Wow! What a wild(er) ride - in many ways I mean that literally.

When I started the book I expected a rekindling of an old romance and a trip into the desert on horseback. Sure, it delivers on that, but I hope you're also prepared for an Indiana Jones-style adventure for most of the story. As for "contemporary romance", I don't know that the genre label fits this one but it was certainly a fun read.

This is my first read of the author team Christina Lauren and I am HOOKED! YES, I've heard of them and seen the popular titles in bookstores and in the hands of friends but for some reason, it took SOMETHING WILDER to capture my attention and now I'm afraid the bar is SO high! After my first trip to southern Utah last year, I've been interested in learning more and dreaming of going back to hike and explore. Something Wilder has a dream setting in Canyonlands and it felt like I was really on this adventure with Lily, Nic, Leo and crew. I expected rom-com & that certainly delivered but the tension and rising stakes throughout this story is a genuine masterclass in emotive storytelling! I'll be recommending this one to many friends, and plan to have at least one extra copy to borrow out!

This book was quite different from the last few books I’ve read by Christina Lauren, in the best possible way!! I loved the setting of the wilds of the southwest, I loved the excited& suspense, I loved the all the puzzles they had to creatively solve, and I loved Lily & Leo. This was such a perfect blend of adventure & romance. If you’re looking for the humorous banter & quirky characters from earlier books, you may be disappointed. But if you are ready for an excellent story (with just the right amount of steam) full of likable characters (Walter!) and a bit of history & mystery, you will not be disappointed!

“I had to let you go once. You think I’m letting that happen, again?”

Book review: 🌟🌟🌟🌟

Thank you to NetGalley and gallery books for sending me a free arc to review!

Something wilder follows lily: the adventure tour guide. Lilys dad, is the famous treasure hunter: Duke Wilder. After he passes, Lily starts working as an adventure tour guide using her Dads old treasure hunting journals. But when one of the tour groups has her ex Boyfriend Leo in we’ll things get complicated. 🤠 🗺

Okay. This book. Yall. This book. I will say I’ve read quite a few of Christina Lauren books and this one feels a tad different than their other books I’ve read. but it’s still got the Christina Lauren charm that I love! It gave me everything I didn’t know I wanted: second chance romance, a there’s Only ONE sleeping bag, and all. The. Plot. Twists! I love lily: she’s strong, funny, and she’s such a complex character! 💪🏻 now Leo: he’s complete swoon worthy! He’s smart, kind, and I’m. In. Love. 🥺 I loved seeing their relationship develop! There were laugh out loud moments, sweet moments, and the steam was 🔥.

First off, huge thanks to NetGalley, Christina Lauren, and Gallery Books/Simon and Schuster for the advance reading copy of this book.

This book is so good! So full of adventure and love and treasure.

What I liked:
-The focus on adventure and not losing yourself to the monotony of an office life because it’s safe.
-Nicole. I am always down for the badass best friend who’s there for you through everything.
-Treasure hunting is always at the top of my list for stories, and this one did not disappoint.
-All the characters in this book were interesting. Though some obviously weren’t likable, they all played a decent part in the overall story.
-Leo Grady. Our brainiac city boy. I loved how his brain worked and that any given time he was worried about Lily first with everything else in the background.
-Redemption. No spoilers specifically though 😉

What I didn’t like:
-I honestly don’t have a critique for this book. I’ve noticed that others are upset that there isn’t as much romance, but honestly there was the perfect amount to go along with the story of the book.

Christina Lauren is quickly making me a huge fan of the second chance romance trope, which I never thought would happen. This book also has nice one bed (sleeping bag) and stranded together tropes.

Overall, I loved it. I’m so thankful to have been given the opportunity to read it and help promote it.

One of the things I love about Christina Lauren books is that there is always a great story to go with the romance. This book was a great adventure that kept me turning pages to see what would happen next. The romance was fun, too!

