After Opal wins the lottery, she decides she is tired of being walked over by everyone in her life and impulsively buys a flower farm where she plans to work on her art. It sounds like the perfect plan to everyone except Pepper, who believes she inherited the farm from her grandmother. Will these two end up cohabitating peacefully or will something else begin to bloom?

What I loved:
-neurodivergence rep
-sense of found family and portrayal of complicated family relationships
-flower farm setting

This book had me at sapphic romance set on a flower farm and it did not disappoint! This was a really sweet and light read with some deeper elements.

Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for the advanced reading copy!

I received this book early through NetGalley.

My overall thoughts were a bit mixed about this one. I was very confused on how Opal's personality changed in each perspective. We are shown at the beginning that Opal is the most extreme type of people pleaser. And it leads her to getting manipulated by multiple people, including Pepper's mother. And then there is a sort of shift when we get to Pepper's perspective where Opal is way more assertive/cute/innocent acting. It just didn't make sense to me in the reader's perspective.

The plot was also just a lead up to one competition and didn't include any actual conflict about who owned the DARN HOUSE! I would be sooooo angry that someone was living in my house I just bought. And if I was one of Opal's sisters, I would have called the biggest lawyer for her.

The romance was ok, and I liked the neurodivergence rep we see. The bond between the two of them came from absolutely nowhere though. They are both terribly awkward people and I think none of their hanky panky would have actually happened if not to drive the tension and narrative.

3/5 stars

The cover of this book is EVERYTHING! I am currently reading and can not wait to finish this tonight!
I definitely think that younger Caitlin would have eaten this shit up, but I can not turn down a cute queer romance.

First, applause for the gorgeous cover. Second, the setting is a flower farm. Now I’m not sure everyone is going to like or relate to both main characters, and that’s not necessary. They are both neurodivergent, and it manifests differently. Opal is (technically) undiagnosed with ADHD, autism, or a combination of both and is trying to find where she fits in the world. Pepper is autistic and comes across as grumpy and a little unlikeable. But she’s found her place, Thistle & Bloom, a flower farm she lived on with her late grandmother. While these two may be very different, there’s also an instant attraction and pull between them. I would recommend if the tropes sound like something you would like or if you’ve enjoyed Mazey’s writing and humor before.

THINGS YOU’LL FIND
-Flower farm setting
-Neurodiverse rep
-Sapphic Romance
-Grumpy/Sunshine
-Roommates/forced proximity

Thank you to St Martins Press for my e-arc.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

This was a very sweet (but also deliciously spicy) sapphic romance with excellent neurodivergent representation. The characters all felt vibrant and real, and the ones you're supposed to dislike were VERY unlikable (but also believable, because I've met so many people just like them). It is, unfortunately, a victim of everyone's least favorite - the miscommunication trope, but I feel almost like that trope is more realistic coming from two neurodivergent characters (I fall victim to it in real life ALL the time, after all). The resolution was sweet and unrushed, and, if the author so desired to return to this book universe (Opal's sisters' love stories, maybe? Hint hint), I would be in the front of the line to get those works.

I had such a fun time reading this book! It was a cute spring read that made sitting outside and reading in the fun a pleasant experience. I am always excited to read sapphic books so I am incredibly grateful to have gotten an ARC of this. I will definitely be checking out Mazey Eddings' new works in the future. :)

I did love aspects of this book, such as the setting at the flower farm and the inclusion of neurodivergent main characters. However, the chemistry seemed to start too quickly without a lot of build up. I almost was a bigger fan of the relationships with the minor characters (the best friend, the sister) as I felt those were more deep and real

Thank you to @netgalley for this ARC copy and to Mazey Eddings for writing an ode to a mid-20-something unmedicated bisexual formerly “slutty” people pleaser with ADHD. I don’t know your life ma’am but I think you might know mine and quite frankly, it’s nice to be seen. It’s nice to have a book where somebody who’s as messy as Opal is throughout the book find love and be loved for who she is, warts and all.

Opal is sunshine and giggles, an artist with a wounded soul from overextending herself. She wins the lottery and buys a flower farm, leaving her shitty “best friend” and ex in the dust. Ciao Miles, you jerk.

Pepper is grumpy, autistic, and similarly wounded by years of abandonment and mistreatment by her mother and her mother’s revolving door of deadbeat boyfriends. She was left at Grandma Lou’s when she was 17, not realizing that she was left, and at 24, now she’s reeling from the grief of Grandma Lou’s death. She doesn’t expect a whirlwind of chaos (Opal) to disrupt her very structured, if not entirely lonely, life.

