I absolutely adored this book! The chemistry between these two characters was everything and more. I loved how we got to see the transition between their start and getting off on the wrong foot to growing this amazing connection!! I could not get enough of this book. I seriously want more of them! Mazey Eddings truly outdid themselves on this book!

This was so fun!! A sapphic romance between two neurodiverse women with a version of forced proximity. I enjoyed the dual POV and the happy ending of course!

3.5

This cover is everything! And then I saw it was an opposites attract sapphic romcom with two neurodiverse main characters and I knew I had to read this.

Let's start with what I loved. Opal and Pepper are both incredibly well fleshed out main characters and I really liked them and related to them both in a lot of ways. Opal is a disaster bisexual who probably has some form of autism and/or ADHD but hasn't been able to get a diagnosis because the testing as an adult is ridiculously convoluted and expensive. She's trying to find her place in the world when she wins the lottery and decides to buy a flower farm (off Facebook Marketplace?). That flower farm is home to Pepper, who is autistic and still dealing with the grief of her grandmother's death and her traumatic childhood with a flighty mom. For reasons, when the two meet up they decide they should both stay at the farm.

Honestly, the plot requires a lot of suspension of belief but I didn't really mind because I was enjoying the ride. That being said, I had to pause reading this at about the 70% mark and then really had no desire to pick it back up. I did and I enjoyed the ending but I think because I was forced to leave the world Eddings built here, it made me really sit with how unbelievable the plot was and I was less invested in the story. That might be something particular to my reading experience, but I thought it was worth noting.

Overall, I thought this was a fun escapist time. I haven't read any of Eddings' other work, though I know they have been popular. I'd be interested in checking out more of her work because I liked the writing and I liked the neurodiverse representation.

The flower farm makes for a perfect setting for this love story that blossoms with both tenderness and ferocity. Mazey Eddings does it again!

Mazey Eddings is a brilliant story teller. This is a big change from her Brush With Love series, but the characters are still lovable and relatable.

I was really looking forward to this book and it did not let me down! I am a huge sucker for a fun, lighthearted sapphic romance. Whether that be adult or young adult. I really applaud this author for stepping out of her comfort zone and writing a story like this. I loved all of the representation in this book, including neurodivergence. I can tell it was handled with a lot of thought and care. Pepper and Opal had a great connection and I was rooting for them from start to finish. It gave all the lesbian vibes I needed. I will definitely be thinking of this book for awhile after!

Opal wins the lottery buys a flower farm. Pepper still lives at said flower farm. What happens when a failing flower farm gets sold underneath the real owner and two women get caught in the crosshairs? They bloom a little later that's what.

Late Bloomer was a PERFECT sapphic romance to read. Some spicier scenes but overall a fantastic book. I cried (more than once) during this book and have been recommending it since. Both FMC's are mental health reps and navigating the world as an adult. There was a small and I mean SMALL mention of a third act breakup but with the characters and their personalities, it made sense.

If you're looking for a feel good, down to earth, coming age, and coming into one's self/sexuality, PICK UP THIS BOOK.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! I love the forced proximity of the relationship and the floral backdrop, but mostly I just loved the building sapphic romance! I particularly love when character give in to sexual attraction before they figure out their heavier long-term romance feelings, and this delivered on that. These two had plenty of chemistry against the backdrop of their real-world problems, so it was the perfect balance of that, too.

I would highly recommend this one to fans of other spicy sapphic romcoms like Kiss Her Once for Me and Delilah Green Doesn't Care. I eat these books up and I know my fellow sapphics do, too. I pre=ordered the book in paperback after finishing my NetGalley copy and can't wait to feature it in recommendation videos on TikTok in the future.

"𝘔𝘺 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘦𝘹𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘦𝘹𝘪𝘴𝘵. 𝘐𝘵 𝘪𝘴𝘯’𝘵 𝘣𝘢𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘯 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘪𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘢𝘳𝘥𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧 𝘵𝘰." 

At this point, Ms Mazey could write about the trials and tribulations of two rocks falling in love, and you'll catch me front and center eating that uppp! 

