Oh my god this is now my favorite sapphic romance of all time 😭 2 bisexual main characters, autism and adhd rep, grumpy sunshine, close proximity AND a flower farm?? It’s just too perfect. 5 sparkling stars

This cover drew me in and the book was very cute. I liked how the character development played out and I really liked the relationship and the depths. This is a must read for the year if you want to feel good book.

Thank you for the ARC Netgalley!!!
this was a sweet wlw romance based around flowers. Pepper’s AND Opal’s names are queer and their backgrounds sad but they are cute. I did think their flower art was going to be something very different than it ended up being but it was still very cute!

I want to start by saying: I love Mazey Eddings. A Brush with Love is one of my favourite romance novels. I liked the other two books in that series and her YA novel, Tilly in Technicolor. So, no one is more surprised and disappointed than me that Late Bloomer just... wasn't for me.

It has the wittiness and the neurodivergent rep I've come to expect and enjoy with Mazey's books, but whatever I was supposed to feel between Pepper and Opal, I just didn't. Something was missing for me and to be honest, I was bored.

It made me think of something my teacher used to tell us about writing: "Show, don't tell". It felt like I was just supposed to buy this relationship because they SAID they liked/loved/wanted each other, but the physical chemistry and the emotional build-up was lacking. There was also a lot of inner turmoil that started to feel repetitive and a lot of little heart-to-heart speeches that were flowery and clichéd, and kept making me think: "People don't really talk like that".

That being said, you might like it if you're wanting to read something short and cozy with not a lot of conflict. I'm bummed this one fell flat for me, but I'll still look forward to what Mazey writes next.

I loved Mazey Eddings previous books, and was really looking forward to this one. First, the cover is divine, and the premise is very much needed in the world of romance books - a dual point of view queer romance with neurodivergent MCs and sapphic spice. The representation of autism, ADHD, and bisexuality is detailed and normalized. There are many fun and lighthearted moments, especially when Opal’s sisters and Pepper’s friends are included. The setting is described in such a natural flow with the rest of the story, you feel like you are right there with characters but not exactly sure how it happened - perfect!
However, the book fell flat for me. The plot meandered along and mostly consisted of the thoughts of Opal and Pepper, switching back and forth. I understand that perception and communication were difficult for these two characters, but the Opal in her own chapters and the Opal in Pepper’s chapters felt like 2 completely different characters. Never did Pepper get to know Opal enough to gradually change her perception of her. There were very few scenes of them getting to know each other, which made the lust and spice feel forced and unlikely. And there’s a lot of spice starting at about 50%. I don’t mind spice at all at any level. I just wish there were more scenes to expand the plot into other deep interactions. Finally, I couldn’t get past Opal’s portrayal as the messed up childish interloper who was trespassing on Pepper’s home and livelihood. She spent the whole book apologizing, trying to take up as little space as possible, and giving all her time and energy - and money - to trying to fix things for Pepper so she could keep her home. When actually, Opal legally owned all of it! She paid well for it and had the deed in hand. And this fact was barely acknowledged throughout the entire book. Pepper was angry and frustrated at Opal being there, when she should have been thanking her lucky stars Opal let her stay. Pepper’s autism should not be an excuse to treat someone poorly. It felt icky from the very beginning all the way to the end. There are many things to love about this romance, but I didn’t love it overall. However, Mazey Eddings is still a favorite of mine, and I’m excited to see what she writes next.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC to read and review. All opinions are my own.

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC of Late Bloomer by Mazey Eddings. I liked this book a lot, liked the characters and their development. I don't want to reveal any spoilers but there was one part towards the end of the book that wasn't needed, but all in all the book was a fun read. 3.5 stars/5

I am very glad this book will be out in the world. Young, queer women should be able to read love stories for and about them. However, this book was not a personal favorite. Some of the secondary characters like Miles and Laney felt too much like caricatures and not enough like fully fleshed out people. I know they only really existed for Opal’s plot development, but i still wanted them to be more three dimensional than they were.

Hello, after sending that I would not give feedback, i was alerted that I could do so to an extent. I did read this book and thoroughly enjoyed it. I will be buying a physical copy when it comes out. However, until SMP takes accountability for their mishandling of recent events and responds properly to Readers for Accountability’s demands, i will be refraining from engaging in any public reviewing or marketing for this title to adhere to the guidelines of the SMP publicity boycott.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this.

my first from mazey eddings but not my last!
beautifully written obsessed with the characters and this love story

Rarely have I read a romance with wonderful characters, a beautiful and integral setting, and such an insignificant plot. If you need a strong plot with action driving the characters, don't read this book. If you're excited for sweet characters and adorable representation, definitely give this a read. Every character was charming and I never knew how much I wanted to live in a flower farm. However, none of the plot really mattered.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martins press for this ARC!

I adored Late Bloomer.
As an autistic queer person this was everything I've wanted from a romance novel and more!

Mazey Eddings is always a must read for me. I felt like this book had so much potential and I wanted to love it so much. It just sort of fell flat for me.

