Thank you NetGalley for the ARC
Late Bloomer is what I would call a 'Plate Cleanser' Novel. It's a short and sweet romance featuring two neurodivergent women as main characters and a cast of queer side characters giving it a nice little found family vibe. This book has duel POV and switches between the first person perspectives of both MCs, the novel deals with grief and the aftermath of parental neglect and i believe both subjects were handled with grace. I really enjoyed Pepper's opening up and allowing herself to be taken care of, it was really sweet. The novel has a few spicy scenes but i feel they were well written and definitely added to the plot and closeness of the characters. I really loved this book and i cant wait to get a physical copy when it comes out!

As is probably the case with most three star reviews there were things I liked about this book and things I didn’t. The writing was funny and sharp and at times deeply poignant. I literally found myself re-reading some sentences because they were so beautiful. That being said, I rated this book three stars because I had a hard time connecting with the characters and found myself getting bored about halfway in. In the case of Late Bloomer, I felt the sum wasn’t as good as the parts.

Sometimes with romantic comedies I find that the author can overuse the comedy aspect, often to the detriment of the book as a whole, and I think that’s what happened here. While hilarious and fun to read, I found Opal to be scattered and exhausting to keep up with. Pepper was better, a steadier and more believable presence, but because the book is told through Opal’s perspective it didn’t help the overall story much.

One thing that the author did do well was the romance. I felt the tension and genuine affection build between the two mc’s and the steamy scenes were some of the better ones I’ve read in awhile!

Overall even though this book was a miss for me, I feel like this author has a lot of promise and I would be willing to read her next offering.

I received an ARC from Netgalley and am leaving a review voluntarily. All opinions are my own.

Thank you, NetGalley & St. Martin's Press, for granting me access to this book!

I love flowersㅡthe hidden messages and the beauty. This book tells a warm, slightly complicated story decorated with lushful flower petals all over the page. Very enjoyable, though at first I frowned at Pepper but the more I read, the more I adore her. Opal is a bright pink light and I love her too!

However, some intimate scenes felt too long for me, that makes me want to flip through the pages and just read their story (that is not related to steamy sesh).

All in all, an enjoyable one!

Late Bloomer was a sweet, emotional sapphic romance. It was pretty much what I've come to expect from a Mazey Eddings book. It had wonderful characters, good humor, and a love story to root for. 

Opal was an artistic, undiagnosed neurodivergent whirlwind. She was so nice and giving that she was easy to take advantage of. Opal had big dreams when she bought the Thistle and Bloom Farms 

Pepper was an autistic flower farmer who has recently lost her Grandma Lou, the person whom she was closest to. She was not expecting Opal to show up when she did. Opal's arrival sends Pepper into a tailspin. 

Opal and Pepper don't get off to the best start. They moved from kind of enemies to friends to more at a believable pace. The way they got to know each other and fall in love was cute. They were both kind of a mess at times, and it was fun to see them support each other. Opal and Pepper were complete opposites who fit perfectly together. Their romance was a lot of fun to read.

This was a great departure from my usual reads and I really enjoyed it! The characters were so lovely and the plot kept me engaged the entire time. I would definitely recommend!

will read everything and anything Mazey writes for the rest of time. This book made my heart so HAPPY. I loved everything about Opal and Pepper and their individual stories and theirs together! The strangers to you own my house but I cannot leave because I have no where else to go to roommates to I’m going to invade every single part of your life because I NEED the connection to we’ll just do it to diffuse the tension to LOVERS.

The flowers. The tension. The grumpiest girl and the sunshiny-est sunshine girl. The neurodivergent rep. The sapphic rep. The grief. The never feelings like you belong anywhere even though you give and give and give and somehow never get anything back. The found family.

I loved both Pepper and Opal DEEPLY. They were the softest softies in the whole world. They both struggled so much with their emotions, in totally different ways and they struggled to communicate. But not in the typical miscommunication trope way! And seeing them figure it out together was done so well!

Opal is a mirrorball girlie to her CORE. I loved watching her help Pepper, because that’s what she loves to do, but be actually appreciated for it. And I loved seeing Pepper actually trust and accept the help from Opal, even though she has never been given a reason to trust anyone ever.

Pepper’s grief was written so well. She talked about it comes and goes and just when she seemingly hasn’t thought about it in while, it just hits. And that is so painfully true. I can’t appreciate it more when it’s written like that.

I love Pepper’s little family and how quickly they took Opal in! And I’m guessing (hoping!!!) Opal’s sisters are getting their own books?? Mazey can’t name them Opal, Olivia, and Ophelia make them all bi artists and not write about all of them???

Thank you so much to Netgalley and SMP for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I loved this book. Both characters were really lovely and I enjoyed seeing how much they both grew as people. Their relationship was very cute and I loved that the topic of mental health was in this book.

Late Bloomer
by Mazey Eddings
April 16, 2024

Late Bloomer is an adorable opposites attract with slow burn sapphic romance. (In case you couldn’t tell by the cover)
I thought Pepper was stubborn and headstrong, sometimes too much so for her own good. And Opal was a pushover who has got trampled over so much that she has no confidence in herself whatsoever. I liked the relationship growth between the two characters. I felt it has great representation in it. All in all Late Bloomer was a delightful read.

Thank you to St. Martin's Griffin and NetGalley for this e-copy in exchange for my honest opinions.

