Birding with Benefits takes the popular trope of faking dating and turns it on its head when it’s connected to a birding contest. As someone who loves to take nature walks, is from the area the book is set in, and is always down to read about a couple fake dating, it was immediately added to my reading list. It delivered on that premise while delivering themes I wasn’t initially expecting, and their execution was a pleasant surprise.
Celeste is not a typical main character. She’s quirky in a way that many may be quick to call a wannabe manic pixie dream girl as an insult and is older than most romance protagonists. However, all of this is important to see on the page. She shows that you can be yourself and do the things you enjoy without being stereotyped and that this realization can come at any point in your life. Though she falls into predictable behaviors when it comes to her teenage daughter, it makes her human and helps her understand that her version of “supportive” is not how it always comes across.
While I loved the fake dating aspect between Celeste and John, especially because of how it helps the two of them get over the hill their previous relationships left them on, what I loved more was how they both prioritize themselves. Celeste always felt small in her marriage, like she had to bury a part of her personality to meet her husband’s expectations. John has the opposite problem, in that his ex-girlfriend wanted him to open up more despite his more introverted nature. Finding themselves, and how they can still be themselves while in a relationship, is a wonderful message to send.
For lovers of nature, the book does an amazing job of describing the birds Celeste and John see. It feels like the reader is learning about them alongside Celeste. As someone who lives in the area the story takes place in, I can’t wait to try and see some of the birds myself.