I would know a Katie Cotugno book anywhere. Her writing is so distinct, so clearly her, I could read a grocery list and know she had written it. Katie is one of my very favorite authors and I adored her adult debut.

meh. i wanted to like it more than i did. the potential was there but it fell flat. the writing itself was good for the most part - easy to follow, character dialogue was pretty good. but it felt like it took foreverrrrrr for anything major to happen. and then when the resolution happened the whole book was just over. it all happened so quickly. i would have liked to see more character growth in fiona. loved claudia and estelle though! thanks so much to the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review! I also bought this one because i loved the cover so much.

Really enjoyed the Birds of California! Katie Cotungo is such a talented writer. I'd love to read more by her!

I had mixed feelings about "Birds of California" by Katie Cotugno. There were parts I really enjoyed, but overall, I found it a bit lacking.
One of the things I liked most was the relationship between Fiona and Sam. They were both such likable characters, and I really rooted for them. Fiona is a strong and independent young woman who has been through a lot, and Sam is a sweet and supportive guy. I enjoyed seeing their relationship develop throughout the book.
However, I felt like the book overall was a bit slow-paced and uneventful. There were long stretches where nothing really happened, and I found myself getting a little bored. I also felt like the ending was a bit unsatisfying. I still have a lot of questions about what happened to the characters, and I would have liked to see more of a resolution.
Despite my criticisms, I did appreciate the book's message about the importance of family and friendship. I also enjoyed learning more about the birds of California, which was a nice bonus.
Overall, I would say that "Birds of California" is a quick and easy read, but it's not one of my favorites by Katie Cotugno. I would recommend it to fans of contemporary fiction who are looking for a light and fluffy read.

Liked but didn’t love. I’m a big fan of another book by this author so was super excited to read this one. I also love a celeb romance usually - maybe this is a case of my expectations being too high because I can’t pinpoint what didn’t work for me exactly.

I think it was just an ok read - nothing that will really stick out to make it memorable.

I liked watching these characters reconnect over the course of the story, but I wasn't very engaged with the book overall.

Oh goodness. This was such a heavy book, but it was also insanely sexy and fun. I love the dynamics of all the characters. Each of them are so precious and lovely and fragile and strong. This was such an excellent read.

This was nothing special. Not bad but not great. I enjoyed the writing and the overall story but Fiona just felt so negative, constantly pushing everyone away, and she really started to get on my nerves. We don't learn until the end what the trauma was that she faced that made her this way, but I think if we had learned this earlier and got more about her past, it would have been a lot better. I would have loved to get some of the piece Erin did on her, that would have been really interesting to hear about.

Well, this one just drop kicked me in the feels. Trigger warnings galore for this post-Me-Too era exploration of a former child actress, and please note that it is women's fiction with romantic elements. Reliving her trauma and her grooming at the hands of an older studio exec was a doozy and the tension was so exquisitely wrought.

I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley and Harper Perennial in exchange for an honest review.

I started off this book thinking it was super cute and a unique spin on the classic rom-com because it centers around two former child stars trying to make their way as adults in show business which then eventually leads to a second-chance romance situation for them both. As I reached the 50% mark of the book, I became quite disinterested for a number of reasons. First off, both of the main characters were vapid, out of touch, one-dimensional, and frankly, kind of mean to each other. The mean nature of their interactions was a bizarre basis for a relationship. I had no desire to root for either of them and was so bored with their relationship.

Without specifically mentioning spoilers, the main problem I had with the book was how rushed, glossed over, and peripheral the central trauma for the main character ended up being. I kept hoping for a big empowering moment where Fiona finally came to terms with her past in a healthy, meaningful way, but it only just started to happen in, quite literally, the last 1% of the book.

Overall, despite its short length, this was a very skimmable and forgettable read. Thanks again to NetGalley and Harper Collins for the ARC to review.

I received a copy of this book as an ARC from NetGalley in return for an honest review.

This books worked for me! Maybe it was the dual perspectives (Fiona and Sam alternating chapters), maybe it was the Los Angeles setting, maybe it was that there were adult conversations and the third act conflict happened and resolved quickly, or maybe I was just in the mood for a second chance romance. The premise: Fiona St. James was a child actor and after having a Britney Spears-esque breakdown when she was 19 has retired from the acting life at age 28. She lives with her depressed father and her younger sister, Claudia (18), and she is running her father's boutique print shop on his behalf. Sam is our love interest, and he is a the upbeat, never-met-a-stranger, sexy AF aspiring Hollywood star. He and Fiona were on the family TV series "Birds of California" when they were teens, and there is buzz of a reboot for the series. After Sam's current series gets a midseason cancellation, he is strapped for cash, and needs this reboot to happen. He tries to convince Fiona to join, but ends up realizing she is the girl of his dreams.

This book is formulaic, sure, and the writing is straightforward, but I really enjoyed Sam and Fiona's romance. They are snarky, playful, sarcastic, and yet very much late 20 year old characters. They have adult conversations about conflict. They say what is on their minds, but they aren't so transparent and candid that it feels false. Cotugno does a beautiful job of creating fully realized characters in a sub 300 page book. Bravo! There is also some depth with the following trigger warnings: a parent with cancer, parents abandoning children when young, a parent with depression, a grooming relationship, and mental health. However, the depth isn't too deep, but just enough to allow this to not be a shallow romance. Also, there is plenty of steam in this book too, but more PG-13 borderline R than anything X rated.