I received a copy of this book for review from NetGalley. As someone who grew up watching Romancing the Stone, I can say with good authority that Something Wilder admirably fits the bill of the adventure romance that we need. Lily and Leo might be long- lost loves who were kept apart for Romance Reasons, but they fit together as a team very well. While the plot is a bit banana pants, in the moment, I'm perfectly willing to go along with "searching for Butch Cassidy's treasure with my ex" because why wouldn't you search the desert with your first love? Though there were a couple of minor plot holes (what did you do with the horses, Lily? ), and the twist wasn't very sure, this story was fun enough that I simply couldn't bring myself to care. Overall, this book has action, romance, some heat, a smidgen of danger, and a pretty epic quest, and I enjoyed the heck out of it.

Lily is a daughter of a famous treasure hunter who loves riddles, puzzles, and the thrill of chasing down legends. She fell in love with Leo at her father's ranch but when he had to go back home to New York, he never got in touch with her. 10 years later, she leads groups on trips in Southern Utah and Leo ends up on one.

This is not a typical romance storyline from our fabulous duo but this book worked!

I love that most of it is set in my beautiful state in the red rock areas of Southern Utah. It sent me down a rabbit hole of information in Google on Butch Cassidy, his robberies and money stolen.

At about 34% in, there is a moment that just made my jaw drop and from there it's just non stop adventure and a bit of craziness.

This was the first book I have read of Christina Laurens. It pulled me in from the get go and kept my attention the whole way through. The adventure was edge of the seat with tons of twist and turns I had no idea was coming. The story of second chance love with the western adventure was a great combination and done very well. I loved Lily Wilder. Her attitude and determination to do it on her own was amazing. The chemistry between Lily and Leo was real and added to the story in the best way. Just goes to show that the adventure really is better than the stuff.

This was…interesting. This is not at all a RomCom and reminded me a little bit of Twice in a Blue Moon which I was not a fan of. Also reminded me a little of Honey Don’t List which I also wasn’t a fan of. CL is either a hit or miss for me and this one was a miss. I honestly didn’t care about the two main characters and I wasn’t invested in their story. Everything else that happened was so implausible that it completely distracted from their relationship. Was this a romance? A thriller? I have no clue. Meh.

An enjoyable romance, but too much of the plot is focused on a quest for hidden treasure, with bad buys and guns and life-threatening danger. Not way I want from my summer romance reading!

This is one of my favorite Christina Lauren books to date! I loved the characters, the setting, the thriller/mystery/pirate theme element and, of course, the love story. All the stars!

What a cute fun romance with a treasure hunt in the wild west. What's not to love? Lili and Leo make a cute couple. Typical misunderstanding trope quickly falls apart. Loved the ending.

3 - it was an interesting plot involving gold seeking and second chance romances. Just ok for me though - I’ve loved the other books a lot more. I did think the plot was original - points for that, but it didn’t do it for me.

What a ride 😍🐴! Something Wilder is a second-chance romance with danger, Wild West adventure, mystery, and treasure hunting. I loved Unhoneymooners by the Christina Lauren duo. This is another wanderlust romance with a dreamy destination, but a very different book❤️.

Lily is the daughter of the famous Duke Wilder, a man in love with the American Southwest and all of it’s legends and history. His passion was never profitable, and Lily resents the silly tales of Butch Cassidy’s hidden treasure. Nevertheless, she has made a business out of these tales and leading guests on horseback treasure hunting tours through Utah’s red rock canyons.

Leo is a code cracking numbers guy with a fancy office job in NYC. But he never forgot the girl that got away, or the five months they spent together on her ranch. The most alive he’s ever felt. He goes on a guys trip and realizes that Lily is his guide, and his feelings for her never faded. While Leo is all-in, Lily doesn’t want to rekindle anything and risk going through all that hurt again.

The trip takes an abrupt turn when betrayal and violence force the group to make a choice. They realize that the tales of treasure may have not been so silly after all, but are they willing to risk their lives to find out?

While there were a lot of suspenseful scenes, this was still classic Christina Lauren romance, spice 🌶, and witty banter. 💯% here for the escapism and Indiana Jones vibes. I loved this journey for me 🥰.

