From the publisher:
A married couple joins a week-long wilderness expedition to help them reconnect in this heartfelt companion novel to the viral TikTok sensation Out on a Limb.
High school sweethearts Sarah and Caleb Linwood have always been a sure thing. For the past seventeen years, they have had each other’s backs through all of life’s ups and downs.
But Sarah has begun to wonder . . . who is she without her other half?
When she decides to take on a project of her own, a fundraising gala in memory of her late mother, Sarah wants nothing more than to prove to herself—and to everyone else—that she doesn’t need Caleb’s help to succeed. She’s still her mother’s daughter after all, independent and capable.
That is, until the event fails and Caleb uninvitedly steps in to save the day.
The rift that follows unearths a decade of grievances and doubts. Are they truly the same people they were when they got married at nineteen? Are they supposed to be?
In a desperate attempt to fix what they fear is breaking, Sarah and Caleb make the spontaneous decision to get out of their comfort zones and join a grueling hiking trip intended to guide couples through rough patches.
What follows is a life-affirming comedy of errors as two nature-averse people fight their way out of the woods in order to find their way back to their roots.
“Bonam-Young excels in creating nuanced characters on complicated emotional journeys and she makes Caleb and Sarah’s reconnection believable through both sweet and heat-filled moments. This is a delight. —Publishers Weekly
I must admit I was feeling a bit trepidatious about reading this second-chance romance. It felt like it might be hitting a bit too close to home for me; after all, I met my husband when I was 17, and he was 19, and while we didn’t get married until six years later and our marriage has been a good one, there were ups and downs along the way. I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel about this book. Turns out, I loved it!
Sarah and Caleb have been through a lot together in their seventeen years of marriage. They married when they were nineteen years old, so Sarah’s mom could be at the wedding. She had ALS and died a few months later. Caleb came from a wealthy background but didn’t necessarily always agree with his parents and their life choices. He felt more loved and at home in Sarah’s house.
Sarah was raised by a single mom and her Aunt June, who also had a daughter, Win, who was the same age as Sarah. Caleb felt the loss of Sarah’s mom nearly as much as Sarah did. Several years later, she gets the idea to hold a fundraiser for ALS in her mother’s memory. It’s a formal gala, but the money isn’t rolling in like Sarah was hoping. At the last minute, Caleb gives her a huge check to make up the difference, and that gesture sends Sarah spiraling. She wanted to do this on her own, but after that check, it feels like Caleb rescued her, and she is tired of being rescued. She asks him to name one thing about her that is truly special and unique, and he doesn’t say a word. They end up not speaking for a few weeks.
Then Win tells her about this week-long marriage retreat in the woods that her boss is running. There is an opening for another couple, and while neither Caleb nor Sarah are the outdoorsy types, they decide they probably should go anyway. If being off the grid for a week can help their marriage, they are both willing to try. The camping and hiking trip is no picnic, but they start growing closer again, and it looks like it may have been just what their marriage needed, at least until a dreadful accident occurs.
This was my first read from this author; I believe she had several self-published books before this traditionally published book came out. It was well-written and engaging, and I loved these characters. I couldn’t help but root for their happy ending, and I was sorry to turn that last page. This was a different spin on a second-chance romance as the characters were married, but as someone who has been married for more than forty years, I can assure you it rang true. I laughed, I cried, and I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Don’t miss it!
1/2025 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch
OUT OF THE WOODS by Hannah Bonam-Young. Dell (January 28, 2025). ISBN: 978-0593871867. 336p.
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