Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced e-arc of this book!

Late Bloomer, in my opinion, had a lot potential with the premise. While I’m not a huge fan of a FMC who’s a complete pushover, Eddings writing style made Opal seem tolerable.

Where this story falls flat is the characters. There doesn’t seem to be much depth to them or their relationship. Opal and Pepper both had points where they seemed to be one way personality wise, but the author switched that up some point later and it didn’t feel like growth, if that makes sense?

It was a cute read despite that, and while the pop culture references will take you out of the story, it was a solid read.

I'm so glad Late Bloomer exists. Do I think the plot was anything new or groundbreaking? No. And that's the point. Thousands and thousands of easy romance stories exist with straight leads. Thousands and thousands of easy romance stories exists with neurotypical leads. Queer people and neurodivergent people deserve easy romance stories as well.

In 2022, when the movie Bros came out, I remember there being discourse around how relationships between gay people look different than straight relationships and how it is important to portray that within a classic romcom structure. That is what this book does.

The characters were likable and distinct. The portrayal of their various diagnoses was done well.

Late Bloomer is deliberate, quirky, and steamy new adult romance.

Recently down-on-her-luck Opal finds herself with a lump sum of lottery winnings and a desire to leave town.

Pepper runs and operates a flower farm and finds herself alone after her grandmother passes away.

Enters Peppers Mother, Trish. She has a penchant for swindling and a deed for a certain flower farm, unexpectedly throwing Pepper and Opal together.

Pepper and Opal are opposites from the start in this slow-burn romance. Opal has ADHD, two sisters, and is the epitome of a bi-disaster. Pepper has autism, is an only child raised primarily by her grandmother, and has never been in a relationship.

The pair bond over their trauma and work together to keep the farm up and running in this sweet and wild sapphic romance.

This book is great for those who love steam, new adult novels, and opposites attract.

in this book, we get so many amazing things like a bisexual MC, neurodivergent MC, and sapphic romance! but unfortunately, this story just didn't hit home for me. there were a lot of moments that I found myself really enjoying the MCs and their stories but then we wouldn't get more to what it was that I had been enjoying. I kept waiting for something more to happen with the two MCs and it seems that most of the exciting aspects had been kept to the background. i also felt a disconnect between the MCs in their relationship, which could be my own disconnect from the story itself and its characters. overall, this was a very fun and light sapphic romance to pick up and I'll be looking forward to what else Mazey Eddings releases in the future!

Wow, I don't know if I've ever related to a character so much as Opal. And I loved the setting of the flower farm so much. It honestly made me want to make the short drive to Asheville to find a flower farm for myself. I do wish their was a little more slow burn to their relationship but I still loved Opal and Pepper.

**Thank you to Netgalley for the review copy**

I loved every minute of this book. Thank you, Mazey, for sharing your gift with us. Please keep 'em comin'!

This book did not do it for me. I’ve loved her other books, but this just really lacked for me. I had a hard time getting invested. I didn’t understand why miles and Laney were there at all or why they had a relationship. I almost DNF.

What an adorable book, but I could have done without the sex scenes. They felt like they came out of nowhere and would have been better if there was a little build up before they started that part of their relationship. I loved that it was set at a flower farm, I can honestly say I don't think I've ever read a book set there before.

I really respect Mazey Eddings and her inclusion and willingness to tackle themes of mental health, neurodivergence, and more. I appreciate as an autistic mother to an autistic child, seeing more representation of neurodivergence in romance. In this case, I may just be a bit too old for this particular book. There was also just A LOT of themes and issues and plot points jam packed into this book, so it felt chaotic and a bit disjointed. I’m glad we did get both POV, as it helped us understand where the characters (particularly Pepper) were coming from, but it just felt like too much. The lottery, the farm, the competition, all the side characters, it was just a lot for me personally. I do think a younger audience may enjoy this more than I did this time! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to provide my honest review.

Mazey Eddings books are sort of a hit or miss with me. This one was a miss. I'm not entirely sure what it is. It had so much promise, I loved the prose I just honestly didn't find what everyone loved about it. The book honestly bored me. Which is weird because it has a wonderful message with great subplots but it was just too slow in the beginning and then throughout it, the story just got me bored.

I was given an ARC by Net Galley in exchange for an honest review, as always, all words are my own.

This book gave me everything. Opal & Pepper are the neurospicy pair you don't know you need in your bookshelf until you read their book. And don't get me started on the gorgeous cover that this book has!

I cried, laughed, pulled my hairs out, and fell in love with these two. I will be grabbing a physical copy for sure.

Mazey Eddings is an auto-buy author for me so I was over the moon to get an ARC of this book.