I would recommend this to anyone who likes Hollywood/TV industry, adult characters who still have fun, witty banter, and something with a touch more depth than "fluff" but nothing too deep. I'll probably look to read other books by Cotugno in the future.

This one really falls flat, it's boring, predictable, and I didn't care about any of the characters. There was potential but the more I got along the more I found myself skimming

If you're a long-time follower of my blog, you know how much I love Katie Cotugno so I was really excited to read her first romance novel under her name (she has 3 under the pen name Ruby McNally). Former child star Fiona St. James had a very well-publicized downward spiral before dropping out of the spotlight completely and now, she's living a much more private and low-key lifestyle. On the other hand, Sam Fox, who played her older brother on their popular sitcom, Birds of California, has been living exactly the kind of life of you'd expect from a Hollywood actor. But with his career taking a dip, he signs on for a revival of their old show and he needs to convince Fiona to get on board. She surprisingly agrees to have lunch with him and both are even more surprised to find that the old sparks between them are very much still there. (We all know where this is going.) But while I enjoyed seeing their romance unfold and my heart ached for the hints to Fiona's past and the reason for her self-destructive behavior, a lot of the story felt very surface level. I wanted more from Sam, from Fiona, from their past and present, and just everything. Up until the last few chapters, I kept waiting for that big moment and it ultimately came way too late. And while the resolution was what I wanted, it wasn't given nearly enough time or the attention it deserved. So unfortunately, this was another case of liking but not loving a book from one of my favorite authors. But I'm still excited for Katie Cotugno's step into the "adult" romance space and I'm looking forward to seeing what she does next.

I don't feel like much happened in this book. I didn't care for the main characters; there wasn't much in the way of character development. It was a rather flat story.

I received an advance copy. All thoughts are my own.

I enjoyed this! I found it a fun quick read and we had a good time discussing in our book club. I liked the premise but would have liked for the #metoo storyline expanded a bit more.

Fiona's very public crash and burn led to the cancellation of her popular tv show. As conversations about a show reboot heat up, the former child actor wants no part of it while the rest of the cast is on board. Her costar Sam is tasked with getting Fiona to sign on. He's struggling to figure out why she isn't interested. How many secrets will the show's potential revival reveal?

I can't put my finger on it, but something about Fiona, Sam, and their quirky romance hooked me. They were real and relatable characters dealing with real-world problems. I enjoyed the side characters as well.

Birds of California is a fascinating mix of Hollywood drama and characters facing serious issues. I would have liked to see a little more detail on the resolution of this story. I felt like we got the summarized version of the ending. I would definitely read a sequel with more detail on how things ended and a "where are they now" update on Fiona and Sam.

If you want a non-traditional romance with depth, check out Birds of California.

Rating: 3.5 rounded up to 4

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Perennial for a review copy of this book.

What I enjoyed about this one:
- second chance romance
- the cover is gorgeous
- celebrity where are they now atmosphere

What missed:
It felt like the story began halfway through. I wanted more about the past because it sounded so interesting.

I'm adding this to the list of underwhelming book Tok recommendations. This one had a strong concept going in, but the slow burn really hindered the development of the story.

“Sparks fly and things get real in this sharply sexy and whip-smart romantic comedy set against the backdrop of a post #metoo Hollywood from New York Times bestselling author Katie Cotugno–page-turning escapist fun in the spirit of Beach Read, The Kiss Quotient, and Red, White and Royal Blue.“

I’m starting my review for Birds of California with this marketing quote because this book is probably the furthest thing from a romantic comedy. Listen, I know the publishers these days are playing fast and loose with their use of the romantic comedy label for everything and anything, but this has got to be the most egregious use in a very long time. Admittedly, the book does have a romance, but I wouldn’t personally call it romantic. It’s quite boring to be fair, and the couple did absolutely nothing for me. But calling it a comedy??? When it’s actually more an exploration of PTSD and possibly a response to the MeToo movement in Hollywood?? I would like a word with however came up with the marketing plan of this book! Anyways, I quickly shifted my expectations while listening to this audiobook. Fiona is a character who is dealing with a lot of trauma from being a child star. I was ready for this exploration of her character and the bones for a good story were here, but they weren’t filled appropriately. A lot about this book was surface level and the main reason is the romance. It completely takes away from what could have been a deeply compelling story. The problem with the romance is that the love interest is just not interesting. Sam, who was Fiona’s co-star and who has snaked his way back into her life to convince her to make a comeback on a reboot of their show, is as bland as unseasoned chicken. All I can remember about his character is that he enjoys masturbating, which you know, not a personality trait. I think if the focus had been on Fiona and this book had been more of a general fiction story, I could have gotten behind it. Katie Cotugno has a good writing style, but the execution of Birds of California fell flat.

Katie Cotugno has the ability to really get deep with her characters' emotions, and this book continues that streak for her. Fans of Cotugno are used to her YA novels, and in this adult fiction novel, she's able to weave in a beautiful story about two celebrities in Hollywood dealing with their fame and calls for a reunion and reboot of their former show. This was a really beautiful love story that Cotugno fans will surely devour!