Oh my goodness I am obsessed with this book!! Winning the lottery and buying a flower farm?!? Count me in! I loved just about every little thing in this book. From the neurodivergent representation to the friendships to the way that grief was discussed and handled, this was the picture of perfection. I particularly love that there was just a bit of spice and love but that there was so much else going on so it wasn't the only plot point. As an Autistic queer person, this made me feel very seen and I related deeply to it. Thank you Mazey Eddings for writing a book where I feel seen and heard and can chase my dreams (cause hey, we all want to win the lottery, right?)

Tropes
-queer / sapphic
-neurodivergent representation
-forced proximity
-strangers to lovers

Mazes Eddings did such an amazing job. Wow her writing is truly so special, she has a gentleness with humans that is truly a shiny star.

What I loved: The lottery winning, the impulse purchase of a flower farm, the neurodivergent representation, writing style bonus points, opposites attract, forced proximity trope.

What I didn’t like: The flower competition was low priority for me, but a cute-ish addition to the plot. Didn’t love the toxic friends, but glad Opal didn’t succumb to their bullshit.

Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Catuion super spiiicy

This book was such a lovely, cozy book. I love that both leads were neurodivergent- one with diagnosed Autism, and one with probably ADHD.

A flower farm is a unique setting, and while the premise is a bit odd at first, the exposition made the setting and conflict entirely probable and realistic.

There is a third act miscommunication, and while I normally hate that trope, as an ADHD person married to an Autistic person, I completely understood and related. This is the only miscommunication that didn't mind reading!

Book Review 🌺 🌸-

Over the last year, @mazeyeddings has quickly become an auto-buy author for me. I love that each and every one of her stories is different but every books brings her diverse characters to life and always makes me laugh.

Swipe to see a picture of Mazey and I at @steamylitcon last summer!

Late Bloomer is no exception. Although no one will make me laugh as much Tilly or Lizzy (from her other books) Opal and Pepper brought so much sweetness to this story. I loved the neurodivergent representation and themes of grief and self discovery. While tackling all those bigger topics, the book is still lighthearted and sweet. Definitely one to check out!

Late Bloomer comes out April 16, 2024.

Thank you @stmartinspress and @macmillan.audio for my advanced copies!

This is exactly the story my high school self needed!!! Trying to figure out who I was then was definitely hard enough, but throw in heteronormative literature and I was a goner. Truly why REPRESENTATION MATTERS!!!! Pepper and Opal are your typical neurodivergents (again, loving the representation) trying to figure out who they are all while being put in a really uncomfortable predicament. Taking points off because while the storyline in regards of what they were going through in real time was boring but THEIR LOVE STORY MADE ME CRY. The plot was just a little meh and didn’t give me much detail other than surface level stuff. Ended up hugging my wife after this was over because it made me so happy we were represented in a book. Thank you to the author for inclusion and diversity.

I love Mazey Eddings and Late Bloomer was such a great sapphic romance! It was fun and I really loved the tropes, but the pacing was a bit all over the place for me. Still a really great read though!

I’ve loved all of Mazey Edding’s books and I really enjoyed this one, but it took much longer for me to get fully invested. Pepper and Opal are two amazing characters and I love them both. Opal’s sisters added common sense to her craziness and humor and support to her down moments. Pepper’s friends are both fierce and fun. The imagery of the book had me seeing the Thistle and Bloom and feeling the comforts of the cozy cabin. The story was slow at the beginning and even cutting out 50 pages would’ve had me invested much quicker. The characters could’ve been a tiny bit more mature in several scenarios, but their quirks were explained well by their backstory. I can only hope to hear more of their story in the future… series on the O. Devlin sisters please! 4.25⭐️, 2.5🌶

I was thrilled to be approved for Late Bloomer, as I always have a blast reading Eddings work. While this isn’t my favorite of hers, I did have fun reading it! I loved the flower farm setting and the competition in the background. I wish we got a little more of the girls working together and the lead up to the contest. All in all, a very fun read for spring!

Mazey Eddings can do no wrong, I firmly believe that. Whether it's YA or Adult, I will read everything she publishes. This book is so whimsical while also tackling some important topics. It's perfect and I have no notes.

