What a treat to get to read this book pre-release! Calm, purposeful and deliciously wry. The first time I've ever seen the true horror of living under the so-called 'benefits' system represented in a piece of fiction. Lots of genuine laugh out loud moments and a gorgeous love story, and I learned a lot about plants against my will.

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🪻 ꒱ this was absolutely beautifully written. from the first page this sucks you in and before you even know it you’re at the end of the book.

🌷 ꒱ Phil and Lilly have my heart. This is my first ever lgbtq+ read and I absolutely devoured it and will be looking forward to reading more! I can’t wait buy myself a physical copy when it is released to add to my shelf!

🪷 ꒱ If you want a funny rom-com and an adventure pack heist but also dissolves itself into the everyday trauma that happens in people’s lives this is the book for you!

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☆ Publish Date: 13th March 2025.

☆ thank you to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for gifting and allowing me to read an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest rating and review.

Five HUGE golden stars! Just be sure to be patient as the stars align...

You know that book that has the provocative tagline? Taglines with words like “hilarious” and “lough out loud” and “heart-pounding” and “gripping” and “xxx twist” … Like those.

The thing is, that naturally raises expectations. If they tell you it’s going to be hilarious then anything not as intensely funny is going to be a letdown. Right?

The Great Orchid Heist was a little hard for me to get into, initially. Sure, the narrative was immediately witty and engaging, and the lead character was … okay. But I was still waiting for the hilarity and any kind of heart-pounding. Don't blame me! They put it those in the top line of the blurb. I spent 25% of the book in expectation of … more. I’d give it till halfway, for sure. It’s only fair to give an ARC every chance.

Thank God I did! Because by the time you get to 33% of the way in, MC Phil is so down to earth, facing such a dilemma, that you want to hug her and tell her to have faith, while the object of her affections, Lily, is so tempting you want to go to Felborough and hang with her in the glasshouses. And nudge her and poke her to open herself up to people. People like Phil.

Invested much? Yes. Oh yes!

My point being THIS book is a book that sucks you in while you don’t even realize it. And more, after the final pages are done and Felborough and Lily and Phil are behind you and you’re somewhere else in some other pages … you wonder how the girls are doing.

And I didn’t even talk about the heist! Which itself is such fun! Fun tinged with Phil’s dilemma of what it means to go through with stealing the uber-rare orchid, of the fallout and the cost she knows will come. You want her not to do it, but you know she has to.

Dilemma much? Yep. If only because by now, you’re looking at how many pages you’re in and have left, watching the page count reduce while wishing the story could go on and on. Maybe a whole four seasons and another year. Or two, or three?

Can I just say that The Great Orchid Heist is um, blooming brilliant? No? Well, I’ll just say that Eleanor Vendrell has pulled off a remarkable debut here. Her narrative skill is undoubted, her setup and playout of that is addictive and clever, and her characters are organically… I don’t know—I miss them, so... I’ll go with “love-worthy.”

Sigh … I just miss them and the Gardens so much!

So, to conclude my garden amblings and review ramblings, I’ll tell you that it’s okay the story starts slowly. Very okay. It’s laying the foundations, avoiding many easy tropes and clichés in favor of developing the story and characters more organically. In the end this book, this heist, this love story is *everything* you hope it will be, and, yeah, that tagline actually delivers on its promises. Who knew? ;)

Thank you to the author and the publisher and to NetGalley for the opportunity to ultimately devour this ARC and cry at the end.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It read like a Richard Curtis style rom-com but with queer main characters. It's a shame that Felborough isn't a real place as I'm desperate to visit after hearing so much about it! I really felt for Phil stuck in what seems like an impossible position. This is a cute romance with a bit more depth than some. Would recommend to anyone after an easy read that will make them smile.