Late Bloomer is probably one of the softest sapphic "cottagecore" romances I've ever read; it's beautifully delicate, just like Opal and Pepper.
They may be doing their little dance around each other while battling some inner turmoil, but that just makes their "moments" so much more precious. Their chemistry is fiery hot.... especially in the bedroom🤭 or greenhouse😏

Honestly, this is the first sapphic romance that I truly find relatable; a little bit of something from both Opal and Pepper I can connect with. And as always, Mazey will always be the master of writing the mental health rep so meticulously and efficient that will without a doubt warm the soul❤️‍🔥
I'll always be a sucker for opposites falling in love because when they do, they fall HARD, and one being a grumpy goose and the other a ferocious sunshine... match made in heaven🥹 

"𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘦 𝘢 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘴𝘰 𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘪𝘵 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭𝘴 𝘥𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴𝘭𝘺 𝘣𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨." 

what you can expect:
🌸 a flower farm about to collapse
🌸 opposites-attract romance 
🌸 grumpy x sunshine pairing
🌸 "let's huddle for warmth"
🌸 neurodivergent rep
🌸 caretaking 

Thank you so much to @mazeyeddings & @smpromance for providing me with an arc; a true delight as always 💗

I LOVE Mazey Eddings - I think there isn't a book she's written I haven't fully enjoyed.

Things I loved about this: Queer and Mental Health rep. If there's one thing Mazey's going to do, it's include representation in her books. She does it so well too! Nothing feels forced amongst the characters and never feels like a plot point.

What didn't work for me: Opal. I'm so so sorry, but I just couldn't back her as a main character. I love that she won the lotto and set on her dream about buying a flower farm. But for some reason I just did not connect with her as a character.

This could totally be a me situation and not the book.


Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press and Mazey Eddings for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Let me start this review by saying I'm a HUGE fan of Mazey Edding's work, but this book just wasn't for me.

Late Bloomer follows Opal, a quirky people pleaser, that wins the lottery and buys a flower farm. MY DREAM. She then meets Pepper, the previous owner who is now jobless and homeless be of her mother. In comes the forced proximity/roommates, small town romance and ofc - saving the farm!!

First - I LOVED the queer & neurodivergent representation in this book. Mazey hit the mark with that one. I don't know if my expectations were too high bc I loved The Plus One and the mental health representation, but I think the characters were lacking for me. I was struggling to find like a real connection b/t Opal and Pepper outside of a physical attraction. I also struggled a bit with their dialogue. It was so hard to differentiate between the two and some internal monologue was hard to read. Also, the first 5% with Opal being a complete doormat was hard to stomach. It was ALOT.

That being said, this book might just be a one off that doesn't work for me. Which is such a shame bc I was so excited for it and the cover?? So beautiful. I will obvi still be reading more books by Mazey regardless.

Thank you to Netgalley for this arc in exchange for an Honest Review. Late Bloomer is out now!

(3.25/5 stars) This book had me waffling over a review for a week.

Things I appreciate: Mazey Eddings writes neurodivergence so well. She also writes grief so well. I can always count on her to create characters that feel fleshed out.

Things I wished were better: Opal and Pepper had such similar voices, at times it was hard to tell them apart. Also, for an *adult* novel, this read so YA to me. Perhaps it's because the characters are still relatively young (mid-20s), perhaps her previous venture into YA is running over into this book, but the YAness of it all really come through.

Absolutely fun premise- what if you bought a flower farm because you won the lottery and want a new start but someone is living there claiming to be the owner? Opal handles it a lot better than I think most people would allowing Pepper to stay there and earn enough to buy it back. Throw in some romance ans it’s quite a tale.

I loved this book with my entire heart. Is there anything Mazey Eddings can't write?! Pepper and Opal now share the top spot in my heart with Lizzie and Rake. This is one of the best sapphic romance novels I've ever read. Sweet and steamy in equal measure with countless lol moments and so many gorgeous flower details. The steam in Late Bloomer is A+++ with some of the best depictions of oral sex and a scissoring scene to boot! Pepper and Opal made me fall in love right along side them. I know I will read this one again and again and I cannot wait for Mazey to write another one.

Opal was delightful, perfect, loved her. Pepper was your basic borderline toxic character that doesn't really take accountability because they need therapy. It was overall alright I guess.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for granting me an e-arc!
people-pleaser Opal’s life is instantly changed when she wins the lottery off a scratch off card she receives from her “best friend” who forgot her birthday. Opal is tired of working a job she doesn’t love, wanting to invest more time into her art. She’s also painfully reminded by her sisters of the shady treatment she receives from her best friend Lainey and ex boyfriend Miles. Lainey and Miles only come around when they want something from Opal, so of course they’re interested in hanging out with her once she wins the lottery.

However, shocking everyone, Opal decides to buy a flower farm off Facebook Marketplace and go move there to work on her art. Opal is ecstatic about the prospect, but there’s one tiny bump in the road when she arrives- there’s already someone living there.

Pepper has lived at the flower farm for years, ever since her mother abandoned her and dropped her at her grandmother’s doorstep when she was 17. Pepper lived with and worked on the farm alongside her grandma until her recent death. Having no idea that the farm was sold out from underneath her, Pepper has no idea what she’s going to do for a home or for work. That is, until nice, people pleasing Opal suggests that the two live together.

