Hannah Bonam-Young knows how to absolutely devastate a reader and then build them back up. This book is incredibly special to me, as it beautifully captures the complexities of marriage, following a young couple as they fall in love but also drift apart. It’s one of the most delightful books I’ve ever read—full of hope, growth, and tender yet heart-wrenching moments.

This book left me crying so hard one night that I honestly didn’t think I’d recover. I experienced something I never had before; I almost wanted to stop reading it. Not because I didn’t want to finish, but because I was desperate to slow time down. I wanted to savor every word, let each sentence sink in, and just cry. It’s that incredible—truly one of the best books I’ve ever read.

I related so much to Sarah, in a different way. The beginning of my own book reawakening happened because I felt exactly like her. I have a young child. I love being a mother, but I lost myself in that role. I dedicated 2024 to rediscovering who I am, rebuilding myself, and hearing the words Sarah tells herself (so similar to ones I told myself as a stay-at-home mom) hit so close to home.

Being in a long-term relationship is HARD but worth it. Watching Sarah and Caleb come back together—for themselves and their relationship—made me swoon, sob, and giggle.

If you’ve made it this far, just know: this book is absolute perfection. It will change you. You’ll feel every emotion intensely, a mark will be left on your heart, and you’ll treasure this book forever.

Thank you to the publisher (Dell) for giving me the opportunity for the egalley of this novel.

This is the first time reading Hannah’s novels (I have heard of others by her) and I see why her stories are loved so much. Her character development is fantastic and seeing how her characters grow is lovely to see.

This story follows both Sarah and Caleb from teenagers into adulthood. The flashbacks give the reader a better understanding of where these two were and why they are going. With them going out on this hiking adventure to help with their relationship you get the sense of adventure as well as the difficult issues they are trying to overcome as a couple.
I highly recommend this story if enjoy adventure, relationship building, family and friend relationships, and character development. This books release date is 01/28/2025.

The first 70% of this book was so strong! I thought the end was fine, but I wish the internal conflict would have been wrung out a little more.

Sarah and Caleb have been together since they were 14 years old. They've been through highs and lows, but at 31 Sarah is struggling with her role in their marriage. They decide to escape to the woods to see if they can rebuild their relationship at a wilderness marriage retreat.

I adored the first part of this book. I can relate to being a young bride, falling into roles in marriage, and waking up one day and being unsure of how you got there. I loved the story line with her mother passing away and the trauma that event caused. There's two things that kept this book from being 5 stars for me. 1) I didn't ever feel like this couple was actually in danger of splitting up. Because of that, I think it lacked a bit of emotional impact that it could have had. 2) At 70% the book pretty much wraps up the marriage in trouble part of the story, and then we get this overly dramatic event. I thought the book lost some momentum when that happened. I wish the book had stayed focused on their marriage instead of going to outside conflicts. I think adding in Caleb's POV would have been impactful and also given us the extra angst that I was craving.

As a whole I enjoyed this book. I thought the writing was great and the story was compelling, but I wanted just a bit more from the internal conflicts of the main characters.

Thank you to NetGalley and Dell for the e-book in exchange for my honest review.

This was soooooo good. I really liked it. I loved real it felt with what the characters went through. The spice was really good, it was pretty funny. Definately recommend!

I love this book! Out of the Woods made me laugh and cry which is always a good thing. I love the dual timeline of Sarah and Caleb when they were young and now. Caleb is the handsome nerdy guy and Sarah is a strong outgoing woman. Great story line of marriage crisis with a camp couples retreat.

There was more Win and Bo which was amazing I love them. I have read three other books Hannah Bonam-Young has written and have thoroughly enjoyed all of them. Every time I read one of her books it makes me look at life a little differently. I am so thankful that I got an arc of this book.

Remember Sarah and Caleb from Out on a Limb? Sarah is Win's best friend, and has been married to her high school sweetheart, Caleb, for her whole adult life. When a rift begins to threaten their relationship, Sarah and Caleb spontaneously decide to embark on a group-therapy-style hiking trip. Out of the Woods brings together beloved characters, a "marriage in crisis" trope, heartfelt moments, and some laugh-out-loud comedy.

