Alison Cochrun has not missed for me yet. She's on the level of Abby Jimenez for me in that she consistently writes romance stories about realistic, genuinely interesting people who are going through relatable real-life issues and forming a connection. They way they get together, define and discover who they are, and the way they grow into a relationship with their partner, is always so well done. These are books that foster a genuine connection between two people, encouraging them to choose happiness in a chaotic world that all too often undermines efforts to do better. If Alison Cochrun has written a book, I am going to read it. It's as simple as that.

I devoured this book! I identified hard with it and it felt like it was speaking to my soul.

First of all, I want to walk the Camino even more now! Does this tour group exist because if so, sign me up!

I had a lot of empathy reading about Sadie’s coming out journey. I identified with her feelings of inadequacy at being a late bloomer. It is hard when you don’t get to have your queer adolescence and you feel like you’re missing out on those formative experiences. This book was a healing balm to my own queer experience.

Sadie and Mal forever ♥️

3.5⭐️ The perfect read for your travel desires and any internal reflection/personal journey! I was sucked in by the setting and stayed for the characters and their banter. I love a story of self reflection but don’t love a “I’m so innocent and know nothing and am embarrassed about life” sort of character. While I internally cringed through parts, I felt it made more sense in the context of Sadie’s life compared to other characters I’ve read in the past. Her experiences while cringey (I’m a big secondhand embarrassment person) made sense with her character growth. Would absolutely recommend!

Alison Cochrun : the author you are. I have always felt so seen within her books. Thank God, as i age out of young adult lgbt+ stories i have an author i know and can respect -and feel 100% safe amongst the pages. This book is so beautiful as her other books are as well - “maybe i dont need a man to be fulfilled” and i felt seen within those pages -it is a harder thing to walk in the world *being bisexual and feeling concerned about your own sexuality* especially at the height of our political crisis we are experiencing for lgbtq+ community “i weep for the girl who never let herself question or wonder or explore; the girl who kept busy, kept repressing; kept forcing herself to date men because thats what she thought she had to do” yeah i definitely felt something within this pages. As well as the noted trigger warning *always appreciate that* i urge everyone to dive into a good lgbtq+ story to always remember we have existed and will continue to regardless of current administration for our president. thank you net galley for this arc, and that you to Cochrun for always making me feel safe within your books as a young 24 year old

Alison Cochrun knocks another one out of the park--or off the beaten path. Watching Sadie experience a 'queer adolescence' in her thirties was a love letter to any and everyone who has ever felt they discovered themselves too late. Mal's arc about figuring out how to fall in love with life beyond the infatuation of a beginning is a timely one, particularly in.a fast-moving world where people are all too ready to give up before putting in the work. Not only was their emotional journey beautiful, but also their physical one. I'm not much one for the outdoors, but this book made me want to look into planning a Camino pilgrimage of my own. This book helps you get lost and find yourself in the best possible way, earning a well-deserved five stars across the board!

I really love Alison Cochrun, but Every Step She Takes, while an enjoyable read, didn't hit me as hard as her previous books (my two favorites are The Charm Offensive and Here We Go Again - those are pure perfections). While I loved both of the main characters, I felt the book could have been longer, the development better, the ending less abrupt. I would still rec it as part of the Cochrun-verse, but wouldn't be my top rec.

I literally couldn’t put this book down all weekend. I loved all of the characters and the story. It *almost* makes me want to fly to Portugal and hike 200 miles to see what I discover.

This was such a fun yet thoughtful book. I loved seeing Sadie and Mal travel through Portugal and Spain on the Camino de Santiago. Cochran’s writing made it feel like I was there on the journey with them. Beyond the physical journey Sadie and Mal take, I loved their personal journeys. We see Sadie who at the beginning is questioning her sexuality (which was quite entertaining even if mortifying for her) to knowing and understanding who she is while also have a later in life queer adolescence. Mal on the other hand knows who she is, but is dealing with the grief of losing her father. Together and with the help of the Camino and their travel group, they have such amazing growth and development.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for an eARC in exchange for a review!

