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katie1031's review against another edition
2.0
2.5
I was feeling myself fall into a reading slump and usually to prevent that I find some sort of mindless romance or ya fantasy to listen to while I'm working to jolt me out before I can slip fully into one. This works because I pick books that require little focus, I can zone out and tune back in and understand exactly what I missed without having to backtrack. This book did what I hoped it would. The fast pace worked to keep me going which is surprising because honestly, this book wasn't for me. I'm not sure why I picked up an entire book about insta-love thinking I would enjoy it. It's my least favorite romance trope and this book centers around it.
I was feeling myself fall into a reading slump and usually to prevent that I find some sort of mindless romance or ya fantasy to listen to while I'm working to jolt me out before I can slip fully into one. This works because I pick books that require little focus, I can zone out and tune back in and understand exactly what I missed without having to backtrack. This book did what I hoped it would. The fast pace worked to keep me going which is surprising because honestly, this book wasn't for me. I'm not sure why I picked up an entire book about insta-love thinking I would enjoy it. It's my least favorite romance trope and this book centers around it.
gxab's review against another edition
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
ameserole's review against another edition
3.0
I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
The Spark was an interesting book. In it, you will meet Jess and Sam. Right from the moment, there was something instantaneous between them. Call it a spark or whatever. It just doesn't end well due to Sam being in a relationship with Victoria. After running into one another a couple of times, Sam decides to break up with Victoria to date Jess.
Honestly, this whole situation was kind of messed up. I mean if one believes in love at first sight.. than yeah - go for it. As for me? Nope, I really don't see that happening. So when Victoria realizes what is happening she is not a huge fan. I mean.. she really didn't like them dating one another. In some ways, I can see why she acted the way she did but I feel like she went a bit too far at times too.
If Jess and Sam were truly in love, then I think Victoria would just have to accept that and move on. She would eventually find someone who felt the same way with her and be happy. I also feel like Sam needed a stronger backbone too. He definitely needed to stand up for his decision and Jess when it came to certain situations. As well as standing up to his mom. It definitely got frustrating when he didn't do a damn thing.
In the end, this was filled with awkward and tense moments but the romance was pretty cute. I'm glad that I got the opportunity to jump into this.
The Spark was an interesting book. In it, you will meet Jess and Sam. Right from the moment, there was something instantaneous between them. Call it a spark or whatever. It just doesn't end well due to Sam being in a relationship with Victoria. After running into one another a couple of times, Sam decides to break up with Victoria to date Jess.
Honestly, this whole situation was kind of messed up. I mean if one believes in love at first sight.. than yeah - go for it. As for me? Nope, I really don't see that happening. So when Victoria realizes what is happening she is not a huge fan. I mean.. she really didn't like them dating one another. In some ways, I can see why she acted the way she did but I feel like she went a bit too far at times too.
If Jess and Sam were truly in love, then I think Victoria would just have to accept that and move on. She would eventually find someone who felt the same way with her and be happy. I also feel like Sam needed a stronger backbone too. He definitely needed to stand up for his decision and Jess when it came to certain situations. As well as standing up to his mom. It definitely got frustrating when he didn't do a damn thing.
In the end, this was filled with awkward and tense moments but the romance was pretty cute. I'm glad that I got the opportunity to jump into this.
nuttus's review against another edition
2.0
I’ll start with the few positives this book had, because it did have its moments. For a fluffy romance the main character had a refreshing personality that was not the exact same as most easy romance books have. She was kind and had an interesting backround that was explored a bit. Although she was guilt ridden abou everything possible and it started to get annoying. I also liked the difficult daughter-mother relationship she had. It was refreshing but sad reminder that not all mothers have the maturity and emotional ability to really let the children be children, even if they did try. That’s about all the positives I can come up with.
