Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy of this book!

Hannah never lets me down! I was so so excited when this ARC hit my kindle it felt like a dream ARC. I love Hannah’s books and was eagerly awaiting this one. I really enjoyed this book it was definitely a different take on a love story. I think she did a really good job looking at a couple who was very much in love but still needed to change and grow together. This feels like a book about what comes after all the traditional romance books. You definitely need to read out on a limb before this one but that’s no hardship!

I love Hannah I hope she writes books forever and ever!

Is there such a thing as meeting your person too early?

Caleb and Sarah are high school sweethearts who everyone believes are perfect together. They’ve gone through so much together that life seems to become too comfortable. Which in turn leads to festering emotions and conversations left unsaid.

Sarah our FMC has reached a point in her life where she begins to question everything about herself and her marriage. At 31 she feels as though she has let life pass her by and that she has begun to lean too heavily on her husband Caleb. This leads to tension in their marriage and fear that what was once something so strong might be crumbling.

Caleb our MMC is caught by surprise when Sarah suggests doing a couples therapy hike. He doesn’t understand where Sarah’s sudden change has come from. Though he takes everything in stride in hopes of saving his marriage and remaining with the woman he loves. To him this is something worth fighting for.

Caleb and Sarah’s story is honest, raw and real. Watching them work through their past hurts and learn to communicate in a way that they have not done before was heartbreaking and beautiful. Allowing themselves to be open and vulnerable with each other and embrace the uncomfortable was amazing. To see healthy communication and honest reactions to situations was amazing. This story broke my heart and put it back together. I laughed. I cried and felt every emotion in between. This is a must read book that portrays marriage in such a real way.

I adored this book so much. I am such a big fan of Hannah Bonam-Young's writing and Out on a Limb was one of my favorite reads for the year. This one did not disappoint!

This book follows Sarah and Caleb, who are very prominent characters in the first book, as they work through their relationship issues. We learn a lot about their relationship and how they are as separate people. As someone who was married young and married my high school sweetheart like Sarah and Caleb, I found this book to be very relatable which is why I think I enjoyed it so much. It goes deep into how in a situation like that, you can get stuck in a routine and your relationship can sometimes feel like it's on autopilot.

I found this book to be very vulnerable, yet sweet and real at the same time. This book touches a lot on the grief of losing a parent, self reflection, and even some slight religious trauma. We got to dive more into Win and Sarah's background growing up together with their mothers, which I loved as Out on a Limb did not go too far into that.

Overall this was a great read. I had high expectations for this and Hannah didn't disappoint.

everything about this book i loved and definitely needed! after reading out on a limb last year i knew i loved her writing and wanted to read more of her work! when i got the arc of this book i was so shocked and started reading it immediately! the cameos of win and bo?? i missed them so much!

So lucky to have received this digital ARC as I love Hannah Bonam-Young's books! This one fell a little flat for me, though, and I'm guessing it's because of all the conflict in the book, which made me a little uneasy.

This book follows Out on a Limb's side couple, Sarah and Caleb, as they are on the brink of their marriage collapsing. The two go to a couple's retreat in the woods to work out their issues, and they end up learning more about each other while strengthening their relationship. The present day chapters are interspersed with flashbacks to when the couple started dating in high school. A lot of the book revolves around Sarah working through the grief of losing her mother at such an early age (and how she fell into marriage with Caleb, who had taken on a protective role in their relationship.) I won't spoil anything, but please know this book is heavy, with a lot of fighting between the main characters.

To be honest, the two of them could be a little mean to each other in the book, and it made me uncomfortable. Their relationship also seemed based on a lot of lust and familiarity rather than shared interests. The setting didn't add much to the story, either, so that was sad for someone like me who was looking forward to good hiking and nature montages. I think I just hated seeing Sarah and Caleb, who were my favorite part of Out on a Limb, like this. I know no marriage is completely happy though, so I guess this book is realistic in that regard.

