OH IT IS SO FREAKING GOOD.

Alison Cochrun knows how to write a sapphic love story and Every Step She Takes further proves that.

I really really enjoyed this book!! It’s a great and cute self discovery. I myself can relate so much to it!

This book was amazing. I requested it because of the author, then I read the blurb and I wasn’t quite as excited anymore, BUT now that I read the novel I am so incredibly thrilled with my choice to grab this one. Amazing novel. This one has it all (unless you want like, horror or something, then go away); you have a solid little plot, a bunch of emotional connection, heartbreaking moments, heartwarming moments, self-discovery and transformation, family issues, horny people, and a guy wearing spandex that will NOT stop stretching (but its ok). I laughed my way through this book, but it hit the other emotional beats too. I recommend it, plainly and simply. You wont regret it.
Then when your done and know I was right, you should go read “Kiss Her Once For Me” as well because I want to plug the first novel I read by this author that won me over.

My Rating: “A+”
Converted Rating: 5-Stars

Highlights:
-Excellent writing. Its funny, its heartwarming, its sad, its everything. The story is well plotted out, the dialogue is great…. Just overall the writing is wonderful. Not that I was surprised with this author.
-The adorable and fun little rag-tag group of queers. Excellent collection of side characters that added a lot to the novel.
-Body Neutrality for the win! This isn’t something that I see very often, let alone in a novel.
-Ace representation is always appreciated, as well as the rest of the diversity on display in this novel.
-EMOTIONAL SUPPORT RUFFLES! I will not explain, read the book. This sentence/section had me laughing more than anything else I have read in… years. It might have just been the right thing at the right time but I had to stop reading until I calmed down. Did I mention the book is funny?
-It was just SO sweet and heartwarming. Truly.
-Yay therapy! Any book that features the use of an actual resource to help with your emotional problems gets bonus points from me!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing the free ARC. This honest review was left voluntarily.

- Find me an Alison Cochrun book that I won't rate 5 stars - that's right YOU CAN'T
- This is such a set of wild coincidences that lead to Sadie and Mal being on this trip together that it's almost silly, and I love it
- Honestly, yelling I THINK I'M A LESBIAN to the person next to you on a plane because you think you're about to die and they seem queer, NOT dying, and then having to spend the next 2 weeks not just on a trip with said person but you're also roommates? Yes please very good
- Loved the little bad blog posts between chapters (and watching them get better as Sadie got more comfortable with everything)
- I really felt for Sadie during this book. It was basically a coming-of-age, except she's 35 and has that awful awful feeling that she's "too late" to so much of what she's learning about herself. I'm glad they also get into the idea of compulsive heterosexuality and why it makes PERFECT SENSE that it took time for her to realize that she isn't straight.

This is suuuch a swoony book. Oh my goodness. I adored it. I loved Mal, and Sadie, and their ragtag group of tour-mates. The growth and character arcs were so rich. The connection was hot and tender and sweet all at once. There is so much delicious details of wine, their journey, their stories and thought processes, their escapades through Portugal and Spain, the beauty of the countries and journey. The ending was exquisite.
For fans of blisters, wine, self-discovery, antique repurposing, and plane turbulence. Also, I would recommend this book to anyone, but especially if you enjoyed the book The Pairing.

I was so excited to receive this ARC from Net Galley. I have loved everyone of Cochrun’s book and a couldn’t wait to dive into another story. What I loved most about this book is how I was able to relate to both of the main characters. I greatly enjoyed reading about their journey on the Camino and of course their love story. The rest of characters also have their heartwarming stories. I highly recommend this book!

I loved this! It was a truly adorable sapphic read. Love the self discovery and validation our main character got.

This story had a lot of promise but I felt like the main character completely 180’d in such a short amount of time that it wasn’t believable. At about the 60% mark it felt like someone else took over writing the book the way they wanted and it switched tones.
I did enjoy the adventure though!

There was a lot I enjoyed about this. The discover of self on the camino made me move up walking the camino on my “future trips” list. I enjoyed Sadie’s later in life discovery of self. IDK the relationship fell a little flat. It was unclear to me how Mal wasn’t repeating the same exact patterns. Alas. Still enjoyable.

Thank you to Netgalley and Atria for a complimentary earc in exchange for an honest review.

This was a fantastic romance! I sped through this book in just over a day and had a great time. The characters are endearing and relatable, even if your experiences aren’t quite like theirs. I loved it.

I do wish that Sadie actually looked plus size on the cover, bc it was great to have a fat MC!!

I loved Sadie! All of her worries and insecurities were so relatable that I felt like I was reading about a friend from the first chapter. Like Sadie, I am a homebody with zero desire to travel even though the rest of my family does; I enjoyed watching her grow along her trek and found plenty of opportunity for reflection and introspection myself as she was walking. This novel provided me with a much deeper emotional and reflective experience than I’d anticipated and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

This book was a fun read. The descriptions of where they were and what they ate were detailed enough to set the scene without making the whole thing into a travel book. Both women had some issues to work through and, while they did get together in some ways, they both put in the work to deal with their hangups before the end. It was a bit too spicy for my liking, but that's completely subjective.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!!

I fell in love with Sadie in the first chapter. Not going to lie I low key relate to her ALOT!!! That being said it did take me a while to vibe with Mal. I’m not sure how I feel about the instalove trope… or the whole practice relationship but it is what it is.

I did enjoy the diverse character and the adventure aspect of this story.

Overall a pretty good experience.

A coming of age story centering on two women in there 30s... it's never too late to learn who you are.

