Book Review: Take Two, Birdie Maxwell | Allison Winn Scotch

In Allison Winn Scotch’s new novel, Take Two Birdie Maxwell, Hollywood’s biggest rom-com star tries to recover from her damaged reputation by staging her own rom-com and following a lead on a lost love.

Review | Take Two Birdie Maxwell

 This book is so fun! Birdie Maxwell is surprisingly relatable as a character, despite being a mega-star. The premise of the book is timely too, that a video captured without context was shared and set off a chain of events. The risk of being filmed and that video shared in public during a less-than-ideal moment is real and the downside of everyone always having a video camera in their pocket (and often their hand!).

Birdie Maxwell (stage name Robinson) is one of the most popular actresses in the world, and often referred to as America’s sweetheart due to her status as the rom-com queen. Unfortunately, it’s hard to keep the title of America’s sweetheart after she was filmed onset of her new movie throwing a tantrum and screaming at popular director Sebastian Carol. Birdie is in a bind, and it seems whatever she tries to do only makes it worse. Her PR team asked her to film an emotional apology video, but the video came off insincere and caused a new wave of social media calling her fake.

“Well, you know Birdie. She never met a dramatic arc that she didn’t want to make one scene longer.”

Birdie is the first to admit the video was insincere. She isn’t sorry for calling out a director who has inappropriately touched countless women on his sets and crew. She’s sorry that she wasn’t able to provide the context for why she told him off and stand up for the women he’s assaulted, but her team won’t let her share that. With few options but to lie low, Birdie heads to her hometown in Barton, CA. Birdie will be hard to track down, mostly because in addition to going by a stage name (Birdie Robinson), early in her career Birdie lied about her hometown to get a part. Birdie liked the idea of being from a crunchy town in Oregon so much, that she let the lie continue throughout her career.

“Bird, you realize this isn’t an actual rom-com, correct?”

Being back home means more complications, though. Her relationship with her sister Andie is on the rocks. Her parents are on a year-long trip. Luckily, she has her best friend Mona to take her for much-needed drinks, but Mona’s hot twin brother Elliot joins to Birdie’s chagrin. Birdie and Elliot have a past that they’ve told no one about. A decade of attraction led to one blissful night and then a sea of hurt feelings too vast to overcome.

“That implies that my life is literally a rom-com, Elliot. I think the past few weeks have clearly disproven that.”
“Well, you never know until the closing credits.”

When Birdie is going through her boxed-up belongings at her parents house, she finds a love letter addressed to her real name and her real address. The love letter purports to be from a paramour from her past, and Birdie’s list isn’t too long. She definitely won’t include Elliot nor a movie star she had and on-and-off relationship with on that list, which leaves hot chef Ian, tennis-pro Carter, and British hotelier Simon. Elliot is also in need of a career repair, despite being a Pulitzer-prize nominated (twice!) journalist. At Mona’s encouragement, Elliot agrees to go on a road trip in her RV with Birdie to find her ex-boyfriend’s and determine who wrote her the letter (while Elliot chronicles it for some much-needed buzz). Will Birdie find out who wrote the letter and maybe a happily ever after?

“You deserve a happy ending, Ms. Robinson.”

This book is adorable. Birdie Maxwell’s fall from grace and search for love will have even the most skeptical among us rooting for her to find her happily-ever-after. Birdie is funny and it’s impossible not to be charmed by her. The meetings with her three exes (well, five exes) all provide a different lesson for Birdie that culminate in her clarity at the end of the book. It’s clear from the beginning that Elliot is her man (don’t we love that about romance books?), but it won’t be straight forward to get there. Birdie and Elliot both throw hurdles in their own way, but if they can clear them perhaps they will be even stronger together.

An upbeat and laugh-out-loud rom-com with a fun twist at the end! Thank you to Berkley Publishing for my copy. Opinions are my own.

About the Author | Allison Winn Scotch

Allison Winn Scotch grew up with a love for reading encouraged by her mother who was a teacher. While working as a freelance journalist, Allison worked on writing her first novel. Now, she has nearly one dozen novels and has seen great success and support from readers and the media.

Her ninth novel, The Rewind, pitched as THE HANGOVER meets WHEN HARRY MET SALLY, and is a return to her romantic comedy roots. It’s also currently in development at Netflix. (Yay!) Her tenth book, Take Two, Birdie Maxwell, pitched as NOTTING HILL meets THE PROPOSAL, published in early 2024.

Her eighth novel, Between Me and You, is currently in development with Kerry Washington’s production company and Audible.com. Stay tuned for the romantic comedy podcast in 2023.

About the Book | Take Two Birdie Maxwell

Birdie Maxwell thought she’d gotten everything she wanted out of life: fame, adoration, and an A-list Hollywood career. But after an on-set feud goes viral, she leaves L.A. for the one place no one would think to find her: her hometown. There, she’s startled to stumble upon a love letter from a former boyfriend asking for a second chance–but there’s just one problem: the letter was unsigned and she’s not sure which ex sent it. Still, a public reunion with an ex-boyfriend could turn the wave of public opinion back in her favor. Life imitating art. What could go wrong? 

Elliot O’Brien, star reporter, knows life isn’t an actual rom-com. Case in point: He’s spent two decades suppressing his long-simmering feelings for his twin sister’s best friend, Birdie. But with his journalism career cratering and Birdie back in their hometown at the same time he is, he realizes chronicling her search for her long-ago ex may be his opportunity to right some wrongs.

As they hit the road in an ancient RV, Birdie and Elliot retrace her romantic history for clues as to who wrote the letter and come face to face with their own romantic missteps, all while grappling with whether happy endings are found only on the big screen–or whether their own happily-ever-after could be closer than they both ever imagined. (Synopsis from Goodreads)