Cochrun's books are always a joy, and "Every Step She Takes" is no different. The growth that Sadie goes through on her walk along the Camino is compelling, as is Mal's struggle between her own baggage and doubts. The cathartic nature of walking the Camino together, along with a delightful cast of quirky side characters, make this romance a wonderful read.

*i’d like to thank Atria Books and NetGalley for receiving the arc for Every Step She Takes, one of my anticipated novels of the year!*

where to begin? this might be Alison Cochrun’s best novel yet. from the minute we meet these characters, WHICH ID LIKE TO ADD, i share the same bday as Sadie (Tauruses RISE UP), i knew i would love them. i’m a sucker for late in life queer people, bc even ppl who realize they are queer when younger, often don’t experience the same things that straight and cis ppl do. so add mid thirties to that and you get a raw journey of finding yourself and getting to create your identity. there were so many quotes that stuck out to me that’ll i’ll have to add to my review post publication.

and while this trip wasn’t a long one, i felt myself growing with these characters, not just sadie and mal, but every eccentric side character. bc one queer persons journey, can affect and change so many others.

as for their love, i was skeptical of mal and her quick to love tendencies but i think that’s what makes her so much more interesting and their relationship so much stronger, is that we see her struggle to separate herself and not turn to her old habits or make sadie like her past loves. i’m a sucker for a happy ending, but im even more of a sucker for some time a part with growth and therapy and finding each other again.

if i had one criticism of the book, it would be not necessarily realizing that sadie was supposed to be mid size. we see her sister mentioned as a plus size influencer and sadie constantly described with curves and softness, only for it to be that she’s mid size. now i understand the message of the particular chapter, i do, mid size is bigger than a skinny build, but she couldn’t easily have been fat or plus sized and all of sadie’s fears and inner feelings would’ve stayed the same or been exemplified.

all this to say, the last chapter almost had me in tears when i realized what mal was doing. i would highly recommend this book and can’t wait to get my physical copy!!!!

Sadie is a business owner carrying on a struggling family business. Mal is a trust fund socialite who wants to run away from all of her problems, including taking over her late father’s wine empire. Both women find themselves journeying through the Camino de Santiago with 200 miles of pure self discovery – and love.

This book is one that really examined how to discover yourself, how to fall in love with the imperfect parts of you, and what it means to forge your own path to life. I really loved this book because it examines a humorous, heartwarming story of self discovery and a queer awakening. I found this book not only to be a feel good romance but also to be a new age romance full of humor, modern day references, and even a plane flight meeting between our characters. The characters within this story also go on an all-Queer trip with a diverse set of characters.

I would recommend this book to anyone wanting a LGBTQIA+ romance with humorous scenes and diverse characters.

If you like the following tropes/ideas, you will love this book:
1. Queer Love
2. Fake Dating
3. Self Discovery
4. Yearning & Chaotic Messy Love
5. Queer Awakening

A special thank you to Atria Books, Alison Cochrun, and Netgalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I could not put this down. Cochrun’s writing is so vivid. I felt like I was on the Camino. The characters are all fleshed out well and the feelings are complex and rich. Each of these characters feel like they could jump off the page and into my life.

Interesting point of view for mature adult addressing her sexuality for the first time. Throw in a pushy, self involved sister And a ditzy mom - it is quite the process of self discovery.

Every Step She Takes hits all the right notes for a summer romance. It is set against the beautiful backdrop of Portugal and Spain, and is filled to bursting with beautiful descriptions of nature and food, not to mention how gorgeous each of the MCs is in their own ways. It's silly and funny at times, poignant at others, with plenty of personal growth and a reasonable, but not overwhelming, amount of miscommunication. The characters are all relatively fleshed out (though a few of the side characters drift towards stereotypes), and the leads have genuine chemistry. Although I found the ending to be a bit lackluster, overall this is yet another win from Alison Cochrun.

