Chasing Sparks

Sparkwood: Scenes From A Small Town #2

by M.L. Broome

For six months, I hated Asher Hammond.



And then I slept with him.



What started as one night turned into something neither of us expected—something real. Despite Ash’s aversion to romance and my diehard belief in happily-ever-afters, we found our rhythm: my heart, his hands, and a passion that could burn down Sparkwood.



Between late nights at my bookstore, restoring my crumbling Victorian mansion, and falling for a man who swore love wasn’t in his DNA, I let myself believe we were building something lasting. Even if Ash never said those three words, his actions spoke volumes.



Until she showed up.



The first—and only—woman Asher ever loved. The one who wrecked him, shattered his heart, and left scars deeper than any ink. And she’s not here alone.



Ash swears it’s over between them, but their shared history—and one too many secrets—make it impossible to ignore the cracks in the fragile foundation of our love story. I’ve been second best before, and I refuse to play that role again.



Walking away from the man I love is the hardest thing I’ve ever done. But just when I think I’ve found my footing, life throws me a twist I never saw coming.



Now, I have a secret, too—one that could bring us back together … or tear us apart forever.

Genres: Romance, Small Town Romance, Second Chance, Contemporary Romance, Friends To Lovers, Enemies To Lovers

476 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 29, 2025

About the author

M.L. Broome is a bohemian spirit with a New York edge. Her small-town contemporary romances feature smart and sexy heroines over the age of thirty-five, and sizzle with angsty, slow-burn goodness.

Raised on a steady diet of stories, she grew up believing all men should be like Mr. Rochester in Jane Eyre—enigmatic yet unflappable in their devotion. Hence, her own brand of book boyfriend was born.

When M.L. isn’t holding one-sided arguments with her characters (she likens it to herding cats), she loves losing herself to nature on her North Carolina farm, one her rescue fur babies by her side.

Her favorite things? Dressing up and kicking back with a glass of wine and a stunning view, soaking up all the experiences that make the soul and senses tingle.

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Reviews

[Berenice BSR · Rating 1 out of 5]

I don’t think so

I’m going to start saying that I’m in the middle of reading a series and I was bored to tears so I decided to start a light, fun read as well and end up choosing this book because of a booktok review. At first we have a MMC that has been really hurt by an ex girlfriend 10 years ago and when he starts a relationship with the FMC all you hear him saying is “I’ll never love anyone again” and you will hear him say this over and over and over again in different ways and is freaking annoying. Alright already, we already heard you for heaven’s sake! Shut that f up.

Then you get to the so call “plot” and is the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. Doesn’t even make sense. Is so f***ing stupid that I had to stop, take a moment to breath and then convince myself to go back and finish this s*it.

Then you’ll get to the drama, miscommunication and misunderstanding fase. And that was really tiring. So after all this drama of keeping all the s*it that is going on a secret from everyone and causing all the drama then the MMC decides the next minute to tell the whole truth to his brother and then the FMC so that all the misunderstanding can be cleared up and he can be the “good guy”.

All I did reading this book was rolling my eyes, cursing, swearing and deep breathing so that I could finish reading it. By the way, just let me say that the author tried to portray the FMC as a cool, down to earth type of person but in the reality she is just plain stupid and the MMC as a strong, protective guy but he is just a moron. There I said it!

[Vintage · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ho hum.

The hero has a magic penis. He's sex on legs. He's the man. No woman can resist him. His teeny tiny eg0 soul was crushed by a mean girl 10 years ago. Ho hum.

The heroine is an idiot to even want him in the first place.

[J Jules · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the intro novella, so I was excited to read this.

First, I would say this book is 3.25 stars. I did enjoy reading it, but some of it was predictable.

MMC was a total douche-canoe with his treatment of Ori. I really like her. But the flip flop made me crazy. He was like, “We are gonna be together, I want to date her, let’s go on vacation.” BUT after vacation, “I’m busy opening a bar?” At the same time, he can’t love anyone bc some slut screwed him over OVER A DECADE AGO. Then, he shuns Ori for the slut? What about the word NO. It’s a word. He could’ve said no and saved us all this nonsense.

I really liked Oriana until she finds out about Lucille. He is treating Lucille’s pregnancy like it’s nothing although he is admitting to be the father, but when Ori is pregnant, he’s all in? And she sees no real red flags and lets him right back in? The way she lets him weasel his way in… infuriates me. This whole book was RAGE BAIT. I was there for it, but I also wanted to break things. She’s like “no I can’t have you, but yes, touch me.” Puke. I really wanted her to at least go back to the city to plaid patch friends house and make him sweat. She was a doormat for a man whore.

[Serial Romance Librarian · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m a sucker for the “I’ll never love you” trope. This delivered that although Ash’s reasons were absolutely absurd. He got his wittle heart bwoken 10 years ago so he will never wuv again! And we are reminded of that, over and over.