The negatives are way more abundant. The love story was juvenile and everything progressed unrealistically fast - after being together and knowing each other for a month, two tops they are house shopping and Sam proposes. I don’t care how much the book is trying to tell this is True Love, it is only proving Sam’s mom’s point of their thing being infatuation and a weird mid-life crisis. Because that’s what their whole relationship screamed to me being when both were acting juvenile and teenagers first love. I really would like a sequel where the thing crashed and burned and maybe after a few years of maturing picked up again. The way the romance was during the book got me questioning is the thing even healthy with everyone at Sam’s side hating and questioning the relationship. And I really understood their perspective, the whole thing about Sam’s behavior was screaming some sort of crisis. Well except for the crazy ex, whose point at the beginning was somewhat understandable and halfway if the book got obsessive.
The pacing in the book was off too. There was so much stuffed in the last 40 pages that I wished that some of the things would’ve started progressing sooner in the book. Almost all of it started feeling like an afterthought or filler with the author getting bored of her characters and just shoving them in a some sort of forced happily ever after.
Lastly I want to point my annoyance at the descriptions of the characters. Sam’s only personality was that he was muscular, hot and a pushover, Jess was super skinny and had small boobs that was let known at all times it being a huge negative. Everyone else described themselves fat and nasty and remembered to tell every time that Jess was so skinny and let her know about their jealousy about the fact. It was redundant, annoying and tone deaf.
The negatives are way more abundant. The love story was juvenile and everything progressed unrealistically fast - after being together and knowing each other for a month, two tops they are house shopping and Sam proposes. I don’t care how much the book is trying to tell this is True Love, it is only proving Sam’s mom’s point of their thing being infatuation and a weird mid-life crisis. Because that’s what their whole relationship screamed to me being when both were acting juvenile and teenagers first love. I really would like a sequel where the thing crashed and burned and maybe after a few years of maturing picked up again. The way the romance was during the book got me questioning is the thing even healthy with everyone at Sam’s side hating and questioning the relationship. And I really understood their perspective, the whole thing about Sam’s behavior was screaming some sort of crisis. Well except for the crazy ex, whose point at the beginning was somewhat understandable and halfway if the book got obsessive.
The pacing in the book was off too. There was so much stuffed in the last 40 pages that I wished that some of the things would’ve started progressing sooner in the book. Almost all of it started feeling like an afterthought or filler with the author getting bored of her characters and just shoving them in a some sort of forced happily ever after.
Lastly I want to point my annoyance at the descriptions of the characters. Sam’s only personality was that he was muscular, hot and a pushover, Jess was super skinny and had small boobs that was let known at all times it being a huge negative. Everyone else described themselves fat and nasty and remembered to tell every time that Jess was so skinny and let her know about their jealousy about the fact. It was redundant, annoying and tone deaf.
mybooksandkidsbooks's review against another edition
4.0
The Spark by Jules Wake
What happens after the initial spark? When you click with someone so easily but the rest of life doesn’t cooperate. The Spark explores how others can seriously affect a relationship, and the balance of careers and personal lives. This was a romantic, complicated and interesting story. Slightly long and I got stuck in the middle where I felt it dragged. But it was still so lovely in certain sections and the right amount of frustrating in others. A nice and easy book to take my mind away over the weekend.
Thank you to @netgalley and @onemorechapterhc for this early copy! The Spark is out on Dec 11th!
#harpercollins #netgalley #onemorechapterhc #arc #kindle #bookreview #bookrecommendations #loveofreading #bookstagram #bookstagramuk #canadianbookstagrammer #mybooks #loveofbooks #booksbooksbooks #romanticfiction
What happens after the initial spark? When you click with someone so easily but the rest of life doesn’t cooperate. The Spark explores how others can seriously affect a relationship, and the balance of careers and personal lives. This was a romantic, complicated and interesting story. Slightly long and I got stuck in the middle where I felt it dragged. But it was still so lovely in certain sections and the right amount of frustrating in others. A nice and easy book to take my mind away over the weekend.
Thank you to @netgalley and @onemorechapterhc for this early copy! The Spark is out on Dec 11th!
