When in Bloom

Title: When in Bloom

Author: Nicole Dennis

Publisher: Totally Bound Publishing

Publisher URL: http://www.totallybound.com/

ISBN/BIN: 978-1-78430-424-9

Genre: {M/M} Contemporary Series

Rating: 4 Nymphs

Literary Nymphs Reviewer: Dragon Minx

Jude Sebastian has battled diabetes since he was a child and recently, his disease has caused him to start experiencing seizures. Even with Dawson, his Medical Alert Golden Labrador at his side, some days running his flower shop, Flowers in the Breeze, is difficult. 

One day while at the clinic, Jude meets a man who rushes inside during a thunderstorm. He’s soaked to the skin and in the middle of a PTSD episode. The stranger is Dr. Elliott Sheffield, a retired army surgeon, recently moved to town and in need of a less hectic pace. Elliott and Jude quickly start seeing each other but his blood sugars are out of control and his health is deteriorating further. Can Jude get his illness under control? Will he and Elliott make a relationship work?

When in Bloom is the newest and fourth release by Nicole Dennis in her Southern Charm series. Due to the recurring characters and their relationships, I recommend the books be read in order.

I really appreciate it when an author writes about characters that aren’t perfect because that’s the reality of the world. In this newest M/M romance Ms. Dennis has created two sweet guys with true problems and she handled them with dignity. I will admit I was a bit disappointed in how little page time Elliot’s PTSD received after moving, but at least it was referred to as he helped Jude deal with his life threatening diabetes. They worked as a team, and Ms. Dennis did a nice job writing about his various health scares…she’d obviously done her research.

As I said before, I liked these guys and I found that their personalities are pretty well developed for a book of this length. I really enjoyed how Dawson, the service dog is woven into the plot, making him a true secondary character. The plot is steady and has good descriptions. It’s also firmly grounded in the book’s locale and some of the previous characters put in an appearance. When in Bloom isn’t a long book and can easily be read in an afternoon, so take a chance and give it a try.