When Sparks Fly

Avery Spark is an event planner living her best life. When a car accident leaves her bedridden, her roommate and best friend Declan steps into be her caregiver. The car accident is indirectly Declan’s fault - he was supposed to be driving her in his SUV. Instead, he had a one-night stand the night before and was too hungover to take her. Declan feels responsible for Avery’s accident and takes on the responsibility of handling all of Avery’s needs. (ALL of them - do you see where this is going?)

I love Helena Hunting, and I was so excited for this one. It did start off slow for me, but once I get into it, I couldn’t put it down. Typically, I hate the friends to lovers trope, but Avery and Declan’s relationship felt realistic. Put this on your TBR list.

Thanks to @NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for my ARC! When Sparks Fly is on shelves on 9/21/21. You should preorder it, so it’ll fly to your shelf in September. 😉

I have been a fan of Helena Hunting for a while now. I have read and re-read her books multiple times. This book is no different. From the very beginning I was hooked on Avery and Declan's story. Best friends since college who now live together, they are planning to visit their alma mater for a meeting to secure a sponsorship for her and her sister's event business. On her drive to the meeting tragedy strikes and Avery is in a car accident, partially due to Declan not going with Avery. With a broken arm and leg, Avery needs around the clock assistance while she heals. Declan steps in and takes on the task. From the moment Declan steps up, he realizes that his feeling for Avery are anything but friendly.

Full of friendship, heartache, humor, and more, this book packs a punch and leaves you begging for more. I can't wait to see what Helena has in store for future books. Hopefully Avery's sisters, London and Harley, get a story along with Jerome and Mark.

This is a sweet and spicy best friends to lovers romance that will leave readers swooning. I loved the characters of Declan and Avery, and there special bond. I also loved the relationship between Avery and her two younger sisters, Harley and London, with whom she co-owned Spark House, a hotel and event center. Helena Hunting knows how to bring the angst and deliver on the heat when the romance finally sparks. Such a great book!

Helena Hunting did it again!
When Sparks Fly had it all humor, charm, emotion and was one of my favorite Helena Hunting books! She has a gift with creating characters who are well developed and often times relatable. Declan & Avery are no exception! They are the best of friends from college who end up living together after school. When an accident occurs it will test their friendship. Are they meant to be more than friends? Will they survive how this accident challenges their friendship? Will they cross those lines? How will the accident change the course of their future?
Do yourself a favor, don't read all of the spoilers because it will ruin it for you.
I'm not one for spoilers, but I am here to give my honest opinion after reading this ARC. I loved this one, 4.5 stars for me because I could not put it down! It was the perfect summer read by the pool and I devoured this one in 2 days. When Sparks Fly does not disappoint, it will have you hooked from the start. Just make sure to set some time aside because you will not want to put this one down! Hint: slow burn, that's all I'll give!
Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for this digital ARC with me for my honest thoughts.

Avery lives with her best friend, Declan, and runs the Spark House hotel with her sisters and has little time for much else, especially dating. A car accident leaves Avery needing help doing pretty much everything, a job Declan volunteers for since he blames himself for Avery getting in an accident. He dives headfirst into being the best friend and nurse a girl could ask for. Compromising and awkward situations lead to an intimacy between the friends that can only alter their relationship.

This is a feel good romance with just the right mix of heat and humor for an enjoyable read that keeps Helena Hunting as a must read author for me. Friends-to-lovers is my favorite romance trope, so I jumped on the opportunity to review When Sparks Fly. Hunting is a go-to author for me so I knew I’d enjoy her latest. I think she is a great author. The plot was appealing and flowed very well. This book pulled at my heartstrings. It’s got a lot of funny moments but it has a lot of depth to it’s storyline. The characters were well developed and relatable and I cared about the outcome of their story. I loved their group of friends and how supportive they are with each other. I knew that the couple would have a happily ever after since that always happens in romance, which is one of the reasons I like to read this genre. Sometimes you just need a HEA story. The emotional depth of the story was great! Avery and Delcan’s chemistry is fire! Smoke was coming out of my Kindle. And I liked the sweet conclusion to Dec and Avery’s story. I hope the other Sparks' sisters get their stories told. I'd love to know more about London and Harley. Thanks to Netgalley and the St. Martin’s Press for allowing me to read an eARC of the book.

Best friends to lovers with lots of internal challenges to overcome. After an accident leaves Avery unable to care for herself, Declan steps up to selflessly, if guiltily, be her caretaker and then some.

Easy, fast read with feel a good ending.

I really enjoyed this latest book by Helena Hunting, for a variety of reasons - the alternating perspectives between Avery and Declan, the loyal and endearing friendship they had from the get go, the reality of caring for someone after a profound accident and how challenging that is for both people, and the acknowledgment that sometimes time apart to become whole is what's best for a relationship. A delightful, quick read!

What can be said? This was true to Hunting's modus operandi. It made me laugh, teary, and was an adventure from start to finish. I'm creating quite a following with her titles and my readers are no disappointed!

