Love in Bloom

It all begins with an advertisement in the Heart Lake Herald. Hope Walker is definitely a fighter; a survivor who has always met the various adversities of life with a sunny disposition and a smile. She had survived breast cancer at just thirty years old, yet a mastectomy had left her with a lot of physical scarring, and a seriously battered self esteem. After all she has been through, Hope is perhaps understandably, fearful of dating.

She owns Heart Lake's most popular flower shop - 'Changing Seasons Floral' - and is renowned for her charming flower arrangements. Yes, when it comes to love and relationships, Hope is able to work a special type of magic through her expert flower arranging...for everyone else except herself. Then one day show more a handsome contractor starts coming into her shop - he's good-looking, charming, funny, even slightly flirty. In fact, he seems inordinately interested in flower arrangements, but Hope knows he'd rather have a whole woman than someone like her.

When Hope stakes a plot of ground in Heart Lake's community garden, she finds out that a woman can grow all sorts of things there: flowers, herbs, vegetables, and even friendship. As Hope gets to know the two women - Millie Baldwin and Amber Howell - who share the neighboring plots, all three women discover that they can learn a lot from one another. Their friendship may have started out swapping gardening tips, but it quickly blossoms into a strong and lasting bond - not just about gardening but also about life. And Hope realizes that in order to order to truly live life to the fullest, sometimes you have to take a chance on love.

I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. I don't usually read romance novels, but this book was a different case, in my opinion. Yes, there was light romance, but the story also had a well-developed and intriguing plot to go with the romance. I was caught up in the story right away, and found it to be fairly easy reading for me - not too complicated or intricate. I would give this book an A! show less

Love in Bloom is a sweet, chic-lit story with a deeper message. All the romance you could wish for is here. I especially liked that Sheila Roberts writes about love in many different stages and situations. There's Hope, who has just recovered from breast cancer, and doesn't trust life yet. Her blonde bombshell sister Bobbie is trying to find Mr. Right instead of Mr. Right Now. Amber is trying to learn to trust her husband again after he took a big risk that didn't pay off, and Millie, at 77, is trying to decide if it's time to give up on love completely.

All the women are sympathetically written and the theme of flowers and gardens nicely ties all the stories together. This is definitely a feel-good, restore-your-faith-in-people kind of show more a book, never a bad thing! I did wish that some of the characters had been given more depth, particularly the men and that the plot wasn't quite so predictable. But, in the end, I enjoyed the book and will read more by Sheila Roberts. show less

It was one of those nice easy flowing good reads that you didn't want to put down because there was enough drama to keep you interested. A book to pick up when you really don't know what you want to read, and find yourself pleasantly surprised!

This is a beautiful book. Miss Roberts brings so many emotions to her characters. As you read this book the characters become real friends to the reader. This book made me cry which is hard to do! Definately read this book as well as its predessor, Bikini Season. You will love them both!

Another great book by Sheila Roberts. This one focuses on gardening