I loved this cute, adorable sapphic romance. Opal and Pepper were SO cute and their story unfolded in the most precious way.
Pepper and Opal were the cutest and were absolutely perfect together—the way they understood each other and were there for each other was wonderful. Their chemistry was off the charts and they had great banter.

Mazey Eddings has a way with words. Every book she writes and releases will leave you wanting more and this book is no different. The story, the characters.. it’s all beautiful.

Late Bloomer was one of my most anticipated romance reads of the year! It follows Opal, a recent lottery winner, with her biggest endeavor yet- buying a flower farm… Where she meets Pepper, the rightful owner of the flower farm Opal has just bought. We follow these two neurodivergent women as they’re forced to live, work, and grow together.
This book 100% lived up to the hype that I had built up in my head. I was so interested in the plot, the characters, and the characters around them. Sprinkled with humor, wit, and romance I felt like this book was the perfect mix of everything I like in a romance. An event that link our main characters together, a big problem they’ve got to solve, and chemistry that is undeniable.
I liked that Pepper and Opal both had their issues and things to work through, I feel like it made them interesting and got me invested in them as characters… I don’t like characters who are too perfect! It doesn’t feel real. Pepper and Opal’s imperfections made them so realistic. All of their interactions felt so real, and I felt like I was right on that flower farm with them. I found myself kicking my feet together and wanting nothing more than them both to just get together and live happily ever after- but I love a book that makes you work for it and takes a journey for you to get there.
The only thing that I found took me out of the story was that certain phrases or sentences could feel textbook at times. I wish the author had taken the ideas or phrases and rephrased it in a way that sounded more like the character's voices, and more like something someone in real life would say. It unfortunately took me out of the story in the moments that it happened, though the book quickly plunged me back into Pepper and Opal’s lives. It was nothing that made me want to put the book down.
Overall, I devoured this book and loved it a lot. It truly feels like the perfect spring read. A quick, fun, but not overly fluffy book. It checked all the sapphic boxes for me, and now I can’t wait to read more of Mazey Eddings’ books!

***Thanks to Macmillan Audio through NetGalley for providing me an ARC for my honest review***

This was so cute and a great exploration of mental health & its implications on all aspects of our lives. I was so rooting for Opal and Pepper. Mazey Eddings wrote them with such care so they really shine as individuals on the page (in audio). This had some traditional drama but you know it comes from a place of past trauma and insecurity and it's hard to imagine i would act any differently than these characters. I loved this. Sapphic - full of flowers - small town setting - family drama - and a lovely group of found family. I want more.

This book is such a wonderful representation of the Autistic/ADHD queer experience! Opal and Pepper, while very different people, are such an endearing couple and the plot keeps the reader so engaged!!

I thoroughly enjoyed this audiobook. It was quirky, funny, sweet, and all-around enjoyable. While parts of the story are predictable, it is still a very enjoyable escape from everyday life. It takes place in North Carolina, initially in Charlotte and then in Asheville. Being from NC, I always like being able to hear a story told about my state. The audiobook narration was fantastic. The narrator provided energy and real voices to the characters, making the story that much more fun to listen to. This is one of my favorite books of the year thus far.

"Late Bloomer" by Mazey Eddings is a sapphic (f to f) rom com with an enemies to lovers trope.

I really disliked the beginning. I found the main character, Opal, extremely immature, even juvenile, and she made poor decisions. Seriously, don't buy a house sight unseen! If I had not been listening to this for a review, I would have DNF'd it. But I was, so after a break, I kept listening.

I like Pepper, who lives in the flower farm Opal bought. Eventually, we find out Pepper is on the autism spectrum. After that, we find out Opal has ADHD. I wish this was revealed at the beginning. Both young ladies, Opal and Pepper, are neurodivergent. This leads to several frustrating misunderstandings.

I love flowers and enjoyed the talk about the flowers and the floral design competition.

The spice is really HOT and very well written!! The love story develops more slowly, but it is very sweet.

Characters - 2/5 Opal
5/5 Pepper
Writing - 4/5
Plot - 3/5
Pacing - 4/5
Unputdownability - 2/5
Enjoyment - 3/5
Narration - 3/5
Ellie Gossage mixed up the voices of main characters enough to confuse me. She read the spice well.
Cover - 4/5

If you want to read a spicy sapphic romance, this is a good one.. but more for younger women.

Thank you to Netgalley, Macmillan Audio, and Mazey Eddings for providing this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

It's a great, witty book that pulls at the heartstrings. I definitely recommend it to anyone who likes romcoms.

Cute and quirky. Each of the characters stood on their own with individual personalities and interests. This is low stakes, cozy vibes, and perfect for spring. I do wish their had been more done with the shoe art element, it seemed kind of forgetten by the end of the book.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.💫/5 (3.5 Stars)
Steam: 🌶️🌶️🌶️/5 (two-three steamy scenes with graphic description)

Thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for the audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

Narration: I’ve had this narrator before and they do a great job of the voices and narrating the book!