Look — we’ve got found queer friends, queer siblings, nary a coming out story to be had. We’ve got a virgin heroine, a honest to goodness statue of Sappho, forced proximity in one bed — it’s good. There’s also way too much hugging and crying for my liking, but that’s a personal preference. Maybe it’s because they’re mid-20s girls who love girls that they can’t get their shit together and that includes tear ducts, who am I to say? But I’m old now, and sometimes I need less waterworks. I love Mazey Eddings, I really do — but this one wasn’t my fave. Tell me what you think!

I loved this book so much, the chemistry between Opal and Pepper was my favorite. I loved the backstory of both characters, though they were sad I thought it gave such a good foundation for their love. I am a sucker for the 'let's make a deal to get these feelings out of our systems' and watching that deal fail every time. I love seeing them unable to suppress their feelings for each other. I really loved the whole plot of this book and think that the way it unfolded was so well written. I want to go read all the other books by Mazey Eddings as her writing style is so enjoyable. I appreciated the mass amount of queer representation in this book, it honestly felt like a warm hug. I also really really enjoyed the autism representation in Late Bloomer. This book was everything I wanted and more, Mazey Eddings is easily added to my auto-buy author list.

This was a delightful romance about two folks who move through the world in slightly different ways than most of us. Opal and Pepper are both neurodivergent, in different ways and between the plot throwing them together in a very dramatic fashion, and their specific quirks initially seeming incompatible, it seems like the only friction between these two would be of the bad kind.

Luckily as our girls move through their issues, both of them seem to get better at chasing after what they want, even while wildly avoiding the communication both of them need. Luckily, more outside events force truth from both of their lips and we get to see how those incompatible brain styles actually allow Opal and Pepper to grow together symbiotically.

If there’s a couple things I’ve come to expect from a Mazey Eddings book, those would be great neurodivergent representation, funny and relatable characters, and a great time. Late Bloomer absolutely had all of those.
 
Late Bloomer follows Opal who, after winning the lottery, decides to buy a farm to start her own business- she’s an artist who designs shoes! However, the farm she buys is already occupied by Pepper, the daughter of the woman who sold the farm to Opal. Pepper runs the flower farm and is not pleased to have the farm sold out from under her. Coming to a tentative agreement, they decide to cohabitate and enter a contest to win money to help Pepper buy the farm back from Opal. The chemistry between Pepper and Opal is so entertaining to follow along and I love how contrasted they are to each other and how they balance each other out.
 
Such a fun read and it just makes me more excited for what Mazey Eddings has in store for us next!

I’m sad to say that this didn’t work for me. I’m a massive fan of Mazey Eddings, so I was thrilled to find out that she was writing a sapphic, adult romance. Unfortunately, the romance, characters, and plot all felt more surface level than what I’m used to from this author, and I struggled to find an anchor that kept me reading (but I finished!). There was a lot of potential: Opal had a lot of promise in her personality and in the fun situation of winning the lottery, and I’d hoped Pepper’s backstory would resolve in the way I know Mazey Eddings’ stories to—full of emotion and growth. Rather, Pepper’s character arc in particular felt flat and anticlimactic to me, and I ended up skimming some of her pages. Also, maybe it’s just me, but I didn’t feel convinced of Opal and Pepper as a couple by the end, with their challenges in communication. Nonetheless, I will continue to check out Mazey Eddings’ future books because I know she can write stories and couples that I absolutely adore!

Thank you NetGalley + the publisher for this arc! I was initially very excited to read a sweet little sapphic romcom and to be fair, this technically has all of the best elements. We've got forced proximity, sapphic yearning, etc, but something was just...missing? For me. While I absolutely did not hate this book, it was just very much *okay* - for me, at least! Would be willing to try other works by the author, but this one just wasn't my fave

What a great book! I could not put it down. Great characters, interesting plot, just a really nice book overall. I will definitely be thinking about this book for a long time! Thank you to NetGalley for a digital ARC of this book.

I really loved this fun, sapphic romance. The two main characters, Opal and Pepper, were both so perfectly 20 something and I loved the neurodivergent rep as well. I maybe questioned the choices Opal made at times but I guess we will have to chalk that up to youth and naivety.

The story itself and the romance that buds between these two might be a bit obvious at the beginning but the way the author brings them together is perfectly done. By the time they have well and truly fallen for each other you are screaming "yes! finally!" as you read. I appreciated how the whole story wasn't just the romance but also dealt with grief and parental neglect and abuse. I didn't expect it from the cover but it hit home with me and felt so well done.

I, of course, now want to win the lottery and buy a flower farm because it sounds like the most perfect place to live and create. I enjoyed the author's note in the back as well about the different titles and settings explored before settling on this one and can't wait to read all the other books that Mazey Eddings writes!

I received an early digital reader copy of this book through NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

Late Bloomer has lovely representation of characters with insecurities and neurodiversity. However, it felt like Opal and Pepper were always too much in their own heads. I missed the emotional connection of their relationship blossoming together. I felt like I learned things about them individually, but the communication wasn't there between them throughout the story.

