(2.5 stars, rounded to 3)
Wow, this book was not for me! This was the first Helena Hunting book I’ve read, and the synopsis sounded interesting. But, sadly, there wasn’t much here that I liked.
Avery and Declan have been friends since college and later decide to live together. After Avery gets in a car accident (which is absolutely horrific and could be triggering for some), Declan becomes her caretaker and strong feelings between both start to get harder to deny.
I did not like Declan from jump, and his actions—especially in the last half—were uncomfortable for me. I get that his jealousy issues stem from the backstory we learn about, but it was just hard to get past and forgive his controlling, invasive behavior.
In one instance, Avery has a rough day and takes a bath. Declan tries to come in because she seemed upset. The door is locked and she asks for a few minutes to herself, so he stands in the doorway, blocking her way out so she can’t avoid talking to him. I know this is supposed to read as caring, but it was just creepy behavior to me.
What I did enjoy (and why I saw this book through to the end) was Avery’s work at an event space/hotel, Spark House, with her sisters. Her job sounded like a lot of fun, and I would have been happy reading an entire book about just that!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Ah friends to lovers! Avery and Declan have been pals since forever and now they're room mates as well, Declan has issues with commitment to romantic relationships but he is a constant for Avery, Until the rainy night when he doesn't follow through on his promise to drive her to an event. Avery's in a horrible accident- she's lucky to be alive- and Declan, wracked with guilt, puts everything aside to take care of her. You know what's going to happen, don't you? They both tell the story, which works especially well as they sort through misunderstandings and other things, While this is primarily about them, Avery's family is also important. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. Not a lot of surprises but it's a good, well written story,

Avery and Declan have known each other for a while and also living together too. They have a friendship that has never really ventured beyond that. Once the accident occurs they are both in a place where they know that there is the potential for more. Their personalities and the way they interact and bounce off each other was so fun to read.

Declan is a character that confused me but there is something emotionally blocking him from making steps forward with Avery – is she able to change that? Read it and see! Helena is an author whose books I have read before but not for a while so it was like I was stepping back in as a new reader. This story definitely did not disappoint at all. I really enjoyed the writing, the pacing and the story too.

Definitely a story I recommend!

Avery and her roommate Declan have been best friends since college. After Avery is injured in an accident, Declan becomes her caregiver, leading to a new level of intimacy in their relationship. As the lines between friendship and love begin to blur, can they keep their relationship intact?

My favorite part of this story is the relationship between Avery and her sisters. They're very close and understand each other well, each with different strengths. I'm looking forward to the sisters getting their own books.

The romance seemed pretty contrived, and Declan turned into an intolerable alphahole. Avery deserved better.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

Avery and Declan have been best friends for years and roommates for the past two of them. Things between them are great and always have been. That doesn’t mean that they are blind to one another’s charm, but it’s never been like THAT for them. They have always stuck directly in the friend zone with each other.

Until Avery goes out for a date looking smoking hot and Declan realizes he doesn’t like it. He takes those feelings, goes out for drinks by himself, and the next morning, he craps all over the plans the two of them had. Instead of him driving her to a big meeting like they’d planned, he is nursing a hangover and entertaining a lady guest who is still in his bed…

When the unthinkable happens and Avery gets into a terrible accident on her way to the meeting, Declan feels terrible and incredibly disgusted with himself for letting his best friend down. And when she wakes up from her injuries, needing a LOT of assistance for the next couple months, he volunteers to help her in any way he can. Considering they already live together, it seems like the perfect option, no matter how mad her sisters are at him or how much they disapprove of the situation.

The more time they spend together in this capacity, the more comfortable they become with one another… crushing boundaries they never thought they’d come across… until the intensity becomes too much for them both. At some point the two eventually succumb to the proximity and attraction they have tried to ignore for years.

This book was sweet and sad and so freaking adorable! I loved Avery and Declan and their friendship (and more). I loved the friend group they have and how close they all are. I love how strong Avery was and how very real and flawed Declan was. This was a great friends to lovers romance.

A story of sparkling characters. Avery is a very strong character who weathers adversity with aplomb and grace. Declan is a man who knows how to admit his faults and get down and do penance. The plot of the story is extremely well done. Avery and Declan are best friends who live together. It takes a major catastrophe for them to see what others had seen happening between them for years. There is points of joy and outright hilarity (pot brownies), but also an underlying angst that runs throughout the entire story. There journey to happiness as a couple is not easy, but it was sure worth the struggle.

This one just didn't land for me. The cover is gorgeous. I like so many of her other books. This didn't land. Thank you for letting me try!

When Sparks Fly by Helena Hunting is a delightful friends-to-lovers romance featuring a pair who’ve been friends since their college years and are now roommates. After a choice Declan makes leaves Avery disappointed, she ends up injured and bedridden recovering. To make amends and also care for his friend/roommate, Declan has become Avery’s primary caregiver as she heals. They’re suddenly spending a lot of time in close quarters and long-standing hidden feelings are becoming obvious.