I was so excited when I read the premise of this book and the characters didn't disappoint. I loved Opal's quirkiness and how deeply she felt things. It tore my heart out the interactions she had in the beginning of the book. Seeing her grow and the innate strength she had was a beautiful transition. Pepper was brilliant! She was authentically herself and the layers of guilt and shame that she was buried under through her grief and childhood was really intense. It was so perfect seeing how they each brought out so many amazing qualities in each other and the love and respect they had for the person as a whole. As always, Mazey shone a light on neurodivergence with her characters with all the love and respect that the topic deserves.

While the plot itself was fairly simple and was somewhat predictable, the characters really were the shining stars. I will always read Mazey's books and I will definitely recommend this one too.

Ahhh... Spring time. When it’s denim jacket weather & we can eat lunch outside again. Lucky for us Mazey Eddings has written the perfect spring romance novel to read under a tree: Late Bloomer. Specifically a spicy, neurospicy, Sapphic romance set at a flower farm. And with a cover that dares you to read in public and not make a new friend. Late Bloomer is sweet, sexy, funny, and touching. Bonus for having a great
sisters-as besties subplot.

CW for grief, gaslighting, and a shitty ex-boyfriend.

This book is the equivalent of a warm hug. It’ll make you feel comforted and a bit hopeful. Pepper and Opal will become like your friends - you’ll be rooting for them while wanting to smack them for being idiots. There are some elements that are a bit far-fetched and some parts that - like the reveal of the display - that just didn’t have the impact I was hoping for, but overall a solid, emotional, enjoyable read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Griffin Publishing for the opportunity to read an arc of this book!

I loved it, long story short. The sapphic grumpy x sunshine dynamic? Perfect. The neurodivergent rep is incredible. It was tropey and sweet and the characters are dynamic and lovable. The portrayal of Pepper’s grief and the way she and Opal found comfort in one another was so sweet and really drew me in to their story.

My ONLY critique is that it really takes me out of the story when a sweet, normally timid character turns into a freakin DRILL SERGEANT in the bedroom 😂

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing this eARC.

Late Bloomer is a sapphic romance which follows Opal, a recent lottery winner who uses her winnings to purchase a struggling flower farm, and Pepper, whose mother sold the flower farm to Opal.

As far as romances go, I don't think there was anything particularly objectionable about this one. It was sweet, decently paced, and had ample pop culture references. Its biggest drawback for me was a lack of character development. This is the kind of story where I really want to believe in the characters and in their internal conflicts, but I just didn't end up feeling like they were developed enough for me. Because of this, I did also struggle to believe in the romance, although I did love the concept of it. I just wish that the characters had been rounder than the plot.

Ultimately, I think there's a lot to enjoy in this sweet, quick sapphic romance, as well as the awesome representation within the story.

This was the sapphic romance I didn’t know I needed! Pepper and Opal were perfection! There is such angst and sweet moments and the spice, wow just wow! I loved the setting of the flower farm it just made all the special moments so beautiful! Mazey has seriously done it again and why she is an auto buy author for me each and every time!

Mazey Eddings writes the cutest stories, but they also have so much more. I love that all her characters are neurodivergent, either with ADHD or Autism, and she writes it so beautifully. Opal and Pepper were complete opposites (grumpy vs. sunshine) and its was fun to read of a sapphic couple. I loved all the flowers and the relationships they had with their friends and family.

Mazey Eddings does what she does best in this book: create lovable, quirky, neurodivergent characters. Opal feels like a chaos demon, and she is too susceptible to her awful ex-boyfriend and her "friend" Laney, who is most likely sleeping with her ex. Everything in her life changes when she wins the lottery. At first, I thought that this was a silly plot device (been there, done that), but of course Opal spends the money in her own unique way--all in one go, making a spur of the moment decision to trust a complete stranger and buy her flower farm. It's on the flower farm that she meets Pepper, who is busily working to try to keep her grandmother's farm afloat while also grieving her grandmother's death. The two girls decide to be roommates, and Opal helps Pepper with the farm while setting up her painting studio. Pepper describes herself as autistic, and is used to people not understanding her, but Opal has oodles of patience, and the two end up having a lot of chemistry. Eddings is great at the romance part--she always is--and there are some hot scenes between Opal and Pepper. Overall, this is a charming book about two women who help each other through grief, self-doubt, and all the hard parts of being a human in the world who might think or act neurodivergently. And they fall in love! What's not to love about all that? It's pretty perfect.

Thank you NetGalley for the digital ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3.5)
🌶️🌶️🌶️

This was such a cute read! If you like contemporary romance, with a few explicit scenes, and forced proximity, opposites attract, and virgin tropes, you’ll probably like this story. As always, Eddings has her signature inclusion of representation, this time regarding neurodivergence. Overall, this is a light read that’s fun and steamy too 😉

Thank you NetGalley, Mazey Eddings, and St. Martin’s for a free copy of Late Bloomer in exchange for an honest review. Happy pub day!! 🫶