This debut book is a complete comedy of errors. From setback number one Perdita is set on a rollercoaster ride of life as the numbers grow. It is an original romantic comedy and a great read. I look forward to Mari Jane Law's next novel in the series.

In literature, as in life, sometimes you need highbrow thinking and serious conversation.
Other times you just want a good laugh!
In this sweet rom com, the endearing protagonist, Perdita, stumbles from one misadventure to the next. Can she really be this naïve? Misunderstandings; faux pas; errors of judgement – the list is endless.
The only downside to this situational farce was that I recognised myself in several of the embarrassing circumstances Perdita found herself in. For instance, being in a restaurant with neighbouring diners, who you are trying to avoid because you were previously in a tricky situation with them. They insist on moving table, but then the next diners to arrive aren’t your biggest fans either . . .
Great fun.
Laughter, as they say, is the best medicine.
Just what the doctor ordered!

Ah this was such a breath of fresh air! Just what I needed!

Blurb

Perdita Riley has issues. Two huge ones to be exact. And one of them is only going to get bigger! After leaving a job due to her morals not lining up with the ethics of her workplace, she is left with no job. Only to be confronted by one of her issues. Saul is reeling over the huge amount of money he thinks Perdita coerced his aunt into investing only to lose it all, have a stroke and be under his care. To redeem herself, he demands Perdita move in and look after his Aunt to atone for what she has done. This works well for Perdita, but for how long before her biggest setbacks grows?

I very rarely pick up a rom-com but I was attracted to this one straight away. The humour is just my kind, dry and hilarious. The characters are all lovable and unique. Especially Perdita, whose total innocence and quirkiness just makes her more endearing. In so many ways, I admire her strength to have become who she is despite her upbringing.

The relationship between her and Saul blossoms beautifully and I absolutely love Aunt!

From the convent to finding love in the outside world, Perdita - what a great name for a character, meaning ‘lost’ - has a lot to learn in this delightful, fun read of an English romantic comedy. Lots of action and lots of laughs as our protagonist bounces from Setback Number One to Setback Number Two and hopefully gets from ‘lost’ to ‘found’ in the arms of her desire! A good, fun take on the romcom genre with enjoyable friends and ‘helpers’ along the way.

A very light hearted easy to read story, great for bedtime reading. I loved the quirky lead character, Perdita, although was not sure if someone in this day and age could be quite so naïve! It was one of those books I looked forward to picking up my kindle, knowing I was heading back into the story, and I would definitely read more from this author.

When Perdita is kidnapped in a local store because of supposedly poor financial advice that she’s given, she thinks life can’t get any worse. Setback Number One as she calls it is about to get much, much worse. I loved the character of Violet, the well intentioned interfering Aunt and laughed at the antics her and Perdita got up to behind Saul’s back. Reading of her further “setbacks” brought tears of laughter and Saul’s antics tears of sadness. Such a refreshing novel that I was lucky to win on line.

Whacky, most definitely!
Far-fetched yet totally possible, and I like it how cleverly all the little bits fall into place of the bigger picture. Lovely sense of humour. Very much my wavelength!
Most cer-tain-ly worth buying!

“Love and Pollination” is such an enjoyable read, unexpectedly so, especially as I’m not one to seek out romantic novels.
The kindly but naïve central character, Perdita, is brilliantly – and often hilariously – depicted, so much so she had me either (in my head) crying out, ‘No! Don’t do / say / think that’ or ‘for heaven’s sake!’ over and over again, or wanting to shake some sense into her. I also loved the character of Violet who was able – powerfully but wordlessly – to comment on Perdita’s unwise decisions and behaviour. Yet the tone of the narrative is charming and delightful and the humour quirky and rewarding while Law manages to keep the tension going throughout the novel through many twists and turns; it is a real page-turner.
I thoroughly recommend this book and look forward to the sequel that must surely be in the offing. If not, Mari Jane Law, please get writing!

I enjoyed this book a lot more than I thought I would. Normally I would avoid a book which describes itself as a “whacky” romantic comedy on the cover, but I was pleasantly surprised by this one.

Basically, this is a formulaic romance but what sets it apart for me is the likeability of the characters. There are exceptions, of course.

Perdita is charming, and incredibly naïve about sex. This is just about believable when her background comes to light. Her use of botanical terms for anything related to human reproduction could grate, but actually becomes quite endearing.

Luke and Gavin are the couple who live next door to her in their block of flats in Clifton, and give her plenty of much-needed support throughout her various escapades.

Perdita has been wondering why she never attracts boyfriends, and takes the advice of a delightful old lady called Violet Freestone on how to make herself more alluring. Unfortunately, the advice works too well, and Perdita finds she has been “pollinated.”

