I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Friends to lovers, with a sweet friendship, and some pretty heavy emotional baggage for both characters to sort through. This book made me laugh, and I was really rooting for these two to succeed. I am a fan of Helena Hunting and this book held up well compared to her other books. Definitely worth a read! I couldn't put it down once I started reading! Thanks NetGalley for letting me read the ARC for this one!

I neve get tired of this trope...
Avery and Declan have lived together for over 2 years. They are the best of friends. And only friends.
They’ve played soccer together in college, drank together and watched one another thru many relationships.
When Avery gets in a horrible car accident, Declan blames himself and becomes the best nurse and all that together time changes feelings forever..,

I love Helena Hunting’s books generally, but When Sparks Fly was not for me. I didn’t care for the characters or their story.

I did power through their story and that’s why I am giving a 3 instead of a 1. I don’t want to spoil for anyone, but just to say what doesn’t work for me might be okay for others.

I voluntarily reviewed this book.

I wish I could give this book more than 5 stars. I absolutely love Declan & Avery. Declan is so sweet to Avery, that he will melt your heart. Truly an amazing story that will have you hooked. Another phenomenal read by Helena that I couldn’t stop reading. Perfect story with an even more phenomenal ending.

I typically love Helena Hunting's books so I was excited for this one. Not to mention I love a friends-to-lovers story!

I was so invested in Avery and Declan and watching their relationship build over the weeks while Avery is healing. It was amazing and full of that delicious sexual tension. But, things started to slow down for me after that and especially once Avery starts to regains her independence.

It definitely filled that friends-to-lovers trope, however it fault lackluster. It didn't have anything keeping me enthralled after the beginning of the novel and unfortunately, it started to feel repetitive. And that sexual tension I mentioned? Gone. There was practically zero heat after the initial encounter.

I LOVEEEE Helena Hunting and was so excited to read When Sparks Fly. I love a good friends to lovers storyline and she really delivered with Avery and Declan. It had some swoony steamy moments but also some emotional moments with real depth. Overall I really loved this book! I hope to get some additional stories for the sisters!

Once you start this book you wil not be able to put it down. Family dynamics and friendship turning into so much more is the basis for the book, but the reader comes away from it with so much more. Declan and Avery have been best friends since college. Through many ups and downs the friendship only seemed to get stronger and stronger, but when a freak auto accident leaves Avery relying on Declan for EVERYTHING it sets the two friends up to feel so much more than friendship. When sparks fly and passion ignites wil this be the beginning of the end to the friendship they once relied on? Or will their bonds of friendship be heightened with love in the mix? Helena Hunting you did it again!! Fabulous characters, honest emotions and just enough angst to make the pages keep turning. An awesome read.

Generally, this was a fun read. The characters are likeable and well developed, and there is some quirky stuff happening that made it unique given that it is a typical friends to lovers romance. I liked the two mains well enough, although I did have a hard time accepting a few of the things that Declan did for Avery when she was in a cast. No spoilers! Declan and Avery are in a good relationship from the start with a lot of interaction that shows how much they truly care for each other. And overall the conflict that complicated their relationship worked.

I do feel that, at the end of the book, some loose ends weren't really wrapped up. Like the situation with her grandmother's fountain. But I guess that's because they aren't really pivotal to the story.

💖I started this ARC hoping to enjoy it. Unlike other books, it wasn't because it was a book I'd heard good things about online already (since it’s an ARC), but I was hoping to enjoy it because I just finished reading Meet Cute also by @helenahunting ! Knowing I had this ARC sitting in my inbox after finishing Meet Cute was so exciting and it did not disappoint at all.

☺️The book is definitely a binge worthy read, yet I'm so glad I took the time to savour Avery and Declan's story. I absolutely love how Hunting writes a beautiful harmony of comfort, nerves, trust, and pleasure when Avery and Declan finally connect.

🙂Though I loved the time and reflection it took for Declan and Avery to get back together, the writing felt a little too reflective at that point (a little bit like how most epilogues are written). Nonetheless, the story and character growth was phenomenal and I loved how the entire book came together.

📚If you weren't planning on reading this sweet tale about love between friends, family, siblings, and more, I highly recommend you add it to your list! Pre-order now to have your hands on a copy when it releases on September 21, 2021!

🍦Also, Declan and I are totally on the same wave length because I've used ice cream as a bribe to get someone to go out before.

🎁Thank you Netgalley, St. Martin's Press, and Helena Hunting for this ARC!

This was a super cute friends to lovers story. Declan and Avery were fun to read about. I was so glad Declan stepped up and totally took care of Avery after what happened.

Thank you to Netgalley & St. Martin’s Press for sending me an e-ARC of this romance!

I really enjoyed Avery and Declan’s story!

Avery and Declan are roommates, best friends, and... secretly in love with each other?! Shocking! No, but jokes aside, these two characters and their history/friendship were very well drawn out and I enjoyed watching their relationship turn from platonic to romantic, as Declan assisted Avery in functioning for the months following a car accident she was in.

I really loved Avery’s sisters; they cared so much for her and I’d be invested in seeing them fall in love and the types of guys they’d be matched with as well.

I read this book pretty much all in one sitting and I’m excited for it to hit the market later on this year!

