I'm withholding my review of Late Bloomer in solidarity with the #SpeakUpSMP boycott. Please visit https://r4acollective.org/about/ for more information.

Late Bloomer was such a fun, sweet, sapphic romance. It was witty and charming, and overall lovely to see how Pepper and Opal worked through their issues. The chemistry wasn't always believable, and the pacing was sometimes a bit off but I really enjoyed this one.

Late Bloomer is such a fun sapphic rom-com! I loved the author's notes, especially the one about all the flowers in the book and their meanings.

This was a very sweet Sapphic contemporary romance with a bit of an unlikely premise: one main character wins a modest sum from the lottery, enough to buy the flower farm that the other main character lives on and runs. The two are at odds at first but have to work together for the success of the farm and to help one another with their strange situation, which leads of course to romance. I liked the cute dynamic between the two main characters, and I'm interested in the potential spinoffs within this world with the many side characters (one heroine's cute friend group and the other's entertaining sisters). I also liked that the book dealt with heavier topics like toxic relationships, both romantic and familial, and how to deal with these situations to protect one's mental health.

I received an eARC of Late Bloomer from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Wow. What can I say about this book? I loved it so much I read it in under 48 hours! This books made me feel all the feels. And as someone with metal illness and a child whom is Autistic, I related with Pepper and Opal so mush. As well as being bi! One of my tops books of 2024

I really wanted to like this book. The cover is gorgeous, and the title is fun. However, I never became invested in the characters enough to care about their romance or their conflict.

Thanks for the book in exchange for my honest review.

So, if you're in the mood for a cozy, sweet romance with a surprising spicy twist, Late Bloomer is a great pick. The story revolves around Opal Devlin, who wins the lottery and finds her life completely upended. After quitting her dead-end job, she’s overwhelmed by people asking for handouts and ends up buying a failing flower farm in Asheville, North Carolina. Her plan? To find some peace and start a painting business in her new cabin.

But things take an unexpected turn when Pepper Smith, the fiery and gorgeous rightful owner of the flower farm, shows up and insists she’s not going anywhere. What follows is a fun and fiery cohabitation agreement, with plenty of arguments and undeniable chemistry between the two.

I loved how this book tackled the clash between Opal’s need for solitude and Pepper’s fierce determination to keep her family’s legacy alive. The romance is both sweet and spicy, which was a pleasant surprise given the cover. It’s a charming, feel-good read with a lot of heart. If you're into sapphic romances with a touch of humor and a whole lot of chemistry, you’ll really enjoy this one!

Love Mazey Eddings and as usual Late Bloomer has great representation! I loved the small town setting and the initial tension between Opal and Pepper (classic opposites attract), but as the story went on I expected a bit more to happen and found myself not always gripped to keep reading. But if you are looking for a low angst HEA then you will enjoy this! 3.5 stars rounded up to 4

Late Bloomer is a cute coming of age-esque queer romance taking place in rural North Carolina. I felt the author created the world and built each individual character so well. Opal is a quirky ray of sunshine while Pepper is a socially awkward grump. I enjoyed the way the author explored mental health and mental illness in these two characters and how they each navigated their relationship differently. Opal’s growth in self confidence and ability to stand up for herself really resonated with me. Pepper wasn’t my favorite character but she grew on me later in the story. Some of the dialogue between them was on the corny/sappy side which isn’t my favorite.
I did feel like the author incorporated a lot of plot points that at sometimes felt too complicated but by the end I had a better understanding of why those elements were add. The storyline with Trish felt unfinished and the final chapter felt rushed. Overall I was pleased with this book.

This book was an interesting concept for sure. I had really high hopes going in. The representation was great, but I feel like it just missed the mark for me. I didn't really feel the chemistry between the characters and the situations felt odd at times. It was a light and fast read.

First off, this cover? Absolutely beautiful.

This book was kinda giving sapphic cottage core and I loved that. I loved the small town flower farm setting. It sounded so heartwarming and beautiful.