Late Bloomer is a sapphic romance. An opposites attract love story. Opal wins the lottery and quits her dead-end job. Opal is somewhat of a pushover. People come asking for money when they find out she won the lottery. One of these instances Opal finds herself the owner of a flower farm in Asheville, North Carolina. This flower farm is failing. Opal goes to move into a cabin that is on the property. A place where she can start her painting career. When Opal shows up to Thistle and Bloom farms she meets a woman named Pepper. Pepper says she will not be moving and is the owner of the farm. Opal and Pepper decide to live on the farm together. I really enjoyed the banter and chemistry of the two. A very good sapphic romance. Thank you netgalley for an arc.

When Opal Devlin unexpectedly wins the lottery, she sees this as her fresh start. People keep coming out of the woodwork to ask about her money, but she decides to invest in herself. She purchases a flower farm in Asheville, NC, sight unseen, and plans to make art there among the flowers.

As it turns out, though, someone is already living on the farm, and that someone is not expecting Opal.

Since moving to Thistle and Bloom Farms as a teenager, the flowers there have become Pepper Boden’s life. In spite of its current financial troubles, Pepper is determined to turn things around for her recently deceased grandma Lou’s farm. When Opal turns up with a deed, it turns Pepper’s world upside down.

Sweet Opal with her “dominant personality trait [of] pleasing others” decides to let Pepper stay on the farm and to help Pepper raise funds to buy Opal out.

So we end up with a forced proximity, opposites-attract, roommates situation with a bit of a grumpy-sunshine vibe thrown in and some delicious chemistry just waiting to be unleashed. It’s a recipe for romantic comedy goodness.

Highlights for me included
- A flower farm in one of my favorite places in the world (Yes, please!)
- How tender Opal and Pepper end up being with each other
- The Autism and ADHD rep
- The portrayal of migraines (I thought to myself, “Mazey Eddings really gets it.”)
- Pepper’s friend group and Opal’s sisters
- The memories of Grandma Lou (She just seems like she was the best.)

It did take me a few chapters to really get into the book, so if you aren’t immediately sucked in, please give it more of a chance.

I received an advance copy of the ebook from St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley. All review opinions are my own.

This is the third book I have read by Mazey Eddings. I will definitely read or listen to anything she writes. Her stories pull you in from beginning until the end. This is a beautiful story about Opal and Pepper. I loved when Opal finally finds her voice by choosing herself over her friend and Ex. Pepper and Opal were really fun characters and well written. I found this to be a fun and sweet story. I would definitely recommend this book as well as her other books.


Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press | St. Martin's Griffin for allowing me to read this ARC in advance for my honest opinion.

Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to access this book in exchange for an honest review!

I really loved this sapphic love story so much i couldn’t get enough!!

I also really loved opal’s character.

Tw grief..
please read this!!

A beautiful tale of falling down on your luck in your life and falling in love. Queer and stunning, full of heart ache and love.

I thoroughly enjoyed this sweet sapphic romance! While it handled grief, it was ultimately low-stakes and tension, definitely a cozy choice. Opal and Pepper were wonderful, the austism and ADHD rep was great to see, and I liked the opposites attract, slow burn and grumpy/sunshine aspects. Devoured it in one evening.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley, all opinions are my own!

Took me a minute to finish this one. Sidetracked! But there are reasons why.

Firstly, I want to say thank you to Netgalley + St. Martin’s Press for this cute sapphic arc in exchange for my honest review.

This one was cute, short, sapphic and filled with romance. I really love Opal’s character, she reminds me of myself in a certain ways. Definitely gives off Libra vibes. <3

Themes: Rural Area, sapphic, girlhood, love

As I found this one cute and short read, I myself did not care much for the quirky typical cheesy lines. I do appreciate a good book to clean my palate after reading many horror thrillers. This one would be a perfect pick.

Late Bloomer was a really solid and fun sapphic romance book. While still enjoyable overall, I found that the story and characters missed the mark in a few areas for me.

It’s dual POVs of the main characters, Opal, a sunshine shoe painting artist and Pepper, a grumpy flower farmer.

There were some great tropes as well like, grumpy-sunshine, opposites attract, forced proximity and a small town romance.

The first half of the story was really entertaining. I absolutely loved Opal and her sisters. The neurodivergent representation was written beautifully. The flower farm setting was also really interesting.

However, the second half of the story was very slow paced. Plot-wise nothing really happens until the very end. Opal’s storyline and growth felt very underdeveloped as well.