Thank you, NetGalley and Random House, for this digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Out of the Woods by Hannah Bonam-Young 4/5. Thank you to Random House Publishing Group for this ARC! Out of the Woods is connected to Out on a Limb which I also loved! Caleb and Sarah have been together since high school and got married young. Sarah signs her and Caleb up for a marriage retreat in the woods to try to rekindle their marriage. This book is about finding yourself later in life. Sometimes it is hard to find yourself or your purpose when you grow up with your significant other. Sometimes finding yourself doesn’t mean leaving your significant other and starting over, sometimes it means putting in the work and not being afraid to take risks. Hannah Bonam-Young is one of my new favorite authors. She writes grief, pain and joy so well.

Favorite quotes: “…when reality crept in to an uncomfortable degree—I’d escape with books.” // “When our perceptions begin to shift it is usually because we’re ready for something new.” // “If you give me the space to grow, I’ll plant myself next to you. Always.” // “Hope, in my experience, is a dangerous feeling, but I’ll choose to feel it anyways.”

Out of the Woods is scheduled for release on January 28, 2025. I recommend everyone get a copy and read it!

And she did it again! Out of the Woods is now a favorite of 2024, just like Out on a Limb was a favorite of 2023. When I first read Out on a Limb, I wanted Sarah and Caleb’s story so badly, and it definitely didn’t disappoint! I ended up loving the marriage in crisis trope more than I expected. The way the characters worked through their struggles felt real and heartfelt. I also appreciated the glimpses of the other characters they were just enough to keep me invested without overshadowing Sarah and Caleb’s story, loved to see Win and Bo in there, it was the perfect balance.

Hannah Bonam-Young is a brilliant writer. I love how she writes her characters and makes them so relatable. She has an incredible talent for creating characters who feel authentic and real. I can’t wait to read more of her work!

After 17 years of being together, Sarah and Caleb have gotten too comfortable with not wanting to hurt the others feelings, hiding a lot of their own in the process.

This is my second HBY book and it both out of the woods and out on a limb will always have a special place in my heart.

Caleb and Sarah are both flawed. Caleb thinking he can solve everything like it’s a math problem and Sarah being stuck in questioning who she is after being a stay at home wife for so long.

Something I’ll always love about this group of characters the found family aspect between Win, Bo, Sarah, and Caleb. My best friend and I have moms who are also best friends so reading the about June and Marcy trucking along life with their girls was something so special to me. HBY writes about romantic love, but beyond that she writes about familial love, platonic love, and love that runs so deep and is so engrained in you that life is simply unimaginable without it.

thank you NetGalley for an ARC ☺️☺️

Thank you Hannah Bonam-Young, Dell Romance, and NetGalley for the eArc in exchange for an honest review. If I had to describe Out of the Woods in three words I’d say: sweet, angsty, introspective. Whereas “Out on a Limb” has more lighthearted moments and cute banter this was more serious and would probably resonate with a more mature crowd. Caleb and Sarah are the “It” couple - the picture of love and success. They’ve been together since they were teenagers and have overcome many obstacles together. But after Caleb unintentionally embarrasses Sarah at an event, she begins to take a hard look at her life and wonders who she is outside of Caleb (who has made it his mission to be her knight is shinning armor). She signs them up for a couples retreat in the woods to reconnect with each other and maybe even find the courage to rescue herself for once. Overall, I really enjoyed this. As someone who got married young I could relate to Sarah feeling like she got married before she really “found herself”. I enjoyed her and Caleb’s positive communication and was even inspired to do some marriage-maintenance myself. The book did fall a little flat for me as it lacked Hannah’s quirky sense of humor that made me fall in love with Bo and Wen in the first book. Sarah was so dynamic in Out on a Limb I was a little shocked by how serious she was throughout the story. The author tackles some tough issues (loss of a parent, grief, etc) and I was looking for Sarah’s usual antics to add some levity. I think this is perfect for those looking for a more “realistic” love story and not a rom-com. Overall, this was a beautiful story of love, loss, identity, and redemption. I would recommend to anyone who loves women’s fiction and a more angsty love story.

