Delightful & Addictive: Read Our Review of Flowers in July by Anna Maynard

From the author of Dancing with Bees comes a charming and heartfelt story about opening yourself up to love. 

Disciplined and pragmatic, Mary Roberts feels she’s got her life under control. She’s recently moved to Hobart, she’s nearing the end of her training as an emergency doctor, and she keeps a tight handle on the wellbeing of her mother and her sister back home in Sydney. 

But when it comes to her long-term boyfriend, Felix, Mary’s always had a blind spot. That is until she finds another woman’s G-string in their bed …  

In need of a temporary escape, Mary signs up to help run a wilderness expedition medicine course. She soon discovers that rock climbing, plunging into freezing cold water, and working in the close company of a grumpy yet disconcertingly magnetic retrieval doctor are pushing her way out of her comfort zone.  

Suddenly, everything she thought she knew about herself is starting to unravel. The question is, what will the fallout be? A breakdown in her relationship with her sister? Her mother’s brittle mental health reaching the point of catastrophe? Or – most dangerous of all – could Mary Roberts finally be ready to fall in love? 

Anna Maynard’s experience as a writer had largely been restricted to medical letters and discharge summaries through her years of medical training. So after sitting her specialist medical examinations, she decided to turn her hand to romance. 

When she’s not dreaming up fictional heroines and swoony love interests, Maynard can be found working in the hospital, pottering in her garden, or playing songs with her pop band. She published her debut novel, Dancing with Bees, in 2025. Flowers in July is her second novel.

I loved how Maynard created the characters in Flowers in July. Every single person Mary encounters feels authentic and relatable, and this is only enhanced by the mastery of Mary’s development. She’s not perfect, but she tries her best, and this underlying resilience perseveres through hard times and good times, making her one of my favourite protagonists in recent memory.

A highlight is the wilderness expedition medicine course. Every moment is brilliantly illustrated. You feel the coldness of the waters Mary marches through, the uneasiness of each rock she holds onto while she climbs, and the utter exhaustion at the end of each day. Not to mention the tension between her and the retrieval doctor, which, yes, is just as exhilarating as the course itself.

As the story progresses, and Mary begins to overcome things she never imagined she could, she slowly loosens up and steps further and further away from her comfort zone. Watching this play out is a treat! I loved every moment. The highs in Flowers in July made my heart flutter, and in equal measure, the lows made me clench the pages as I hoped things would turn out okay. Mary’s story deserves to be adored by everyone. If you’re craving a delightful, character-focused story that’ll warm you, we highly recommend Flowers in July.

Buy a copy of Flowers in July here.