Ugh god I love Hannah Bonam-Young. She has such a special writing gift and her books make me feel so SAFE. Sarah and Caleb were such a beloved couple while reading Out on A Limb, and to get a deeper look at them through this book was so beautiful. Both of them are flawed in their own ways, but the strides they take to be better for themselves and for each other genuinely brought me to tears. I just absolutely loved this, I cannot wait to tell everyone I know to read this book, because I think that there is a little bit of something in here for everyone. Hannah has absolutely knocked it out of the park yet again, and I cannot wait to continue reading her books and shouting my love for her and her words from the rooftops.

How is it possible that I’ve already found one of my top fav reads of 2025..?!

I have never been so excited to receive an ARC!! All it took was a simple preview of the “Your approved request…” message in my mailbox, and I was jumping for joy. Literally.

This book was everything you could ever want in a romance novel: raw, real, swoony, SPICYYY. From the first chapter, I could tell that Sarah and Caleb would do a number on me. They were so special, and hereby have a permanent place in my heart. I miss them so much already.

The flashback chapters (which had me sobbing, btw) gave perfect insight on the development of Sarah and Caleb’s relationship. Highschool sweethearts turned marriage partners for over a decade, these two decide to take on a new challenge after hitting a rough patch: the great outdoors. ALSO… I had a thought; petition to have the phrase “highschool sweethearts” changed to “Calah” ? Like, “oh yeah, me and my partner? We’re Calah.” Is that stupid? Idk. Idc. Spread the word!

The present chapters were also magnificent, and I adored every second. I rarely read books where the main couple are already in a relationship, so seeing Sarah and Caleb work so hard to better themselves both individually and together was a new, refreshing experience. Their love for one another is so painfully clear, and I feel a sense of overwhelming pride in their ability to fight for each other. To communicate, grow, and respect.

The secondary characters also added a lot to the story, which is often difficult to find. And, of course, I loved the scenes with my babies Win and Bo.

I adored every second of ‘Out of the Woods’ All my stars go to this masterpiece. Can’t wait to receive my physical copy and shower Hannah Bonam-Young with even more praises on the pub date, which you can find on my instagram @re.readsss ;)

I know that this author is huge on BookTok right now, but I truly do not understand the hype. I just could not get into this book, so I guess her writing style just isn't for me. I really don't even know what it was specifically, it just wasn't my vibe at all.

HBY delivers another book true to her formula: a heartfelt backstory, engaging plot line, and of course, the perfect mmc. we follow sarah as she navigates the grief of her mother and the feelings of disarray regarding her life/career and what’s she’s made of it, which in turn, affects her marriage.

i want to note that my favorite trope of all time is marriage in crisis. that being said, my main criticism of this book is that it’s been advertised as a marriage in crisis book when it’s not one. to me, marriage in crisis means that at least one person in the relationship has checked out/has one foot out of the door, maybe they are even on the cusp of divorce! this was not the case at all for sarah and caleb. at the end of the day, they still were very much invested in their partnership — they just needed to figure out some issues, communicate that, and work towards a solution, which btw is typical for any long term relationship!

evidently, the romance did fall short for me. it’s very sweet and caleb proves to be a top tier mmc, but the main focus here is sarah and the affects of her still grieving her mother. i thankfully found this to be the light of the book and even got emotional at some parts learning about marcie green and the beautiful relationship between her and sarah. it’s very touching and ultimately why i rated this 4 stars.

if you’re like me and you’re expecting a marriage in crisis trope to be the center of this book, i would lower those expectations. a good read nonetheless, but OOAL still takes the cake for me.

thank you dell romance for the e-ARC!

HBY does it again. This is a book that’s meant to be savored. There’s so much love and depth here. I highly recommend you read Out on a Limb first because that book is equally as amazing and makes this story even sweeter.

This story follows Caleb and Sarah. High school sweethearts navigating through issues in their marriage. They’ve been married for about 10 years and have fallen in roles that are starting to no longer feel comfortable. They agree to go on a guided hiking and outdoors adventure that includes counseling to help reconnect to each other and to themselves.

The story that unfolds here hurts so good. There’s so much love and so much hurt to unravel. My favorite quote has to be “if you give me room to grow I promise to always plant myself next to you” and I feel like it really captures the essence of this story.

It has been and always will be, Sarah for Caleb and Caleb for Sarah. I love these two and the discoveries they make about themselves and their relationship. I love their humor and the ways this story made me laugh (I was cackling at the ‘hill I would die on’).This book made me cry no less than 4 times and I related deeply to so much of it.

This book is masterfully done and I can’t recommend it enough.

Hannah has done it again!!! I want to start by saying thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely loved this book. The story aside from the romance was phenomenal. Hannah Bonam-Young always delivers a romance you just can’t put down that also makes you feel things. I feel like it’s hard to have the balance of romance and a bigger story but Hannah hits it every time!

