The Mating Season

by Laurie Horowitz, James Patterson (Foreword)

More than just the birds and the bees....

Self-proclaimed "bird nerd" Sophie Castle has been given the opportunity of a lifetime: her own documentary about her fine-feathered friends. But her cameraman, Rigg Greensman, is unmotivated... and drop dead gorgeous. Can they work together to convince the public to love birds-without falling in love themselves?

BookShots Flames

Original romances presented by JAMES PATTERSON
Novels you can devour in a few hours
Impossible to stop reading

Genres: Romance, Fiction, Novella, Short Stories, Contemporary, Audiobook, Contemporary Romance

160 pages, Paperback

First published September 6, 2016

Reviews

[*TANYA* · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was curious about The James Patterson Book Collection, and based on an authors note he handpicked the stories he wanted to be included. I was not disappointed actually quite pleasantly surprised, very cute short book. Lovely story. I did this on audiobook and I think the two narrators bantering back and forth made it even better.

[Anna's Herding Cats · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reviewed for herding cats & burning soup.
Amazon: http://amzn.to/2bK7apQ

The Mating Season was a fast read but quickly pulled me in. I had a good time with it. Rigg and Sophie had been teamed up to work on a documentary in Egypt about birds. A cocky, arrogant camera man with a chip on his shoulder, an uptight, nerdy bird fanatic, and a week of nothing but bird watching and trying to deal with each other.

At first I wasn't sure about these two. Rigg could come off as an ass and Sophie a bit staid. But the more they worked and dealt with each other the more I fell in step with them. He really helped her loosen up and she helped him refocus on what was really important in life. I enjoyed that aspect. And seeing the world of birds come alive when she talked about them. A little semi-off page loving and lots of personal growth and some fun secondary characters rounded it out for a fun read. The only quibble I had was the writing style taking some getting used to as it went in and out of first person POV (heroine) and not (hero).

[Rachel-RN · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sophie is an ornithologist in Egypt to field a documentary on birds. Rigg is the asshole hired to be her cameraman. He was fired from his last job. Total opposites that attract.
I really liked having the woman be the geeky scientist. There was nothing special about Rigg (he's attractive, cocky). I didn't like him. He leaves the airport with the driver, leaving her with no transportation (Sophie's awesome, she had the foresight to get the local currency and hire her own cab) and is late to work the first day. No explanation, apology, or oops!
There's Rigg's relationship with Nicola (history of on/off, they lived together for 2 years). He was over her faster than I could blink. I didn't believe the romance, it was very fast.
My last issue with this was the make-over. Of course. He didn't really fall for her until after that. I wold have liked him to fall for her just-as-she-was.
I rated this a little higher than I thought I would have because Rigg did change and that ending. I appreciated someone giving up something they've always thought they wanted for the benefit of the other. The bird facts were also interesting.

Ripped Bodice Bingo: fits for Nerd/Geek elements.

[Klare · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked Sophie the "Bird Nerd" but not so fond of Rigg. It was an ok read.

[Eleanore June · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book put me off books. Seriously, it was just so bad. I never read the last two pages because I just couldn't anymore.

[Christine (Tina) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite the cover, this is very sweet & not over the top. Very nice story.

[Shannon · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a cute little read, I could see it playing out as a movie. Sophie's a fun, quirky character- no pretenses to her, what you see is what you get. Rigg's your typical playboy who slowly comes to the realization that he wants more than he always thought he did.
Humorous, with a few little heart tugging moments.

[Maria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute but not amazing.

[Kylie · Rating 2 out of 5]

“The lesson is that men are not complicated. If a man wants you, there is never a shadow of a doubt about it. It’s simple. Women come up with all kinds of fancy reasons why a man might be acting the way he is: He’s shy. He’s afraid to ruin the friendship. He’s afraid of commitment.”

[Keri · Rating 3 out of 5]

This ended up being a cute story that I enjoyed. Sophie was a very relatable and likable character. It was a cliche story but that was fine with me. The cover is deceptive—the story is actually much more cute than steamy(I chose an alternate cover edition for my review) which I was glad another review stated or I would probably have passed on it. It didn’t blow me away but I’m glad I read it.

[Nikolai Fernandez · Rating 1 out of 5]

I can’t believe this is actually a book

[Amy the book-bat · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a nice quick read. I like that the woman is the scientist and the brainy one. The stuff about birds was interesting (I hope it is true). Rigg was a bit of a wanker for a good chunk of the book, but he finally came around. Pretty formulaic stuff. All in all it was a fun read.

