out of the woods by hannah bonam-young — a review
I will warn you in advance that this review contains a lot of fangirling because, quite frankly, I would read Hannah Bonam-Young’s shopping list at this point.
Last summer, I read a book by Hannah Bonam-Young for the first time. It was Next to You — a novel about a romance that blooms during a school bus renovation (!!!) — and I truly loved it. Every so often, I think it’s nice to read a romance that dives into deeper topics alongside the love story, and as I found by working my way through her catalogue, Hannah Bonam-Young is an author who does that masterfully. Her romances are heartfelt, representative and meaningful while still remaining funny and tension-filled. So, it’s probably unsurprising to hear that when Out of the Woods (her new release) was published last week, I ran to the bookstore at record-breaking speed and even more unsurprising to hear that when I read it, I completely fell in love.
The premise of Out of the Woods is interesting given that the main characters, Sarah and Caleb, have been together for nearly two decades when the book starts and are clearly just as in love now as they were high school — think of You Deserve Each Other by Sarah Hogle but the couple actually like each other. However, since losing her mother to ALS as a teenager, Sarah has slowly felt more and more lost, with Caleb having to come to her rescue now more than ever. And even though Caleb may possibly be the nicest guy ever who would 100% do anything for Sarah, the way this dynamic is understandably making her feel is putting a very real strain on their marriage. So, in an attempt to get their relationship back on track, they decide to attend therapy in the form of a week-long camping trip with other couples looking to reconnect.
This book gives everything it needs to and more. It’s one of those reads that I genuinely loved so much that it is now difficult to speak about it in a way which isn’t just me saying, ‘Oh my god, I loved this.’ But alas, I will try my best.
First of all, Out of the Woods gave me that immediate five-star feeling from the get-go. Reading it reminded me of how I felt as a teenager, reading full romance novels in one night and then regretting it in class the next day. The pacing of the writing is incredible, and the way the chapters switch between the past and the present makes it really difficult to put down. This choice of timeline also means that you don’t miss out on getting to see Sarah and Caleb meeting and falling in love, despite them being married adults in the present day — bonus points for this, Hannah.
Sarah as a character is almost alarmingly relatable; I think anyone who has ever felt a little lost will be able to see pieces of themselves in her. The story is told through her POV, which forges a connection between her and the reader and significantly ups the emotional investment that you feel as the plot progresses. Additionally, because one of Sarah’s biggest issues is the fact she is so in her head about her life, her future and her relationship (she’s really going through it), getting that insight from her as the narrator offers powerful insight into her life that again, makes you root for her and her happiness. And that epilogue????? No spoilers, but ohmygodiloveyouSarah.
As for Caleb, what a guy. One of the biggest sources of conflict within the relationship at the start of the book is that Caleb is almost passive. He isn’t one to talk about his emotions majorly; he fixes issues without wondering how they became issues in the first place and wants to make Sarah so happy that it actually verges on being a fault. However, this makes for such a brilliant character arc. There is no man on Earth with purer intentions than Caleb; he throws himself into the camping challenge, no questions asked, and seeing him slowly come out of his shell is so rewarding. I genuinely think he may be one of my favourite male main characters ever.
On top of Sarah and Caleb being the expertly written love interests that they are, there is a supporting cast of characters — including the other couples on the trip, the group leaders and their ten-year-old granddaughter, and most excitingly, Win, Bo and Gus from Out on a Limb — who give the story such a lovely, community feel. I loved watching Sarah and Caleb interact with people other than each other and LOVED seeing baby August all grown up. You cannot beat the feeling of revisiting beloved characters when reading an interconnected standalone series.
This is quite possibly the easiest five stars of all time. Out of the Woods is the type of romance book that reminds you of why you love reading so much, and in a world plagued by reading slumps, that quality is invaluable. I seriously cannot wait to read Hannah Bonam-Young’s future releases and already feel sorry for the book I read next for having such high standards to live up to. I miss Caleb and Sarah already.
This review was written by Jess, who you can follow on Instagram — https://www.instagram.com/thatromancebook for more bookish content.