Hannah's writing style comes across as genuine, emotional, and authentic. She knows how to captivate an audience, and write characters that feel super relatable and real.

Out of the Woods is out on January 28th, and you do not want to miss it.

Thank you Netgalley and Dell for the opportunity to read and review an advance copy of this book!

This book was an utter delight. After hearing nothing but wonderful things about Out on a Limb (still waiting for my hold to come in!), I was delighted to have the opportunity to read Out of the Woods. Sarah and Caleb's relationship was so real and full of love. I enjoyed the journey they both went on, together and separately, and how ReIgnite changed their marriage. As someone who also lost a parent to terminal illness in their teen years, Sarah's experiences with her mother's death and illness hit all the right places. It was poignant and gave me a lot to think about, both in terms of grief and relationships with loved ones. Plus, I loved that the book took place in Ontario! Overall a great read and one that I know will be popular with readers!

“All of me is and will always be yours.”

🥹🥲🫠 excuse me while I remain in a puddle on the floor from this beautiful second chance romance

This is unique for second chance - it follows a couple that is already married and is just going through a rough patch! So second chance 🫱🏻‍🫲🏼 marriage in crisis. Think lack of communication, internal doubts on achievements, feeling limited to what you’ve done in life, etc. PERFECT for anyone who has ever been or is in a long term relationship - you may just relate to some of the growing pains that come with being with the love of your life for over a decade already.

The only qualms I really had for this book was that I wish we would’ve gotten more of nerdy Caleb! You’re telling me this man has been hiding his confidence and sexy thoughts from his wife for this long 🧐

I also thought the last part of the book was weird and honestly not even needed - Caleb and Sarah had both reached a good point in their relationship, communication, and commitment to each other that I was just like… what is going on

I adored all the Win & Bo content that was in this book - forever my favorite HBY couple 🥹🫶🏼

All in all, this was a wonderful book that hit all the emotions and marks that I expect from a second chance romance.

p.s. if you LOVED this book and want to read something with similar vibes… check out Our Final Love Song by N.S. Perkins 🤭

Hannah Bonam-Young can write anything and I will simply just buy it immediately with no questions asked.

Sarah and Caleb Linwood have been high school sweethearts for seventeen years, but when Sarah tries to prove she can succeed on her own, things start to unravel. After a failed gala and some major marital tension, the couple decides to try something completely out of their comfort zone: a week-long wilderness expedition designed to help couples reconnect.

What follows is a hilarious, heartfelt adventure as Sarah and Caleb fumble their way through the woods. This book is a perfect balance of humor and heart. The idea of a couple facing relationship struggles by venturing into the wild is both funny and relatable, and the banter between Sarah and Caleb adds a lightness to the deeper themes of identity and love. It’s a journey of rediscovery, both of each other and themselves, that will have you laughing out loud one minute and tearing up the next. If you’re looking for a charming, feel-good read that proves love—like camping—can be messy, unpredictable, but ultimately worth the effort, Out of the Woods is a must-read. Just maybe don’t take it as marriage advice... unless you're really into hiking LMAO.

I’m so excited to have this book in my hands.!

5 stars! Obsessed with a story including a married couple. The first at trauma is talked about and handled in all her books is refreshing. Out on a limb got me hooked on this author. I can’t wait to read every book she writes!

Out of the Woods by Hannah Bonam Young

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

My first 5 star rating of 2025!!! This stand alone sequel to Out on a Limb, was everything and more of what I dreamed it would be. The ability of the author to write such real and relatable characters is what really stood out to me during this read. The main characters were highschool sweethearts since age 14, and got married at 19. During this duel timeline book, you get to see how they grew together, and how they in other areas stayed stagnant until forced to evaluate their relationship from an adult perspective. Anyone who has been in a long term relationship/marriage will find ways to relate to one or both of these characters. Their love was never lost, but what fulfills them and their self identity was. To fix their personal and marriage struggles, they went to an outdoor camping/counseling retreat. Both, out of their natural element, were forced to choose honesty with themselves and with each other in hopes to build a new foundation for their relationship. I loved how real and raw the emotions, fights, and even spicy scenes were.