This was a really heartwarming, sweet read. I loved their progression from friends to more, and it seemed real and believable. I thought Declan’s backstory and parental issues were well written and made his actions make sense. I liked how he worked on himself before attempting to work on their relationship. Also, Avery’s sister dynamics added to the story and I appreciated her growth as a character over the course of the book.

A few things took me out of the story. The emphasis on Avery & eventually Declan’s sexual needs as the excuse for transforming their friendship felt overdone. Additionally, I’m not sure if this book will be part of a series or not, but we got more detail on Avery’s two sisters than was otherwise necessary, They weren’t around much, but they were talked about a lot - it would make sense to me if subsequent books focus on their individual relationships (I would read them if so!).

Overall, a really solid expression of the friends-to-lovers trope, and another win for me from this author. Enjoyable, light but meaningful, sweet but with a bit of steam.

Thank you so much to St Martin’s Press and to Netgalley for an e-copy of this book!

This was a wonderful story about two best friend becoming more. It felt very new-adultish, even though the characters were supposed to be in their late 20s, I believe. However, this book does address how the past influences the present and even future and does it in a believable and poignant way.

In this book, Declan and Avery are best friends and roommates. Declan is the consummate player, never really committing to any girl. Avery is a workaholic, working with her sisters in the event company. Avery and Declan have a wonderful relationship until a bad decision forces Avery to do something she's very uncomfortable with (driving in her small car during a bad storm), leading to a really bad accident. Declan was supposed to go with her but he got drunk the night before. I have to say, I wasn't a fan of Declan in the beginning.

But the beauty of this book was the growth of the characters, especially Declan but also Avery. The inevitable issues with their relationship stem from a believable and difficult past and I absolutely adored how they overcame their issues. I felt like the pacing was a little slow but in general, this was a wonderful testament to how a strong foundation of friendship really does pave the way for the best relationships. Thanks to the publisher, author and NetGalley for an early copy.

This was such a solid friends to lovers romance!

I adored their friendship, based on their love of sports and crosswords. They were so cute together, especially Declan’s care and mild-smothering. Did I get mad at both of them at various points? Yes. But that just means I was invested in their story!

Definitely recommended if you like friends to lovers, caretaker, forced proximity romances!

4.5 stars

This is such a fun and sweet read, and I absolutely loved Declan + Avery's story! Their relationship progresses from friends to lovers so organically, and I loved how it never seemed forced or unrealistic. These two just fit, and I found myself pulling for them from the very beginning.

Their struggles, both individually + together, are explored so perfectly. I loved watching their story unfold, and I couldn't keep the smile off my face throughout. Declan is the definition of a perfect book boyfriend - devoted + sexy with a perfect amount of goofiness. Avery is so independent and strong-willed, so it was really fun watching her forced to give up control and lean on others. While the storyline was a bit predictable, the chemistry between the two is electric, and the last two chapters are some of my favorite I've read. I really enjoyed the relationship between the Spark sisters, and can't wait to get London + Harley's stories!!

I was so excited for this book, but it didn’t meet what I was hoping it’d be. Declan is not a great guy, and I just couldn’t decide to like him. This made it hard for me to want to continue.
Also the tone of the book is very tell, not show. Felt like I was reading a manual in places.

Oh man! What a great book to get lost in! Avery and Declan have been friends for years. And they do a lot together. But when Avery has an accident, Declan steps up to the task and takes care of her, especially since they're roommates and having his help means she doesn't have to leave home. Avery and her sisters' jobs and personal lives intertwine. But this accident highlights how much love Avery puts into her job and the work her sisters have to do to keep things running. Family dynamics are always interesting and I'm glad Avery had their support. The support from Declan was another beast! Suddenly, things step over that imaginary line. I loved the friendship between these two and watching this morph into something else. There are hurdles they have to overcome but I enjoyed how realistic their relationship was and the process to get back to where they needed to be. I couldn't read this book fast enough and DEFINITELY recommend!

Thank you St Martins Press, Helena Hunting and NetGalley for the eArc in exchange for an honest review!

I really wanted to love this, and there were moments where I found some enjoyment out of it. However, a lot of it fell incredibly flat.

Avery runs an event hotel with her two sisters, and lives with her best friend Declan, who was formerly childhood friends with Avery’s ex before that ex cheated on her. Now, Avery and Declan have developed an incredibly close friendship, and they co-exist well, despite Declan being a notorious commitment-phobe and playboy. When Declan bails on Avery for a drive to their alma-matter, Avery is left alone on the trip and ends up in a car accident. Afterwards Declan feels wildly guilty for leaving her alone on the trip and takes care of her at home while she recovers. As they get closer throughout this experience, they both start to realize that their relationship isn’t as platonic as they thought.

This book had so much potential. Forced proximity, friends to lovers, complicated family histories. It just could have been executed so much better. Beginning with the prose and pacing, which is incredibly stilted and awkward and strange. The tone the author took with both Declan and Avery’s chapters makes them sound entirely too passive and also pretty much identical. They didn’t have much chemistry in my opinion, and it was also hard to get a read on what their actual personalities were. Toward the ending, I was hoping for a conclusion that would make me feel more strongly about them and the story, but it continued to fall flat, maybe even flatter. The scavenger hunt was such an adorable idea, but it wasn’t nearly as meaningful or touching because Avery had to explain the significance of each stop as she was going through it, instead of the audience being able to look back at the prior story and make sense of it.