What a great friends to lovers romance! I am a bit biased as it is one of my favorite tropes, but it is so well done here. I cannot wait for readers who have yet to discover Helena Hunting to fall in love and then find out she has an incredible back list.

I loved this book so much! The chemistry you could feel between Avery and Declan was everything! This was perfect for a fast paced, light, summer read. I can’t wait to read more from our characters.

When I read the synopsis for When Sparks Fly I knew this was going to be good!!!! This is the perfect romance story and I loved every second of it. With great characters and an adorable story, what more could you want. I think this is one of Helena Hunting best books I've read. Can't wait to see what she has up her sleeve for next time!!!

I really liked this book. Declan and Avery are best friends and roommates. Avery gets in a bad car accident. When she is released from the hospital Declan is there for her. And takes care of her, and helps her recovery process. During this time both of their feelings for each other start to come forward. Avery hasn’t been in a serious relationship since her last boyfriend cheated on her and left her heartbroken. Declan has never had an example of a good relationship because his parents kept cheating on each other. This was a sweet story that was funny and emotional. An overall good read!

I have really enjoyed Helena Hunting's books and was especially pleased at the opportunity to read When Sparks Fly. My favorite romance trope is friends-to-lovers, and this is an excellent example.

Declan and Avery have been friends since college and even live together. But they have both firmly placed their relationship in the friend zone. Things change when Avery is badly injured and Declan becomes her primary caregiver.

I really enjoyed the pacing of the book and the way in which the transition from friends to lovers happened. I loved Avery and resonated with her right from the start. Declan really grew on me, as his motivation and baggage became clearer.

The side characters are fantastic. Avery is the oldest of three sisters. This book sets up a possible series featuring her younger sisters really well. I have my fingers crossed that will happen.

Thank you to St. Martin's Griffin and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy. These opinions are my own.

TW: car accident

I love a good friends-to-lovers romcom, and this one had plenty of surprises in store for me. Thank you to St. Martin's Press for my gifted ARC.

Avery Spark and Declan McCormick are best friends and roommates - always there for each other, but romance hasn't been on the table. When Avery gets into a terrible car accident, Declan steps up to take care of her, pushing a hospital bed into their living room and arranging to work from home. As they become closer than ever, they realize that romance is what they both want - but will their past get in the way?

I loved Avery's character - she's sporty, fun-loving, and hard-working, with a great relationship with her two sisters/co-business owners. Declan was more of a mixed bag - he clearly had a lot of issues to deal with outside of their relationship. I think Hunting wrote his character and his struggles realistically, but I can also understand how some readers would be uncomfortable with a male lead with such a short temper. In the end, I was happy with his character development and the frank discussion of mental health and its impact on relationships.

This is definitely not a closed door romance, but it's also not as steamy/detailed as some of the rom coms I have to skip pages in (e.g. the Brown Sisters trilogy). I also felt that the emotional connection between Avery and Declan was very real, and I don't always get that from romcoms. If you like the friends to lovers trope, give this one a try and let me know what you think!

Review posted to Instagram and Goodreads on July 10, 2021.

This book was such a fun and cute rom com. Although it had some serious parts in it and made me cry I really enjoyed this read and the characters development.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for a copy to honestly review.

I’m truly a huge fan of Helen Hunting .. so anytime she puts out a book .. I’m here for it. This is such a cute contemporary romance book. I love to read a book that gives us dual point of views. You definitely want to preorder this one or place a request now for your library hold. This is going to be a perfect fall read!!

This book has one of my favorite tropes, friends to lovers. I love Avery and Declan’s relationship and as they move from the friends to lovers category, you can feel the heat sizzle through the pages of this book. I think the story is even better because of their prior relationship with each other. Declan makes a mistake that kind of leads into the event that affects Avery but what I liked most about the book and Avery was that she wasn’t unforgiving or angry with Declan even though he was beating himself up over it. It was refreshing to read this perspective from the heroine when anyone in her place would be bitter and angry. The book gets even better as they go through a major conflict and the way Declan decides to resolve it. This book is utterly lovable and I highly recommend it. Seriously, just buy the book right now and thank me later.

I received this ARC from NetGalley and the publisher for an honest review*

4.5 stars - How much do I adore friends to lovers romances, let me count the ways:

1. Solid history
2. Foundation of trust
3. Invested in each other’s feels
4. They’ve seen the previous relationship pitfalls
5. Heartstrings galore

When Sparks Fly ticks all these boxes, plus the hero and heroine couldn’t be more perfect for one another. He’s hot and knows it. She’s sexy and doesn’t seem to. There’s always been an attraction, but the friendship was just too precious to potentially ruin by trying for more. Then there’s a promised unfulfilled, an accident that could’ve been so much worse, and a reckoning that’s a long time coming. I LOVED IT!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Sparks definitely fly, threatening to incinerate this story's very own pages, as it unfolds!

Hunting delivers an adorable story, full of heat, strong relationships, and always a good dose of humor.

You don't need to look any further for your next guilty pleasure. Make sparks fly in your own life by reading this gem.

As Always, Happy Reading!