Such a fun read! Such fun characters! Avery and Declan are a true best friends to lovers book. I especially enjoyed her job running the event hotel, so much fun especially the hobby horse scenes. I hope there is more about this hotel and her sisters. While this is my first book by this author, it will most definitely not be my last! Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for my ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I am a big fan of Helena Hunting so I was definitely excited to receive an ARC of this book! When Sparks Fly was a quick, easy read full of fun banter and... sparks ;)
True to Hunting's form, there was comedy, romance, and friendship. While some of the situations seemed unrealistic, the characters helped make them believable and the story flowed nicely. There is not a lot of depth to the plot, but I went into it expecting a fun, summer read and that's exactly what I got! This makes for a great beach read or a nice palate cleanser after a 'heavier" title. Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

When Sparks Fly is a friends to lovers romance. I found the setting to be interesting, Avery and her sisters own a event space, but the conflict between Avery and Declan seemed too predictable to take up so much of the book. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this book. I really enjoyed it at first, I think it just went on a bit too much for me. I got a little tired of their miscommunication before they finally wrapped it up.

When Sparks Fly is a contemporary friends to lovers romance and such a sweet read. I’ve read a handful of books by this author before and I think this is definitely one of my favs. I flew through this read and really enjoyed the characters.

Avery and Declan have been friends since college, they even share a condo together as roommates. Both have had feelings for one another but kind of pushed away those feelings, her because he’s her best friend & doesn’t want to risk losing him and he because of relationship & trust issues from his past. When Avery ends up in a serious car accident leaving her immobile for weeks, Declan steps in to be the ultimate caretaker. And lines begin to blur...especially when they both realize she has needs needing attended to in the bedroom as well. 🔥 Wow were the scenes between these 2 so hot, their friendship chemistry added so much to their romance and I loved seeing it unfold. Jealousy and trust issues do come into play but I did really like seeing the way it was handled.

I loved all the time Avery & Declan spend together while she’s healing up from the car accident. Avery runs a hotel/event space with her sisters and it was fun to see some of their event adventurers they had going on. Declan was super sweet and attentive to Avery, I loved seeing the ways he took care of her. He definitely had emotional and trust issues to work through, his parents had a terrible relationship and lead to him not believing/having a good example of a healthy relationship. I loved seeing Avery’s balance to his life and just really enjoyed this romance. The friends to lovers was done so well and I really believed their history and chemistry.

Thank you to the publisher (St. Martin’s Press) for an e-ARC via NetGalley in exchange for my honest thoughts & review. When Sparks Fly will be published September 21, 2021.

A friend to lovers romance that will truly touch your heart. From college to roommates Avery and Declan have a connection that makes keeps them tied to one another and in tune to each others needs. When Avery begins to date the fear that he might lose her becomes to hard for him to bare. In come the trouble.
For these two friends their romance takes them on a journey of self revelations that ultimately test not only their romantic relationship but also their friendship. Declan learned that he has to overcome the trauma of his parents relationship to learn how to become a more ground partner for Avery.
A truly beautiful romance that touched my heart on so many levels. Helena Hunting, never fails to give us comedy with her romance. Their are laugh out loud moments and some truly heartbreaking ones. A powerful read that is a must read for this year!

Cute, adorable ROM com!!!! Sparks definitely flew with this book!!! I was pulled in by the cover, but the book kept going with its witty banter and fun characters!! This is a must read for the year.

Great story of friendship, love, tenacity and learning to love yourself faults and all. I loved every page of it.

When Sparks Fly was a breezy romance with just enough depth to keep things interesting. Avery is a great tomboy heroine who is balancing a new business amidst a tumultuous past due to her parents' early death. Declan is the perfect roommate/best friend who is afraid of love because of his parents' failures. When she is injured in a car accident, Declan comes to her aid out of obligation, but the two realize that they might be more than just friends.

This was a page-turner that kept me up into the night wondering whether there would be a happy ending. There are a few open door scenes if you are concerned about that. And I always love an epilogue - it was a sweet one!

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for this review. All views are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was super excited to receive an ARC of this book because I love Helena Hunting and enjoy most of the books she writes. This one however was just ok for me. Not awful, but definitely not my favorite book of hers and probably not something I would read again.

When Sparks Fly follows the story of Avery and Declan, two best friends from college who choose to room together for years after college. Declan takes care of Avery after she's in a bad car accident and along the way realizes he feels more for her than platonic friendship.

My biggest issue with the book was that I didn't really feel any connection to the main characters, and didn't really feel their connection. It was one of those books where you were told how characters felt, rather than shown it.

The good:
-I liked the idea of the plot (best friends/roommates to lovers), cute premise and trope
-Some funny scenes
-Easy, quick read. The way the book was written makes it a very fast read and easy to get through which I enjoyed.

The bad:
-Stilted dialogue. Dialogue is the most important part of any book for me, and this dialogue felt very unnatural at times. It was written in a way that was clearly only for writing because no one in real life would EVER talk that way, which was very distracting and took me out of the story completely.
-Too many things introduced and then never followed up on. I felt like there were a lot of things brought up in the plot (ie. Declan's parent issues) that were mentioned but then never really resolved. (Yes that one in particular was kind of brought up at the end to explain things but it felt very unnatural and not fleshed out fully). These extra plot details were really distracting for me because I kept trying to figure out how it fit in to the larger story, only to find out that it in fact didn't fit in at all. I think the story would have flowed a lot better without those random, additional details.
-The conflict was unbearable. You know how awful it is when conflict is based solely on miscommunication that could be solved by a simple conversation between the characters? This was somehow worse.

Final thoughts:
The book started out pretty strong for me but very quickly declined about mid way through and then became insufferable to me once I reached the conflict stage of the book. At that point I really had to force myself to finish it. This book had so much potential and fell really flat for me.

Overall, the plot was cute but I didn't really feel a spark between the characters and I personally hated the conflict of this story and the way it was handled afterward. Definitely wasn't my favorite Helena Hunting book (I'd probably go so far as to say this was actually my least favorite book of hers that I've read) but it won't stop me from reading her future books. This one just missed the mark for me.