#58 [2024/CBR16] Birding with Benefits by Sarah T. Dubb

I was so excited when the new NPR's Favorite Books List came out this year, and I immediately pored over it, surprised by how few books I knew. But one book immediately caught my eye. I sent the title to my husband who said it was written for a niche market of one (me!). The book was Birding with Benefits (2024) by Sarah T. Dubb, and it is a romance novel about birding. 

Some years ago now, I discovered that there were more birds in Colorado than just Mallards and Robins. It was a glorious epiphany that widened my view of the natural world. Now that I have a dog, I rarely go out specifically looking for birds, but I still keep my eye out. I have learned so much about birds in the intervening years, and they are fascinating creatures on so many levels.

Celeste has been divorced a couple of years. She has one daughter who is a senior in high school. She figured out that she lost herself in her marriage, trying to please her husband, and she doesn't want that to happen again. So, she has decided to forego men until she can trust herself a little more. Instead, she is focusing on living life and enjoying new experiences. John recently broke up with his girlfriend when he saw her kissing another man. He's quiet and watchful. He loves the outdoors and being outdoors and is not particularly aggressive about "achieving." He left academia because he found it unsatisfying.

When John's best friend has to bail on a team birding competition called the bird binge (I love this title), Celeste offers to step in. She's under the impression that she needs to show up one morning and pretend to be John's girlfriend. When she discovers that John actually needs a partner for the birding competition, she figures she might as well do that, too--even though she has no experience.

John teaches Celeste the wonders of bird watching, and the two spend more and more time together--both fake dating and genuinely enjoying each other's company. When the sexual tension gets too high, they decide birding with benefits for the length of the competition is the solution. Celeste is still too afraid of losing herself to get into another relationship.

I generally enjoyed this book, although my excitement died down a bit as I read. I didn't feel like Dubb quite captured the wonder of discovering birding, so that was a little disappointing. I also didn't feel a ton of emotion while I read, only a little here and there. Finally, I got a little frustrated with their dilemma. "We only have until the end of the birding competition!" That's a very arbitrary rule. If you find someone you really like and have amazing sex with, I think you need a much better reason than that to stop. The book's central problem also got solved very quickly and easily. On the whole, this book was enjoyable, but I think I began it with too high of expectations.