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nstinch54's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.25
** I received a free ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. **
Netgalley backlog: publication date - April 16, 2024
What a sweet sapphic romance. I love unique locations with book, and this one takes place in the Appalachian Mountains of Asheville, NC. Asheville is a place I've always wanted to visit (and I love when books let me "travel" to new places). And as someone who wants to know more about flowers, this one was also interesting. I love Opal and Pepper's characters and I truly love it when characters seem to grow with one another during the course of a book!
Netgalley backlog: publication date - April 16, 2024
What a sweet sapphic romance. I love unique locations with book, and this one takes place in the Appalachian Mountains of Asheville, NC. Asheville is a place I've always wanted to visit (and I love when books let me "travel" to new places). And as someone who wants to know more about flowers, this one was also interesting. I love Opal and Pepper's characters and I truly love it when characters seem to grow with one another during the course of a book!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Grief, and Abandonment
Minor: Alcohol
smorz's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
This book was a fun Saphic romance. The characters are diverse and it's nice to have main characters that are not neurotypical. I enjoyed all of the characters and their personalities. I love the story and the setting. The reason this book didn't get 5☆ from me is that both of the main characters POV reads similarly even though they are such different people.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief, Death of parent, and Abandonment
Minor: Infidelity, Stalking, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
estimpert's review against another edition
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Grief, Toxic friendship, and Abandonment
Minor: Addiction and Alcohol
porshainielsen's review against another edition
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.75
3.75 ⭐️
Think hallmark movie but lots of gay sex and I ain’t complaining. There were some unique parts of this story, including the women having a lot more depth than you’d see typically in the romance genre. There is representation for women with autism, women exploring sobriety, virginity, and toxic relationships with parents. Overall, really cute but super oooey-gooey and the conflict is predictable. The epilogue was honestly the most heartwarming thing I have read in a long time.
Think hallmark movie but lots of gay sex and I ain’t complaining. There were some unique parts of this story, including the women having a lot more depth than you’d see typically in the romance genre. There is representation for women with autism, women exploring sobriety, virginity, and toxic relationships with parents. Overall, really cute but super oooey-gooey and the conflict is predictable. The epilogue was honestly the most heartwarming thing I have read in a long time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol
niftyreads's review against another edition
5.0
Mazey Eddings’s books make me happy, which is the point of reading, right? LATE BLOOMER had me first smiling at the cover. It’s a perfect fit for the book. Then, as I read, more smiles came at the awkwardness between Opal and Pepper because it was written to make them seem so ordinary in their neurodivergent ways. I loved it!
One of my absolute favorite things about Mazey Eddings as an author is that she makes neurodivergence normal—it’s just life. I think that is why I enjoy her books so much because I see people living with things I have and having good lives. It feels good even if they are having a frustrating moment.
LATE BLOOMER was also fantastic for me because it had excellent migraine representation. People either get it or don’t, and Eddings got right on the page. The weather changes affect the head, from brightness to the aura and more—migraines aren’t easy, and I wouldn’t wish them on anyone. They aren’t just a headache, nor can you just pop a Tylenol and continue on with the day. So, I’m happy when they are represented well in books to help people understand.
Opal and Pepper had an excellent grumpy/sunshine relationship with the added perk of forced proximity. I couldn’t stop smiling from the cover to the very end.
Content Warnings: (per the author in the book) grief after the loss of a loved one, complicated relationships with alcohol, parental neglect/abandonment
One of my absolute favorite things about Mazey Eddings as an author is that she makes neurodivergence normal—it’s just life. I think that is why I enjoy her books so much because I see people living with things I have and having good lives. It feels good even if they are having a frustrating moment.
LATE BLOOMER was also fantastic for me because it had excellent migraine representation. People either get it or don’t, and Eddings got right on the page. The weather changes affect the head, from brightness to the aura and more—migraines aren’t easy, and I wouldn’t wish them on anyone. They aren’t just a headache, nor can you just pop a Tylenol and continue on with the day. So, I’m happy when they are represented well in books to help people understand.
Opal and Pepper had an excellent grumpy/sunshine relationship with the added perk of forced proximity. I couldn’t stop smiling from the cover to the very end.
Content Warnings: (per the author in the book) grief after the loss of a loved one, complicated relationships with alcohol, parental neglect/abandonment
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Grief, Abandonment, and Alcohol
bookmonster's review against another edition
emotional
funny
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Toxic friendship, and Abandonment
Moderate: Alcohol
Minor: Ableism
scrubsandbooks's review against another edition
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This was a cute sapphic romance with neurodivergence characters that made me go "wow, yeah, same", to a lot of their habits. There's nothing overly complicated about the plot itself. It's simple, easy to follow, and fairly predictable but I enjoyed it especially when the characters stick it to the emotionally abuse people in their lives.
This one is definitely for the ones that love sapphic smut.
