I loved it. It felt like a light take on dealing with grief and I felt incredibly connected to the characters. I also loved seeing the nods to Little Women.

Celine has been throwing herself into her work since she lost her daughter Libby. Until one day everyone she cares about intervenes and tells her something needs to change. Celine finds herself wondering if her life could have been different. And then exactly that happens, and she finds herself in a whole different life. She gets to see her Libby again. I enjoyed this author’s other books. And this one was good as well. The characters relationships and interactions are well written. The whole story is itself full of emotion.

What if? What if you’d stayed with that old boyfriend instead of running off with the military guy? What if you’d never had kids? How would your life be different? Would you have never had to feel the heartbreak of losing one? What if you’re given that other life? Would you want it? Or would you long for your old life, heartbreak and all?

These are the things that Celine thinks about after losing her daughter Libby two years ago. She can’t let go. She can’t move on. She’s losing the rest of her family. After they force an intervention, she gets upset and trips and falls. When she wakes, she’s in an alternate version of her life. One where she never married Quinn and never had kids. Will she get a second chance?

I really enjoyed this one. We’ve all thought ‘What if’ at one point or another. It was a quick read, fast paced and emotional. As a mother, I could see where Celine was coming from, but I also wanted to shake some sense into her! Full of emotion and a sweet, sweet story.

I am unsure why I requested this book as regular fiction books are difficult for me to read at times unless it is something that really ropes me in. Unfortunately this book was not for me and i had a difficult time getting through it. Nothing against the author or the book, the writing was great. just not for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for an e-ARC of this novel in exchange for a review.

A heartbreaking story that had me sobbing and the love of a mother really shines through. The immense grief of losing a child is unthinkable and unbearable.

When Jasmine Blooms will have you grabbing for the tissues.
Tif examines the common thought of what if….
I highly recommend this novel, ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Thank you NetGalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

When Jasmine Blooms is an emotional and thought provoking exploration of grief and guilt and of what could happen if you’d made different choices and ended up living a different life. Really enjoyed this moving and beautifully written story. 5 stars

I am a sucker for any story that deals with a chance to relive your life and make different choices. Celine is sleepwalking through life, putting on a charade of normalcy after the death of her daughter Libby, when her husband and three remaining daughters give her an ultimatum to deal with her grief. The next day she wakes up with an ex and has the opportunity to re-examine her life and redo her relationship with Libby. A though-provoking and touching story about motherhood and grief.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author, for an ARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review.
The premise of the book drew me in but once I started reading it, I just couldn’t get into it at all.
I wish the author, publisher and all those promoting the book much success and connections with the right readers.

If I was not a fan of Tif Marcelo before I read When Jasmine Blooms, I would be a fan now. This book is one of my top books of 2023. The characters were unique, not always likable. The storyline was one that pulled me in from the very beginning and never let me go. There were so many times that I was worried that there would be a hole in the story but Tif Marcelo knew exactly how to pull it all together and move seamlessly between the real Celine life and the what-if Celine life.

What a unique story! What-if…. What if you married someone else? What would you life look like? Would you have kids? Live in the same place? This is that story. I could not put this book down. Celine was not always likable. She was a workaholic, she had disconnected from her family, and she was not taking care of herself. She also had lived a mother’s worse nightmare.

I was happy that the book did not go back and forth. We start in real-world Celine and then go to what-if Celine seamlessly. The middle of the book was entirely what-of Celine and we stayed there for a long while. I like that in that world, Celine still knew what her other option was. She could see what she would be missing out if she had made different choices. I enjoyed watching her realize what she would have missed if she had made different choices.

Tif Marcelo is an author I recommend often. All of her books are amazing. Jasmine in Bloom is a must-read.



Thank you Tif Marcelo, author, and Lake Union Books for a copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.

This book was just okay. I found the main character really unlikable and as a result, had a really hard time rooting for her. I just kept yelling at her to get her shit together.

Inspired by Little Women. What happens when a woman, Libby, a popular influencer and best selling author, faces immeasurable grief. She throws herself into work, 24/7. Her family, fearing for her mental and physical health, waits in the wings to have an intervention. Then she wakes up in her alternate universe…trying to figure out her new way of life. A ‘Do Over’ or her new reality?

As a parent, you can so understand what Libby is going thru. Her grief and confusion is so palpable, raw. The author does a great job of showing how different people react. Haven’t we all wondered ‘What If’ I took a different road, the other option? A story different than any other, it leads the family down a path of rediscovery.

Thanks to Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for this ARC. Opinion is mine alone.

What an interesting spin on a classic, Little Women, as we look at things from another view point, the mother’s.
We follow Celine through her grief and her dealing with her daughter’s death, as well as the dynamics of her whole family, in parallel time-lines. It was definitely a book for women that went in depth and discovered different complexities of motherhood and finding oneself, even at a more mature age!

Thanks to Net Galley for this advanced copy!

I’m a sucker for the “road not taken” trope. You know, the “What if I had chosen this or done that? What would that different life look like?” So when I saw that this novel includes such a storyline, I knew I would like it!

Celine is the mother of four girls. She has been happily married for decades. She has a successful business writing self-help books and then touring to promote them.

But all the business travel is stressful and tiring for Celine. Her husband starts showing signs of discontentment. And her daughters are all acting strangely.

