New York Times bestselling author Helena Hunting's comtemporary romance
novel Make a Wish is book three of her popular "Spark House
Sisters" series, which also includes When Sparks Fly (book one)
and Starry-Eyed Love (book two).
Make a Wish will be published on Tuesday, January 24, 2023, but it is
available for preorder on Amazon in Kindle, paperback and audiobook
formats.
I was fortunate to listen to an advance copy of the audiobook through
NetGalley. Here's my book review.
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Make a Wish is book 3 in Helena Hunting's contemporary
romance series "Spark House Sisters" which features her signature
"swoony heroes and quirky heroines"
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A Charming, Often Hilarious, Heartwarming Contemporary Romance Novel
New York Times bestselling author
Helena Hunting's website describes her lead characters as "swoony heroes and quirky heroines
you'll fall in love with." I would say she writes genuinely likeable, thoughtful characters with good hearts and intentions,
human failings and insecurities, authentic voices and often witty, flirtatious
banter.
Bottom line: Hunting crafts well-developed characters you can't help caring
about and rooting for.
Helena Hunting's "Spark House Sisters" Series
When I had the opportunity to listen to an advance copy of Helena
Hunting's Make a Wish in audiobook format, I jumped at the
chance to listen to this deservedly popular, New York Times bestselling author's latest contemporary romance. I was delighted to
discover that the story holds its own as a stand-alone novel. However, I
enjoyed it enough to want to go back to the beginning of the story by reading
the first two books.
Here are the three books in this series about sisters Avery, London and Harley
Spark, in order (links are for the Kindle editions on Amazon):
When Sparks Fly
("Spark House Sisters" Book 1—Avery's Story)
Starry-Eyed Love
("Spark House Sisters" Book 2—London's Story)
Make a Wish
("Spark House Sisters" Book 3—Harley's Story)
Make a Wish Synopsis
When Gavin Rhodes's wife, whom he adores, dies after giving birth to their
daughter Peyton, his world collapses. Overwhelmed by grief, heartbreak and a
misplaced sense of guilt, Gavin buries himself in his work and hires a
vivacious, cheerful, energetic and responsible young woman as a live-in nanny
for his baby girl.
Harley Spark's parents died when she was very young, so she knows how hard it
is to grow up without a mom. Unlike Peyton, however, she and her two sisters
had each other for support, and vice versa. Her grandma Spark also provided a
loving, supportive and encouraging home as well as a love of fun and
adventure. Harley is totally devoted to Peyton and tries to make up for the
lack of both a mom and siblings in her life by playing the roles of both nanny
and surrogate big sister.
Harley finds enormous satisfaction in providing a positive, upbeat and
nurturing home environment for baby Peyton and her overworked, emotionally
devastated dad. The arrangement works beautifully for a year and a
half...until the fateful moment when 20-year-old Harley, trying to comfort an
exhausted and still grieving Gavin (and indulge her secret crush on him),
leans in and almost kisses him before he realizes what she is trying to do and
abruptly pulls away.
Harley is horrified and mortified. Worse yet, her idyllic working and living
situation suddenly evaporates as Gavin packs up his and Peyton’s things and
moves to the other side of the state. He transfers the care of his baby girl
to his late wife's strict and domineering mother, Karen, who takes on the role
of mothering and educating her granddaughter with an almost religious zeal.
Harley is covered with guilt and remorse for her unusual lapse in judgment and
she misses Peyton (and Gavin) tremendously. But when Gavin refuses to respond
to multiple apologetic texts, she eventually has to make her peace with the
consequences of having acted on her misguided impulse.
Harley loves being and working with kids, but reluctantly decides to give up
her career as a professional live-in nanny, fearing another potential risk to
her heart if she falls in love with another family who employs her. Instead,
she joins her two sisters and their partners in running the family's event
hotel, Spark House. In addition to doing some of the hotel's social media,
Harley's favorite role has been organizing the children's themed birthday
parties, for which she always dresses up in costume. Unfortunately, they are
less profitable than other events, such as weddings, and seven years after
Gavin's and Peyton's move, Harley's siblings let her know that the upcoming
princess-themed birthday party for a local nine-year-old will be the last one
at Spark House.
For the "last hurrah" birthday bash, Harley dresses up as a fairy princess.
The last people she expects to run into among the young party guests and their
parents are nine-year-old Peyton and her dad. Gavin, in turn, who is both a
doting father and a good sport, is wearing a tutu. It's not exactly the outfit
he would have chosen for an unexpected reunion with Harley, who is now in her
late twenties and even more attractive than before.