"5/5 Beaming Brains!" - Lit-Up My Mind's

When Sparks Fly
by Helena Hunting

📚💕⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💕📚

BFF TO FOREVER?

Omg Helena Hunting did an amazing job with When sparks fly. The natural progression and intensity between Avery and Declan is absolute perfect. The writing is flawless, and the words are so captivating, the plot had so many twists and turns and none that I was expecting, and many shocking moments. I really enjoyed this book and it kept me engrossed throughout. I really loved the characters and the way they interacted with each other. This is a fun, hot, romantic must read book and I would definitely recommend this book to

Authors Blurb: Avery Spark is living her best life. Between her friends, her sisters, and Spark House, the event hotel her family owns, she doesn’t have much time for anything else, especially relationships. She’d rather hang out with her best friend and roommate, Declan McCormick, than deal with the dating scene. But everything changes when she is in a car accident and needs someone to care for her as she heals.

Declan avoids relationships, giving him a playboy reputation that he lives up to when he puts a one-night stand ahead of a promise he made to Avery. While he may not have been the one driving the car, he feels responsible for Avery’s injuries and is determined to make it up to her by stepping into the role of caretaker.

Little did they know that the more time they spend in compromising positions, the attraction they’ve been refusing to acknowledge becomes impossible to ignore. When they finally give in to the spark between them, neither is prepared for the consequences. Their love is fragile and all it will take is a blow from the past to shatter it all.

This book has everything I love in a book. Then you add that it's beautifully written and believable. It is easily a five star read. Written in dual POV my personal favorite this story flows so incredibly well that the next thing you know your 80% into the book and loving every second of it. The believable way the characters interact is perfect. Run, Hop, Jump or use your (1 click) finger to do whatever you have to do and get this amazing book. It'll break your heart, you'll want to scream with frustration and it'll let you discover that love just might conquer all. The chemistry is steamy and sweet and oh so romantic.

Thanks Netgally for letting me read and review.📚💕

Declan and Avery are now my favorite literary couple! Their steamy love affair begins under a difficult set of circumstances, as Avery is involved in a car accident and Declan who is her friend and roommate steps up to assist in her recovery, but ends up being a lot more than that.

I'm a huge fan of Helena Hunting, so getting a copy of this book was super exciting to say the least. It was phenomenal. Absolutely loved it!

Helen Hunting is one of those authors where you automatically buy her books when you see she has a new one out. She is one the best in this genre. I loved this story. The characters were likable and relatable. It was easy to fall in love with this story. I found myself smiling at every cheesy moment. This was a delightful rom-com!

I honestly like this book. Hunting provides a real life view of relationships and the baggage that comes along with it. The struggles of what life brings and how we handle them, plus tackling past hurts that affect the decisions and feelings we display to those we want to be close with. This is a great summer read or the "I don't want to get off the couch" read. Because we all have those days. Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

When Sparks Fly is an instant yes from me. Helena Hunting's books are always so sweet, and the chemistry between her characters is always on point.

It was no different in this novel and I sped through it. Highly recommend to any fan of Hunting or romance.

Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Avery and Declan! So cute and so in denial. This was such a fun, short read that packed plenty of growth, romance, and chemistry. I honestly really enjoyed this and I loved seeing Avery and Declan grow and figure it all out. This was the perfect romance read for the summer, filled with a lighthearted, fluttery romance, but balanced with a deeper connection and growth.

If you love the friends-to-lovers trope then you'll love When Sparks Fly. If you're looking for a story that's incredibly unique, this might not be what you're looking for. However, if you're looking for a cute romance that makes you bubbly inside and roots for the OTP, then this is the one.

Helena Hunting always adds interesting tidbits to her stories which make them stand out amongst all the other romances that hit the shelves! In this one, readers will easily fall in love with Avery and Declan, former friends turned caretaker, turned new love interest! I love WHAT brought these two back together and watching them fall in love despite everything around them was really charming for me to "watch". I'll always recommend a Helena Hunting novel and that includes this one too!

I received an advanced copy of this novel from the publisher. This in no way affects my review or opinion.

I was SO excited to get an ARC of this book because when I saw Helena Hunting, I was in. When I saw she was also writing a friends-to-lovers story- I was SOLD.

I am always so impressed with Huntings ability to write a romantic comedy that is actually full of romance (and steam!) and actual comedy. I would read a grocery list that Hunting writes! Really enjoyed this book, just as I enjoy all of her writing. I highly recommend this read!

When Sparks Fly is a sweet and charming story, it introduces us to two best friends (Avery and Declan) that have over a decade of friendship. They live together and basically do everything with each other. Avery has an unfortunate car accident that Declan blames himself for and she needs a caretaker to help her get through it. Declan wants to be that person for her, as he's caring for Avery that's when you see "the sparks fly," their long friendship turns into something much more.

Helena brings in a very real element to this book that I loved. I don't want to spoil anything but I do love how it wasn't a pretty package from beginning to end, Declan and Avery deal with some emotional things that they need to work on. This was a sweet and sometimes emotional friends to lovers romance, which happen to be one of my favorite genres.