Events throughout just get getting funnier and funnier as the book progresses. I am amazed at the way the author has managed to maintain the fast pace of the storyline and fill it with so many humorous incidents at the same time. I shall look out for more from her.

Love & Pollination was a lovely book that I managed to read over a holiday weekend and enjoy immensely.

*I received a free copy of this book, which I voluntarily reviewed

A whacky romantic comedy… quirky, unique, warm and most definitely addictive. From the moment you start this your immediately introduced to Perdita, I found it was so unique and different reading about her backstory, raised by a nun until she became of age to go off by herself. This made it impossible to dislike Perdita, you almost adore her for who she is a person, not being necessarily familiar with everything most people her age etc.

I found the writing style wonderful it gave me the most unexpected giggles from time to time just mainly down to the wittiness in the writing. For a book that’s a romantic comedy this is the first for me. I thought it was absolutely fantastic. Although I wasn’t too sure if Saul was right for Perdita from the beginning of their meet. Obviously the more I read this changed, slightly.

Don’t get me wrong for a rom com this book had some incredible characters, some right memorable ones too. I found myself wondering who would play them if this book was turned into a film. I adored the naive moments, the sweetness the unexpected romance blossoming. I found it an extremely fast paced read. I’m hoping this won’t be the last rom com book I read. So if you have any suggestions please let me know.

It’s kind of like the 40 year old virgin but with a female who isn’t 40 but who’s just not sure of what certain things are in life. I loved that. I loved how someone can be so innocent and sheltered. A perfect chilled Friday night read this was for me.

What a lovely book that was. Totally outside my comfort zone, in fact I don’t think I’ve ever read a rom-com before, but I loved this one. I had a smile on my face most of the way through the book, I defy anyone not to smile reading about Perdita’s life. Very well written with a lovely storyline and of course there is Frank the cat, I’m a sucker for a cat.

Briefly, Perdita is an orphan who grew up in a catholic orphanage run by nuns. She is completely naive and knows nothing about male/female intimate relationships. Nothing. Her only sex education involved birds and bees. After an encounter with a rather slimy individual called Tony it appears that she has been pollinated! Out of a job and unable to pay her rent she ends up working as a companion to a former client, and living with her and her nephew Saul. Attracted to him, but with just too many obstacles in the way, can love win the day?

I really didn’t expect to like this but I loved it. Gentle humour and whilst it didn’t make me laugh out loud I thought the whole concept was so funny. Perdita is just a wonderful character and I’m sure there is scope for her further adventures. The scene that really made me laugh was the restaurant scene, when she goes for a meal with Saul, whilst a bit unlikely, it was very funny. Definitely a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ read for me.

Thank you so much to the author, Mari Jane Law, for asking me to review Love & Pollination. I love a rom-com and it was a beautiful story to read in the sunshine, and definitely a 5 star read.

Perdita Riley is experiencing some unfortunate setbacks in her life. At the beginning of the story, Perdita loses her job, but we are then taken back a few months to see her falling into the grasps of a man who only wants one thing, but a man that Perdita has lusted after for years. The story is then a continuation of the events which follow these episodes. Perdita describes events that happen in her life as ‘setbacks’ and ‘most humiliating experiences’, and numbers them all as they occur. As Law describes each one, you just know that whatever it is, Perdita will call it one or the other!

Perdita Riley reminded me of Eleanor Oliphant and I found similarities between the two characters. In my mind, Eleanor had some autistic traits, and Perdita, particularly with the strange nuances regarding plant comparisons, appeared to be the same. I don’t want to tell you anymore about the plant comparisons because it might spoil your enjoyment of the story. They made me smile though, and I must praise Mari Jane Law for how she thought of and achieved all the different words and phrases!

As the book progresses, all the characters become intertwined, appearing in various parts of the book and linking with other characters in ways that you don’t necessarily see coming. Some characters you will love, some not so much. Violet is a hilariously wicked old lady who tries to play Cupid, not always with the outcome she wants at the time! Gavin and Luke are Perdita’s closest friends and with her every step of the way, throughout her tumultuous journey through the book.

I thoroughly enjoyed Love & Pollination and if you fancy an easy-read with some love and laughs along the way, then I would highly recommend this. I sincerely hope that Mari Jane Law is writing more because I can’t wait to read them!

Pollination,Germination and a Seedling!!

Love and Pollination is a stand-alone novel,by Mari J Law.The story follows the fabulous Perdita and her many embarrassing situations in the pursuit of love and happiness.

I absolutely loved the character of Perdita,her character was brilliantly well written and I was totally engrossed in her world.I loved the way she thought of things in the terms of nature,as it showed her naivety and innocence,in how she dealt with the world.

All the characters were brilliant and by the end I felt I knew all of the characters really well.
My favourite part of the book for me was the ending as I was so pleased for Perdita,but I also loved reading about the scrapes Perdita got in.I loved the germination incident.