I have heard awesome things about Helena Hunting, and I absolutely plan to give her another shot. The steamy scenes also had potential, but the passive tone took something away for me. One major positive was how incredibly easy and last this book was to read, so if you suspect you will like it because you have different preferences than the ones I’ve detailed above, it’s not a massive commitment to pick it up anyway. For me, this lands at a 2.5/5 stars.

Avery and Declan have been friends for years and even roommates for the last couple of years and events in college perfectly solidified them in the friend zone, they have been fine until a car accident sets all sorts of things in motion!

I will always love a romance where it is a rekindling of an old flame or a kindling of someone the main character already knows. Because there is a past, it is easy for the book to stay far away from instalove and a from hello to bedroom too quickly! Because Avery and Declan have years of a past of friendships and the situation the author puts them in, it can easily go from 0 to 60 mph in a few chapters. Also I loved these characters - that helped.

Avery and her sisters were fun characters and I loved that we got to follow them in this book and watching how they balanced their business while Avery was out of commission was a fun dynamic to add to the book. I love when an author includes some real details and events about a character's job, makes them feel more well rounded and like a full human being!

This was my first Helena Hunting read and I hope to read more because I love the way she wrote the characters and the events of the story.

I LOVED THIS BOOK! Another amazing book by Helena Hunting! Friends to lovers isn't usually my go to trope, but this was AMAZING from the beginning. My issues with friends to lovers is the last few I read there didn't seem to be chemistry and seemed forced. These characters though had the best chemistry and was ohh so steamy!

My absolute favorite part of this book was probably the first chapter! I had to Google what hobbyhorse was and then couldn't stop laughing! Also thank you Helena for writing from both perspectives! I think I talk about it in every romcom review, but it is what makes the book feel complete!

Thank you SMP Romance for my early copy in exchange for a honest review!

To me, this book was...fine?

What I liked:
- the ending; that after conflict, they were able to find their way back to each other in a healthy manner.
- the steam was excellent! not as much as her Pucked series, but it was still sexy and I think I actually preferred over her earlier works.
- this was a true best friends to lovers, with a hint of forced proximity. i love when friends fall in love after years together.
- Avery's relationship with her sisters! I loved that they worked together (a dream of mine) and were truly there for one another. I am excited for future books in this series.

What I didn't like:
- Declan was...kind of a terrible guy at the beginning. I didn't find myself wanting to forgive him for his earlier actions, and I think it just rubbed me the wrong way.
- I think the relationship between Declan and Avery was a bit problematic at the beginning. They were SO wrapped up in each other, and the lack of communication made me angry. But I do feel like the ending showed growth on both sides.
- I think this book could have benefited from another round of editing; some parts felt disjointed and repetitive.

Very fitting title! Sparks definitely fly between Avery and Declan. When Avery is laid up after an accident, that Declan believes is completely his fault, he becomes Avery's caretaker. Thrown together in such close quarters, while leaning heavily on Declan, Avery realizes their might be more to their friendship. Playboy Declan soon realizes Avery can bring him to his knees. These two are both sweet together and oh so hot together.

Adding to the romance are Avery's sister. I can't wait, hopefully, for their stories.

When Sparks Fly follows Avery as she recovers from a major accident and relies heavily on her best friend Declan. As their best friend relationship changes to a caregiver relationship, they start to realize they might want to explore something more. I enjoyed this trope and the main characters’ relationship. I found the turning point of their relationship to be pretty unrealistic, but still entertaining. I would recommend this book to others.

I went into WHEN SPARKS FLY by Helena Hunting with tempered expectations. I’ve read one of her previous books and didn’t love it. Sadly, this book wasn’t my cup of tea either. I decided not to finish this book around the 50% mark. Overall, the writing was decent, and the secondary characters were great, but I couldn’t get on the hero’s side after he was such a jerk at the beginning of the book. He didn’t cheat on the heroine or anything, but he was a lousy friend, a bad one-night-stand, and it pretty much ruined him in my eyes. I think I am just over the irresponsible playboy heroes. We all mess up, but this was a big mistake that the hero handled poorly.

I was willing to keep going after the hero’s big mistake because there was sufficient groveling, but around the halfway mark, the book was still just okay. I wasn’t feeling the romantic chemistry between the hero and heroine. They have been friends for years? Sure, but he wasn’t a good friend to her on the page when it counted, and the guilt-caretaking wasn’t doing it for me. The trauma, both on the page and off the page, was both weird and heavy, yet not heavy enough? The whole tone of the book felt off. I, personally, was more invested in the heroine’s sisters and the hero’s friends. I hope they get books that have better plots. As a side note, I thought it was weird that two platonic adult friends of the opposite sex would purchase a condo together.

Overall, I would be willing to read the next book in the series, but I am going to consider this book a wash and move on. It’s not a terrible book, but it’s just not for me.

**I received a free copy of this audiobook in order to provide an honest review**