#harpercollins #netgalley #onemorechapterhc #arc #kindle #bookreview #bookrecommendations #loveofreading #bookstagram #bookstagramuk #canadianbookstagrammer #mybooks #loveofbooks #booksbooksbooks #romanticfiction
portybelle's review against another edition
5.0
I adored The Spark from the very first page!
Jess and Sam meet at a party and there is instant, almost tangible attraction between them. Yes, there was indeed The Spark of the title. Unfortunately, there is the teeny tiny problem that Sam is already attached. He is in a four year relationship with beautiful Victoria who is an influential Instagrammer and vlogger with half a million followers. How can Jess possibly compete? They cannot deny the strong attraction between them though and it seems as though ‘boy meets girl’ will end with ‘happily ever after’. Well, it does until it becomes clear that Victoria is not prepared to give up on her man easily.
Within the first few pages of this book, much like Jess, I think I was in love with Sam myself! He sounded totally gorgeous with his blond curls, blue eyes and toned body, much like a Greek God. Add to the mix his ability to endear himself to almost everyone he meets and his dedication to his job as a teacher at a school for children with special needs and he is pretty much the perfect man. Jess is also dedicated to her job working at a refuge for women and children escaping abusive relationships. The attraction between them was so beautifully described by Jules Wake and made clear through their tender touches and glances and seeming ability to know just what the other was thinking.
This relationship was far from all hearts and flowers though as Victoria mounted a rather vicious campaign to split the two up, convinced that Sam would see sense and return to her. Although initially you might feel a bit sorry for her, her vindictiveness soon puts paid to that, particularly when the full extent of her campaign to get Sam back becomes clear. To be honest, I was wondering why he was with her in the first place. It was interesting to see how the situation with Victoria made Jess reconsider her separated parents’ relationship, which she knew very little about, and see their break-up in a different light. There were also parallels with Victoria’s behaviour and the behaviour of the partners of the women at the refuge. The nasty side of social media comes to the fore several times during the course of the novel.
Most of the book, however, focuses on the romance between Jess and Sam, and how lovely that was to read. There were some seriously passionate scenes between the two which may leave you a little flushed and thinking of cold showers! This is a book which will make you believe in crazy, head-over-heels, love-at-first-sight. And it will make you think that Lego is a perfect symbol of love. It’s a gorgeously romantic read, just perfect and it was a joy to meet these characters. The Spark will definitely be added to my favourite reads of 2020.
Jess and Sam meet at a party and there is instant, almost tangible attraction between them. Yes, there was indeed The Spark of the title. Unfortunately, there is the teeny tiny problem that Sam is already attached. He is in a four year relationship with beautiful Victoria who is an influential Instagrammer and vlogger with half a million followers. How can Jess possibly compete? They cannot deny the strong attraction between them though and it seems as though ‘boy meets girl’ will end with ‘happily ever after’. Well, it does until it becomes clear that Victoria is not prepared to give up on her man easily.
Within the first few pages of this book, much like Jess, I think I was in love with Sam myself! He sounded totally gorgeous with his blond curls, blue eyes and toned body, much like a Greek God. Add to the mix his ability to endear himself to almost everyone he meets and his dedication to his job as a teacher at a school for children with special needs and he is pretty much the perfect man. Jess is also dedicated to her job working at a refuge for women and children escaping abusive relationships. The attraction between them was so beautifully described by Jules Wake and made clear through their tender touches and glances and seeming ability to know just what the other was thinking.
This relationship was far from all hearts and flowers though as Victoria mounted a rather vicious campaign to split the two up, convinced that Sam would see sense and return to her. Although initially you might feel a bit sorry for her, her vindictiveness soon puts paid to that, particularly when the full extent of her campaign to get Sam back becomes clear. To be honest, I was wondering why he was with her in the first place. It was interesting to see how the situation with Victoria made Jess reconsider her separated parents’ relationship, which she knew very little about, and see their break-up in a different light. There were also parallels with Victoria’s behaviour and the behaviour of the partners of the women at the refuge. The nasty side of social media comes to the fore several times during the course of the novel.
