This book was adorable from start to finish. This was my first book by the author and I can’t wait to read more. A book with neurodivergent representation, sapphic love, a flower farm, green hair dye, and lottery winnings? What’s not to love. This book was the perfect level of unhinged to keep me hooked the whole time. 4.5 stars.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is a really lovely sapphic rom-com. I had a great time reading it, immersing myself in the flower farm and the sweet forced proximity romance between Opal and Pepper. They were such wonderful, fully fleshed out characters. I also loved the neurodivergent rep, which I always appreciate in Mazey Eddings’ books. Highly recommend this for all rom-com readers, especially fans of queer romance!

This was a sweet, flowery romcom. Both leads, Abby and Pepper, were fleshed out and had their own very real problems and personalities. I liked the contention between them and how it coalesced into a friends-with-benefits and then something more. The supporting characters were also fun and the plot, while mostly predictable, was a fun read. Overall an easy, sweet read!

WOW. This is my first Mazey Eddings novel and it did NOT disappoint! A fun and spicy read with plenty of neurodivergent representation! I adored the flower shop setting and the entire premise behind the lottery - not something I'd typically think of spending winnings on, but it led to a sweet story with plenty of LOL moments! That being said, it still did a great job of touching on tough topics like family issues. A quick read for romance lovers of all interests!

Late Bloomer is my first sapphic romance, but not my first romance from Mazey Eddings. I always love Mazey’s books and will read whatever she puts out. I was so intrigued when I saw she was writing a sapphic romance and I knew she would do a phenomenal job.

This story is a sweet, low conflict romance with a unique/fun storyline. I love the idea of forced proximity due to a lottery winner buying a a flower farm, that happens to already have a person living there. There certainly is not another book with that plot line and it makes for a fun premise.

Pepper is obviously upset to learn someone bought the place she lives/work that means so much to her, but Opal being the sweet people pleaser she is insists she can stay as her roommate because what could go wrong! It takes a bit for Pepper‘s walls to come down and for her to let Opal in. They both are dealing with their own hardships and difficult life events, so it’s sweet that they have each other to lean on.

As I said, this is a low conflict romance and is the perfect low angst/tension book for an easy, sweet read. Mazey is not only a great author, but an amazing human that works hard to write diverse stories/characters. I honestly just love her as a person and she inspires me with all she has accomplished.

This was incredibly cute! Opal wins the lottery and decides to quit her dead end job and buy a flower farm in North Carolina. When she gets there she finds Pepper, the rightful owner of Thistle and Bloom Farms and she’s not leaving!

I had such a fun time reading this one. Both Opal and Pepper are loveable, relatable characters that I just wanted to keep reading about. Their dynamic worked really well for me and I found their relationship so lighthearted and cute.

Would highly recommend this if you’re looking for a fun sapphic romance read!

Huge thank you to @stmartinspress and @netgalley for the ARC!

I absolutely adored Tilly in Technicolor and so Late Bloomer having autism and adhd rep+being sapphic put it at my number one most looked forward to release of 2024. So thank you for the opportunity to read it early. It was really complex and the characters were really well developed. There were some characters who felt trope forced, like Opal's 'best friend' and ex. Pepper's best friend crossed the line of protective/supportive to infantilising and just kept calling out her autistic traits as things to work on. Along with invading her no-touch preferences, so she wasn't my favourite character. All in all though, this was a really lovely read and Opal and Pepper will stay in mind as though they're old friends of mine.

Perhaps readers could revisit the town with a new neurodivergent wlw couple in Pining? That title just cannot go unused and I'd love to visit this pocket of book worlds again during Christmastime.

Oh, one last thing is that I really enjoyed the addition of info dumping at the end about the flowers. Would have loved this in Technicolor about all of the thoughts that went into Pantone choices and think it would be a lovely addition to any neurodiverse authors books. Bring on the special interest info dumps!

Thank you NetGalley, for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. As usual, Mazey Eddings never fails to amaze me with her writing. This book felt so real, and there truly wasn’t a moment where I got bored reading it. Although it’s different from what she usually writes, it’s the exact same. The wit, vulnerability, and creativity are still very present, along with the chemistry between both main characters. Additionally, the epilogue was just absolutely perfect.

