Review: Elly in Bloom by Colleen Oakes (Chrissy’s review)

Elly in Bloom (The Elly in Bloom series #1)
written by Colleen Oakes
published by SparkPress

find it here: (affiliate links) Barnes & Noble, Amazon, Book Depository, Goodreads

Did I enjoy this book: I really did enjoy this book. It was  fun chick lit read that had me glued to my Kindle. This was a read that kept me walking around my neighborhood with my eyes glued to my Kindle.

Elly is a sweet woman who is making a new life for herself, trying to forget a certain scene from her past. She is doing well until her biggest wedding of the year . . . of her career. I love that Elly is a normal woman. She is a size 16, pretty, sweaty, down-to-earth, and has the same struggles that many women have. She is a character that I liked immediately. I loved how she handled everything at the end and at the big wedding.

I love Kim, Snarky Teenager, Anthony, Ardelle, and Keith. I love them all. Kim is a great friend. She is so kind and took Elly in and under her wing. Snarky Teenager is a great asset to Posies and to Elly. You want to smack her, but you want to hug her.

I can’t wait to read Elly in Love. I’m starting it now.

Would I recommend it: Yes. This is a great summer read. Get it. Read it.

About the book – from Barnes & Noble: Surrounded by lush flowers and neurotic brides, Elly Jordan has carved out a sweet life for herself as the owner of Posies, a boutique florist in St. Louis.

Not bad for a woman who drove away from her life two years earlier when she found her husband entwined with a redheaded artist. Sure, Elly has an embarrassingly beautiful best friend, a badly behaved sheepdog, and a sarcastic assistant she simply calls “Snarky Teenager,” but overall her days are pleasantly uneventful. As a bonus, her new next-door neighbor just happens to be an unnervingly handsome musician who has an eye for curvy Elly. Just when she feels that she is finally moving on from her past, she discovers that an extravagant wedding contract, one that could change her financial future, is more than she bargained for. With the help of her friends, staff, and more than a few tasty sandwiches, Elly bravely agrees to take on the event that threatens to merge her painful history with her bright new life, and finds herself blooming in a direction she never imagined.