Flipping the Birdie is about a superhero named Birdie who has had to deal with the death of her father, a mother that couldn’t hand the death of her husband and her daughter being a super, an ex fiancé that couldn’t handle that she was the fastest and strongest person on earth. If that wasn’t enough when she tries to rescue people they give her crap because she’s a girl. When one really bad incident happens it’s too much for the city council and they force her to take time off and see a psychologist. During her forced time away she sees a psychologist in a sleepy beach town and it helps her regain focus on who is she besides “the Chicago bird”. Is it too late to learn to live yourself and open yourself to others? This was a fun book, that while it was a bit predictable it didn’t stop me from wanting to see the characters to the end. I also wouldn’t mind a sequel with Jace & Claudio and/or Jimmy.
Thank you Netgallery, S.L. Woeppel and River Grove Books for choosing me to be an arc reader for this book.

"The world had never been good about accepting women with power. It never did believe we could wield the power we possessed." - Birdie, pg. 165.

If this book had a thesis statement, it would be this. Despite being a very entertaining, emotional, and funny super hero story, the story of Birdie is one that so many women can relate to - the unending question of what it means to be a woman in society, and who gets to decide the answer to that question. The book isn't hiding its argument; if anything, it's projecting it in neon flashing lights to everyone to see: we are the ones who decide how and when to wield our power.

Birdie is a loveable contradiction. She's physically stronger than most people on the planet, but the development of her power has resulted in her being more emotionally stunted than most people around her. Physically, little can hurt her, emotionally, it doesn't take more than a verbal slight to send her spinning. But after initial resistance, she's willing and able to put in the work to fix her shortcomings. It was wonderful to experience the evolution of Birdie's relationship with Evie, the perfectly chipper foil whose pain and strength is belied by the bubbly exterior.

Aiden is a perfectly foul-mouthed misanthrope with a soft spot for the people he loves and cares about. The relationship that develops between Birdie and Aiden makes sense and I was definitely rooting for it to succeed.

Overall, this is a super charming story that had me hooked from Birdie's interaction with the "super fan" and that had me wanting a shirt by the end. The moral may have been a little too obvious, but it didn't detract from the great fun you have as you experience the lesson.

This was a joy to read! So funny and unlike anything that I've read before! Birdie is a secret superhero (yes! you read that right!) in Chicago who has been getting some bad publicity.... as in, she could crush a man's.... well, you know without even trying.

She needs to take some time off, so she stays at a camp for artists and students. Aiden is a grumpy neighbor - the enemies to lovers trope is one of my favorites, and these two killed it.

The spice was great - and the emotion was even better! Humor, found friends, and an awesome cast of characters - I loved it all. S.L. Woeppel hit it out of the park with this one!

Superspeed, incredible strength, a foul mouth—these are thirty-one-year-old superhero Birdie Bowden’s powers. Although Birdie boasts a perfect save record as Chicago’s municipal super, her bad attitude and latest, now viral, run-in with a local menace lead the mayor to place her on suspension.

Forced into therapy in a small beachside suburb, the solitary Birdie meets eccentric, bubbly housekeeper Evie. Adrift without her job, Birdie leaves her superhero identity behind and accepts Evie’s invitation to stay with her for the summer cleaning beach cabins while working the therapy program as a means to get her job back. The only snag in her plan is Aiden, Evie’s ill-tempered, unfairly handsome brother and cabin owner. Focused on helping his sister wage her own battle of healing, Aiden finds Birdie to be an irksome, unwelcome influence and doesn’t hesitate to tell her so. But that’s fine with Birdie—her natural ability to constantly get a rise out of grumpy Aiden may be her greatest superpower yet.

As Birdie fumbles through her therapist’s ridiculous get-to-know-the-real-Birdie assignments, she feels a growing connection to her new life, including the increasingly alluring Aiden, and a yearning for more than being a super. But she can’t have both lives, and she’ll never reveal her true identity—because the only thing faster than her own speed is how quickly people, particularly men, leave when they realize Birdie is not your typical heroine.

Loved it. Will recommend to others.

I didn't know what to expect going into this story, but it was such a fun read! I loved Birdie and felt like she was relatable, even though she is superhero, women feel like we are trying to be superhero. We are always taking care of everyone else, but we forget who we are in the middle of all this. I felt I could relate to Birdie, saving everyone but herself. So, when she goes to a beach town for therapy, she leaves her superpowers behind and really focus on herself. What she finds is that she is just a person wanting to be seen for other than her superpowers, she wants real love and happiness. But can she live in a world where she can have both? Please read this book, it is for every woman her wants to escape her life just for a bit and be someone else.

Thank you to NetGalley and River Grove Books for copy of this story for my honest review.

Hilarious and sexy AF. I thought the premise of this book sounded entertaining and was honestly prepared for it to fall short, as so many quirky novels do. Not this one! Every character was written to near perfection and the story was unexpectedly touching, funny, and super spicy. Will definitely be one of my most memorable reads of the year. Way to debut!

Flipping the Birdie

Set in Lake Michigan and Chicago in the Summer Birdie, Aka the "Chicago Bird" is a city employed superhero in an alt-version of Chicago where super powers are a thing. Birdie experiences some negative publicity and is subject to the gossip mill regarding female superheros. Frustrated by a job she once adored and plagued by bad PR, Birdie is forced to go on a vacation by the Mayor to a sleepy boring town on Lake Michigan where she must endure work-mandated therapy to improve her attitude and hopefully save her job. This story was so fun, sexy and very unique! I think every woman could relate to Birdie in some sort of way. Especially anyone who struggles with feeling like they are different or just don't fit in and how that's okay because you can still find your people. People who will accept you for who you really are. I loved this story so much. I didn't want it to end. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did! Thank you Netgalley, S. L. Woeppel and River Grove for allowing me to read/review this ARC. All opinions are my own. Happy Reading!