Sarah and Caleb were such an amazing part of Out on a Limb and getting to read their story with hints of Bo and Win was absolutely everything. The plot was fantastic and the character development was spectacular.

There was something so raw and vulnerable about this book and Sarah’s experiences. I could not stop crying even though I didn’t find myself relating to the specific situations in the book, the way Hannah writes a story and is able to explain a character’s feelings always gets me emotional.

Hannah Bonam-Young is now and forever an auto buy author!!

Thank you Hannah and the publishers again!!

Another outstanding Hannah Bonam-Ypung romance. These two characters were so loveable and the camping atmosphere added to the love story.

HBY has done it again folks, she has once again captured my heart with Out of the Woods ♡

With Sarah and Caleb's journey revolving about starting over, new beginnings, grief, healing, and finding one's purpose and selff, starting off the year with their story felt right.

With them being a married couple trying to rekindle their feelings, at first I was afraid I might not be able to relate with them since I'm single af but boy was I wrong. I found bits and pieces of me relating in Sarah's journey in finding herself and her purpose, her grief and healing process. This got me wishing I have my own Caleb too 🥹 (he's such a good boy y'all 🤭)

As funny as they were on OOAL, I am amazed how HBY wrote such deep and emotional story for these two. Their book got me sobbing in the middle of the night, but it was all so so worth it ❤️🥹

HBY's words will never fail to warm my soul and made me see how love works in different circumstances, so real and raw yet magical. I will be forever obsessed with her works ❤️

And seeing Bo and Win with baby Gus made my heart so so happy, I miss them so much!
These four and their stories will always going to have a special place in my heart.

Such a beautiful first read of the year, I can't wait for HBY's next book!

A huge thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the advanced digital copy of this book!

Love starting the new year with a five-star read! HBY quickly joined my shortlist of favorite contemporary romance authors with the incredibly charming and funny Out on a Limb, and I was happy to get to revisit those wonderful characters with Out of the Woods, which was even more relatable for me.

Unlike all the meet-cutes, enemies to lovers, friends to lovers, forced proximity, and second chance after loss tropes that are everywhere in romance, we start with a young couple who has been married for a long time and is going through a rough patch. It’s not about separation or new chances, though - it’s about reconnecting and communicating in a setting that challenges their comfort zones. It’s about realizing that life isn’t always perfect, or happy all the time, or what you expected, but that it can still be embraced for what it is, and it can get better if you try.

I have never related to an FMC in a romance novel more than Sarah. My husband and I didn’t get married as young as they did, but I also chose not to have kids, and that is not something you see represented a lot on the pages of romance novels. We had so many similarities, from our love of fantasy novels and our Kindles to our intolerance for blood! It was also very refreshing to enjoy a romance from the perspective of the already married, which helped me appreciate what I have in my own relationship and reflect on what I can do to keep the love alive and ensure that I am here for my partner as we get older.

Can’t wait to start checking out more of Hannah’s back catalog, and to see what she comes up with next!

Thank you to Netgalley Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for sending this DRC for review consideration.

Hannah destroyed me with one 😭😭😭

As someone who has been in a long term relationship for quite some time I feel like this is a super realistic representation of how relationships ebb and flow. The way that Hannah writes how beautifully they love each other was incredible

You can feel how deeply Sarah and Caleb care for one another and are willing to work on their marriage. A beautiful tender love story from start to finish

🌲marriage in crisis
🌲dual timeline
🌲camping retreat

🌲 OUT 28 JAN 25 🌲
this book is equal parts romance, comedy, and real life messy, difficult things. aka for me a PERFECT book! i really enjoyed this, HBY’s voice is so refreshing. i laughed multiple times and both of the characters are so relatable (i ALSO hate when people say “there’s no (insert deadly animals) here” HOW DO U KNOW!! THEY DO WHAT THEY WANT!!) anyway, this is a beautiful and real depiction of what it means to grow with someone, and a lot of the time that is growing pains. Sarah & Caleb met when they were 15?? (not a spoiler) And married when they were really young and now in their 30’s.. they’re different people and life is different! and different stages of life require different and new kinds of things to work through. but when you have the right person in your corner, the reward of hard work can be sooo sweet. all of this layered with grief (i just LOVE a good book that includes discussions around grief), work, purpose, the complexities of life!! yeah i loved this. add it to your TBR if you haven’t already. im an HBY fan for life.

the author also gives a really insightful and thoughtful introduction with trigger/ content warnings at the beginning of this ✨ please check this out!

PS this takes place in the same world as Out on a Limb! another masterpiece.

thank you to Netgalley & random house publishing group for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I knew I was going to connect hard with this one, given my own relationship has a lot in common with Sarah and Caleb's, but... this story made my eyes wet NO LESS THAN FOUR TIMES. For anyone who is deterred thinking this is "marriage in trouble"... that's not quite how it reads. This marriage is not in trouble. Sarah and Caleb are fully committed to one another, even if they're unsure on how to go about it. It's a little messy, a little sad, and a lot sweet as they keep learning about each other and how to create the life they want.

