Late Bloomer by Mazey Eddings

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The details…

  • Title: Late Bloomer
  • Author: Mazey Eddings
  • Available formats: paperback, ebook, audiobook 
  • Print publisher: ‎St. Martin’s Griffin, a division of Macmillan Publishers
  • Print publication date: April 16, 2024
  • Print length‏:‎ 400 pages
  • Audio publisher: Macmillan Audio
  • Audio publication date: April 16, 2024
  • Audio narrator: Ellie Gossage
  • Audio listening length: 9 Hours, 30 Minutes
  • Genre: contemporary romance 
  • Themes: love, women loving women, self-discovery, grief, friendship, family, mother/daughter relationships, sapphic romance, bisexuality, neurodiversity, pursuing happiness, coming into one’s own self
  • Tropes: enemies to lovers, forced proximity

The blurb from the publisher…

Winning the lottery has ruined Opal Devlin’s life. After quitting her dead-end job where she’d earned minimum wage and even less respect, she’s bombarded by people knocking at her door for a handout the second they found out her bank account was overflowing with cash. And Opal can’t seem to stop saying yes.

With her tender heart thoroughly abused, Opal decides to protect herself by any means necessary, which to her translates to putting almost all her new money to buying a failing flower farm in Asheville, North Carolina to let the flowers live out their plant destiny while she uses the cabin on the property to start her painting business.

But her plans for isolation and self-preservation go hopelessly awry when an angry (albeit gorgeous) Pepper Boden is waiting for her at her new farm. Pepper states she’s the rightful owner of Thistle and Bloom Farms, and isn’t moving out. The unlikely pair strike up an agreement of co-habitation, and butt heads at every turn. Can these opposites both live out their dreams and plant roots? Or will their combustible arguing (and growing attraction) burn the whole place down?

My thoughts…

Mazey Eddings’ Late Bloomer is a charming and engaging romance. Its delightful narrative explores growth and maturation with keen insight, offering readers a sweet, sapphic romance that easily resonates. Eddings’ ability to balance humor and raw emotion is noteworthy; she uses it to deliver a fun book with a bit of substance.

The story follows Opal Devlin, whose life takes a strange turn after winning the lottery. Looking for a fresh start and a place to grow her painting business, she purchases a flower farm in Asheville, North Carolina via Facebook Marketplace. However, her plans are thrown into disarray when she discovers the sale may not have been on the up and up. When Pepper Boden, the supposed rightful owner, enters the picture, Opal’s idyllic notions of farm life are squashed. Forced to coexist on the farm until the ownership can be sorted out, Opal and Pepper do nothing but chafe and irritate one another. Over time, however, the dynamic between the two shifts and an unexpected attraction develops. As this de facto relationship slowly blooms, readers quickly flip through the pages to find out if it will become a floral tribute or a whoops a daisy.  

Eddings does a nice job developing Opal and Pepper. They are multifaceted characters with delightful personalities; readers easily form a connection to them. Their “grumpy/sunshine” dynamic is smile worthy, making this slow-burn romance an enchanting read. What’s more, the storytelling is filled to the brim with Eddings’ joyful, animated tone, making Late Bloomer the perfect vacation read.

Final remarks…

Eddings does a nice job with this heartfelt depiction of love and relationships. Told with raw, refreshing tenderness, Late Bloomer is both captivating and engaging. Readers will enjoy this happily-ever-after. 

Strengths…

  • Well-written
  • Entertaining 
  • Fresh & original
  • Heartfelt and tender

A word about the audiobook…

If you are one that prefers to listen to books, Ellie Gossage delivers a polished, emotive, and nuanced performance in Late Bloomer’s audiobook adaptation. Her narration style and range are quite distinctive, providing her with the ability to give voice to Eddings’ multidimensional, layered characters. Her highly skilled, passionate narration is nothing short of immersive and captivating; she simply makes the storytelling come to life. It is easy to see why she is considered one of the top audiobook narrators in the industry; her performance in Late Bloomer is exemplary.


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A bit about the author…

Mazey is a neurodiverse author, dentist, and (most importantly) stage mom to her cats, Yaya and Zadie. She can most often be found reading romance novels under her weighted blanket and asking her fiance to bring her snacks. She’s made it her personal mission in life to destigmatize mental health issues and write love stories for every brain. With roots in Cleveland and Philadelphia, she now calls North Carolina home. Follow these links to learn more about her:

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