they managed to re connect and fell in love again and remembering how they always hate been there for each other 🥹❤️ my heart is so happy

as usual…. HBY wrote another heart wrenching masterpiece. this book has so much love infused in it, my chest aches so much. what a beautiful love story that sarah and caleb have with so much rich and painful history. the bo and win scenes made my entire life 💓💓💞💓💓 I loved this so so much!

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.
Hannah Bonam-Young was recommended to me a while back right around the time her books had first been picked up for trad publication, due to the disability rep. And while I own all of them, I just haven’t gotten around to them. I did panic a little upon realizing that Out of the Woods is billed as a “companion novel” to Out on a Limb (despite not being linked in any series on Goodreads, Amazon, or the publisher’s page), and there were a lot of recommendations (including from the author) to read that first, and I was purposely avoiding making that my first experience with her books, as accidental pregnancy is an iffy trope for me. However, it can stand alone, with there being enough context that I didn’t feel I missed out on anything about the central couple or their romance. And in fact, I absolutely loved this, with it possibly clinching “marriage in trouble” as one of my go-to favorite tropes.
The romantic dynamic here is one I really like, with Sarah and Caleb being a high school sweethearts who got married and are now facing problems, in part related to Caleb’s choice to anonymously contribute a donation to an ALS fundraising gala Sarah was organizing in honor of her late mother. Both are real humans with real issues as a result of the stagnant state of their relationship, with Sarah in particular carrying a lot of baggage due to her grief for her mother and lack of professional growth, in comparison to Caleb, whose career has thrived. I love how active both are in addressing the need to make changes in both their lives and their marriage, and their journey is truly beautiful to observe as they come back together.
As much as I liked seeing the characters challenged by the Great Outdoors, I appreciated that the emphasis was on their emotional growth, both personally and as a couple, and the nature aspect was more a complement to that than the focus on the external plot itself. And with it being more insular, it feels like much more of a slow-burn, but one that feels worth it.
This was such a warm hug of a book, and I am now excited to go back and read Hannah Bonam-Young’s other books. While I can’t speak for her established reader base as to how it compares to her other books, I do feel this is a solid entry point for readers to get into her work, especially if you enjoy romance centered on the couple’s emotional journey.

I am truly blown away. This story was so beautifully unique, raw, and real. I know that I will be thinking about it for months if not years to come.

Out of the Woods follows Sarah and Caleb, high school sweethearts who got married at 19 and have loved each other over half of their lives. The story revolves around the conflict that arises from the lack of self identity and independence that can occur within a marriage, especially one that started at such a young age.

The characters were not perfect, and that was so incredibly necessary for this story. Just like every person to ever exist, they did not do or say the perfect things at every turn, and that was what made this book so relatable. Their conflicts were so realistic for a marriage between people who have grown and changed over time. Reading their conflict and conversations felt like I was peaking behind the curtains of couples across the world.

Sarah and Caleb go on a week long wilderness retreat to reconnect and regroup after a fight resulting from years of both of them not expressing their feelings to one another. Again, this just felt so realistic to me.

I loved that this book gave us a perspective of the romance that is rarely explored: what does it look like to fall back in love or reignite romance within an already existing marriage?

On top of all of these things, the topic of grief and how that impacts you as a person and as a partner was explored beautifully through Sarah's character.

If you are looking for the "perfect book boyfriend" or a fairytale love story this is not the book for you. But if you are looking for a story about fighting to find the spark again with the love of your life then look no further. This was such a unique story and will stay with me for a very long time.