Thank you to Atria Books for providing me with an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

I have wanted to walk a Camino route for a while now and this book just made me want to finally do it even more. Sadie and Mal are so human in a way that I appreciate so so much. Alison Cochrun once again just knows how to write queer characters. I loved this book from start to finish and very much appreciated all of the side characters - they added so much to the story. I felt like I was walking through Portugal right alongside them. This novel is for everyone still figuring it out even when they thought they’d have it all put together by now. Such a fun summer read.

Thank you NetGalley, Alison Cochrun, and Atria Books for this e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

I don't think I've met an Alison Cochrun novel I didn't love, but this one hit a little harder for me. It took me a little longer to get into simply because of the scenery. I have no context for where they were or what kind of trek the characters were embarking on, which is simply due to my own ignorance. Once my brain wrapped itself around the scenery, hostels, hotels, and countryside being described, I adored it. Sadie's story was one I haven't seen before in print, and I think it's one that is needed and will be so appreciated by many readers. I saw so much of myself reflected in Sadie's journey in her identity and sexuality. I loved how Mal validated her throughout the book and that their relationship felt so real. The alternative POVs between Mal and Sadie was magic and I loved both of their character arcs throughout the novel. Even the minor characters felt fully fleshed out and I got a real sense of the comradery established by the group.

However, there were a couple times I was thrown off while reading. At one point, I believe it was Mal, described touching Sadie's arm and mentioned her tibia...which is in the leg. Then again around the 80% mark, it felt like a very quick jump from Sadie and Mal having a moment to Inez and Mal talking which led to Inez somewhat uncharacteristically leading Mal to the breakup. Hopefully, these are just formatting issues that'll be resolved before the final draft hits shelves. Overall, I'll definitely be recommending this to friends and will continue to read whatever Alison puts out there!

This book made me want to quit my job and spend my days traveling, and that's saying a lot cuz I really hate travel! I just loved going on the journey with these characters. I've never felt so seen in characters I could barely relate to. Their lives may have been vastly different than mine but they shared the reality of being queer in a straight world and it was really beautiful to go on their journey with them.

I would definitely recommend this to someone who was newly out or struggling with their sexuality, or someone who felt "behind" in their queer journey. But to me, at least at this point in my life, this felt triggering in how BAD the communication was between the two main characters. While I emphasize with both their struggles, I just kept yelling at them to go to therapy! It felt very frustrating to see so many opportunities for healthy dialogue pass them by, especially because at times it almost strained credibility - surely with that wide opening you'd say SOMETHING, right? I think the resolution of the romance was perhaps a tad rushed, but Alison Cochrun has a habit of making you root for the characters and want to keep reading, even when you're frustrated, and I can't say I didn't enjoy this book. I just don't think it's "for me" at this moment in my life, necessarily.

3.5ish, rounded up to 4.

I almost bailed on this book more than once-- in pursuit of a diverse cast this author ends up writing absolutely cringe, tokenizing, one-note "diverse" characters. I understand the urge and applaud the desire but I am begging authors to be normal about it and write their characters like they're people.
I liked that Mal and Sadie were older, and Sadie's journey of discovery is genuinely satisfying. But the romance is deeply uninteresting and the Disney-level basic-ness of the side characters absolutely did not do it for me.

⤷ When Sadies’s travel blogger sister gets injured and is unable to travel she offers to take her place on a Camino tour. How hard could it be? Sadies trip gets off on the wrong foot when sudden turbulence causes her to drunkenly come out to the attractive woman sitting next to her. Little does she know the tour is for queer women, which serves to be difficult considering she’s only now starting to realize she might be gay. As if things couldn’t get worse, the attractive woman from the plane also happens to be on the same tour and has to share a room with her.

⤷ As I first started this book I wasn’t super into it, but as I continued I slowly loved it! It was so cute and I loved the Hayley Kiyoko, Chappell Roan, and Gracie Abrams references. The main character in this book is significantly older than I am, but in a way it still felt so relatable as a girl who once also struggled to figure her sexuality and who she was in the world. I love all the representation in this book and it was overall a great read.