3.5 stars rounded up. This was a cute, funny superhero story. I liked the characters and relationships, both romantic and not, in this one. It was definitely an amusing, quirky read.

I read an ARC of this book from NetGalley. All comments are my own.

Super cute and just the right amount of sexy! Loved the premise of the book and how the main character's struggle surfaced all the way through. The side characters were adorable and I really enjoyed their development throughout. Definitely recommend a read.

Love love LOVED this book. Using Birdie's superhero status to highlight the double standards policing women's behavior is pure genius. I identified so much with that aspect of the plot.

Also, Aiden is swoonworthy. Wow to him and their chemistry.

loved this romance with a super. reminded me of my super ex girlfriend. Loved that she found love and found friends. I liked that she figured out her life and relationships. I would have liked to have see more with mom. Overall great romance.

Flipping the Birdie stands out for its originality and headstrong female lead. I enjoyed how sassy and unpolitically correct Birdie is (without being overwhelming or too much). It's refreshing, and precisely what I was hoping to find in this endless sea of conventional female characters in fiction. Overall, I liked the writing style, easy to read and very visual like a movie. The only thing was that the action was not always paced evenly. There were several parts of the book where I felt it lacked momentum.
But overall, a fun surprise!!
Hoping to find more colourful characters like her in other books!

After being forced to take a vacation from superhero work, Birdie finds herself in a small beach community with a new friend, Evie, who has a grumpy yet hot brother, Aiden. After a complicated past with her family and an ex, Birdie doesn't usually let people in, but these siblings aren't taking no for an answer. She has always worried about being too much, too strong, but she gets a chance to be loved for who she is. So much humor, heart, and spice! We love a down bad mmc.

Thanks to River Grove Books and NetGalley for an eARC of this book for an honest review!

What a fun story! Birdie is a superhero who is misunderstood and honestly doesn’t even know her own strength. She is haunted by how her loved ones initially reacted to her powers and her jaded approach has landed her in an unplanned sabbatical from her job. When she meets Evie outside of her therapist’s office her whole life is changed. This story is a romance, but even more it examines true friendship and self acceptance. I absolutely adored the characters and the conclusion was perfect 🧡

This is not a book I’d normally pick up but I was surprised how easily I slipped into the story.

Birdie has super powers but she has irked many of her bosses, with unruly and uncontrolled rants. Now she is suspended from duty, asked to see a therapist and mend her ways.

A chance encounter sets her on a fresh path, trying to live a normal life, with work and developing friends which for Birdie has always been hard.
The story continues with Birdie trying to balance her strengths with her feminine side, give in to the increasing attraction she has for Aiden and be as normal as a super could.

Interesting take on alternative lifestyles.

Try as I might, I just could not get into this book. Birdie was a unique character but I found her unrelatable and just the slightest bit annoying. Although it may be a fun read, it just wasn’t the one for me. Thank you, though, NetGalley for the advanced copy.

This light romance takes a look at the negative side of being a superhero. The alliterative names are a cute nod at those stories. It follows Birdie, the Chicago Bird, after her suspension from her role as the city superhero. She meets Evie and her brother Aiden and we see how she finds herself without the role and its public perception influencing her. Aiden is grumpy and is avoiding his company as well. Evie is learning how to move on from a health condition.

This story has lots of witty dialogue, found family, and friendships. Overall, I enjoyed it.

I was given a copy by the publisher via NetGalley (thank you!) and all opinions are my own.

Birdie, aka the "Chicago Bird" is a city-employed superhero in an alt-version of Chicago where super powers are a thing. She experiences some negative publicity and is subject to the gossip mill regarding female superheroes. Frustrated by a job she once loved and plagued by bad PR, Birdie is sent on a forced vacation to a sleepy town on Lake Michigan by the mayor and must go to work-mandated therapy to improve her attitude and save her job. While there she undergoes life coaching in the suburbs to try to ease her workaholic tendencies which, admittedly, have been encouraged by the nature of her job. (She also struggles with opening up to others, especially after she gained her superpowers at age 18 years and was sent by her mother to a government facility to be studied and taught to use her powers. This resulted in an estranged relationship with her mother.) While on vacation she meets handsome Aiden, the brother of her new friend Evie and her temporary landlord. There's definitely a grumpy/grumpy trope going on here, which I always find entertaining. While this is an open-door romance, there is a pervasive commentary on gender equality with a nice thread of female empowerment, which I thoroughly enjoyed. This is also the kind of romance I enjoy, when it's about self-growth and acceptance as much as it is about the loving relationship. There's a strong message her of learning to be proud of who you are, and of surrounding yourself with the people who value you for you. This was a fun read with an interesting premise, I thought it was a nice change of pace from the usual but enough of the usual to keep things relatable. Superheroes, they're just like us! I gave it 4 stars but it's probably closer to 4.25 stars; I would have liked to learn more about how and why people are suddenly gaining super powers, but I get that this book was intended to focus more on Birdie's relationships and her struggle with her public identity. This is a new-to-me author but I really enjoyed this book and I look forward to reading more from them in the future! Thank you to NetGalley for providing an eARC of this story, this has been my objective review.

Enjoyed this except for the creepily uncomfortable spicy bits. The talk just didn’t work for me. Sometimes less said is more, especially from Aiden. But the rest was fun. Cute take on a superhero story. Loved the friendship between Evie and Birdie. Nice reading about therapy in a positive light.

I really enjoyed this book, it was such a cute story with great characters. The superhero aspect really added something unique to the story, especially with how it shapes who she is and how she views herself.