Love and Lust rec: 'When in Bloom' by Nicole Dennis

When in Bloom by Nicole Dennis

What it's about (courtesy of Totally Bound):

Could the personal challenges of a former Army doctor and a brilliant florist get in the way of a chance at life and love?

Fighting Type 1 diabetes since childhood, Jude Sebastian runs to prove he can live a normal life, until epileptic seizures begin to change his life. Even with Dawson, his Medical Alert Golden Labrador, at his side Jude finds daily life difficult. He owns the floral shop, Flowers in the Breeze, and designs everything from simple bouquets to elaborate themes for weddings and celebrations.

At the Shore Breeze Clinic, Jude comes across a man clearly suffering with a PTSD episode. A new arrival in the small town, Doctor Elliott Sheffield, a retired Army Ranger doctor is looking for a second chance after what he saw in the Middle Eastern deserts.

Wanting a normal relationship, Jude tries to deny his disorders, but something is happening. He can't regulate his sugars and his disorder worsens. When he returns to the clinic, Dawson alerts him to an oncoming seizure.

Will the personal issues and challenges of both men get in the way of a chance at love?

Why you should read it: I fell in love with this book before I turned the first page. We meet former Army doctor Dr. Elliott Sheffield mid-PTSD episode as he loses it in a civilian hospital ER. A kind and gentle psychiatrist helps ground Elliott and then assists him in making a decision that may help prevent or lessen future attacks. Meantime, a stray cat adopts Elliott, bringing a calming influence to his environment. The story of getting the nervous cat to the vet will have you grinning.

We meet Jude Sebastian in the next chapter as he is subjected to yet another examination for his double whammy of Type 1 diabetes and epilepsy, which are not stable despite the most up-to-date interventions. Jude has a service dog who alerts him when anything out of the ordinary is about to happen to Jude's body, including seizures and off-kilter blood sugar readings.

So, now we have two damaged and suffering heroes. Did I mention they are both very good-looking? Elliott is a silver fox doctor and Jude is a cute-as-a-button florist. Now all we have to do is get them together, and that happens in a wild thunderstorm that ruins Elliott's new suit and his dignity. Nevertheless, the two embark on a courtship of sorts that leads them down several paths within a gay community on the Gulf shores of Florida. Fair warning, there is a scene guaranteed to make you cry, so if you read in public places as I do, consider yourself advised to bring tissues.

As I said, there are several intersecting plotlines in this story. One involves possible financial ruin for several small businesses in the community, another features the questionable qualifications of a doctor, then there is the mysterious black box that has appeared connected to a number of Internet servers in town, and that's not all that's going on. Since this is No. 4 in the Southern Charm series, some of the characters were introduced in previous books and not all of the plotlines are resolved in this particular installment. What we do get is one of Ms. Dennis' beautiful HEAs for the heroes. That said, will the timid cat, named Sigmund Freud, and the big, loyal yellow Lab, named Dawson, be able to get along as well as their owners? That remains to be seen.

Each book in the series can be read as a stand-alone, but I can tell you that if you read one you will be hooked and want to read them all. I can hardly wait for the next book in the series! Call me a huge Nicole Dennis fan, and I won't deny it.

Becky Condit is a widow, mother of three and grandmother of 10 who reads all kinds of books, but her go-to comfort books are erotic romances. A romance novel coupled with just-out-of-the-oven chocolate-chip cookies and a glass of cold milk is her idea of heaven. She reads and reviews more than 250 books a year, so you won't often find her without her Kindle in hand, but when you do, she'll probably be gardening, doing needle crafts, working in her upholstery workshop and spending time with her family.