When her travel influencer sister can't make the trip she was supposed to blog, overworked Sadie volunteers to walk El Camino for her. The two week journey will be a break from the antique store she's been running since high school, the emotional labor managing her family, and the men who even when they are plenty fine don't inspire her to not count down to the end of the date. On the Camino Sadie meets a cast of traveling queer characters, including Mal who is running from another failed relationship and figuring out what to do with her late father's company. Most people drawn to El Camino are running from something or toward something, but what will Sadie and Mal find?

Every time I read about the Camino I want to do it, but I wish I was with this little group. There is a bit of over explanation of queer lingo and therapy speak sometimes, but overall it is very sweet.

4/5 stars

Thank you to #NetGalley and the publishers for access to an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Every Step She Takes follows Mal and Sadie as they embark on a journey both literal and of internal discovery along the Camino de Santiago in Portugal/Spain. Sadie, 35, is coming to terms with her sexuality and Mal, 38, is trying to figure out what to do next now that her estranged father has died and she has inherited his business. To start with the positives, I really enjoyed the setting. Cochrun brings the trail to life with vivid details and fun anecdotes about the trail. You can clearly tell that she has walked these roads herself. I also really enjoyed the characterization and how fleshed out the two main characters and all of the side characters were. The group of side characters form a found family and I really enjoyed every one of them. Would LOVE to read Rebecca's book. I also think that all of the conversations about body image and sexuality were very well done and were handled with care and understanding.

That said, I have read all of Cochrun's full length novels and, unfortunately, this is my least favorite. I was excited to read about more mature characters (as most romance novels follow 20-somethings) but found the execution of the "practice relationship" to be completely juvenile. I understand the whole second adolescence thing but, come on, these women are in their late 30s. They would not truly believe that having sex with someone is somehow really just practice. This is compounded by the fact that Mal in particular is extremely immature. I mean, at one point she literally <spoiler>runs away from a former caretaker in order to avoid talking to her. She is also unnecessarily flippant and rude to a family member who is only trying to help her.</spoiler> This is not the behavior of a 38 year old I would want to read about. I am also not a huge fan of insta love but that is more of a trope preference. All and all, these factors came together such that while I enjoyed the beginning of this book, I wasn't really having a great time by the end.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for this e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

“Every Step She Takes” pulls you alongside Sadie, who unexpectedly finds herself in Portugal to walk and blog about the Camino, a pilgrimage that ends in Spain. Surrounded by a wonderfully diverse cast of characters, including Mal who is also trying to navigate her own past, Sadie learns how to push herself to figure out who she truly is. It’s about being authentic and accepting yourself, about letting go to figure out who you really are. It’s also about friendship and moving forward. “Every Step She Takes” shows how much can happen in a journey that is both literal and figurative. I also appreciated Alison Cochrun’s skillful writing, the depth of the characters, and the descriptive settings.

Thank you Atria Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read “Every Step She Takes.”

Another great book from Alison Cochrun! I absolutely adored her book, "Here We Go Again", and I enjoyed this one just as much if not more. Somehow this book managed to make walking actually seem fun, and made me dream of going on my own Camino someday.

In terms of the characters, I loved both Sadie and Mal. Particularly, Sadie's ability to share parts of herself so freely was incredibly appealing to me as someone who struggles with that very thing. This is why I related so much to Mal, who is closed off and a perfect opposite match to Sadie's way of life. Watching them fall in love was adorable, hot, and funny at the same time. They were both super into each other and I ate up every minute they spent together.

The side characters were pretty likeable as well. Each of them had their own unique personalities and stories, athough I didn't always feel quite as connected to some of them as I'd have liked. When the whole group was together the dynamic was fun and reflective.

Overall, this book is funny, romantic, and full of heart. 5/5 stars.

Just want to start off with the biggest thank you to Atria for this galley and to Alison Cochrun for writing another instant favorite. When yall need a hype person for the next one let me know heheh. I can not wait to talk about this book nonstop for the rest of time.
Going into this book I knew I was going to leave wanting to do the Camino. Brb looking for flights to Spain right now.

Normally the second hand embarrassment gets to me but honestly from page one I was fully enamored with Sadie and her awkwardness. I too had the messiest coming out.

Honestly I loved the adventure they had. Every side character/ lifelong friend they made and their journey of falling in love and then realizing it. The growth was so beautiful to read. I normally hate a third act breakup but this one felt so important so they could grow and heal (and go to therapy!!!) Mal felt so genuine in her grief and the unlearning and understanding of her behaviors and actions -I love her your honor.

All in all I love Sadie & Mal and won’t be shutting up about them anytime soon.

I think the back half of this book is much, much better than the first half. I thought the first part just didn’t get the set up quite right. There’s also, for some reason, this sapphic rom com desire to put as many brand names and pop culture references in as possible which I find distracting and weak, aging the book almost immediately and acting as almost a queer inventory or checklist to gatekeeper experience.

All of that out of my system, I enjoyed the portrayal of grief from Mal’s character. I thought it was well done and given the room to have depth. The coming out or figuring out sexuality thing that Sadie works on isn’t as gripping personally. I almost wish this entire thing had been from Mal’s point of view.

Anyway, fun if not in need of some better, stronger editing.

Thanks for the ARC.

It’s always refreshing when there’s a main character that is older and not had sexual experience. I’m not sure why, but I feel like it needs to be talked about more and the way the author handled it was great.

I saw myself in both Mal and Sadie. Even though the Camino is only two weeks, it was believable when the two main characters fell for each other and it didn’t seem too fast oddly enough. The cultural references were on point and I was cracking up at all the references.

I do believe that it would’ve been better to have an epilogue due to how abrupt I felt the book ended and due to Mal’s pattern of not liking the middle of things. It would’ve been a nice full circle moment to flash forward into “the middle” of their relationship and see how Mal embraces that and to see that Sadie was different and the situation was different from her other relationships.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!