Review: Fantastic characters, sublime storytelling
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 10 25, 2013
This book gets 5 sweet peas, just because of the recipes in the back. The end.Ok..ok. A real review then… ;)This book is fabulous. The characters are fantastic. The storytelling is sublime. There isn’t anything about it that’s too much, or too little. It’s just…wonderful.It starts off with a flashback of Hugo and Kevin kissing in the woods, which is actually a day dream that Hugo is having while driving his best friend, Summer, to her lake cabin to help her get through a bad breakup. Posy  Roberts has a way with weaving you immediately into her characters’ lives. We quickly get to know Hugo – both through his present interactions with Summer, as well as his memories of high school and his time with Kevin – and see how close and intimate their relationship is. Their friendship is one that every person wishes he or she had. It’s beautiful to read. They have supported each other through so much, and it is easy to see that they are lifelong friends, even promising to have a child together if nothing pans out for Summer in the boyfriend department.While at the cabin, Hugo and Summer decide to go to a BBQ at the home of another friend on the lake; which is where Hugo runs into his first boyfriend, and the man who really still holds his heart, Kevin. They waste no time in reconnecting…and the rest of the book is really the telling of their journey, both past and present, through both character’s eyes.Spark goes seamlessly back and forth, between the boys in high school, and the current day happenings. The story is perfectly told. We learn what happened to them as teenagers, and how they came to drift apart after high school, as well as getting to know them as adults, and watching them re-establish their connection, discovering whether their lives will still fit together as perfectly. There are a few bumps along the road, but not too terribly much angst or drama. It’s just a lovely, enjoyable read. To that note, I have to share one of my favorite bits. It’s a note that Kevin sends to Hugo in high school, along with a little ‘bouquet’ of candy canes:Red because you woke me up and make me feel alive.Orange because with your words you heal what my father breaks.Yellow because your smile is like sunshine.Green because of where I first kissed you. It was because you were so beautiful surrounded by the forest.Blue because I feel serenity when I’m with you.Violet because we are connected. I feel you in me all the time.Rainbow because you showed me my truth, even though it has to remain a secret.And, that’s just a small example of the swoony awesomeness that is this book. Kevin and Hugo’s heat is INCREDIBLE. They are sooooo sexy and uninhibited with each other – the sexytimes are amazing. Just the way that they look at each other, and talk to each other, and….. Ok. Obviously I could go on and on. But, I’ll stop there.I also have to say that I am so happy to hear that Posy Roberts is going to also write YA fiction, because the portions of the book with the boys as teenagers are so, so good. The entire story is extremely well-written…but, it’s also very easy to see that the author has a gift for YA storytelling as well.Here’s the great news, people!! Spark is just the first book in a new series by this wonderful author!! The second book in the North Star series, Fusion, will be out on November 18th, and I can’t wait.This review appeared originally at Mrs Condit & Friends Read Books