This is a must read!!
Out January 28th, 2025

Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for sending me this ARC in exchange for a honest review 🤍🤍

Absolute and utter perfection. This book was wrapped around my little finger. There’s just something about HBY writing that just pulls you in. I read this book from start to finish within 24 hours. I know I know, I should’ve savored it, but I truly could not go on about my day until this book was finished.

Sarah and Caleb live inside my soul from here on out. As someone who’s been with their significant other for almost 8 years I feel like it was so eye opening reading a romance book where the characters get to fall in love for a SECOND time. A good marriage is not always sunshine and rainbows and this book is such an accurate representation of that.

I love how absolutely effortlessly in love Caleb is with Sarah. I love how Sarah feels so deeply for him and everyone in her life. These two were truly perfect for each other ever since they were young and in love in 10th grade. Adult life catches up to them and their marriage and they decide to go to a relationship retreat to work on their marriage and other aspects of their life to better understand each other.

ahhh this book. so many tears shed. 😭

i have never read a marriage in crisis but so many aspects of this book we relatable and realistic and i will definitely be seeking out more.

this book has such fun side characters - which can honestly make or break a book imo. and the camping aspect was so much fun!!

while i didn’t fully relate to caleb and sarah and their stories - their overall struggles just hit home.

there was one part and the end of the book that kind of ruined a good chunk of it for me 😅 but over all would still recommend!! ❤️

This book has my whole heart. It's raw and vulnerable and hot— everything I want in a romance. Prepare to fall in love and also cry!!

I adored this book! After seventeen years together, high school sweethearts Sarah and Caleb find themselves questioning their relationship.

This marriage-in-crisis story is so real and honest. It was incredibly moving to watch Sarah and Caleb rekindle their relationship and rediscover themselves. This is a story about growth both as an individual and as a couple. I loved the communication between the two characters and the fumbles along the way.

It’s so meaningful when romance novels tackle more than just the surface level stuff, and HBY certainly excels at digger deeper and bringing complex emotions to the forefront.

I highly recommend this novel if you’re looking for an emotionally raw story of two people finding their way back to themselves and each other.

My rating: 5⭐️

I loved this story so much. Sarah's real and honest look into her life's goals and purposes was so refreshing; I loved being inside of her mind. The setting was so much fun, and I loved the cast of characters that were introduced at the retreat.

I enjoyed this but not as much as her other work. I think after seeing this couple in Out on a Limb, I just didn't feel like this was the dynamic I was expecting. It was also a bit darker than I expected. There are content warnings for death of a parent, but it's pretty on page as the story goes back and forth from the present and past to show how the maim character was doing around the time her mom died

I am a huge fan of Hannah Bonam-Young so I was really excited to read this book! We got glimpses of Sarah and Caleb in Out on a Limb, but now we get their full story. Dual timeline books are usually very hard for me to get invested in, but I didn’t have a hard time with this one. I loved the unique cast of characters that Sarah and Caleb met on the outdoor adventure. Overall, I thought it was a well-done story that touch on the complexity of young love turning into a long-lasting marriage and how you navigate life around that.

All the stars. ♾️⭐️ This book broke me and put me back together and I am left sitting here wishing I could give the author a big hug. If you are unsure about reading it because it’s about a marriage in trouble, don’t. These two have so much love for each other and it’s obvious from the start.

I adore Sarah & Caleb. I love the then and now timeline and their journey is so beautiful to witness.

What broke me and hit close to home for me were all the mentions of grief. But once again, it was as beautifully done.

This book may make you cry, but you will also find yourself smiling and laughing a lot. I too agree with Caleb that paper straws are a sensory nightmare. IYKYK 😂 And if you also loved Out on a Limb you will delish in seeing Win, Bo & little Gus. You should totally read that book too, maybe even before you pick up this one. But either way, read this gem.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author Hannah Bonam-Young for the advanced reading copy, all my opinions are my own.

Great story, more women's fiction than romance. It was cool to see a story about a married couple. There is a lot of grief and sadness, as well as a woman on a path to self-discovery after a long grieving period.