While this was not my favorite of Mazey's books, I still had a great time! Her usualy wit and charm was definitely there which mad it a fun read. My only big issue with the book was that Pepper and Opal's voices read sooo similarly that I was unsure of who's head I was in sometimes. Overall, I would recommend this one.

I sat down to read a chapter or two of this book to see if it should be my next read and accidentally read 20% in that one sitting. Late Bloomer kept me thinking about Opal and Pepper - their love, their flower farm, their beautiful neurodivegence - every day since I started it. I found myself thinking about their communication fumbles and how relatable it was to miscommunicate due to your brain not working the same as everyone else's and the desire to not make someone you love have a harder life due to you being different. Mazey Eddings made me cry the happiest tears I've cried in a good, long while with this one (that last chapter?? That epilogue, Mazey??) and I'm so grateful for this story. I can't wait for it to come out so I can make all of my friends read it!

Late Bloomer is the sapphic romantic messy comical heartfelt read that I was waiting for.

I saw so much of myself in these words — I hadn’t kissed anyone until I was 22/23 and I too struggle to process things sometimes. And I love hard and fiercely and without fear.

Pepper and Opal are sure to become favorites of mine and yours, if for nothing else than the sheer number of innuendos and hair color changes that happen. But I promise, there’s more to it than that, sometimes you just have to work at it a little.

———-
Very large thanks to Netgalley, SMPR, and to my dearest Mazey for the eARC!

Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for allowing me to read this as an ARC.

I should preface this review by saying that I am not a romance reader. I wanted to branch out and try something new when I was offered this book. I unfortunately think that this genre isn't for me.
This story follows Opal and Pepper, two girls who are bound together over a series of misunderstandings and a flower farm. They start off an enemies with opposing ideas about what to do with the farm, but slowly they start to realize their true feelings for one another. There is a lot of representation, which is something that I always look for in books. Opal has ADHD and Pepper is autistic. There are several queer side-characters as well.
The story was cute and the plot was interesting- the issue of the flower farm was fun. It was something new that I hadn't read before. The book overall is well written and I think fans of the genre will adore it.
The thing that made me have a hard time with this book is all the stereotypes used. While I am very happy about the inclusion of neurodivergent characters, at times they felt more like caricatures than actual people. This made it very hard for me to get through the book.
Overall it's a solid romance novel which lots of people will love.

Mazey Eddings will never disappoint - I don't care that that's a bold statement. I always enjoy her book, and the best part is that she always manages to do something different with tropes that have been done over and over again. And trust me, the tropes that everyone loves are in full force here!

*I received a copy of this book as an ARC for review

I adored this book. I went in knowing it was sapphic but to then find out both the mc's are neurodivergent? a dream of a book.

if I were to give it a bit of critique, some of the language was a tad dated and occasionally the timeline got confusing.

Either way, I will gift this book to everyone I know when it is released.

Another great book from Mazey Eddings, with all of her trademark awesome representation. She is excellent at carefully and deeply developing her characters, and this was no except. Pepper and Opal seemed so real, it felt like I was going through everything with them. I will say the dialogue didn't hit for me quite as well as her other contemporary romances, but I still highly recommend this book, especially if you want a romance with queer and neurodiverse characters.

Overall, I really enjoyed this read. A sapphic romance set on a flower farm?! Yes, please! I really liked the characters and the representation of neurodivergence, every so often I felt a little disconnected from the story, like something was missing, though I can’t say I’m exactly sure what it was. Overall, I would definitely recommend though!

OK BUT FOR REAL this book made my heart explode (over and OVER) with rainbows and butterflies and happiness 🌈🦋✨💕 😭

The unpredictable and chaotic, yet passionate and HILARIOUS love between Pepper and Opal was so charming, pure, and exciting to watch (well, read) unfurl. They were stubborn; they were sassy; they were real, they were hilarious, they were accepting; they were romantic; and they were SPICYYYY🌶️+++

I could NOT put this book down. All of the characters were so incredibly likable (well, almost *cough cough TRISH*🙄) and I loved the dynamic between Pepper and Opal. Not to mention, there were sooo many instances where I’d literally laughed out loud at what I’d just read!

I recommend this book to anyone who loves love in all forms and supports the LGBTQ community🥰 I definitely plan to read more Mazey Eddings in the future!

Thank you so SO much to St. Martin’s Griffin (publisher) and Netgalley for the advanced readers copy of this book!

I love all of Mazey Eddings' books and this one is no exception! Her writing is very engaging and this story was enjoyable to read. Would definitely recommend!

Thank you NetGalley and Mazey Eddings!

Thanks to Netgalley and St Martin's Press for this ARC

Late Bloomer follows Opal Devlin and Pepper Boden, two women that come across each other by luck and a shady deal. They are very much polar opposites; Opal diving headfirst into everything (even when she knows she probably shouldn't) and Pepper who finds sudden change is hard to deal with.

This story was extremely sweet, seeing the two find common ground with trying to save the struggling farm and soon a desire to see one another smile. Things aren't perfect in their relationship, both having a lot of baggage from prior betrayals in past relationships. But watching the ups and downs, argues and tears makes the sweet moments all the better.

Overall an amazing book, already recommended it to a few friends.