I'm left wanting just one thing... MORE. I could read another 100 pages about the deep conversations and flashbacks, but I also think the story length was a good choice, given it's a couple that's already fully committed.

If you like to read healthy communication in romance books - HBY's writing is for you. OOTW is no exception.

*Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the e-arc!

This was a great read. I liked how it switched back and forth between when they were young and when they were older on this retreat. I loved that (spoiler alert!) they end up staying together and falling even more in love! Very sweet and wholesome!

This follow up companion book to Out on a Limb focuses on Sarah & Caleb. You don't have to read Win & Bo's story first, but it would help. Sarah & Caleb married super young and after more than a decade together Sarah feels that she has lost herself. She can't think of one positive accomplishment. Win suggests a week long camping retreat with several other couples. Although they are not outdoorsy, Sarah and Caleb are both dedicated to saving their marriage and agree to go. The truths they realize, the work they do, and the love they have for each other make the trip much more beneficial than they could have imagined. Highly recommended for anyone who wants a book that isn't about falling in love but staying in love after being together for a while.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this book, and this is my voluntary unbiased and true opinion. As much as I loved Out on a Limb by Bonam-Young, this sequel felt a little less solidified as a concept. I adored the characters and the premise of rekindling a marriage, but I did feel as though the plot didn’t keep up with their development. I wish there were more noteworthy moments, other than the dramatic turn at the end (which was fun to read!) I love Bonam-Young’s writing style and characters, but this read wasn’t my favorite of hers at the end of the day.

I’ve loved Hannah’s books since Next of Kin and have deep dived into all her writings since. Out on a Limb was my number one but I think this one takes the cake.

I met my husband young (two years older than Sarah and Caleb) so I empathize towards Sarah and her feelings. To love someone so wholly, but the terror of not knowing who you are without them is a daunting realization. Hannah did such a wonderful job of exploring each of them as characters in such a beautiful way and to still find each other in the end makes this story a heart warming tale. I absolutely ADORE this book and hold it close to my heart 🤍

4.5!

This was so sweet! I've never read a romance book where the characters were already together, so I thought it was super unique. Caleb and Sarah are so pure and beautiful. I found myself really connecting with them as a couple and individually. I laughed so many times throughout this book, but HBY also does a great job of adding a deeper element to her stories that I always appreciate.

I can only imagine how beautiful and rewarding it is to be with someone for over half your life, but it is safe to assume that this does not come without hard work and some troubles. Caleb and Sarah were going through a rough patch in their marriage and took steps to heal their relationship. Their love is SO strong, I can feel just how much these two loved each other through the pages. I also really enjoyed how it was dual-timeline because it allowed us to see how their past plays a part in their present, individually and collectively. Overall, this was such an emotional but heart warming book that I will forever appreciate. I thought this was so amazing. My only gripe is that I think we didn't dive deep enough into their issues and I wish it didn't get resolved as quickly as it did, but I still really loved this. HBY is truly an auto-buyer, a comfort author who does it for me every single time!!!!

I really liked the first book in this series (Out on a Limb) and was looking forward to following the characters' stories in this one. This book focuses on Caleb and Sarah and their relationship - how it began in high school, developed over the next 17 years, and how they attempt to revive it by going on a wilderness retreat when it starts to deteriorate.

I think this book does a great job discussing relatable issues around relationships, grief after losing a parent as a teenager, codependency, and finding your identity and purpose. I like how it isn't 'just' about a relationship; it also digs deep into Sarah's journey as a woman and her healing. Similar to the first book, there aren't many spicy scenes but they are 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 when they happen! I don't think it's necessary to read Out on a Limb before this one, but it would definitely provide more context if you do. After reading these two books by Hannah Bonam-Young, I'll definitely be adding more of her backlist to my TBR!

Read if you like:
- Marriage in Trouble
- First Love
- Dual Timelines

Raw, realistic, beautiful. Three words I would use to describe Out of the Woods.

A contemporary romance with themes of self-discovery, identifying one’s identity, the importance of communication, and the realities of marriage. Moments of grief, loss and resentment, met with humor, joy and connection. Over the course of this couple’s retreat, I was amazed by the realistic portrayal and dialogue of Sarah and Caleb’s relationship and romance. The character writing was both relatable and impactful. I loved the sense of emotion I felt as the reader. I loved the character growth, the heartwarming ending, and seeing the humor and joy resurface in their relationship.

A heartfelt romance. A 2025 release not to be missed.

Thank you Random House and NetGalley for my gifted ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely adored Out on a Limb, and wasn’t sure if this book could follow it up with the same level of banter and delight. But it absolutely did. This story of reconnection within marriage was funny and serious and all of the best parts of romance reads.