No spoiler review 👇🏻

This was a cute FF romance read! It was steamy and a perfect spring read.

Overall it was a fun read. Forced proximity, set on a flower farm, with some hilarious moments!

I loved the diversity of the characters and how it was written! Sapphic representation as well as ADHD and autism. Diverse stories/characters are important and great!

I enjoyed the characters and it was a fun read!

A bit of the middle dragged, and it took me a bit to get through, so for that my rating is 3.5 stars.

CW: parental abandonment, grief, toxic relationship (past), death of a family member (past)

A cute sapphic romance between two unlikely 20-somethings. Both main characters struggle with mental health and finding a balance in their lives. What they didn’t expect was to figure things out while being forced together. Add the backdrop of a quaint flower farm then some quirky side characters, and you’ve got Late Bloomer. This was the perfect spring read full of laughs and heartwarming moments.

The audiobook read by Ellie Gossage provided individual vocals that kept me from getting characters confused and highlighted their personalities well. They are easily understood at faster speeds.

Thank you NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, St. Martin’s Press, and author Mazey Eddings for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

"These flowers are wrapped around my bones. They're pieces of me; the beautiful pieces, at least."

"I miss her. I'll always miss her, but ... it's a beautiful ache, a sacred, precious reminder of how much love I hold for her."

"My love for you exists because you exist."

On Wednesdays we read pink! Talk about a sweet, heartwarming, and utterly vulnerable sapphic romance. How beautiful is that book cover too?!?

Mazey Eddings' characters are just so human and lovable, and the fact that both Opal and Pepper are neurodivergent (Opal with ADHD and Pepper with autism) endeared them to me even more. Mazey has the incredible knack of writing stories that are inclusive and help break the mental illness stigma. She and her characters have such strong voices, and Opal and Pepper are no exception. They simply want to be loved for who they are, and I was so happy that they found each other.

The Thistle and Bloom, a gorgeous flower farm in North Carolina, was the perfect setting for this story. Though I'm a terrible plant mom, simply reading about this farm's blooms made me want to give it another go because Mazey writes about them with such gentle, beautiful detail. It's clear that she is a flower lover herself, and I could almost smell the sweet fragrances the various flowers emitted as I read Late Bloomer. Pepper's flashbacks and memories of Grandma Lou teaching her how to nurture plants and flowers touched my heart, as well.

The romance between Opal and Pepper was steamy, but in my humble opinion, it could have developed a little more slowly. While I appreciated and enjoyed the romantic plotline, I found myself more captured by Opal and Pepper's relationships with Pepper's friends and Opal's sisters, as well as the living art floral competition and the efforts to keep the Thistle and Bloom afloat. That's where the story really shined for me.

Mazey also crafted some truly unlikable characters in Miles, Trish, and Lainey. Barfola.

And I would be terribly remiss if I didn't mention how much I loved @elliegossage 's narration! Her voices for both Opal and Pepper were distinct, and I was also impressed with her English accent!

Lastly, I adored Mazey's explanation of how she came to the title Late Bloomer, and appreciated the symbolism of the flowers used throughout the book.

Late Bloomer hits shelves April 16, so get those pre-orders and library holds in now, and if you can, give the audiobook a listen because it is a treat!

Let’s start with what this book is about—Opal strikes it lucky when she wins the lottery and impulsively purchases a flower farm in Asheville. Little does she know her luck was quite short lived as a beautiful girl named Pepper was already living there. To make things right, Opal proposes a plan for Pepper to stay and work together on the farm to make back the money she’d spent buying the place. From there, this book took me through quite a ride.

For starters, the things I liked about the book, I really liked! From the nuance of alcoholism, to the incredible complexity of the autistic mind and the struggles that come along with it, to grief and the hardship of being too empathetic—too people-pleasing. All of these topics were handled beautifully and for that, I really loved this book.

However, I didn’t feel that the characters were particularly fleshed out early on in the book, causing me to not feel connected to them—though, sharing similar struggles, I felt I *should* have felt that way.

Overall this was a lighthearted read with a bit of romance and a loose plot—a nice book to read if you’re looking for a sapphic romance and want something that will be easy and quick to read.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this audio!!

What a GREAT book!!! I loved Opal and Peppers story! I was hooked from page one. I wanted more! This was a first for me from this author and it will not be my last.

This was a very cute story that I think most people looking for a sweet, sapphic romance will enjoy. There's nothing super memorable about it, but that's okay! Not every book needs to hold so much weight that it sticks in your mind forever - this is a nice way to turn your brain off for a few hours and just enjoy life.

Pepper and Opal are both flawed characters who work well together when they're not having constant miscommunication issues. Pepper is autistic and Opal might be too (she doesn't have a proper label, which is okay), so neither is very good about bringing up their feelings to avoid conflict. Instead, they try to avoid conflict by talking around their feelings which then leads to more miscommunications.

