This Bird Has Flown: A Novel by Susanna Hoffs
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Web ID: 16376060Lovely little rom com
I was so excited to see this book. I adored the Bangles and was looking forward to other creative ventures from Susanna Hoffs. This rom com is her debut work. It features Jane, lead singer of aband with a one-hit wonder and Tom, a British professor. Their slow burn romance was sweet with a nod to Jane Eyre. I did enjoy this book. For a first novel, I thought it was a winner.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Fun Read!
'This Bird Has Flown' is an endearing and witty novel. The protagonist, Jane, takes you along for the ride as she navigates what's next for her in her personal and professional life. The characters were layered and well developed and I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know them. Highly recommend!
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Quite Enjoyable Read - Great Debut!
Ah yes, I enjoyed this one quite a bit. Maybe it was the sentimental fact that the author was from one of my favorite groups, The Bangles - but I don't think so. Either you can write or you can't and she definitely proved that she can. I was entertained from start to finish by This Bird Has Flown. I thought it was well-written and thought-provoking. Were there plot mechanisms that sometimes make me crazy? Of course, but that happens in many books. I still enjoyed this one regardless of how she handled insta-love or the miscommunication between the characters. Our main character, Jane is in a rut. It's such a big rut that she doesn't know if she can find her way out. She's nursing a broken heart from a bad breakup and her career is also in the tank. She had one big hit years ago and then when she put a sophomore album out with her own writing, no one bought it. When the opportunity comes along for her to play a gig in Vegas and make some much needed money, it's hard for her to pass it up. Unfortunately, it's a bit humiliating and not at all what she thought she was signing up for, but it's money. All of it leaves Jane a bit more depressed about how to move forward with her career and life in general. When her manager and friend, Pippa offers to have her come to London for a while to take a break and get some writing done, she jumps at the chance. On the flight to England, Jane meets a professor named Tom. They are instantly attracted to one another and so begins their connection. Once in London, she doesn't hear from him right away but once she does, it's full steam ahead with their relationship. It's as if Jane and Tom are both trying to escape other things by escaping into one another. As the reader, you will pick up on the warning signs and realize that at some point this will all come to a breaking point but you just hang on for the ride. I really enjoyed this book and the characters. They were all very well-written - - even the side characters. This may be part of the reason I was able to immerse myself so well into the storyline. I truly hope this is only the beginning for Ms. Hoffs as an author. I'd happily read more by her in the future. Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. I voluntarily chose to read and review it and the opinions contained within are my own.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
A romp of a rom-com with pop/rock backstage peeks
If you came of age in the mid-to-late eighties, it is highly probable that at least on song by The Bangles was on your personal soundtrack. Close your eyes and I’ll bet you can picture a snippet of the video from “Walk Like An Egyptian” when the band’s co-founder Susanna Hoffs does a flirty little side-to-side eye movement. Flash forward a few decades, and Ms Hoffs has written a novel into which she has woven bits of her own experiences. At 33, Jane Start is a singer-songwriter who peaked ten years ago when she covered a lesser-known song by known-by-one-name music superstar Jonesy (think a Bowie/Prince mashup). That song and its corresponding video were hugely successful, but when she refused Jonesy’s offer to guide her career and instead went on to release an album of her own music, in her own style…it fizzled. Sexy clips from the video are still around, but there’s really nothing left of Jane’s career. Her manager-best-friend Pippa remains loyal and does her best to get Jane new gigs, but she is currently reduced to making an appearance at a bachelor party in Vegas and licensing The Song for use in a European commercial for toilet paper. Oh, and her latest boyfriend has dumped her for a newer model, and she’s been forced to move in with her parents. After a rebound encounter with a younger Australian singer, member of a hot new brother band (Jonas Brothers meets the Hemsworths?), Jane finds herself on a plane headed to London to spend a few weeks at Pippa’s flat, hopefully to shed her persistent writer’s block. Instead, she meets Tom Hardy…neither the current actor nor the British novelist of the mid-to-late 19th century, but instead a professor of Romantic literature at Oxford University (for this mash-up, I’m going with equal parts Colin Firth and Hugh Grant). Even as she finds herself falling for Tom, Jonesy himself is beckoning, wanting Jane to appear at his upcoming concert. Will Jane find love? Will she have the comeback she has sought for ages and, if so, will it be on her terms or by capitulating to the vision of others? With references to songs, books and movie liberally sprinkled throughout the novel (the title of which is from the Beatles’ song “Norwegian Wood”), I felt a bit like I was playing a solitary game of Trivial Pursuits as I read. Similarly, it was hard not to take bits of knowledge about Ms Hoffs’ own career and try to match different characters with possible points of origin (see my mash-ups in the above paragraph). An aging rocker Jane has nicknamed Leopard Pants? A little Simon LeBon, a little Rod Stewart? With Prince having written The Bangles’ song “Manic Monday” (allegedly for Ms Hoffs in particular), its hard not to see him in Jonesy. And the struggles of Jane, the artist trying to fulfill her own musical vision while others try to impose their view of how she should dress on stage and what type of music she should record, surely speak at least in part to Ms Hoffs’ own career. After all, like Jane, Ms Hoffs is a petite Jewish-American singer/songwriter who loves her guitar and has no desire to be just another girl singer. The characters in This Bird Has Flown are endearing, and the story is entertaining. For me, the book’s charm was the verisimilitude that Ms Hoffs was able to bring to this tale of the world of celebrity and fame, along with the afore-mentioned game of who-could-that-be. It is a light-hearted novel, definitely not in the mold of other recent rock novels like Daisy Jones and the Six or of movies like Almost Famous. It is much more in the Helen Fielding/Marian Keyes/Jane Green vein. If you are a fan of one of those authors, of Susanna Hoffs and The Bangles, or just in a “Name That Tune” kind of mood, then you might find this an enjoyable read. My thanks to NetGalley and Little, Brown and Company for sharing the advanced reader’s copy with me.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Compelling from the start
Ten years ago, pop star Jane had a massive hit—but now she's hit rock bottom. On a flight to England to regroup, she meets Oxford literature professor Tom. Will their whirlwind romance lead to lasting love—or will secrets come between them? Wow, did I love this book! I really wasn't sure what to expect, but as a fan of Susanna Hoffs' music, I wanted to give it a try. I was prepared to be disappointed, but this novel is compelling from the start. The emotion, the character development, the pacing, the plot, the setting—it all came together for a funny, relatable, and satisfying story. Jane and Tom have immediate chemistry, and it's just plain fun to spend time with them. But the novel also has a lot of depth, with Jane's struggles with insecurity and getting her career back on track, plus Tom's baggage from his past. If you like sparkling contemporary romance with humor and heart, don't miss this one. Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
"Music was hope and comfort, and love and lust."
What an honor it was to receive an early copy of Susanna Hoffs debut novel, “This Bird Has Flown.” Ms. Hoffs words are a harmonious melody, swathing the reader in warmth, passion and hopefulness; a lyrical expose on love, life and everything in between. I was certain she would use her creative musical background to weave together the perfect characters who would fall in love, share their dreams, and be there for each other when all seemed lost. Along with immediately following in love with Jane and Tom, I began watching The Bangles videos on Youtube, trying to imagine the life of a rockstar. Their stage presence was electric and Ms. Hoffs voice was mesmerizing, as she sang from her heart to their adoring fans. Her character, Jane, had one big hit many years ago and now she was at a crossroads in her life. Jane loves the freedom she feels when she performs but along the way she somehow lost her focus and the lyrics were stuck somewhere, waiting to come out. Jane’s sensual personality came alive when she met Tom, her “stranger on the plane.” His mere presence beside her resurrected feelings she thought were gone forever. Everything about him called to her from his sexy accent, to his beautiful eyes and his warm smile. As the plane took off Jane, not a happy traveler, grasped Tom’s hand like a lifeline and held on tight as they ascended into the clouds. Their close quarters in first class allowed them to ignore the outside world for a while and they existed only in the present, as their small talk led to heated glances and innocent touches. Jane and Tom were destined to meet on this trip and only time would tell if their love was truly meant to be.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Great Read - Highly Recommend
Thank you NetGalley and Little, Brown, and Company for the opportunity to read and review THIS BIRD HAS FLOWN by Susanna Hoffs as an Advanced Reader Copy (ARC). The story follows Jane Start, a thirty-something washed up music star who has hit rock bottom. Jane’s manager is determined to help her find her voice again, both on and off stage, especially when it comes to Pippa wanting her sweatpants back. The story takes place in the UK and is set in Oxford and London. When Jane has to fly first class by herself to Heathrow, she meets Tom, an Oxford professor who makes her forget the ex-boyfriend, the bitter breakup, and her fear of flying she tries to heal with champagne since she sat down. Jane and Tom’s whirl-wind love affair coupled with the mystery of his past creates a fun, humorous novel that reminds readers about the need to let go of the past in order to focus on the present. Layered with musical quips, subtle sexiness, and a behind the scenes view of the industry, THIS BIRD HAS FLOWN is sure to be a hit.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com