♾️⭐️My very first ARC and it was so perfect😭.It was more than perfect!After reading Out On A Limb I knew very well I needed more of Sarah and Caleb.Hannah once again did not disappoint.

Sarah’s mom’s story hit so hard I cried.Coming from someone who lost a loved one who passed from something so similar reading about it touched me deeply🩷.

Caleb and Sarah are high school sweethearts/soulmates and they proved it from page to page😮‍💨.Caleb my boy needed to get it together towards the end I was stressing out for a while😤😭.

So so glad we got more Bo and Win moments!Even if there were a handful of them they were perfect!

I would highly recommend this book to anymore!!!Im so excited to be able to say I got to read this book before it releases in 2025😭🙏

Thank you NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. First off I did not read the first book of the series and maybe that was a mistake either not reading it first or reading this one at all. This novel held my attention in the beginning and then it just droned on till the end when it got interesting again.

4.5 rounded up. HBY can’t do any wrong in my eyes. I’ve been obsessed with Caleb & Sarah since their first appearances in OOAL and while my heart was SAD they got their own book (they were so happy and cute and although they changed for the better in the book like why was I said they even had hardships to deal with) I am SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OBSESSED WITH THEM. So proud of them. So proud of my sarah girl and how she really fought to get to where she wanted to be, and so in love with caleb and his heart!!!!!! Hannah can’t write a character I won’t fall head over heels for. And she can’t write a book that I won’t read. This was!!!! So good!!!!! I love my Duranwood family soooooooooo much.

FIRST TRAD PUBLISHED FROM THE START BOOK!!! THANK YOU DELL FOR THE EARC I COULD JUST KISS YA

✨ARC Review✨
Oh how I love a Hannah Bonam-Young story! After how much I enjoyed reading Out on a Limb, I was so eager to read Sarah and Caleb’s story, and it truly did not disappoint. Marriage-in-crisis is a trope that I don’t often gravitate to, but Hannah did such an incredible job with it. I feel like this story was one of the most realistic stories that I’ve read, capturing so many deep emotions and relatable relationship struggles. Hannah is really able to depict strong connections and feelings in her writing, and I can never get enough! Thanks so much to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group, and Hannah for this ARC!
4.25⭐️

This was everything and more. Hannah’s writing never ceases to impress me. I was so hooked right away and Caleb soon became one of my favourite book bf alongside Bo of course. I loved to see how Sar learned to be confident in herself and her relationship with Caleb and to see how Caleb learned to rely more on Sarah and be more present and share more his feelings. I feel like any of Hannah’s books bring me so much comfort. Her characters are so relatable and I feel like everyone would love to have a Caleb as a husband (at least I do). Hannah has become one of my favourite authors and I will always cherish her books.

Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC.

Caleb and Sarah’s story was really interesting and I like that it focused on a couple that had been together for awhile and how difficult it can be to grow with a relationship. Staying together after getting married at 19 can be tough. It was a peek at what comes after the happily ever after and I thought it was entertaining.

The plot of Libby having to grow up without her mother the same way that Sarah basically had to was a nice parallel.

However, it just felt like it was missing something. I kept waiting for something really big to happen or for them to maybe struggle a bit more than they did. It was basically one day of therapy and then alls better? After a month of silence? It was good, the writing was clear and enjoyable, but it was missing that something that makes you want to stay up later than you should while reading it. It was good, it just wasn’t my favorite.

Hannah Bonam-Young has such a refreshing writing style that I admire and I think really resonates with the younger generation. She has a great way of incorporating real-life issues with the light-heartedness and warmth of a romance that I just love! The FMC and MMC were both very likeable in this novel, and although I don't think it's QUITE as good as Out on a Limb, it's still great! Would recommend! :)

This is a great follow up to Out on a Limb! I loved getting to know Sarah and Caleb in their own story.