I love Mazey's writing style and her flair for representation. I just felt myself frustrated with both FMC's. I also felt like there was no "big event" so to speak. I will definitely rec this book as far as diversity goes for sure, but I definitely feel like there was a lot of missed potential.

I truly felt immersed into the flower farm - this was amazing, I felt as though I could almost smell, the flowers and see their vividness. The rest was just sort of bland and full of the same misunderstandings over and over. The story just felt as though it was carrying on because it had to.

This is a very low angst, low conflict story, definitely a fluffy comfort read - its very different from Mazey's other gripping stories to me.

Thank you to NetGalley and St.Martins Press (St.Martins Griffin) for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Very cute with good neurodivergent and autistic rep! Sapphic love that melted my heart. It’s a pretty easy read with it too high of stakes, just two girls falling in love. Honestly what more could I ask for?

I am once again at a loss of words. This book made me so happy for so many reasons. I devoured it. I cried over it. I laughed at it. I fell in love with it. I couldn't get enough of it.

This is everything I could have asked for in terms of neurodiverse and sapphic representation. It was fun and well-written and kept me wanting more. It's relatable and lovable. I will immediately be reading the rest of Mazey's books.

Thank you NetGalley for gifting me an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review and opinion.

I love Mazey Eddings’ witty writing style, so I was looking forward to reading her latest work. Late Bloomer is a sapphic romance with solid neurodivergent representation.
While I enjoyed her previous novels (and even gave Lizzie Blake 5 stars!), sadly this one was a bit of a miss for me.

This book took me way longer than usual to finish because I just wasn’t motivated to pick it back up. The storyline felt pretty surface level; it could’ve used more depth and character development. Because of this, I had a hard time differentiating between the two MC’s voices (the chapters switched between the two POVs).

Even though it didn’t really hit for me, I can see how other readers could love this low drama/low stakes read. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press/St. Martin’s Griffin for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Mazey Eddings is an author I will drop everything for to read her newest book. This book didn’t disappoint AT ALL. It was perfect to me in its entirety. I love real and raw characters in stories, and Opal and Pepper were just that. They were so real I feel like I have known them my whole life. This book was such an honest portrayal of life, all the messiness that happens, and why we should accept love and warmth along with all that messiness. Such a beautiful, happy, adorable story with so much love and sweetness. There were multiple scenes that had me laughing out loud and grinning ear to ear. I can’t wait to get my hands on a physical copy when it comes out and reread it. Thank you Netgalley for the ARC!

This may be my perfect sapphic romance. The two points of views are so well done that you can tell which is which without even looking at the titles at the front. Eddings does a spectacular job putting you in the minds of her characters, flaws and all, and still getting you to love them and believe they deserve love. I also thought the tension was really well maintained throughout, and the communication between the characters was superb. I don't know, it was just a perfect, joyful sapphic romance, with a perfect balance of steamy and sappy.

With a perfect balance of steamy and sappy, Eddings writes a sapphic, neurodivergent romance worth reading in one sitting. The floral atmosphere and flawed yet lovable characters really leaves the reader uplifted and ready to follow their dreams! A wonderful book wrapped in a gorgeous cover.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an e-ARC of LATE BLOOMER by Mazey Eddings in exchange for my review. This novel will be released on Apr. 16th.

👟CW: grief, alcoholism, abandonment, migraines

This cover is beautiful, and I loved Pepper's friend group and Opal's sisters and their banter. I related to both MCs in many ways.

However, I found both Pepper and Opal to be one-dimensional with no internal conflict. I didn't buy their chemistry. The pacing of this book was also off. It was a slow burn with long chapters and no smut until the 50% mark, but then one spicy scene occurred over several chapters. I also felt that the autism representation in this was fleeting at best and probably should have been more fleshed out. I've had another one of this author's books on my TBR for a while now, but will be going in with slightly lower expectations.

Favourite quote: "But instead, she reaches out to me--opening her hand like a flower unfurling its petals to the sun. I stare at it. The ink stains and calluses and chipped nails and bitten cuticles. For a moment, that hand looks like a second chance. A lifeline. Then I blink."

Omg where do I begin with this book?

Well it slaps that's a start. I'll admit my expectations for this book were kinda meh. I was expecting something mediocre but I did not get that and boy am I glad.
First of all the writing was lovely. It was very lively and cute and easy to read (seriously beneficial for my ADHD). The characters slapped. I really loved Opal and Pepper's relationship in this book. They won my whole heart it was so sweet. The grumpy sunshine trope was done pretty well in this book and I loved it. Also the nuerodiverse rep was pretty good. I liked it, I thought it was well done. I can't wait for this book to come out tbh.
Anyways enough rambling. Overall solid 5 stars, highly recommend.
Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martins Press for the ARC in exchange for my honest review

OPPOSITES ATTRACT WITH LESBIANS??!! SIGN ME THE FUCK UP. I swear I got whiplashed at the speed I went through this book. I was gagged, choked, screamed. This book could easily be a best seller. Opal is such an interesting character and I can't wait for the character aesthetic videos that are going to be on tiktok. I will be commenting on each and everyone of them.