This one is definitely for the ones that love sapphic smut.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Grief, Toxic friendship, and Abandonment
Moderate: Death, Emotional abuse, and Alcohol
mari1532's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
I want to thank NetGalley and Wednesday Books for a copy of this book.
Brief Summary: Opal has had a turn of luck and will finally pull the pieces of her life together and pursue her dream of being an artist. While doing some late-night internet surfing, Opal decides that the Thistle and Bloom flower farm is the perfect destination to make all her hopes come to life. Pepper, the current resident of the farm however has other ideas—many, many ideas in fact, but none of them involve Opal. Forced to work together Opal and Pepper begin to learn a great deal about themselves and each other and what they find might be 1000 yellow daiseys worth of joy.
Thoughts: Eddings is an excellent writer. The way that she can elicit such emotion from her characters makes them jump off the page. While I loved both Opal and Pepper, I felt I identified a bit more with Opal. The chaotic way she approaches things and the way she releases stress by changing her hair were both so relatable and articulated feelings that I often experience in a way that makes me feel incredibly seen.
I do wish that there had been a bit more integration of Opal's sisters into the later part of the book. They seem to be a central part of Opal's world and they seem to have drifted off at the end. I'm not sure if it is because of the distance between the farm and where they live in the city or what. Am I hoping that there will be spin-off books for both of them, yes. But I am selfish.
The very last chapters of the book felt a little chaotic. I completely agree with Pepper that some of the villains in the book were exhibiting some serious stalker behaviour. Also, I'm not entirely sure how much time has passed in this book and it seems wild to me that someone hasn't talked to you in months and you think it's cool to just show up out of the blue.
I enjoyed the dynamics between Pepper and her friend group and like Opal's sisters I wished they had more time on the page. Especially since they seemed very invested in Pepper at the start of the book and then seemed to make no real appearances later on.
Overall, I found this an endearing love story between two agents of chaos and it truly shows Eddings for the mastermind that she is. If you enjoy sapphic romances this one will make you swoon.
Brief Summary: Opal has had a turn of luck and will finally pull the pieces of her life together and pursue her dream of being an artist. While doing some late-night internet surfing, Opal decides that the Thistle and Bloom flower farm is the perfect destination to make all her hopes come to life. Pepper, the current resident of the farm however has other ideas—many, many ideas in fact, but none of them involve Opal. Forced to work together Opal and Pepper begin to learn a great deal about themselves and each other and what they find might be 1000 yellow daiseys worth of joy.
Thoughts: Eddings is an excellent writer. The way that she can elicit such emotion from her characters makes them jump off the page. While I loved both Opal and Pepper, I felt I identified a bit more with Opal. The chaotic way she approaches things and the way she releases stress by changing her hair were both so relatable and articulated feelings that I often experience in a way that makes me feel incredibly seen.
I do wish that there had been a bit more integration of Opal's sisters into the later part of the book. They seem to be a central part of Opal's world and they seem to have drifted off at the end. I'm not sure if it is because of the distance between the farm and where they live in the city or what. Am I hoping that there will be spin-off books for both of them, yes. But I am selfish.
The very last chapters of the book felt a little chaotic. I completely agree with Pepper that some of the villains in the book were exhibiting some serious stalker behaviour. Also, I'm not entirely sure how much time has passed in this book and it seems wild to me that someone hasn't talked to you in months and you think it's cool to just show up out of the blue.
I enjoyed the dynamics between Pepper and her friend group and like Opal's sisters I wished they had more time on the page. Especially since they seemed very invested in Pepper at the start of the book and then seemed to make no real appearances later on.
Overall, I found this an endearing love story between two agents of chaos and it truly shows Eddings for the mastermind that she is. If you enjoy sapphic romances this one will make you swoon.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Grief, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
perchoirdehiboumystique's review against another edition
2.0
Cute story once you get past the stereotyping. The story could have benefited from more picture painting than telling. Oh and it is very spicy!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Ableism, Alcoholism, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Alcohol
monicalaurette's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
I started this book because of a book club and honestly only knew the summary provided so I had truly no clue what I was in for.
Fuck anything and anyone that made you have to survive instead of live.
Overall the book was good and I liked the story but there were issues for me with Opal's size (trying to figure out WHAT size she was) because a lot of the language was vague and I just wanted to know if she was straight, mid, or plus size. While suspension of disbelief is needed for fiction books there were just a lot of moments in the book that I was like "yeah that would not happen" and many times that I was cringing at the absurdity of the characters.
Do I hate this book? No. Would I read it again or purchase it for my shelf? No, happy I got it from the library.
As someone who is also undiagnosed (but pretty sure) neurodivergent I related to that for the characters along with some of their other personality traits. However since I am also undiagnosed I can't really go into the representation of Pepper's autism and Opal's possibly ADHD. However as a woman who is also a virgin I really appreciated the way it was handled in the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Grief, and Abandonment
Moderate: Alcohol
Minor: Blood