This book had me experiencing so many different thoughts and feelings so I'm going to be fully transparent and hopefully it makes sense. When I heard about this book I was SO excited, A cottage core lesbian love story with neurodivergent representation AND multiple queer characters, that's a book lovers dream (if they're open minded or queer and neurodivergent)! I also was excited because it's set in my home state, which always makes a love story more real and like maybe I couldn't find that love?! I mean the vibes of the book are everything I ever want to read in a romance. Here's some things that fell flat for me and I didn't quite understand which ultimately made my rating lower, The first thing I noticed was that the chapter POV's weren't super consistent and sometimes when I wanted the other persons thoughts I didn't get them, while also some of the chapters felt like they ended kind of abruptly. I also don't understand how this is an opposites attract trope, to me they felt very similar, they both cared deeply and didn't always stand up for themselves or knew how to express themselves correctly. I think they were made for each other honestly. Along with that, Opals character felt very whiny and depressing the first page you meet her and then the minute she gets to thistle and bloom she's this strong, quirky, quick witted person, and maybe that was her "new and improved" thing but it just felt random? My other nit picky problems were when opal messed up her hair, she's an artist and supposedly does her hair all the time so how did she not know the bleach was going to do exactly what it did without a toner or something to even the white out; and do people a actually get migraines that bad?!? that's so concerning! Aside from the semi slow start I had with this book I really did enjoy it (even if it doesn't seem that way) and the vibes SO GOOD! Opal and pepper have such a sweet relationship and Im rooting for them. It really feels like in the end they understand each other better (as people and being neurodivergent), and are always putting each other first and just want to make the other happy. I would have loved to see more of the friend group because frankly all of the characters are amazing and they felt too side charactery if that makes sense lol . I want Opals sisters and all of Peppers friends around more and it felt rushed at times but the important thing is that they got a happy ending and I had fun in the end. Okay Rant over, excited for this book to release! Hoping to read more of Mazey Eddings!

This was the first Mazey Eddings title I ever read and it did not disappoint. I was hooked within the first few pages as I appreciate when the author jumps right into the story. The two main characters were written in such a real, thoughtful manner and I could visualize each scene easily thanks to the lovely way Eddings describes everything. The stunning cover compliments the story beautifully. I will absolutely recommend this book and I look forward to reading (and recommending) more by this author!

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC.

This book was really special for me. I don’t remember ever identifying with a character in a romance book like I did with both of these characters, each for different reasons. The author has created a very sweet, realistic romance that gives representation I haven’t seen a lot of in this genre. The writing is beautiful. The story makes you feel warm and cozy. Absolutely love it.

I loved this book! I laughed out loud multiple times throughout it. It was sweet, funny, and easy to love all of the characters.

let me preface this by saying i read Late Bloomer while recovering from surgery but…

This wasn’t my favorite sapphic romance. It was very sickly sweet, even while dealing with heavy topics, which made dynamics feel underdeveloped. I never really felt the pull between the two MCs, either—i was just left wanting more.

For those wanting a sweet sapphic book with neurodivergent rep, it’s worth picking up for sure!

Thank you to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for a copy of this eARC.

Thank you to Netgalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

What a sweet book. The level of empathy with which Mazey Eddings crafts her characters is remarkable, and Opal and Pepper were no exceptions. The way they existed as individuals in their own right and learned, grew, and changed while still remaining themselves was wonderful to read. Their love story was well-paced and just made me happy while reading.

I love me a good side character as well, and all of the ones included in this book were wonderful. I particularly enjoyed seeing the dynamic between Opal and her sisters.

The story itself was nice, but the real draw is definitely the characters. Come for the fun premise, stay for the people. 4/5.

Rated 3.5 stars, rounded up.
Opal's life goes a little wild after winning the lottery. "Friends" and acquaintances suddenly feel the need to emphasize their importance in her life, while subtly (and not so subtly) asking her for money, and, as a Certified People Pleaser, she doesn't know how to say no. So, rather than saying no and disappointing anyone, she plays the avoidance game, buys a failing flower farm in Asheville, North Carolina, and ghosts them all. She plans to use it as a place to let her inspiration bloom (lol) and grow (ha) her artistic business. Her plans hit a snag when Pepper Smith, who believes she's the rightful owner of the farm, won't budge. They reluctantly agree to share the space, leading to both a thorny (I can't stop) situation and a budding (sorry, not sorry) attraction, all while their dreams hang in the balance.

This was the first Mazey Eddings book I've read and I really enjoyed it. Opal's voice is engaging from the first page and pulls you right into her story. And, because it's dual POV, we get to hear Pepper's thoughtful internal dialogue as she is a woman of few words.

The neurodivergent representation was nice to see in from both characters in different ways. One thing I struggled with a bit was how hard it felt leaned into on Opal's side. I suspect this was somewhat intentional due to the need to show the internal struggle and validate her neurodivergence despite not having a confirmed diagnosis.

I enjoyed the overall storyline and found the setting charming. It was a nice, fluffy read and I look forward to more of the same when I inevitably read other books by Mazey Eddings.

While the book had some exciting moments, I found it to be just okay overall. The author seemed to skim over some crucial parts of the story, which left me feeling a bit unfulfilled. The beginning was promising with well-developed main characters, but the ending felt rushed and neglected some of the more crucial plot points.

This book hit all the marks for me. Representation of bi and queer woman. Disability representation that wasn’t forced. A relationship that didn’t feel forced or super fake. I just loved it. The side characters were also amazing. I will definitely be rereading this book