I've read almost all of Christina Lauren's non-Beautiful Bastard backlist, so whenever I pick up a CL book, I know what I'm gonna get: a formulaic, feel-good romance that I'll like, maybe even really like, but not love. It won't be super original or knock my socks off or anything like that, but it won't make me regret investing my time into reading the book. And even if the book's underwhelming and disappointing, it won't leave me feeling disappointed, if that makes sense. CL books are the equivalent of Katherine Heigl romcoms. And that's mostly what I got with Something Wilder—a moderately underwhelming, but still fun and entertaining, romance.

Like In a Holidaze, Something Wilder is different from CL's other romance novels—except where In a Holidaze dabbles in the sci-fi/magical realism genres, Something Wilder dabbles in the adventure/mystery/suspense genres. Something Wilder is a second-chance romance that tells the story of Lily and Leo, who met and started dating as young adults when Leo was visiting the small town where Lily lived. They made promises to each other, which Leo broke when he had to rush home to deal with a family emergency, leaving Lily in the dark. Flash forward about a decade, and completely by chance, Leo, on a boys' vacation with his friends, crosses paths with Lily again. And that's when things start to happen. Treasure hunt. Murder. Survivor-type shit.

Something Wilder is probably among my least favorite CL books, but it's still better than about half the romance novels I've read in my lifetime, so that's not really a bad thing. Personally, if you're in the mood for a second-chance romance, or even a second-chance romance by Christina Lauren, I'd recommend Love and Other Words over this one. That said, if you've liked CL's other books—or enjoy your romance with a little side of adventure, mystery, and suspense—you'll probably like this book of theirs as well.

3 stars

What a creative book! I have truly never read anything like this: a great blend of adventure, thrill, and romance. The first bit of the book was very slow for me, but as the book went on I became more invested in the main chracters and their history together. This book was very different from Christina Lauren's usual style - not exactly my favorite, just not the tropes for me!

Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book! The title and this beautiful cover drew me in and i was excited to read this book! I will be recommending this book to others for readers advisory.

This is just not it. I think the plot was too all over the place and it was lackluster compared to other Christina Lauren books.

This was a wild ride and I really enjoyed it! It read a little different than their other work as there was a sense of adventure that we don’t see in their books but I thought it was fun! It took a couple of wild turns and had a little mystery which made the book that much fun for me!

The romance was super cute! It made my heart happy to see two people who life took down different paths get back together. An “I’ve loved you since forever” trope always does it for me.

I think this is a great beach read!

This was a fun read - different than what I've come to expect from this author but in a good way! I loved watching this play out.

If you’re looking for an adventure read with a subplot of romance, this is great.
If you’re looking for a romance read, you may find this falls in the “meh” category.

I love Christina Lauren and have read most of their books. Some are hits, some are misses. This one kind of falls into the middle for me. I loved the setting and hearing about the scenery when they were on their hiking adventure but felt like there was too much focus on the adventure of finding hidden treasure than on the relationship between the two main characters. This was very light on the romance and I really wanted more!

This one has everything I’m looking for in a book- adventure, humor, romance! This book was very unlike CLo’s other books…I mean that twist! 😳😳 IYKYK! I loved how Lily was such a strong heroine and Leo was willing to do anything and everything to fight for their relationship. Seriously though, there is no explanation needed. If you’re a Christina Lauren fan…preorder this book. If you’ve never read their book…this is a great one to start with!

Christina Lauren does it again!!! Something Wilder was such a great book. It was charming, funny and i loved the main characters

First of all, I'm biased because this book has my last name in the title. But I really did love it. It felt so different from everything Christina Lauren have done before-- more of a romantic thriller. But of course because it's Christina Lauren, there's plenty of heart and humor. And heat, duh. I hope Christina Lauren keep playing around within the genre like this!

This was just so much fun. The romance was okay, but the adventure was exhilarating. This was unlike these authors' previous books and I loved that.

4.25/5

I adore Christina Lauren and Something Wilder was a little different from their usual but I still loved it! It was so much fun having a mystery mixed in with the romance and I loved that this also took me on an adventure through Utah. I am just going to say now that I think the audiobook is the best way to consume this book, and I’m not just saying that because Christina Hobbs and Lauren Billings read the author’s note, dedication, and acknowledgments. It really was fantastic to get to hear their voices (especially since I haven’t had the opportunity to meet them in person), but I also loved Patti Murin and Jon Root as the narrators. I just did a reread of the audio for The Bodyguard which Murin also narrates, and it only made me love her more. Root is just as good, and together I loved the way they were able to make Lily and Leo feel like they were jumping off the page straight into my house.

While Lauren does warn that if you followed the path they mapped out in this book you would die, I still really enjoyed the look at the red rock canyons and trails through their beautiful imagery. I haven’t gotten to explore Utah at all and while Colorado does have some of the same features, it’s really nothing like the trip these characters go on through the Canyonlands. I loved the sparks between Lily and Leo, and I was glad that we got both of their viewpoints basically the entire time. Lily and her relationship with her dad Duke is strained and felt very realistic, even with the treasure hunting. Although I especially loved the treasure hunting. The focus wasn’t as much on the romance in Something Wilder, and while I do usually read this duo for their adorable romances, I was A-OK with this because it was just so much fun. If you want to sit down and go on a treasure-hunting adventure through dusty Utah trails, this is the perfect way to do it!

I honestly wasn’t sure about a treasure hunting adventure, but given that it was a Christina Lauren book, I had faith, jumped right in, and I’m so glad I did! Well written and wonderfully paced, this story was the perfect mix of adventure, romance, and mystery. I loved rooting for the dynamic women in this story as much as I did the romance and also thoroughly enjoyed hating the bad guy. This story would make for a great movie. Per usual, team Christina Lauren hit this one out of the park!

This wasn't my favorite Christina Lauren title but it will appeal to readers looking for something on the light side of romance with an adventure story. For me, the actual romance was lacking and wished for more of that part of the story!

Just in time for summer - super fun and lighthearted.
I enjoy the adventure part of the story. The romance was cute and a little light on the sex scenes. The plot focused on the treasure hunt so I feel like the romance is more secondary. Anyways, I still enjoy the adventures and the story line I thought is unique.

Love these authors and this book was easy to read. I love the slight feel of Indiana Jones or that type of journey throughout the book. While it's a love story it has this secondary story that is very action packed.

A completely new story from what we're used to seeing from Christina Lauren. Don't worry, there's still a second chance/ forced proximity romance at the forefront! A fun and unexpected treasure hunt adventure that would be a perfect beach companion.

Thanks @netgalley and @gallerybooks for my gifted copy of Something Wilder, by Christina Lauren! While I enjoyed this book, the slow start was hard to get through. But, as it went on, the plot really started to leap off the page, and get more exciting. I definitely binged the last half of it!

I had such a fun time reading this book! It took me on a fictional adventure that allowed me to escape the real world for a bit, and gave me a couple I could root for and sense the chemistry between right away. It’s certainly true that you have to suspend your disbelief a fair bit, but I was happy to do it and even happier to feel all warm and fuzzy and satisfied by the end.