This book put my emotions through the wringer! When I say I was sitting at my work desk sobbing reading this book, I am not exaggerating. I was apprehensive about this book before reading it as I usually prefer uplifting/funny romance reads and the description didn’t sound like that, but I loved the authors previous book so gave it a shot. The beginning was slow for me but I quickly began to root for the main characters and trying to read faster to see what happened next. The end of the book was unexpected! This was such a beautifully written and thought provoking book, I finished reading yesterday and was still thinking about the book today. The way the characters grew and became closer throughout the book makes you think about relationships with a different perspective. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the advanced copy of this book!

this was EVERYTHING!! i’ve been so excited to read this one ever since finding out sarah and caleb are getting a book and it did not disappoint!!

sarah and caleb being high school sweethearts who got married really young and have spent half of their lives together but suddenly are confronted with the fact that there are things both of them have been holding inside for so long AHHH this was just written so well and although their marriage was never fully in crisis, i really loved how their relationship developed throughout the book!!

i’m gonna keep this review spoiler-free so i won’t get too much into it but sarah’s feelings about who she is and her identity crisis about what she’s done with her life was written PHENOMENALLY and it was so relatable in some ways. and caleb I LOVE HIM the sweetest man in existence, and seeing how he had to be the stable, reliable one in the relationship and how that affected both him and sarah through the years GAH!!!

one of the main parts of this book that i really enjoyed was how it showed the ups and downs of marriage and being in a relationship and how despite their problems, sarah and caleb truly did love each other through it all and AHHH i’m just so in love with this book!!!

thank you sm to netgalley and random house for the arc!!

Are we out of the woods? I caught myself singing that wayyyy too much while reading this book, but that’s what happens when a Swiftie reads a book that has a Taylor Swift inspired title. This book was definitely worthy that because holy cow I feel forever changed after reading Sarah and Caleb’s marriage in trouble story.

Out of The Woods deals with a lot of significant topics since as grief, spousal issues and the struggles of feeling like you don’t know who you’re anymore, wanting to do something for yourself and not being so dependent on someone else all the time. It also deals with the reality of what could happen when you marry very young. But all of this is written incredibly and Hannah explores these things on a very truthful manner and it leaves you feeling like you just went through what the main characters experienced.

It’s no surprise nor secret that I have been dying to read Sarah and Caleb’s story even since they got introduced in Out on a Limb. Their dynamic always intrigued me and getting to further explore what went on when they were teenagers and the effects of it over a decade later was really fulfilling to read about. The whole wilderness marriage counseling environment was an interesting take on the marriage in trouble trope and I enjoyed getting to see them work on their marriage and relationship this way so much because it was very fascinating and it kept me on my toes all the way through.

The heart of the book was definitely Sarah and Caleb and their decade long relationship and even though they had their struggles they always found their way back to each other. The flashbacks with Sarah’s mom was devastating but it also gave the book even more heart and the depth it deserved. The sisterhood between Sarah and Win also made me feel all warm inside and how supportive all of the characters was, especially all the people they went n the wilderness excursion with, the definition of found family all of this together.

In Hannah Bonam-Young's newest novel, Out of the Woods, we get Sarah and Caleb's story. We first met them in "Out on a Limb" and I loved them (especially Sarah!!) then! Now it's a few years later and Sarah is restless. She loves Caleb but she doesn't know who SHE is and doesn't know how to figure that out. Her entire adult life has been Caleb. So she decides to enroll them in an outdoorsy/counseling/couples therapy session to reignite their relationship and discover who she is and how they fit together.

I loved this book so much. Sarah and Win's friendship is so perfect and I also loved the flashbacks to Sarah and Caleb's beginnings to show just how deep their relationship goes. I could have gone without the accident at the end, but I also ultimately think it served to move forward a major plot point with Caleb's family that needed to happen.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC.

Caleb and Sarah were highschool sweethearts that had been married for more than a decade. Caleb is a successful business owner and Sarah is a stay at home wife. Caleb is happy the way their life and marriage are but Sarah feels worthless and stuck. It feels like they are growing into two different directions so Caleb and Sarah decided to attend a camping couples therapy to help re-ignite their marriage. Will they find their way back to each other?

I love this book! It gives you 2 different perspective of a relationship that’s built out of love but taken for granted. As somebody who’s been in a relationship since highschool to now in my 30s with the same man, most of the story resonates with me. It’s about healing and growing. This book is emotional yet funny with a little spice. This is a great read! ❤️

Thank you Netgalley and Random House publishing for an ARC of this book. 💕

Thank you to netgalley and Random House for the ARC!