This new adult, F/F romance probably hit closer to a 3.5 for me but it was worth bumping it up to a 4. This story follows a young woman, Opal, living in a no-name town working a dead end job and thoroughly not enjoying life. One day, she is gifted a lottery ticket and wins. She is an impulsive little soul and ends up buying a flower farm in North Carolina, sight unseen, from some seemingly nice woman on facebook of all places. Already pretty outlandish, right? That was the roughest part of this book for me. There were just a lot of convenient things happening that felt unbelievable on their own but, all together, felt like I was really stretching myself to imagine all of this happening as it did. If you want to read this one you have to be ready to just buy the plot the author is selling to tell the story of these two characters. Anyway, Opal goes to her new farm only to find that someone is already living there...Pepper, a young woman with Autism who just lost her grandmother and, apparently, the flower farm the two of them tended together. The two clash immediately because of the circumstances and also their contrasting natures of impulsivity and cautiousness buuuut, I mean you've seen the cover, things take a turn and they fall for each other and work together to solve problems. If you're looking for something light and cuddly with women loving women, flowers and neurodivergent representation then this might be for you.

This was an enjoyable romance novel with the late bloom of emotions and figuring out how to ground oneself while maneuvering around others in your life! Mazey Eddings made this such an inclusive novel, making it a place anyone can find themselves in a character. Opal and Pepper learned to communicate throughout the book, which was heartwarming to read.
Thank you so much to NetGalley for allowing me to read this advanced copy!

Enjoyed this queer romance by Mazey Eddings. I haven't read anything by her before and would recommend to anyone who enjoys Abby Jimenez and Helen Hoang. This book was set on a picturesque flower farm and I loved all the descriptions of flowers and could see it all very clearly.

Mazey Eddings never disappoints me. Honestly, this was breathtaking, refreshing and so raw. I loved every moment about this. The dislike and angst between Pepper and Opal. The hilarious moments and forced roommate situation. Then the blooming of feelings between the two MCs. All of it was such a beautiful thing to watch. The messy bits, the ups and the downs. All of it played out beautifully. The epilogue was truly CHEF'S KISS. Beautiful way to wrap it all up with a bow. Absolutely brilliant! 4.5 stars!

Absolutely adore this book. It is so sweet, with the perfect steam. I love the representation within the book as well. This is the most perfect spring/summer read! It is also incredibly well written and the pacing is perfection.

In this sorry, we follow Opal, a down-on-her-luck bisexual who works as an ice cream cone on the side of the road. Then she wins the lottery and has almost everyone in her life begging for handouts, so she does what any sane person would do, and buys a flower farm to escape to. There, she meets Pepper, the person who’s been keeping the farm alive for years and who has no idea that her mother has sold the farm to Opal. They decide to share the cabin until they can get the ownership under control, and their love story ensues from there.

This was really sweet, if you’re looking for a quick, silly sapphic romance, this is the perfect fit. I loved how simple and natural the autistic representation was and the nonchalant mention of one of the characters being a 26-year-old virgin. The plot was interesting enough, but the real shining star in this story was the romance. Besides these positives, I did have some believability issues with the book.

First, Opal’s very bad “friend” Laney is the one who gives her the winning lotto ticket for her birthday, and I have a really hard time believing that someone who treats her so badly wouldn’t try to bring her to court or something. I’ve heard stories where close family members have legal battles over stuff like this, so Laney being so chill just made no sense to me

Opal’s relationship with her ex was also very unrealistic to me. At first, it was hard for me to sympathize with her because she KNEW that he was a bad boyfriend and literally couldn’t name ONE nice thing about him, but is still obsessed with him. I know this happens, but it was super exaggerated and just too much and could’ve been way more enjoyable to read if it was just dialed down.

I also thought Opal and Pepper’s relationship progressed a little too quickly. Fans of insta love would enjoy this, but for me, it felt a little… you guessed it, unrealistic.

The craziest thing to me was at the end when the whole will/property ownership thing was resolved, and all Pepper had to do was go into her dead grandma's room to find a will. I get that if she’d done this at the start, there would be no story to tell, but come on, this is so stupid. It really makes this super sweet love story seem silly and takes away a lot of the good feelings I had about this story because it seems like such a waste to end a good story that way. It felt lazy and I think Opal and Pepper deserved more than that.

Overall, this was cute and fun but lacked any grounding in reality. A great story for naive romantics and a not-so-great story for realists. Luckily for me, I'm very naive and was able to enjoy this despite its flaws.