After winning the lottery, Opal Devlin puts all her money in a failing flower farm, only to find an angry (albeit gorgeous) Pepper Boden already living there. Though she’s unable to find her grandmother’s will, Pepper claims she’s the rightful owner of Thistle and Bloom Farms. While they agree to cohabitate, Opal and Pepper clash at every turn. Can something softer blossom between these polar opposites, allowing a new dream to take root and grow?

Oh. My. (Sappho.) Goddess. You may think you know Mazey Eddings’ writing style, but I assure you, you do not. Many of us read The Plus One and/or Tily in Technicolor last year, but Eddings has far exceeded herself with this one. As a neurodivergent author, Eddings’ stories often have some element of neurodiversity/mental health, shining a light on the different ways people’s brains work while embracing those differences through beautiful, realistic characters. Opal and Pepper are no different, both on the spectrum yet unique in their behaviors and view of the world. These women are not predictable, pre-programmed components of a story; they are ever-blooming, learning how to plant roots alongside one another, share sunlight, and rise despite being different species. Both plants, growing and adapting to different elements, yet very much the same. While Opal and Pepper have always struggled to fit in with the world around them, they manage to cultivate a safe, healthy garden for one another.

This is one of those overwhelming, layered, awe-inspiring sapphic stories that will tug at your heartstrings long after you read it. Eddings’ language leaps off the page, making it a little reminiscent of One Last Stop (be still, my little sapphic heart). I’ve beyond annotated Late Bloomer, when I’m usually selective about choosing quotes. You don’t just see love blossom between these two women; you feel it. It made me smile, laugh, get all messy and misty-eyed. As I said, neither woman is predictable. Opal feels directionless at the story’s start, allowing her (fake) best friend and (on/off) ex to step all over her. I expected her to be the wallflower, especially with the BITE we see from Pepper (pun unintended) in her first chapter, but the two balance each other out. When Pepper feels uncertain or anxious, Opal steps forward, bold and unwavering. When Opal begins to crumble, Pepper holds her up. They support each other, never allowing the other to wilt.

Unfortunately, this book relies heavily on miscommunication. Both women are eager to hide their real feelings at the risk of scaring the other. That lack of communication continues until almost the last chapter.

Recommended for fans of One Last Stop and Imogen, Obviously. Side note: please, please read the author’s note. Good goddess.

✨ The Vibes ✨

❀ Neurodivergency/Autism Spectrum
❀ Sapphic Romance
❀ Grief/Healing
❀ Forced Proximity
❀ Spicy/First Time
❀ Cottagecore Vibes
❀ One Bed
❀ Touch Her and You Die
❀ Dual POV
❀ Miscommunication
❀ Flower Competition
❀ Grumpy/Sunshine

Quotes
❝Slowly, she leans toward me, and my heart pounds so violently in my chest that my head swims. Is she . . . It almost seems like she’s going to press that smile to my mouth. Teach me how it tastes.❞

❝Ah. There’s the you I missed.❞

❝I used to stress over finding a label that fit me. Lesbian. Bisexual. Pan. Demi . . . I’ve filtered through them all many times over, none ever feeling quite right. Just say queer and move on with your life, Diksha finally told me late one night after what was probably my sixth sexual identity crisis of my early twenties. But what does that mean? I’d wailed, draining more boxed wine into my plastic cup. My brain loves order and labels and concise frameworks to understand things, and not knowing where I fit feels unbearable. It means you’re you, and only you get to decide who you like and when you like them, Tal had said from their chair in the corner. The name of your feelings isn’t anyone’s business but yours.❞

❝But instead, she reaches out to me—opening her hand like a flower unfurling its petals to the sun. I stare at it. The ink stains and calluses and chipped nails and bitten cuticles. For a moment, that hand looks like a second chance.❞

❝Her poems spoke softly—as intimately as confessions between lovers—about the terrible, wonderful ache of being in love.❞

thank you netgalley for this e-copy. this is my first mazey eddings book and i think i will check out her backlist when i can. i love love stories that don't just show the happy times or save a breakup for a third act. she writes characters that make you like them through the ups and downs. also the characters are more mature and can think for themselves.

This was a very sweet story. I love the idea of flower farms (I do not have the executive functioning to ever run one) and the imagery it lends to a story. The colorful softness with some thorns is just such a perfect balance and Mazey did an excellent job conveying that feeling into Opal and Pepper as characters. 3.75 stars rounded to 4.

I LOVE MAZEY EDDINGS!! I think she is quickly becoming a favourite romance author for me; her books are never boring, they are fluffy and smutty and so so so yummy. Cannot wait to read another :)