I loved this book so much I can't believe it. This was my first Sapphic book I've read, and I can't believe what I've been missing this whole time. First of all, the yearning and the pining was amazing, and the characters coping mechanisms and responses to their emotions hit home so hard. The characters were well written, and they felt so real, especially Pepper with her need to fit everything in order or make sense of everything. The grief Pepper feels and processes was so well written I was sobbing. Overall, I started reading thinking I was in for a fluffy romance, but it goes so much deeper than that, and I love it for that reason. 5 stars

i love how heartfelt and sweet this book was. i thoroughly enjoyed it. we need more sapphic romcom's in literature and i stand by that!!!!! i've always been such a fan of mazey's work so i went into this knowing i'd love it. these characters were so beautiful. plus it taking place on a god damn FLOWER FARM. count me in. sapphics + flowers is a major yes thank u very much. i really related to opal and just letting people walk all over you, it's something hard to recover from. overall i loved this book and will recommend it to many

thank you netgalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review <3

A gorgeous and stunning novel about neurodivergent and queer love. Cannot wait to read more from Mazey Eddings!

An incredibly stunning story of two people with such chaotic chemistry. This book is beyond perfect and I cannot wait for more from Mazey Eddings!

title: Late Bloomer

author: Mazey Eddings

publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

publication date: April 16, 2024

pages: 400

peppers: 3 (on this scale)

warnings: talk of drug use, mean parents, death of a grandparent (before the book)

summary: When Opal, who can't stop herself from helping others even when it's to her detriment, wins big on a scratch-off ticket, she decides to get a fresh start by buying, sight unseen, a flower farm she sees on a Facebook Marketplace ad. What could possibly go wrong? She arrives to find the farm's resident Pepper, who knew nothing of the sale and has no other place to go.

tropes:

enemies-to-lovers
mean mom
scam victim
over-giver
one bed
entering a competition
what I liked: these neurodiverse characters both have a hard time expressing what they want/feel, but they learn together in sweet ways. I like the fun friend group.

what I didn’t like: I found the mom too selfish to be believable.

overall rating: 5 (of 5 stars)

The writing at first seemed a little too similar to young-adult novel style writing, but as I got into the story I ended up just absolutely adoring the characters, the setting, and the overall plot. I thoroughly enjoyed this and will be recommending it to people. I absolutely adored the couple’s energy, tension, and chemistry. Towards the end I not only found myself wanting the story to continue on (in a good way), but also found that my eyes were tearing up a little bit. And the neurodivergent representation in this felt very natural and connected to me personally. I just really loved this story, even if I was a little tough on it at first.

I liked the beginning of this story, but the middle and end kind of fell flat for me. Opal's personality also felt inconsistent to me.

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martins Press for the e-arc in exchange for my honest review. Not sure how but this is my favorite Mazey Eddings book. I loved the Easter eggs of her previous books. I loved the characters the story everything was perfectly written. The steam was some of the best yet. I have pre-ordered it and cannot wait to hug it and tab my favorites.

Highly recommend

I picked this one up on a whim because of the gorgeous cover and couldn't put it down. "Late Bloomer" is a gorgeous and sweet sapphic contemporary romance featuring neurodivergent, bi main characters who have a lot to work through as they grow into their best selves together. I fell hard for both these characters and was rooting for their love to bloom!

One of the things I especially loved about this book is that both Opal and Pepper actually work on their careers--Opal feels like a genuine working artist, and the flower farm is not just backdrop, but an actual functioning farm! And the author's note at the end goes into wonderful detail about the symbolic meaning of the flowers featured in the book, which was an unexpected treat!

Anyway, I absolutely adored this book and will be (figuratively) shoving it at anyone who so much as says the words "romance novel."

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc! Opinions are my own.

This is a delight as usual for Mazey's books, while also being an emotional read! I loved these two characters and their personal journeys.

I was kindly provided an ARC copy of Late Bloomer by Netgalley and St. Martins Press, so thank you to them both for the chance to read this book in exchange for my honest review.
Late Bloomer is a spicy sapphic fluffy romance (with grumpy sunshine trope) about Opal and Pepper. Opal is drifting aimlessly in life in a dead end job with a horrible ex-boyfriend and one selfish friend. While her two sisters offer her love and support Opal needs a change in her life. Winning $500,000.00 on a scratch off ticket gives her the opportunity to make that change and after seeing a listing online she decides to buy a flower farm to pursue her art in peace.
Pepper is the granddaughter of the previous owner of the flower farm and entirely displeased to find her home and business are now effectively owned by a stranger. Having been raised by her grandmother on the farm and abandoned/manipulated by her mother at every opportunity, Pepper has difficulty trusting anyone, especially a newcomer to the farm.
Both women strike a tentative agreement to work together to save the farm and find themselves falling in love.
While I thought the third act dramatics were unnecessary and honestly almost a space filler I thought this was a very cute sweet love story. I enjoyed both Opal and Pepper. I appreciated that both women are open about being neurodivergent and how it affects them emotionally and physically. Another aspect that I enjoyed about this book is how it spends time describing the grieving process that Pepper has to go through because of her grandmothers passing. Im glad the author spent time developing that part of the story as there are times when books can treat the death of a loved one as just a minor plot point as compared to an actual process that we all have to go through.
I really enjoyed this book and will recommend it online closer to the release date in April. I also enjoyed A Brush With Love by Mazey Eddings so I will continue to look for more books by this author in the future.

Late Bloomers is easy to get lost in and exactly what I needed! When the grumpy, crotchety Pepper comes on page I realize I'm a bit of a narcissist because she is me...and I LOVE Pepper lol. This was a great opposites attract, grumpy/sunshine, sapphic story with wonderful mental health rep. The autistic rep was just *chefs kiss* and even more special to me was the self diagnosed neurodivergence represented.
4.5 ⭐
Thank you to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for this lovely arc.