I loved the way this book kept me laughing whilst rooting for the characters.

There is not one I disliked about this book.I found it engaging,funny and written with lots of heart.Anyone who loves Bridget Jones,will love this book and the fabulous Perdita.

I would love to read more adventures of Perdita,as I’m sure her story is finished yet.

As soon as I read this novel I had to tweet how much I enjoyed it just to get the immediate word out there. This is what I wrote: “Don’t discount the quiet author who sits under the radar hoping to one day bloom. I adored this fun, slightly bonkers romcom. Perdita is one of those unique, quirky characters that are very endearing.”

I hadn’t heard of this author before I picked up Love & Pollination and it’s such a travesty when authors slip under the radar for prospective readers. Mari Jane Law has written such a fun, crazy caper of a story that’s filled with the day to day life of our quirky leading lady Perdita.

Perdita sadly had a tragic upbringing leading to her then being brought up by nuns in a convent so a few street life skills and warnings of the chapters of life were missed from the nuns’ parenting responsibilities.

Perdita has found a way of coping when she is faced with new situations but her life takes a sudden change in direction when she realises the job she has been doing is not all it seems and she feels she can no longer do the job justice. This decision leads Perdita on a stumbling block of ‘mistakes’ or ’embarrassing moments’ and one thing leads to another and she has consequences resulting in one of her ‘moments’.

Without revealing too much of the storyline we follow Perdita as her life takes on new challenges with new people bringing forth further emotional complications her way.

Perdita is such an endearing character that charms you into her life, she has quirks, yes, but these are what make her great. She may have had a sheltered upbringing and had been naive in certain aspects of her life but she has a heart of gold. I instantly warmed to Perdita’s character and was invested in her wellbeing, I laughed my way through her little ‘moments’ but also felt how brave she was learning anew and accepting life in all it’s glory.

The sub-characters in the storyline blended so well with the leading lady making them easily relatable and able to imagine in your head how they looked, acted and felt.

I’m hoping Mari Jane Law will treat us to some more stories with Perdita as I feel readers would love to join her journey through the wonders, trials and tribulations of life.

Please try a new author today you might be surprised and find a hidden gem just like I have with Love & Pollination by Mari Jane Law.

This book has been such an uplifting read with fabulous characters, but at times I felt like I wanted to bang their heads together, while at others, it had me laughing not just when I was reading the story, but afterwards too. I have read several rom-com books before, but I have never come across anyone quite like Perdita. Rollback time about 100 years to find someone as innocent in everything as she is. There is, of course, always a reason why we are who we become, and Perdita has her unique past.

Perdita’s world is quite small, with only a few carefully chosen life long friends. Getting to know her felt like I was being accepted, as she opened up as the story unfolded. I always felt protective of her, but her naivety creates some hilarious moments in the story. There are some cracking one-liners.

I liked that the story has its tender moments but is balanced, with wrong choices and imperfections. Not everything is rosy. The title makes sense once you read the story, which sort of sums Perdita up with her quirky ways that make her stand out in a crowd. It is a matter of once seen never forgotten as characters disappear and reappear in the story at intervals.

Although this is a book that I read on Kindle Unlimited, I could happily return to it and read it again. It had that little pinch of essence in it that makes me want to meet her again.

I was kindly send Love & Pollination by Mari in exchange for an honest review.

Immediately, I found myself being drawn to Perdita as a character. She was a fantastic protagonist to the novel and her voice was refreshing and unique. She was a charming and interesting character and I was automatically on her side. Because of the individuality of her character I found that I never quite knew how she would react to situations which I really enjoyed. Perdita is very naive but I found her innocence charming and it added to some of the comedy within the novel.

All of the characters within this novel were given purpose and their own story to tell. No character felt like they were there only to fill a place and I loved them all. I loved that each character had been so well thought out and it really added to my enjoyment of the novel. As Perdita’s counterpart, Saul was a complex character and I really enjoyed how the characters of Perdita and Saul bounced off one another. Their tension was so well written and I was completely rooting for them.

The novel is filled with comedic moments and it was such a lighthearted and hilarious read, it definitely deserves the label of romantic comedy. I enjoyed every page of the novel and finished it in no time at all, I was desperate to see how it would end. Although this novel is comical, the plot still had structure and pace to it. There were still twists and turns that kept me on my toes whilst reading which was great and left me wanting more.

I would recommend this novel to everyone who loves a lighthearted romance read. It was well written and paced with amazing characters. I was left wanting to read more about these characters as I loved them so much.

I'm sitting here writing this review with a big smile on my face - even though I was banned from reading "Love & Pollination" at bedtime due to the number of chuckles, snorts, and guffaws that issued forth (from me, obviously!). Our main character, Perdita, is impossible not to like, and I found myself wishing she was real. The writing is thoroughly enjoyable. The plot is... well, it's just wonderful! I can't tell you how much I loved this book, so just get yourself a copy. Feeling low? I recommend taking 10 pages, twice daily!