It's so wonderful to live in this world. A world where an author like Mazey Eddings is writing amazing romance novels about neurodiverse characters that are deeply relatable and lovable.

Late Bloomer is an absolute treat from start to finish. Opal wins a large sum in a lottery scratcher, and decides to make the sudden decision to escape her humdrum life and live her cottagecore dreams. She purchases a quaint flower farm on a whim, with the intention of turning the premises into a combination living and working space as she reignites her passion for creating artwork. Unfortunately, as she shows up with all of her things and supplies - ready to start her new life - she finds out that the farm was sold without the permission of the current resident, Pepper.

Hijinks, hilarity, and deliciously spicy enemies to lovers romance ensues. Mazey does an incredible job at balancing humor with heart. I'll definitely be reading as much as I can from Eddings in the future.

Opal is tired of her life feeling like a mess. When she wins the lottery, she knows its the perfect chance at a fresh start, and promptly buys a flower farm she sees on Facebook marketplace-- what better place to live and create her art? Unfortunately for her, when she shows up at her new home, it's not empty. In fact, the grumpy but gorgeous woman who lives there is furious that her estranged mother has sold her late grandma's beloved farm. Pepper and Opal become reluctant roommates and have to figure out how to work together to save the farm.

I enjoyed this romance book. It started off feeling like a hallmark movie, but in a good way. Slightly outlandish plot brings a grump and a sunshine together in a cozy and whimsical setting! The characters had good chemistry and were very sweet together, although the second half of the book fell a little flat for me compared to the first half.

I appreciated the disability representation, with Pepper being autistic and Opal identifying as neuro-divergent but without a diagnosis (possible ADHD). Pepper also suffers from migraines.

After finishing the book, the title feels a little disconnected from the story. Although Pepper's first time was with Opal, that wasn't a big part of the plot-- which I appreciated! I get that it's a play on the floral theme, but before reading the title made me think a character being a late bloomer would be significant to the plot.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC!

I really liked the idea of this book but for me it fell flat. Pepper’s friend group and Opal’s relationship with her sisters was fun and a part of the book that I enjoyed.

I didn’t feel like Opal and Pepper made sense together or had chemistry. I also felt like some of Opal’s choices were too unrealistic. The pacing also was confusing to me because there were a lot of jumps when it felt like the story should be continuing.

"Mazey Eddings' 'Late Bloomer'" is a captivating romantic tale that combines humor, heart, and a healthy dose of passion. The story revolves around Opal Devlin, a lottery winner seeking refuge from the chaos of her newfound wealth, and Pepper Boden, a determined and fiery woman with a claim to the same flower farm Opal has purchased. What ensues is a delightful narrative of two strong-willed women navigating their dreams, desires, and budding romance.

Opal's journey of self-discovery and her decision to use her newfound wealth to pursue her passion for painting is both empowering and relatable. Her determination to create a space for herself, away from the intrusions of her past, is inspiring. Similarly, Pepper's determination to fight for what she believes is rightfully hers showcases her strength and resilience. Their shared drive to explore their passions and create something meaningful forms the backbone of the story, making it incredibly engaging.

What sets "Late Bloomer" apart is its ability to balance the lighthearted moments with deeper themes of self-acceptance and fighting for one's dreams. The novel explores the complexities of identity and the courage it takes to embrace one's true self, even in the face of challenges.

I really enjoyed my first Mazey Eddings read and I can't wait for more!

You Need To Read This!

Late Bloomer exceeded my expectations. It's creative, unique and filled with so much heart.
I loved both Opal and Pepper. I could relate to them and wanted to see them work out their differences. The slow burn romance is done to perfection. Watching Opal & Pepper's love bloom was so satisfying to read. It's romantic and will make your heart melt.

The setting is great too. I really liked the flower farm and must visit on immediately. The town sounded charming as well.

I think the mental health representation is well done too.

Overall, if you're looking for a sapphic read that will melt your heart then pick up this book. It's fantastic!

An incredibly sweet, fluffy romance with believable and sometimes frustrating characters. I like a romance where I occasionally find one or both of the leads *genuinely* exasperating; I think it makes the story feel more real and the HEA more satisfying. Late Bloomer (what a great title!) checks that box and brings me back around to loving both of the main characters by the end. Extra points for me for being set in North Carolina--it is clear that Mazey Eddings actually knows North Carolina and hasn't just visited once--and for making me laugh on literally the very first page.