Thank you to @gallerybooks and @netgalley for this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Something Wilder - Christina Lauren
4.5/5⭐️
Pub Date: 5/17/2022

My very first Christina Lauren book and I was not disappointed at all! I am excited to dive into their backlist and read more from this duo. This book was way more than what I expected. I went in thinking romance and was pleasantly surprised with adventurous and mysterious vibes.

We follow Lily Wilder, an adventurist, who gives tours through the valleys of Utah in her father's footsteps. He once was a world-renowned treasure hunter, named Duke Wilder. When a new group arrives, Lily is shocked to see her ex who left 10 years ago with no phone call or explanation, Leo. We follow the adventures of the group as they hunt for missing treasure.

I loved the puzzles and codes embedded in the story. The characters were SO good. I love Leo and Lily. Lily has a strong, adventurous, caring personality that leaves you longing for her happiness. And Leo just seems like a complete sweetheart who cares heavily for the people in his life. I also love Nic and sweet-potato Walter as side characters!! You should plan to pick this up ASAP!! Thrilling, romantic read about a second-chance shot at love.


Thank you Gallery Books and NetGalley for a free copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book read like a mash up of three movies - City Slickers, Lord of the Flies, and a bit of Romancing the Stone. Unfortunately, it didn’t work for me.

I didn’t feel a connection or much romance between Lily and Leo. There is none of the witty banter, romance, or steam that I’ve grown to expect from these authors. Maybe I would have given more time, but the authors decided to use a plot device that left me stunned.

They kill Terry off and all of a sudden Lord of the Flies plunked down into my romance novel. After this event happened all I could think was, ‘Wait, what? THAT just happened and you’re going to do what now?’ It's just not a situation conducive to romance.

Thank you @netgalley and @gallerybooks for my e-arc!

If this book had a theme song it would be “Wild Wild West” by Will Smith!! And now I’ll be singing it all day 🤣

I absolutely devoured this book!! I was so giddy while reading, and I couldn’t stop smiling! Yes, it’s different than their others because it had more adventure than just romance. WHICH I LOVED!

You get excellent character development while Leo and his buddies go on their annual vacation together…this time going on a wild goose chase to find the famous outlaw Butch Cassidy’s hidden treasure. Christina Lauren always does a fabulous job creating the perfect secondary characters. Some of the most supportive and then some you want to punch, ha!

This book has it all, second chance romance, adventure, mystery, and suspense scenes that will have you holding your breath and your heart pounding as they navigate through the canyons.

There was also a HUGE “OH SHIT” moment where I had to do a “double take” and read it twice to make sure that what I read actually happened!! All I’ll say is 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝟏𝟎 🤯🤯🤯 came out of nowhere and my jaw still drops when I think about it!

To me, this book was the PERFECT adventurous escape, and I just LOVED, LOVED, LOVED it so much!! 🥰

Thank you to NetGalley for providing a digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. A modern day treasure hunt with Yellowstone vibes will lead you on a predictable trail and leave you with all the warm and fuzzy feelings. Lily gets her love of adventure from her treasure-seeking dad and spends her days giving tours of the like. It's not until she is reunited with long lost love Leo that she begins to confront her past and how she will live in the future. As with any wild ride, plans go awry and obstacles Lily hasn't planned for force her and Leo to work together and simultaneously face their issues.
Loved the comedic banter from characters Nic and Walter and clever clues, puzzles and codes the authors created! Not to mention the strong female leads that didn't take any bs from the knuckleheads. The building romantic tension was icing on the cake.

This was a SURPRISE!! I've loved every Christina Lauren book I've read (which isn't all of them but I'm working my way through) and this had such a different twist than their others and I absolutely loved it.

Of course I loved Lily and Leo - after their first initial reunion their dynamic felt so natural, like they were truly just picking up where they left off ten years earlier. Leo was such a sweetheart - one of my new favorite dandelion boys.

The reunion of Lily and Leo was what hooked me into the book, but the adventure is what made it un-put downable. As outlandish as a treasure hunt through the desert sounds, Christina Lauren made this so completely grounded. With multiple plot twists, I truly had no clue how the book would end and what a fun ride it was.

Thanks to NetGalley & Gallery Books for the advanced e-book, and for Goodreads for the giveaway paperback copy!