What a great book. I enjoy reading books written by Carol Van Den Hende and I’m sure you will enjoy reading this book too! Pick up a copy and kick back and relax and get lost in a great book. Thank you Carol for writing this great book for us!

Orchid's story is a compelling one. The book does a good job of expanding who may suffer from PTSD, trying to destigmatize it as something only soldiers or vets suffer from. With this as the starting point, I wanted to like the book, but was ultimately unable to connect with the writing. There was more telling than showing. It was a bit of surprise for me when the main characters declared to themselves they were in love with the other person. Additionally, I found certain actions to be repetitive, prolonging the "will they or won't they until the end. However, I did like Phoenix's chapters a bit more because of his inner monologues and I learned more about him and his feelings for Orchid. There were also some descriptions I particularly loved.

Great book. I was able to connect with characters and the plot. I recommend this book……………………………..,,,,.

holy smokes was this good!

I love books that focus on PTSD as a character attribute. It's probably one of my favorite illnesses for characters to have (Weird thing to say, I know). I think it was done pretty well in this book, and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it.

The writing was beautiful and each character was wonderfully complex. It was an emotional rollercoaster and Pheonix and Orchid have such a lovely dynamic. It was a perfect slow burn with all the heart strings!

I was really looking forward to this, touching on PTSD and childhood trauma which I have first had experience of, the book did not disappoint.
The perfect slow burn and meaningful romance book with aspects of reality that leave your chest aching!

Did not read the First book in the series so could not connect the dots in some places but this is a good one time romance read. The author has build two characters who find love and deal with the traumas that made them and come out of it. A nice book, overall.

Who doesn't love when a woman with long-held trauma starts to finally feel healed once a random blue-eyed man suddenly appears with basic manners and tells jokes? Orchid's 10+ years of night terrors never stood a chance against his sense of humor.

In all seriousness lol, it's not a terrible book, just not for me. I couldn't connect to the writing itself and I didn't care about any of the characters or the romance. There were many scenes that were supposed to be emotionally-charged and evoke sadness and heartbreak but they didn't feel genuine and fell flat.


Thanks to NetGalley and Azine Press for providing a copy for an honest review.

A wonderfully deep Romans. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book.

Orchid Blooming is the prequel to Goodbye Orchid that gives us the promising beginning of the relationship between Phoenix and Orchid. Both must overcome past traumas and learn to trust one another. But can their newly blooming relationship last? A quite satisfying read that leads naturally into the next book in the series.

Author Carol Van Den Hende weaves research about seeking solace and finding resilience into her storytelling. Her novels Goodbye Orchid and Orchid Blooming are about love, personal growth, and trauma recovery. The first novel’s backstory becomes the 2nd novel, so they are better read back to back.  She acted as her own audiobook narrator, and you can hear how deeply she loves these characters.

I read the first 25% and really enjoyed it but now I don’t have access to the rest of the book so I can only review on what I did have access to but it was fun and intreasting and I was immersed in the story.

I liked the previous book so much, which is why I requested this one. However I struggled to connect to the characters in the one and found myself skimming just to finish.

I have mixed feelings about this book; it started out really good but kind of left me hanging. I didn't feel a connection to Orchid or Pheonix, there will be a second book so maybe it will be better.

What I did like:

* I did like the reference to PTSD and how it effects anyone that had a traumatic life event.
* The power of family even in death,
* Love and the power to forgive
* Finding what you love and developing yourself

Orchid is trying to live her best life after the tragic death of her parents, she wants to get a promotion at work that will lead to China. There she can discover her mom's ancestry, finally know who she is. When a handsome stranger gives her a chance to work on his nonprofit project. This will be her chance to prove herself worthy of a promotion. But soon this working relationship starts to be more than just a work relationship. Can she open her heart or lose everything all over again?

Thank you to NetGalley and Book & Wine lovers for copy of this book for my honest review.

This was a sweet, clean romance between two young professionals who are brought together by a tragedy. The author does a nice job with the way she goes about telling this story and showing how PTSD can affect anyone that has been through something traumatic. Orchid has so much gone through and so much more to do to move on past the tragedy that happened when she was young. Overall a good read.

Orchid is a young professional who suffers from PTSD after witnessing the tragic deaths of her parents when she was twelve. She also has trust issues. When the chance to go to China arises where she works, Orchid desperately wants to win the position and connect to her mother's ancestry. Enter Phoenix, a handsome entrepreneur on a mission of his own and he offers Orchid a way to bolster her resume to get that trip to China. What follows is a touching, heartfelt story of becoming whole despite the challenges life throws your way.
This is a prequel to the award winning novel Goodbye, Orchid. I was excited to have been offered the chance to see where Orchid's story began and how she met Phoenix. If you haven't read either of these books I strongly recommend you start with Orchid Blooming. The growth of these two characters is beautiful to be a witness to. You can't help wanting only the best for these two as they struggle to conquer their fears and become the people they want to be. I look forward to their continuing story.

Unfortunately this book wasn’t for me and I dnf’d after chapter 3. The characters were just not captivating or relatable. I honestly was so surprised that Orchid tells her friend Mandy to leave her baby with her husband and come to China with her for 6 weeks on a work assignment that has not been guaranteed yet and it didn’t feel like a jokey way.

The way the two main characters meet was unrealistic and I imagine was supposed to be a meet cute but honestly it was just odd and awkward.

The writing could be improved as normally traumatic scenes can make a reader feel emotion just from it being sad but because the story building was all over the place I just didn’t feel anything when we should. I think the writing wasn’t my style but there is room for improvement.

I think had the plot, characters and writing been more structured and easy to follow it would have been better in my opinion as the premise of the book is interesting but I think the execution missed the mark.

I liked this romance novel that explores how the wounds of the past can keep us from building a present, but I felt as though it took its itself too seriously at times.

I love love loved this story. The most amazing characters! I was hooked from the first page! Highly highly recommend

I gave this a high 4 ⭐️. It was a slow burn, contemporary romance with a world of struggles. The main characters share similar regrets and they were adorable together. PTSD is experienced and talked about and I even learn a thing or two about this difficult subject. There’s a book to coming that I believe will bring this relationship more to light.
Thanks IBPA via Netgalley.

When I first heard about this book, I got very excited and could not wait to read. I can still remember reading Goodbye, Orchid. Which takes place after this book. So, it was great to go back and read about the beginning meeting between Orchid and Phoenix. If anything, this book made me appreciate Goodbye, Orchid even more.

The past trauma that Orchid was experiencing that had manifested into PTSD was something that I could kind of relate to. I did not have the same tragic event, but my past situation still sometimes causes me anxiety. The techniques that Orchid was taught to help deal with her PTSD were great and ways that anyone can use to help them in their daily lives.

I just love the way that Carol tackles tough topics like PTSD. She really does her research, and it shows in her books and characters. She treats the characters with care but while highlighting this topic. You need to read both Orchid Blooming and Goodbye, Orchid. Carol is an auto read author for me!