Harley is so flustered at seeing Gavin again (especially when she is dressed
in full-fledged princess attire with all the trimmings) that she breaks out in
hives. Gavin is grateful that Harley is no longer his daughter's nanny, and
their age difference is less significant. He hopes this chance encounter might
lead to both closure concerning their awkward and abrupt parting and perhaps a
different type of relationship moving forward. Peyton is simply overjoyed to
see her beloved former nanny and playmate and can't wait to make more play
dates for the three of them.
Gavin decides to move himself and Peyton back to their hometown. There are a
several good reasons for the move, but one of the most compelling is for them
to be near Harley again. Predictably, Karen becomes jealous and resentful of
Harley and does her best to undermine the would-be couple's burgeoning
relationship. Karen's interfering behavior angers and upsets both Gavin and
Harley, but Gavin also feels guilty about moving Peyton out of her
grandmother's home, control, and daily life and is reluctant to confront his
mother-in-law.
Will Harley, who hates confrontation, find the courage to stick up for both
her professional role and romantic relationship?
Why does Gavin feel guilty about his wife's death? Can he finally bring
himself to truly risk giving his heart to a partner again unconditionally and
stand up to his overbearing, jealous, threatened and still-grieving
mother-in-law?
Will Peyton finally get her two biggest wishes, a mom and a sibling?
I can promise you a happy ending, but you'll have to read Helena Hunting's
Make a Wish not only to find out the answers but also to enjoy the
rich storytelling and the rocky road that ultimately leads to this trio's HEA
(happily ever after).
Amazon Editors' Picks: Best Romance
I'm not the only reader who has fallen in love with the characters in Helena
Hunting's Make a Wish. Even though its release date is nearly a week
away at the time of this book review's publication, this new contemporary
romance novel is one of Amazon Editors' top picks for Romance Books.
Two Excellent Audiobook Narrators
Fan favorite narrators Jason Clarke, Stella Bloom share the narration duties
on all three of the "Spark House Sisters" audiobooks in this series. Bloom's
pleasant but higher-pitched voice is the perfect foil for Clarke's bass, and
both narrators are eminently "listenable." They are skilled at voicing both
male and female characters, as well as both adult and juvenile characters,
that are easily distinguishable. This was especially important because each
chapter of is told from either Harley's or Gavin's point of view and read by
Bloom or Clarke, respectively. I never struggled to identify which character
was speaking, even during conversations among three or more characters.
They also spoke at an ideal pace for me, slow enough that I didn't have to
concentrate on not missing anything, but also not so slow as to be soporific.
These seasoned narrators really bring the characters to life and enhance the
reader's (or listener's) experience of the book. For that reason, I highly
recommend the audiobook format for this contemporary romance series.
Here are links to all three audiobooks in order:
When Sparks Fly "Spark House Sisters" Book 1 Audiobook
Starry-Eyed Love "Spark House Sisters" Book 2 Audiobook
Make a Wish "Spark House Sisters" Book 1 Audiobook
10 Hours of Listening Pleasure
There is enough meat to the story to keep me happily engaged in listening to
the audiobook for 10 hours. Key bits and pieces of information from the past
are gradually revealed to us (and to the main characters) as the story
unfolds, giving us more context and insight into each character's motivations,
emotional challenges, desires and fears.
By the end of the book, I felt real empathy and compassion for all the
characters, even the rigid, self-absorbed, bossy, subversive Karen.
More importantly, all the characters experienced authentic, significant growth
from the beginning to the end of the story arc.
Adult Content
As in most contemporary romance novels, the relationship between the story’s
hero and heroine includes physical intimacy.
While Hunting isn’t shy about describing the sexual aspect of Gavin and
Harley’s romantic relationship as it evolves over time, I didn't feel the descriptions of their intimate encounters were gratuitous or excessively graphic, and those scenes certainly weren't a primary focus of the novel. The pair's relationship is
built on a foundation of friendship and trust first. In fact, despite their
obvious mutual physical attraction, both of them are very cautious about
taking their relationship from friends to lovers.
However, if you are offended by premarital physical intimacy, that
aspect of this book (and, presumably, the others in this series) might be a
turn-off.
Fun But Not Fluff
The story flowed well and never dragged, and the narrators' characterizations
did justice to Hunting's charismatic writing, keepping me engaged,
entertained, and emotionally invested from beginning to end.
Harley's and Peyton's boundless enthusiasm, zest for life, optimism and love
of unabashadly "girly" things like tutus and glitter crafts provide some
much-needed lightness to balance the tragic deaths (and, in the case of Gavin
and Karen, misplaced guilt) that weigh on the main characters' hearts.
Ultimately, it's a feel-good story about second chances. I hope you enjoy it.
Now, I'm off to download the first two books in the series.
Make A Wish By Helena Hunting: Spark House Sisters
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