Orchid Blooming

Orchid Blooming is an emotionally charged, thought provoking and moving story full of compassion and is already and is a 2022 International Book Award Finalist in Women's Fiction and Multicultural Fiction.

"If she went deeper, she sometimes felt she was forged from the painful markers of her life. Other times, she floated above it all, as if spun of steel from her Chinese warrior ancestors, and then merged with the beauty of fairy sprites."

I enjoyed this story about trust, second chances, and forgiveness. Both Orchid and Pheonix’s characters had so much depth, felt very real, and so did their budding romance.

Orchid is dealing with PTSD from a tragic event she experienced as a child. As I read, I could feel her fears, doubts, and depression. However, there was so much joy to be felt too, along with tender moments full of compassion and love, and I found myself cheering for both characters, but especially Orchid.

This may be a story that deals with heavy topics such as PTSD and trauma, but it has so much heart and is a story that touched my heart.

Thank you, Book & Wine Lovers, NetGalley, and Carol Van Den Hende, for this gifted ebook in exchange for my honest review.

Synopsis: A childhood tragedy followed her into adult life. Will she ever claim real happiness again?

Kind and generous, twenty-seven-year-old Orchid Paige will never forget that day. Living as best she can after witnessing her parents’ fatal accident, the beauty industry marketer yearns to win a promotion to China to connect to her mom’s ancestry. But with competition fierce, she despairs she’ll never make the grade… until she meets an encouraging man who makes her feel safe despite her usual distrust.

After Orchid convinces the handsome entrepreneur to let her gain experience at his nonprofit project, she’s determined to keep their relationship professional and ignore their powerful attraction. But when working on his military ad campaign for veterans triggers her own unresolved PTSD, she fears her confident mentor may be too good to be true even if she could trust him with her heart.

Can she conquer her vulnerabilities before she loses her chance at forever?

Orchid Blooming is the captivating first book in the Goodbye, Orchid women’s fiction series, and can be read as a standalone. If you like complex characters overcoming trauma, heart-warming stories, and compassionate connections, then you’ll adore award-winning author Carol Van Den Hende’s emotionally satisfying page-turner.

ORCHID BLOOMING HONORS -

■ 2022 International Book Award Finalist: Women's Fiction and Multicultural Fiction

■ 2022 Beach Book Festival General Fiction Honorable Mention

■ 2022 New York Book Festival General Fiction Honorable Mention

■ 2022 July International Impact Award Multicultural Fiction

■ 2022 Summer Outstanding Creator Awards Grand Prize Honorable Mention; 2nd Place Women’s Fiction, Multicultural, Romance, and Drama; 3rd Place Literary & Contemporary Fiction; Honorable Mention Best Couple

■ 2022 Hollywood Book Festival Honorable Mention General Fiction