The romance between Opal and Pepper was cute but they definitely lacked in the communication department. Their shift from strangers to lovers felt rushed and there wasn’t as much emotional connection between them as I would have liked. The spice was amazing though and they definitely had some steamy and intense chemistry.

The ending was sweet but pretty rushed. There were also a few subplots that felt unfinished.

Overall, I do have mix feelings but it was still just a quick and lighthearted read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Genre: Romance, Sapphic
Tropes: forced proximity, sexual awakening, grumpy/sunshine

“Hope lightens you and lifts you and expands more room in your heart than you know what to do with. And sharing that hope with someone that will care for it and tend to it like it deserves only lets it grow more and more.”

When Mazey Eddings writes a book, you can absolutely expect to have a novel full of spicy scenes along with neurodivergent representation that is unmatched. Late Bloomer is absolutely no exception to this rule. I started and finished this book within 24 hours because I just couldn’t enough of the tension and banter between our two main characters Opal and Pepper.

"Sometimes I hate myself. I hate my meekness and my boldness. I hate my fear and my audacity to try. Sometimes the hate digs its roots in so deep, it feels like it is me. I hate that hate. I have endless grace for everyone in the world, but none for myself. Why am I not allowed to make mistakes? Why does my compassion stretch to strangers but stop at my own front door?"

The way that Mazey carefully and thoughtfully addresses neurodivergent characters while also exploring grief, trauma and identity is done so well that there were times when I felt like she was writing about me. Opal is quirky and funny and full of all the thoughts, all the time. Pepper is broody and determined and guarded while also trying to navigate a world full of nonverbal social cues that don’t always compute. I loved their chemistry as well as their own unique traits so much.

My favorite part of this book though? The author’s notes regarding the title of the novel as well as the meanings of each flower that is mentioned in the book. While this is a great read, these little tidbits at the end of the novel really make this one a homerun.

Late Bloomer starts with Opal who is frankly having a bad time. She’s lacking direction and doesn’t have a lot going on aside from her part-time job. While there, she ends up getting a lottery ticket from her coworker. That results in her winning $500,000 and as excited as she is, she has no idea what to do.

Of course, she soon sees a listing on Facebook and ends up becoming the proud owner of Thistle & Bloom, a flower farm in Asheville, North Carolina. Opal packs everything up and goes to the farm to find out Pepper is already living there. It’s clear from the jump that Pepper wants nothing to do with Opal.

Determined to pay Opal out, Pepper agrees to let her stay but if she can pay back how much Opal bought the farm for. Of course, the two end up forming a tentative friendship that ends up becoming more. However, this book isn’t all about the cute sapphic romance and tending to the gorgeous flower farm.

Opal is dealing with the aftermath of having all that lottery money and following her passion for designing shoes. Pepper is also grappling with the loss of her grandmother who owned Thistle & Bloom along with coming to terms with her sexuality and what she wants from Opal. These two are also neurodivergent which does play a role in some of the conflict, but it makes sense.

Even though Late Bloomer is my first read from Mazey Eddings, I feel like I’ve already sat down and picked her brain. Maybe it’s the way she tells stories or just her writing, but it makes me want to sit down and have a cup of coffee with her. Plus she knows how to write a sex scene and that’s something that can be sorely lacking in sapphic stories.
Late Bloomer is just the ultimate spring book and by the end, you’ll be wanting to visit a flower farm and fall in love. What more can you ask for? Overall, this definitely won’t be my last book from Mazey Eddings.

Wow I didn’t expect to love this book as much as so did! Late Bloomer follows Opal a people pleasing twenty something stuck in a dead end job. In a stroke of luck as she wins the lottery and buys a flower farm to follow her artistic dreams. When she gets there she realizes the flower farm already has a rightful owner, Pepper. Trying to figure out their way out of this mess they decide to enter a competition in hopes that the prize money can allow Pepper to gain ownership of the farm.

Wow I loved Pepper and Opal so much! When we meeting Pepper she’s grieving the loss of her grandma and dealing with a lifetime of emotional manipulation from her mother. Opal is a people pleaser who’s learning to stand up for herself. I loved seeing Pepper and Opal work through their issues and past hurts and learn to trust each other. The discussions of grief and addiction were so real and raw, it was such an emotional expediting reading. Mazey Eddings does a fantastic job of exploring these characters in this sexy and emotional novel. I couldn’t love this book more!