[Jayne Bauling · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun romance that keeps the reader engaged, although the head-hopping can be distracting, and there are some seemingly arbitrary switches between past and present tense in some passages. A quick, light read.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sophie Castle is an ornithologist and is filming birds in Egypt. Her cameraman is Rigg Greensman who is talented but extremely hard to get along with. This is his last chance. As Sophie gets him to see the birds as she does, he understands her commitment. He wants to help her and has her talking to the camera rather than just filming the birds. She does and gives the birds personalities in her talks. Attraction soon blooms between them but his old love is a well-known actress and is filming closeby. Would Rigg go back to his glamorous love or will he choose down-to-earth Sophie?

A great story as Rigg realizes what a jerk he has been and how his jealousy of his fellow friends has caused him to lose friends and become bitter. Sophie changed him. He finds that Nicola is not the girl he fell in love with and that fame has changed her. What you see in Sophie is what you get and he wants her.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sophie Castle is an ornithologist and she is filming a documentary in Egypt about the migratory patterns of birds for the Discovery Channel with British photographer and cameraman Rigg Greensman, who doesn't have the best reputation in the industry. Birds don't really interest Rigg so he thinks this his worst assignment ever. Bringing out Sophie's feminine side does generate some interest but Rigg is used to a celebrity lifestyle and Sophie is much more centered and down-to-earth. Will they be a good fit for each other? Rigg must choose between Sophie and his former actress girlfriend Nicola who wants him back. This made for great airplane reading from Washington, D.C. to Phoenix, AZ this week.

[Paula · Rating 1 out of 5]

Oh my god. What did I just listen to?

Probably one of the most sexist things I've ever heard, masquerading as romance. I did not finish it, since the first (of 3) hours was pretty much a woman (ornithologist) getting a makeover because a dude (superficial asshole) told her to.

Truly offensive.

Side note, they used 2 narrators, so whenever there was dialogue between the 'hero' and heroine, it would be a woman reading, then the man coming in to speak the 'hero's' lines. Truly bizarre, esp. since it was obvious they didn't perform the scene at the same time. And the dude sounded a little like Michael Caine - not exactly the picture of sexy, so why bother using a male voice at all?

[T. Rosado · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 STARS!

This was a great novella! Since I prefer longer and more detailed books, I struggle with novellas ever feeling complete. Well, Laurie Horowitz did an amazing job with this one. I really enjoyed the main characters and both of their transformations throughout the book. Of course, the romance and timeline will be a bit more rushed, but it still felt more believable than many 300+ page stories that i have read. In addition to the story, I also liked the author's writing style. I'm definitely looking into more stories by this author.

[Connor's Library Corner · Rating 3 out of 5]

I do not typically like romance so I feel as though this rating is very generous.
However I have to admit that this story was quite interesting and enjoyable.

The obvious fatal flaw in the story is the insta love.
On day one they hated each other
On Day two they slept with each other
On day three they were in love

But I did enjoy their relationship and if it had grown naturally I would have preferred it

[Slynn Bookster · Rating 4 out of 5]

Story ****
Characters **** Emotions ****
Slow burn ** Steam **
Narration ****


This is a very quick enemies to lovers read/listen but if you are looking for something to clean the palate after serious books this is a good stop. It was cute and heartwarming with humor. The characters are well developed for a novella size book. There is sex but it is not descriptive.

[Charlie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Love these bookshots. You can devour a bit of fiction and not feel too guilty as they're such a quick read.

Polished this off this morning quickly before breakfast.

Sweet hallmark story between an ornithologist, her love for birds and the devilishly handsome camera man Riggan.

Still weird reading a love story with Patterson's name on the cover though.

[Tina · Rating 4 out of 5]

A sweet romance if you suspend a bit of disbelief. True love doesn't happen that fast, but isn't it nice to dream about it being so? I enjoyed the characters and setting, and would recommend this one for a short beach read.

[Lori Byrd · Rating 5 out of 5]

A story line unlike all the others I read, this is about a bird nerd who goes out on a shoot with a handsome camera man. Unexpected sparks ignite between them and the rest is history. A very quick read with a wonderfully different story. Anyone would love this little book.

[Anna Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A down on his luck, bad boy meets frumpy girl (a hidden beauty of course) to film a bird documentary. Rigg, the photographer, has the experience while Sophie, an ornithologist, has the knowledge. Will they be able to work together. Can they produce a viable document.

[Tracy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oh la la! A nerd bird and her photographer in a foreign country.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute easy read.

[Charlotte Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Started off slow but turned quite good in the end.

[Tona Ogle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Boring

[Cara Schwarz · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of the better Romance Bookshots... Still not great but more entertaining and less predictable than the others I have read

[Danielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Listened to audiobook. Review to come.

[Margaret Brynes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Easy reading

Pleasant reading prefer something a bit more. Exciting but it was a nice little romance for a quiet evening by the fire