Hannah Bonam-Young is my auto-buy, auto-read, WHATEVER I have to do do read her books, I will do it. I'm absolutely awed that I even got an ARC, but I'm so thankful I did.

I loved Out on a Limb, the book where we first see Sarah and Caleb, who seem exceedingly happily married, but as we find out in this book, its not quite so. There is no questioning their love for each other, but love isn't always enough, and they can't seem to get past a particularly gnarly marital hurdle. Winn (our heroine from OuaL) suggests a hiking trip led by a therapist and her wife called Reignite, meant to do just that in struggling relationships. Caleb hopes it will knock the hurdle out of the way and they can get back to how they were but...Sarah is battling something bigger within herself.

She feels aimless, helpless, like she's been living her life with no purpose. She doesn't see what she brings to the people she loves. She's wrestling with the roles she and Caleb placed on themselves and each other at such a young age. Necessary at first, but feeling like the damsel to Caleb's Knight in Shining Armor isn't working anymore and it's creating a rift. She hopes Reignite can help her with these feelings, and help her be able to express them to Caleb.

Like I said in the beginning of the review, there is absolutely no question how much Sarah and Caleb love each other, and that's one of the things I loved so much about it. The story is about them figuring out how to grow within themselves, finding their own identity that isn't "Caleb's wife" or "Sarah's husband."

The switches in perspective, from present day to when Sarah and Caleb were teenagers were perfection, utter heartbreak, and further explained how they got to this point in their lives. I loved that the "third-act breakup" was at the beginning so all we expected for the rest of the book was the mending. And god was that good. It was so much deeper than I expected. Sarah deals with a lot of her grief from the loss of her mother when she was young, and that helps her in trying to find herself and where she belongs in the world.

Yes, there is a lot of introspection and a lot of hard looks at themselves, but there is also so much humor. The side characters almost really didn't feel like side characters, but as part of the story, and they were so fun!

I can't wait for this book to come out so I can get my paws on a copy!

This was my first marriage in crisis book and it was so freaking good. This story was full of emotion, grief, and depth. You really watched as these characters rediscovered themself while trying to save their marriage. You could tell they were in love and they didn’t want to let each other go.

While it was a little harder to get into at first, the story slowly started to blossom in front of me. Caleb doesn’t have a POV so we are witnessing everything through Sarah. I also do wish there was more tension that we did get in her previous books. I do wish the ending was a wee bit different because I don’t think it was ended or had impact on the story.

BYE EXCUSE ME I NEED 3-5 DAYS TO RECOVER

*takes deep breath and tries not to cry* GOD I LOVED THIS BOOK

I cannot properly put into words how much I loved this book. I laughed, I cried, i swooned.
This one hit every single emotion possible. I saw so much of myself in Sarah and her feelings it felt sometimes like looking in a mirror. As someone who got lucky enough to find their person at 15 this one really struck a cord with me

At the age of thirty-one Sarah Linwood seemingly has the perfect life from an outsiders perspective. Nice house, handsome husband which a cushy job and supportive friends. But recently Sarah has been grappling with the fact that she doesn't really who she is as person without her husband Caleb. Sarah decides she needs a change and she needs it fast.

In an effort to save their marriage, Sarah and Caleb decide to embark on a hiking retreat intended to help couples "reignite" their lives.
What comes to follow is a heartwarming, inspiring and hilarious story full of self discovery, healing. While this story is about a marriage in crisis also depicts living with loss and how that loss can change your entire worldview.

This book contains and then and now timeline in which we get to see Caleb and Sarahs relationship begin from a budding highschool crush. This part of the story also entagles with the story of Sarahs mom who has since passed (not a spoiler- its in the blurb, i promise). Sarahs relationship with her mother made me need to go hug my own mother more than once.

As someone who also found their person at the age of 15 and knows the struggles that come along, it was moving to watch this couple navigate growing together while also being able to grow as individual people. These two were so flirty and fun and you can tell that they are truely eachothers best friends and isn't that what we all want?

