by: Darby Baham
Series: The Friendship Chronicles
Genre: Contemporary Multicultural Interracial Romance
Release Date: May 24, 2022
Publisher: Harlequin Special Edition
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What happens when the first blush of love fades?
Jennifer Pritchett feels increasingly invisible and left behind as her friends move on to the next steps in their lives. As she goes to therapy to figure out how to bloom in her own right, her boyfriend, Nick Carrington, finds himself being the one left behind. Jennifer wants their relationship to have more intimacy, but he can’t help but feel like he’s being compared to others—and found wanting. Can they each get what they need out of this relationship? Or will the flowers shrivel up before they do?
From Harlequin Special Edition: Believe in love. Overcome obstacles. Find happiness.
Bloom Where You’re Planted is the standalone second book in Darby’s Friendship Chronicles series. The book title and series title are truly perfect in that the series chronicles the friendship of four friends, and the book title has a powerful meaning.
Bloom Where You’re Planted is the self-discovery journey and love story of thirty-year-old Jennifer “Jenn” Pritchett and her boyfriend Nick Carrington. The two have been together for three years, but their relationship has started to lose its spark and excitement. Jenn can telegraph exactly how their evenings together are going to end and everything just feels routine; same old same old, and a little boring. Jenn is also at a crossroads in her career. She’s been a third-grade teacher for several years and while she loves the kids, she doesn’t necessarily love the job. It doesn’t help that Jenn sees herself as the boring one in her friend group, where everyone else seems to have exciting careers that they love, along with adventurous and passion-filled love lives.
I honestly loved this story from beginning to end. Darby shows the strong friendship bond Jenn shares with her friends, while also showing the characters’ love of fashion, shoes, and food. Yes, I believe you have the right to get upset with her when the characters are eating all of this amazing food from real restaurants. Bloom Where You’re Planted definitely brought a heated passion I wasn’t expecting. It was like reading a Harlequin Desire book on steroids. Talk about holy hotness. But what I really, really loved about this story was the relationship Jenn and Nick shared. Yes, they had their struggles and moments of miscommunication and not communicating at all, but they were real. Their thoughts and reactions were genuine, and they each had to look at themselves and see what they wanted for themselves and each other. Things for them weren’t and aren’t always pretty but I loved watching them evolve.
I’m looking forward to going back and reading the first book in the series, The Shoe Diaries, and also reading the next book, London Calling.
~ Favorite Quotes ~
“Sometimes we just need to say how we’re feeling, with no judgment or attempt at understanding.”
“Everything is possible.”
“Leaping just means you have a greater chance for falling, but if you never step out of your comfort zone, you don’t get the greater chance for soaring, either.”
“Every woman needs a pair of shoes that helps her stand up tall on the days it’s hardest.”
**Received a copy from the author and voluntarily reviewed it.**
Rating: 5
Purchase Bloom Where You’re Planted from:
The Friendship Chronicles Series:
London Calling releases September 27, 2022
Places to find Darby Baham:
Just read both posts, Kim, and it sure sounds good. I have read Special Edition a lot over the years and they always provide such good reads!
ReplyDeleteIt was very very good. I am definitely curious about the rest of the line, but I want to read Darby's other book.
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