Despite listening to this story at 2x speed, the story went by quick. I found the same thing with Eddings’ other books that I’ve loved. However, I felt like this one didn’t really have a lot of plot going for it. For instance, I reached the halfway point of the book and had to ask myself what actually happened so far.

Eddings writes romances so well, but I felt like this book needed more substance for me to really love Opal and Pepper together. The foundation was there and I would’ve loved a sapphic neurodivergent romance!

<i>Thank you, Netgalley and SMP & Wednesday Books, for the ARC!</i>

I enjoyed this but felt slightly disappointed! I have loved all of Mazey Eddings’ books, because they’re always so funny, heartwarming, and angsty. This book was definitely heartwarming and sweet, but it lacked the angst that I want to see in my romances. Pepper and Opal were very sweet but there wasn’t anything special in my opinion.

This book was everything. I swear Mazey Eddings can do no wrong. I loved Opal and Pepper so much, the setting, the characters - everything felt just so right. It put me in a happy place I didn't know I needed. Forever obsessed with Mazey's work.

I love Mazey's books - she's an autobuy author for me for sure. When I found out she was writing a sapphic romance, I was so excited! Also, look at that cover! Gorgeous! I ended up saving this one to listen to while I did my planting in my garden for the year and that was definitely the superior way to experience this book. Overall, I loved Opal and Pepper together - they were cute and hard to not root for. Their personalities balanced out nicely and they definitely grew together. My only gripe was that the miscommunication got to be a bit too much by the end of the book.

Late Bloomer is a cute, humorous sapphic romance that I really enjoyed. Opal wins the lottery but it doesn’t change her life for the better as she hoped it would. She quits her job and buys a failing flower farm, but when she arrives, she finds out she was scammed by the owner. Pepper is the sole employee of the farm bd is struggling to keep it afloat and claims she is the true owner. They arrive to both live at the farm and sparks start to fly between them, but the angry kind at first. I love the character growth Pepper and Opal encourage in each other. This enemies to lovers novel is definitely worth a read!

The chaotic and sweet AuDHD romance I didn't know I needed. Late Bloomer was such a sweet romance following Opal, how after winning the lottery decides she's going to buy a flower farm on a whim. Does she know anything about flowers? Not really! She's an artist and the farm seems like a great place to draw inspiration. But when she shows up and meets Pepper, who's aunt had owned the farm before passing, Opal has to figure out whether to keep the farm or sell it back to Pepper.

This story had me holding on for dear life as I watched Opal make the most spontaneous decisions and just run straight into situations without thinking. It was exciting and stressful because I wanted her to slow down, and thankfully that's what Pepper ends up doing. These two balanced each other which really helped their relationship as it grew.

Mazey Eddings always does a great job with handling characters that are dealing with anxiety or depression, and I think she did a great job with the autism and ADHD rep in this book. It's nice to feel seen when you're reading a story.

DNF 33%

I really wanted to love and enjoy this one, because the premise sounded right up my ally. Unfortunately, I couldn't get into the main characters and (from what I read) the romance was lackluster. To be more specific, Opal was a character I didn't enjoy reading. Her tendencies to people please got on my nerves and her naivety started to t piss me off after awhile. I also felt no chemistry from Opal and Pepper, it read to me like Pepper was being downright rude to Opal with no chance of romantic interest.

I don't have much else to say because I DNF'd this book over a week ago and I've forgotten most of my thoughts since then.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

I love the cover of this book and felt the premise was SO promising. For me, it fell a bit flat in that it read REALLY young for an adult romance book. I found myself skimming most of the book, sadly. I truly believe it is a me issue, it seems like so many people loved this book!

Fresh and engaging. This was a breathtaking love story that kept me so intrigued and interested. We need more Sapphic romance novels and this one does not disappoint.

Although I really wanted to like this book, it was just so unrealistic that I struggled to appreciate the plot. The “love” in the story felt like it centered around thirst aka lust which I can understand but isn’t a great look for a romance novel.

I wouldn’t not recommend it but if you have other books to read, maybe try those first and then try this one.