Most of the book, however, focuses on the romance between Jess and Sam, and how lovely that was to read. There were some seriously passionate scenes between the two which may leave you a little flushed and thinking of cold showers! This is a book which will make you believe in crazy, head-over-heels, love-at-first-sight. And it will make you think that Lego is a perfect symbol of love. It’s a gorgeously romantic read, just perfect and it was a joy to meet these characters. The Spark will definitely be added to my favourite reads of 2020.
cotes's review against another edition
4.0
This is a story about what happens when you meet your person ... and they’re dating someone else. They break up with that person, wait a month, ask you out, and things are perfect. Except for the ex-girlfriend, all their friends, their parents, their hobby, your mom, your job, your dad issues...
I really liked this book a lot. It hinges on you believing that Jess and Sam are a great match, and it worked for me. Jess is a lovely character, working through her own issues but sure of herself at the same time. Sam isn’t as well known, but he doesn’t have to be, and the details given convince you that he’s worth it.
My biggest issue with the book is its abrupt ending. I get that the point is that it’s going to be a HEA, but I wanted to see more of how that HEA works.
If you’re a fan of Mhairi McFarlane, you’ll enjoy this.
*An ARC was provided to me by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
I really liked this book a lot. It hinges on you believing that Jess and Sam are a great match, and it worked for me. Jess is a lovely character, working through her own issues but sure of herself at the same time. Sam isn’t as well known, but he doesn’t have to be, and the details given convince you that he’s worth it.
My biggest issue with the book is its abrupt ending. I get that the point is that it’s going to be a HEA, but I wanted to see more of how that HEA works.
If you’re a fan of Mhairi McFarlane, you’ll enjoy this.
*An ARC was provided to me by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
mpr2000's review against another edition
4.0
What happens if you feel a spark with someone that is already in a relationship? Is it fair to try to know if there’s more than a spark, knowing that you’ll break a relation?
I always said that in a relationship there’s always a third person on it, it depends on how you are with your partner to be aware of it or not. And I think this is the case in the triangle love/hate story between Jess, Sam and Victoria. Sam and Victoria had been together for the last 3 years, but when Sam meets Jess he can’t continue the relationship she had with Victoria and wants to know more about Jess. Has Jess really broken their relationship or it was not as good and strong as they thought it was?
This had been an addictive read, it was easy to fall in love with the story and understand their points of view, even if Victoria acts like a crazy woman, she feels betrayed and doesn’t know how to act in this new situation. Are they Sam’s friends or hers? Which is the difference between obsession and stalking? How dangerous is jealousy? It’s the other “woman”, the one that broke the relationship or was it broken before? The situation is not easy and it will affect everyone surrounding them, but in the end what will really matter is: is it worth the try? Is the spark they feel worth everything?
Of course you’ll have to read the book if you want to know all the answers, believe me, it will be impossible to put it down!
Ready to discover “The Spark”?
I always said that in a relationship there’s always a third person on it, it depends on how you are with your partner to be aware of it or not. And I think this is the case in the triangle love/hate story between Jess, Sam and Victoria. Sam and Victoria had been together for the last 3 years, but when Sam meets Jess he can’t continue the relationship she had with Victoria and wants to know more about Jess. Has Jess really broken their relationship or it was not as good and strong as they thought it was?
This had been an addictive read, it was easy to fall in love with the story and understand their points of view, even if Victoria acts like a crazy woman, she feels betrayed and doesn’t know how to act in this new situation. Are they Sam’s friends or hers? Which is the difference between obsession and stalking? How dangerous is jealousy? It’s the other “woman”, the one that broke the relationship or was it broken before? The situation is not easy and it will affect everyone surrounding them, but in the end what will really matter is: is it worth the try? Is the spark they feel worth everything?
Of course you’ll have to read the book if you want to know all the answers, believe me, it will be impossible to put it down!
Ready to discover “The Spark”?