Out of the Woods does more than simply continue the story of the couple we previously met. It fills in the back story of high school sweethearts, Sarah and Caleb, and the traumatic event that brought them even closer together. Sarah realizes that she is still dealing with grief and self doubt which takes a toll on her marriage.

Like other Hannah Bonam- Young books, this one is extremely real. You can feel the emotions of the characters and the writing is superb. I enjoyed the flashbacks and really liked the appearances of Win and Bo.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Book Review 📚
Title: Out of the Woods
Series: Standalone (Takes place after Out on a Limb)
Author: Hannah Bonam-Young
Format: E-ARC
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Release Date: January 25th

Thank you for the ARC of this book 🩵

Tropes:
🏕️ Marriage in Crisis
🥾 High School Sweethearts
🏕️ Grief and Healing
🥾 Flashbacks
🏕️ Reader FMC
🥾 Outdoor Spicy Scenes 🥵

Review:
This book was one of my most anticipated reads for the year and it was perfection 🩷 This book was everything I wanted and more and I devoured it. Hannah Bonam-Young writes the most beautiful love stories that give us the perfect amount of softness, angst and emotion. This book follows Sarah and Caleb, who meet in Out on a Limb, which I do recommend you read first.

I loved that this book wasn’t about Caleb and Sarah falling out of love, but just needing to learn to communicate better. Sarah was struggling with her own identity and I felt that in my soul. I wanted to give Caleb and Sarah a hug throughout this entire book because they were really going through it, but they came out so strong at the end. Caleb and Sarah are so tender and sweet, but also so hot 🥵 I literally gasped at some of the things Caleb said 😏

This book had me in my feelings. I was laughing out loud and crying throughout the whole thing. Caleb and Sarah going on an outdoor retreat as non-outdoor people was funny as hell 😂 The hurt feelings, marital miscommunication, grief, sadness, tension, banter were written so well. The love that Caleb and Sarah have for each other is so powerful and it consumes you. I love this book! I was also so excited to see Bo and Win again 🩵

Thank you again for the E-ARC 🎉

I was really looking forward to this book based on the hype around it by some folks I’ve seen and the cover is very sweet. However I was very disappointed in the overall story. I didn’t find most of it believable, their argument/big fissure in their marriage solved within a couple of days with seemingly no real “work” put into it. It seemed like many chapters the author cared more about adding sex scenes than actual story and there were so many times I almost said I just can’t finish this (which I only dnf’d one book before). I didn’t power through mainly because I felt I had to. There really wasn’t much character building at all and maybe that’s because I didn’t read the book prior to this where the two main characters are side characters in that one. Just overall felt forced at times, overly explicit (for no good reason) and just lacking overall.

4/5 Stars

Hannah Bonam-Young’s Out of the Woods is a beautifully written story that strikes a balance between heartfelt emotion and personal growth. From the very first chapter, I found myself captivated by the authenticity of the characters and their journeys.

The book’s exploration of identity, healing, and self-discovery resonated deeply with me. Bonam-Young has a talent for weaving relatable struggles into her narrative, and I appreciated how raw and vulnerable the protagonists felt. Their connection grew organically, and watching them navigate their fears and desires felt both realistic and rewarding.

One of the standout elements for me was the setting. The woodsy backdrop was not just atmospheric but symbolic, mirroring the characters’ emotional journeys as they stepped out of isolation and into connection. I also loved the gentle way Bonam-Young approached mental health, never shying away from its complexities but always treating it with care.

While there were moments where the pacing felt a bit slow, the overall experience was one of warmth and inspiration. Out of the Woods reminded me of the importance of community and the courage it takes to step into the light after being lost in the shadows. It’s a story I’ll carry with me and one I highly recommend to readers who enjoy heartfelt contemporary fiction.