My thanks to the author. This review was written voluntarily and is entirely my own, unbiased, opinion.

I've loved chapter 1! This is hopefully the start of a great book that I'll really be able to get into... the full 5 stars are well deserved so far!

Chapter 2 was good too... poor Perdita!

So far so great with this novel, still a very well-deserved five stars... I'm wondering why each chapter is only a few pages long though??

I was wrong about the chapters only being a few pages - chapter 4 was definitely longer lol

I'm deeply loving this book - currently up to chapter 9 and my life has been on hold since the first page because it's so great... not gonna finish it before bed time tonight 'cos I'm only 22% of the way through, but it'll be the first thing I open tomorrow morning, even at the expense of my email which is usually one of the first things I open... you *have* to get your eyes into this book in my opinion!

This is getting better and better... Perdita has just taken a librarian into a shop and met a friend there... innocent, right? Read chapter 15 to find out!

Yep, still just as good the next day... books don't usually make me tearful, but I'm feeling pretty choked up with pride at the end of chapter 25! WTG Perdita!

Just read chapter 35 and it was such a huge relief that it happened... got 9 pages left to read and the author is doing a fantastic job of tieing up the story... WTG author!

Chapter 36 is a huuuuuge relief and the author is doing a fantastic job. This is a truly fantastic book!

Just finished it and I love a happy ending... this is most definitely a must-read and I can't recommend it highly enough!

This is a wonderfully written, fast paced and charming story about the very naive Perdita. Growing up in a convent and being brought up by catholic nuns has left her having a rather sheltered life so far and boy is she in for a few shocks!

We immediately learn that Perdita has been fired from her job because she doesn’t agree with some of the things that she’s being asked to do, so the management asks her to leave. This little setback puts her in a very tricky situation as she needs money to pay her rent and also her loan from the orphanage.
She has also had a very awkward first sexual encounter with a guy called Tony who is a sly, womanising weasel - the details surrounding this rendezvous are nothing short of hilarious!

Luke and Gavin are Perdita’s two gay friends who are always there to offer support and advice - their advice is often questionable but sets up some amazing one liners - I’m talking laugh out loud stuff here! These two are probably my favourite characters! I love the chemistry between them!

It soon becomes clear that Perdita is pregnant - or pollinated as she prefers to put it. A bee has been attracted to a brightly coloured flower - Her being the flower and the womanising guy Tony from her first sexual experience happens to be the bee - Perdita has a way of explaining things so that everything is kind of pink, fluffy and sugar coated, this is one of the many things that makes her such a lovable character!

I must mention another lovable character here and that is Frank the cat! No story is complete without an adorable fluff ball prowling around! He makes several appearances which adds a comforting feeling to the whole story - yes I am a cat lady, feel free to judge me!

So, Perdita has been ‘pollinated’ by Tony but she has her eyes set on a guy called Saul who kidnapped her earlier on in the story - another hilarious twist!

The story continues to evolve in a speedy and charming way, unpredictable situations come about and there are so many funny incidents that kept me turning the pages long into the night! I wasn’t able to predict what might come next at any point and there was a laugh or smile on almost every page!

The story also has another side, behind all of the comedy the message is clear - no matter what your situations and circumstances are, you can always change things, there are always options and unexplored roads. Live your life your own way and never allow anyone to take away your personal power.

I particularly enjoyed the way Law made her character Perdita so pure and innocent. Her way of using plant terminology in replace of words for intimacy was interesting and funny.
One thing is for sure - I’m never going to be able to look out into my back garden and keep a straight face ever again, and I will be avoiding garden centres for fear of the men in white coats being called to assess my laughing fits!

Overall an amazing easy five star read! You definitely want to pick this one up!

I’d like to say a huge thank you to the author for sending me a copy of this wonderful book! I’m looking forward to her next release!

I honestly really enjoyed this book! It was witty, fast paced and hilarious. The first thing I have to talk about is of course the main character Perdita. Her character really had me laughing, it was so comical watching her go through life being so absolutely clueless about men, she even had me cringing at some points. As I read more of the book I really felt connected with Perdita and every new thing that happened to her I really felt for her.
I was also wholly invested in Perdita and Saul's relationship (when Saul wasn't being a pain in the backside) I couldn't wait to see the outcome of the story because I was really rooting for them as a couple.
This book had a great story arc it wasn't just your usual rom-com, it was whacky and brilliantly thought out. It was nice that the story wasn't solely focused on Perdita and Saul as well, there were some other good characters and it was nice to see their lives as well as the main characters.
Mari Jane Law developed some fantastic characters and a well thought out story.
Overall I loved this book and was surprised by how much.