Overall, this is a 3.5 that I rounded down to a 3 for a few reasons.

1) Side characters are introduced and given pretty good personalities... and then they just disappear. Literally - all the "villain" characters don't exist until they're needed to move some form of plot along, and all the friends/sisters hang out for one or two scenes before disappearing. It just felt weird... where did they go?
2) The CONSTANT miscommunication gets annoying to read about, even if it may be more plausible in real life.
3) Dialogue felt a bit silly at times (but overall, I think this book did a good job speaking about hard topics)
4) There is character growth at some points but most of Opal's issues resolve themself without her doing much (at least in my opinion - others may disagree and that's okay! It didn't take me out of the book)

I think that most people will like this book - just be prepared that it is VERY spicy at times, so don't expect closed door romance. Lots of fun, would recommend!

Friends, this book was so freaking cute. A Sapphic romance with a bit of forced proximity that I thoroughly enjoyed! It was one for the books!

We have Opal, one of our FMC's whose comes upon an unreal opportunity to finally take control of her life and cater to her own wants and needs - only to have that choice clash with the life of Pepper, our other FMC who runs the Thistle and Bloom Flower Farm - and currently navigating a farm crisis.
Considering the story takes place on a flower farm, there was so much astounding imagery implemented throughout the entire book - from the description of the thistle and bloom farms to the BLOOMing relationship between Pepper and Opal - I was just enveloped in this story.
Opal and Pepper's relationship can literally be described as LOVE IN BLOOM - and I ate this up.

Their blooming of their relationship coincided with their own personal blooming and the becoming of the flower farm in general- and it was just *chefs kiss.* How they felt their relationship out, how they navigated their denial and eventual acceptance of their feelings - was explored in such a wholesome way. There is a neurodiverse aspect in this book that I think the author explored so well. Specifically with Pepper's Autism and how she communicates thoughts and feelings with others. There was patience and balance from all sides in the story and it's something you have to appreciate!

The supporting characters were both incredibly wonderful and completely horrible in the best way (I honestly wish we got a bit more side character action though). The storyline was fun, the story was enticing and enjoyable. The narrator, Ellie Gossage, was incredible and did an unreal job of capturing each character while ensuring you get the full emotional range of the story while listening!

lastly, the authors note at the end of the book provided so much wonderful insight for the intentionality behind the use of all the flowers and their placement in each part of the story - and only makes you appreciate the love and thoughtfulness put into the story after you finish.
Overall, LOVE.

Favourite quotes from the book:
"I'd play any type of fool to make her laugh"
"I used to love silence more than oxygen. But for some unhinged reason, I like noise when it’s coming from opal”
"Sappho didn’t recite epic tales or yell at gods, Her poems spoke softly, as intimate as confessions between lovers, about the terrible wonderful ache of being in love "
" She holds my heart. And nothing is perfect but everything is right."


Thank you @macmillanaudio and @netgalley for the ARC of Late Bloomer!!

I'm obsessed with Opal and Pepper. This is the second Mazy Eddings book I've read and I plan on reading more. Their story was sweet and I loved that it had the depth of both characters cared deeply for the well-being of their partner. Sometimes I feel that is overlooked in a lot of romances but this hit it perfectly.

This book started off so well, but it really lost me in the middle. These characters take forever to make any decisions and it really started to annoy me. I also think I would have liked this more if I hadn't read any other books by the author, but since i have, this seemed very similar and repetitive.

This book hit me right in the FEELS! The premise was great-a young woman wins the lottery, impulsively buys a flower farm, finds out the farm wasn't quite as unoccupied as she was led to believe, and then is forced to live with and team up with the woman who runs the farm. The characters were really well rounded and I was extremely invested in their lives and feelings. Mazey Eddings writes really fleshed out characters who I want to read about! The tropes in the book were great-enemies to lovers + forced proximity + friends with benefits= ooops we caught feelings! The chemistry between the two main characters, Pepper and Opal, was really believable, as was the way the romance progressed as the story went on. I loved the two of them together, and how they stood up for each other. There was also great neurodiversity rep in the book, and while I can't speak from experience, the way Eddings wrote about her neurodiversity characters was with real respect and care. Other things I loved in the book-there was a Lizzie Blake shoutout! And a caretaking scene, which are my absolute favorite. The side characters were also great, I really hope we get to revisit them and their stories in future books!
The audio narration for this book was AMAZING. Even though it was one narrator, she had a different voice for each main characters, and it was easy to tell which character was speaking. Even the side characters voices were distinct. The whole audiobook was dynamic and kept my attention the whole way through! Definitely would recommend listening to it on audio.

This was a cute story! I loved the neurodivergent rep and that it was about to women finding love. This was definitely more of a feel good romance and I really enjoyed it. Grumpy sunshine trope was done really well. The narrator was really good and I loved the changing povs!