I received this book from the publishers/author via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Two Steps Forward follows two different middle-aged people, Zoe and Martin, as they embark upon the historic pilgrimage of the Camino de Santiago. Both characters have a lot to think about, and they end up meeting each other, and other people along the way to help them on their journey, as well as gaining experiences that could never be replaced.

I actually ended up feeling a bit disappointed and overwhelmed by this book which I'm so surprised by because having completed a week of the Camino myself, I thought there would be so much in this that would resonate me and bring me back to that week.

First of, I have to say that I found there to be a weird sense of snobbery about the Camino in this book from many of the characters, both about which way people decide to do (mostly French versus Spanish) and how people do it (the whole thing versus a week or two). While yes, there are people who are able to put aside several months to walk the entire thing, that's just not feasible for many people who want to experience it so why put people down for only walking a week or two weeks, and deciding to walk a more 'tourist-heavy way.' Everyone does the Camino for different reasons whether it's religious, spiritual. health etc and even though our characters were super preachy about their reasons, I felt like the overall message got a tiny bit lost halfway through when the Camino snobbery became apparent.

I also really, really didn't like the main characters Zoe and Martin. I found both of them super stiff, and really anal about well, everything. It would have actually made for a nicer dynamic if one of them had been a little bit more free-wheeling but whatever it was with them, I just hated them both. There was also a lot of drama between them both, though mostly on Zoe's part that, at times, was definitely not needed. It made reading them a little bit exhausting. Yes, some of Zoe's freak-outs and feelings were realistic given her situation but the amount of times they ran off on one another, come on. Also I felt ZERO chemistry between the characters anyway and it just felt like the authors mashed them together just because they could.

So with all the bad things said, I will say that the camaraderie between the walkers on the Camino was portrayed very well. No matter how little or how much you talk to the people walking the trail with you, you're all doing the same thing and feeling those same aches and it definitely creates a bond, even if you never see each other again.