Above all, the death of one of her daughters has completely broken her. She threw herself into work instead of taking the time to grieve. That was not a good plan, and now she is coping less and less well.

What to do? Who will she turn to for help?

Why, Marmee from “Little Women”, of course!

Celine identifies with Marmee because they both were military wives who were effectively single parents when their husbands were serving, both devoted themselves to helping others, both had four daughters. And both had lost a child.

So Celine looks to Marmee for guidance. WWMD (What Would Marmee Do)?

In the Author’s Note, Tif Marcelo points out that this book is not a retelling of “Little Women”, although it is inspired by that classic novel. There are clear differences between the two fictional families. It is fun, though, to notice commonalities that pop up throughout the book.

This is a bittersweet story about a woman suffering terribly from grief. Despite the moments of sadness, it is an enjoyable read. There is also laughter and love and understanding. And the “what if” world created by the author is cleverly plotted.

I have so many feelings about this book. I enjoyed the correlations to Little Women. I don't normally like time travel books, but I thought this one was tastefully done. I don't know if it resonated with me more since I have had a recent loss of my own, but it really touched me. I don't think this is a book for everyone, and the reader needs to be in the right space for it to be properly meaningful, but I really enjoyed it.

Grief and guilt. How do we go on when we lose someone close to us? How does a mother go on when she loses her child, especially when she feels she could have done more to prevent the death? How will it affect her life and the life of the rest of the family? Tif Marcelo’s WHEN JASMINE BLOOMS explores this and more, while paying homage to LITTLE WOMEN.
Celine has spent the past two years doing packing away her grief and guilt, just trying to get through each day, immersing herself in her work and pushing the rest of her family away. She thinks she’s doing fine: New book, new book tour. Then her family stages an intervention and, through the hurt, she wonders… what if? What if she had chosen a different path all those years ago? When she faints and wakes up in the what if timeline, she has the unique opportunity to try again with the daughter she lost…who isn’t her daughter. None of her family is. Marcelo alternately broke my heart and made me laugh, all through the tears, as Celine learns to work through her grief and tries to get it right in both worlds.
This was a different style for Marcelo and I am happy to say it worked for me. I am always wondering, “what if?” and I was pleased with the way Marcelo created the alternate timeline and stayed true to her voice. If, like me, you haven’t read LITTLE WOMEN since you were young, you will still find a great story settle in with. Just bring your tissues.
Thanks to the publisher for the opportunity to read an advance copy of the novel. All opinions are my own and freely given.
#WhenJasmineBlooms #TifMarcelo #LakeUnionPublishing #TallPoppyWriters #bloomreads #tallpoppyblogger #TallPoppyWriter #TallPoppy

This book tells a story inspired by 'Little Women' by Louisa Alcott and, in particular, the character of Marmee. This is a touching story about how denying your feelings and hiding your genuine emotions can become dangerous. The main character, Celine, is not only a successful woman but also, and probably above all, a mother. A mother who has experienced the worst thing that can happen to a mother - the loss of a child. Now Celine is trying to regain her balance at all costs. However, everything she does makes her feel not only more and more lost but also sick and isolated from the rest of the family. Death and mourning are some of the most challenging topics in literature. Not only that it moves readers powerfully, but also because everyone goes through it differently and experiences it differently. The author has captured the problem well, but I believe reaching for a 'what if' solution and moving to a parallel reality was too easy.

Tif Marcelo weaves family and the Filipino culture into all of her books, but most especially her newest "When Jasmine Blooms". A mother whom is navigating grief, gets a chance to explore "what if". Throughout the story, connections are made to Marmee, the mother of Little Women, a well known literature mother whom also faced grief. The writing was immersive, inspirational and reflective. I was rooting for Celine the whole time. Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for an advanced copy! All thoughts and opinions are my own!

The more I tried to deny my feelings, the more I lost my way.

An emotional read on motherhood, womanhood, family and death. The death of a child should never happen even an adult child. You are stuck with what if's and how do I go on. When Celine lost her daughter, everything changed. The dynamics of the family, work and ultimately her marriage. She loved her family but how do you love after a member is no longer there?

Her family gives her ultimatum to deal with the loss of her daughter Libby. Deal with the sale of the house that Libby lived in her last days. Her 3 daughters and husband give her their reasons and what needs to be done. What happens next, she looses consciousness and wakes up to another world. Celine wakes up next to her old boyfriend Rex in California. She is confused but slowly knows she is in another glitch in time. A second chance. She knows she can wake up anytime to her real reality of the ultimatum her family has given her. Celine is still in work mode and with the urging of her assistant and friend, Celine goes back to the house where her daughter died and is given the second chance to be what Libby needed before she taken from her.

Being a mom of adult children, this gave me a pause. It deals with the fine balance of being a mom, a friend and to stop giving your opinions at every turn. I have stepped back with my own grown daughters in this but I grieve the role I had with them in taking care of them. Celine and Libby suffered from miscommunication and misunderstanding that left both of them wanting. Celine's second chance was a discovery to stop and listen and be present.

I loved how this second chance was more about learning about yourself and responding to those you love. Celine was a self-discovery about who she was to the world and to those most important to her -her husband and girls.

A special thank you to Lake Union Publishing and Netgalley for the ARC and the opportunity to post an honest review.