"If you give me the space to grow I'll plant myself next to you, always"

Dont get me wrong, while this book made me cry my eyes out I also laughed my arse off. Sarah is a girl who just gets it. Her and Caleb and not outdoorsy people AT ALL and watching them navigate a 9 mile hike and pooping in the woods along with the amazing cast of side characters was hilarious and filled this book with many light hearted moments.

"Did you just . . . fawn? Isn’t that how they describe it in your books? Or wait, no, it’s— Swoon,”

Although I am a dual POV girl until my dying day I will always make an exception for Hannah, her writing flows easily makes me want to live inside the pages of the story.

A HUGE thank you to Dell Romance and Random House for approving my Netgalley eARC when I had a 0% feedback rate! I love you forever besties 🤍🤍🤍

Tropes
💍marriage in crisis
🪵hiking retreat
🧠mental health rep
🩷highschool sweethearts
⛺️A spicy tent scene

3.5⭐

this story was so sweet! i really enjoyed the self reflection in sarah and how she came to find what she wanted most in life. however, i thought there would be more romance and i had different expectations for this book and super high expectations because i absolutely loved bo and win (and it was so good to see them in this book as well 🤭). i really enjoyed the grief aspect but truly wish there was just more! the ending felt a bit rushed and honestly could've had at least a few more chapters to really make it feel like a solid ending. but i think that's a me thing since this was one of my anticipated releases.

I AM CONVINCED THAT HANNAH BONAM-YOUNG CAN DO NO WRONG! It's always perfect, and this is no different. They are completely adorable and have my whole heart. One of my favorite tropes is win back your spouse and this might be at the top of the list of favorites! All the hearts, all the stars, ALL THE PRAISE!!

Out of the Woods focuses on Sarah and Caleb who were first introduced in Out on a Limb. You COULD read this book without reading the first one, but I don't break the rules and when the author suggests to read in order, I'm going to.

Sarah and Caleb are in a bit of a rut since they have been together more than half of their lives. Rather than having a midlife crisis and someone buying a convertible, they end up going on this nature retreat to focus on their relationship. Honestly, most of the things that they're struggling with are pretty relatable if you've been in a relationship before so there were times when I was just like "come on, communicate already". Overall though, I enjoyed the book, but not as much as Out on a Limb. I'd recommend to check it out if you enjoyed Hannah's first book or want to read something that you can relate to a bit (minus the hiking... I will not be hiking). I've rounded this up from a 3.75.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for the advanced reader's copy!

My Caleb and Sarah <3 What a special read this was. Broke my heart and stitched it back together like 50 times over.
Marriage in crisis is one of my favorite tropes (that isn’t done often enough in my opinion) but! I am very aware how painful it can be and I was fully bracing for impact with this!! However!! I’m really glad that Hannah found a way to write a marriage in crisis book that didn’t make me sick to my stomach the entire time. I will say though… the Sarah x Her mom flashbacks though. That packed a PUNCH!!!!!!

I really loved how once we got over that initial bump, Caleb was so open to trying absolutely anything Sarah wanted to fix what was broken. I also adored that they both mutually wanted to be better for the other. I think a lot of times in a marriage in crisis story there is one character that is (at least seemingly) checked out and ready to GO but I loved seeing two people who love each other, that experienced some challenges together, but don’t want to just throw in the towel. I never for one second questioned if either of them loved the other and I think that’s what made this one so special.
See also: A man that packs your kindle for you so you can keep your reading streak going while in the woods even when you’re going through a rough patch???? I never doubted them!!!

The only thing I didn’t particularly love about this was the little situation during the last 20% of the book. It definitely served as a catalyst for a lot of growing and learning but it just felt a tad unnecessary after all they’d been through. BUT! Boy did I love seeing my Bo and Win (and Gus!!) show up when they were needed!! That’s my fictional family!!!!

I also, of course, have to touch on the Taylor Swift of it all briefly as a full time career swiftie. I really really love that in the age of authors using Taylor references whenever they possibly can (which most times just comes across as cringey, gimmicky, and a ploy to get more reads) I love that Hannah did NOT! go overboard!! even though the title would suggest otherwise!! The only references in here are ones that you’d have to be true swiftie tm to pick up on and I loved that!! Yayyy!!