As the two girls spend more time around each other, their attraction for the other grows. When they decide to act on their desires, they insist it’s a feelings free situation. However, as the two work together on a floral/art competition that could help Pepper buy the farm from Opal, the two realize they may actually have real feelings for each other- but neither one wants to admit it.

Filled with quirky, charming characters, a lovely flower farm and a unique storyline, this book is perfect for readers who enjoy romcoms, sapphic novels, or just want a read that will make them smile.

Opal Devlin is struggling. She's in a dead end job with no alternative prospects on the horizon, her "best friend" sucks, and her on-again-off-again boyfriend is a irredeemable cheater. When she wins the lottery, literally, on a scratch off ticket, it just may be the push she needs to jump start her life. When people come out of the woodwork, palms outstretched, after hearing about her windfall, she decides she has to get away. Always impulsive, Opal spends a sizable amount of her winnings on buying a down-on-its-luck flower farm outside of Asheville, NC where she plans to hole herself up and focus on her art.

Only when she arrives at Thistle and Bloom, it isn't quite the solitary oasis she's hoped for. Inhabiting the farm is the grieving and angry-at-the-world Pepper, who refuses to leave. When Opal cautiously suggests they live together and work out a payment plan for Pepper to buy the farm back, Pepper reluctantly agrees. Their cohabitation leads to the inevitable bumping of heads as both women figure out who they are and what they want.

This was just delightful. Full of the best romance tropes - grumpy x sunshine, forced proximity (one bed at one point!), neurodivergent and queer representation, miscommunication...it's got it all! Told in dual POVs (Opal and Pepper, naturally), Eddings really lets you see inside each woman's thought process and how they cope with their various disappointments, loss, and eventually attractions. Eddings nails the banter between the two, and also nails the representation of Pepper's autism in the book in a way that doesn't feel trite. She needs control, routine, and absolutely hates change - things that are exactly the opposite of Opal. They both have to figure out how to coexist. I also enjoyed the relationships between Pepper and her chosen family/friends - they see her for who she is and meets her where she is, not expecting her to change or taking advantage of her. Opal's sisters are much the same, embracing their wildcard sister and supporting her as best they can while also being an anchor to reality for the artsy and somewhat flighty Opal.

Overall, loved it. No Notes.

When Opal wins the lottery she's both ecstatic and terrified. She can finally quit her dead-end, minimum wage job and focus on her art, but as a perpetual people pleaser and yes woman she has fake friends and old flames crawling out of the woodwork asking for a handout and she's not sure she can say no. So to avoid the issue, she buys a flower farm in a town few hours away, tying up her money in the land and distancing herself from her old "friends." But when she arrives at her new farm, gorgeous farmer Pepper is there claiming that the land belongs to her. The two agree to cohabitate temporarily until they can work out a solution. An undeniable attraction between the two may make things both more difficult and easier.

First, can we just comment on how GORGEOUS this cover is? The pink, the illustrations, the flowers--love it all. I'm so glad they didn't give Opal the horrid neon green hair that she phases in during the book. Setting aside that, this book was so sweet. It was a feel-good romance between two softies with some great autism rep. The backstory of Pepper and her mom was fascinating, and I seeing Opal's relationship with her sisters. Seeing them each come into their own and stand up to people they had previously caved to were moments to celebrate. A cute read all around.

Thanks to St. Martin's Press for my eARC and finished copy! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

5 stars - 8/10

A huge thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and of course, Mazey Eddings for providing me with this eARC. I am voluntarily leaving a review, all opinions are my own.

Okay. It's official, I love Mazey Eddings and just absolutely adore the stories she tells. This book was only my second by her, but I will definitely continue to read anything I see by her.

The characters felt so real and so tangible, I felt like I knew how they were feeling even when it wasn't explicitly stated because the writing and the conveying Eddings did with them was so spot on. I adored the characters in this book and found myself rooting for them from the very beginning, which doesn't always happen for me.

I cannot wait to get my hands on a physical copy of this book, this is definitely one I'd recommend and couldn't be happier with!

🌸 Late Bloomer by Mazey Eddings Review 🌸

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5

💭 Thoughts:
The trope combo in this book was the BESTTTT! Grumpy sunshine, forced proximity, opposites attract, neurodivergent rep, LGBTQ+ rep ☀️🧠🏳️‍🌈 I loved it all! And to top it off, it all takes place on a FLOWER FARM!!! 💐 Where can I sign up?!! Also, the depth of grief and healing and complicated parental relationship layered into the romance made it well rounded and complex. Thank you, Mazey Eddings, for continuing to share your gift of writing with us 🙌🏼

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.