Anywho, there was good angst and a lot of ow drama. I would’ve almost liked it more if we wouldn’t have had Ash’s POV. One, because it was frustrating af, two because it would’ve made the nonsensical plot more interesting. I really didn’t understand how civilians could be dragged into a covert op in such a stupid way…

I’d love to read Lucille’s redemption story though!

[Serialbookstarter:Marla]

DNF I’m on a roll another book where the guy is really in
Love but fights it because he can’t love a second time.

[mistress of the bookverse · Rating 1 out of 5]

So many big gaping holes.

The first 50% was so slow. Just a constant merry go round of him saying he doesn’t do relationships and fighting his feelings for her. And her reminding herself not to fall in love. It got annoying quick.

Then suddenly bam, a storyline appears out of nowhere that makes zero sense. You have a bad guy who’s fixated on Ash, but for no actual reason lol trying to buy the FMC house, again for no reason. Surely he has more important things to do? He pops in, says some bad guy things, then goes away again. It’s more annoying than dangerous. And homeland security, don’t really do much do they considering they’ve randomly involved civilians.

The plot holes… they can’t look like they’re together still, so he proceeds to send her flowers every day, sleep outside her place in his car and refer to himself as her husband to the bad guys lawyer. Then there’s the mystery of who knew about the baby. Except it’s not a mystery, think pretty much the astronauts on the moon could tell you it was the estate agent the day before.
Then without any fuss and drama, it’s over. Bad guy has run away and it’s ok you won’t see him again. Don’t know why we saw him at all. The leak literally outed himself for no effing reason and that’s that.

Honestly, why even bother with this.

[Michala Sheranko · Rating 2 out of 5]

So throughout this entire book, he keeps to himself that he loves Ori and is able to confirm with others that he loves her when he’s asked BUT he never actually says it to her. Ori says “I love you “ to him but he never says it back? Interesting.

Plus the whole him being Lucille’s supposed baby daddy and hiding the info from Ori was really dumb. You ruined your life and hers to protect someone that you hate? Yeah cause ya know that makes complete sense.

[Kiley · Rating 2 out of 5]

Chasing Sparks, Book 2 of the Sparkwood: Scenes From A Small Town mini-series, was about 39-year-old Oriana "Ori" Thorne, the owner of One More Page, which was a bookstore/coffee shop, and 38-year-old Asher "Ash" Hammond, a tattoo artist and the owner of the Black Lotus tattoo parlor (which shared the building and basement with the bookstore), (and co-owner of the family micro-farm).

Side Note: Book 1, The First Spark, and Book 2, Chasing Sparks, were a duet, both about Ori and Ash. Book 3, Igniting Sparks, was about a different main couple.

This story opened 10 days after Book 1 ended with Ash, his brother Braden, and their friend/co-worker Zane, all spending a week in Vegas for a tattoo artist convention. Normally, the three men would spend their days at the convention, and their nights were shared with "ink bunnies" as Ash named the women who would hang around the convention hoping for some "after-hours piece of action". But now, since Ash was hooking up with Ori regularly, it was uncertain whether or not he would participate. However, in an inner monologue, Ash said that he and Ori "weren't dating" but were in "a gray friends-with-benefits area". His thoughts continued that, if he wanted to "engage in sordid behavior...he was free to do what he wanted".

Unfortunately for Ash and even more so for Ori, the drama began at the opening of the story when his past took an immediate jump back into his present at the convention with the appearance of Lucille, the woman who had been his first love ten years earlier. (His inner monologue said it had been only three years since he'd last seen her, though.) The author revealed that Lucille used to not only sleep with him, but they were tattoo partners, collaborating on tattoos together. It seemed Ash had planned to do a client's tattoo with another artist who ended up in the hospital...and decided to send Ash's ex in his stead. And this was only just the prologue. Unfortunately for the reader, the prologue ended without describing what happened, but revealing Ash was starting to question whether or not his time with Ori was wasted efforts. The story quickly moved on to Chapter 1, which picked up only four days later with Ash seeming to blow Ori off for work-related events.

Only a few days later, Ash got a late-night call at work from his ex asking for a meetup for something important. He reluctantly agreed. At this point, Ash had an inner monologue where it was revealed that his relationship with Lucille hadn't completely ended when he learned she was married while they were together. He said to himself that they had met up at another convention and, out of revenge, he had an on-again/off-again relationship with her. It had been 3 years since the last hook-up, but she had intended to have another one when he was last in Vegas mere days ago. He had said no due to "Ori waiting at home".. The longer I read this book, the angrier I got at the MMC and how often he touted his "I don't do relationships/love/happy-ever-afters", that he and Ori "weren't exclusive. Hell, we aren't even dating." And then he'd start another monologue about how she knew his dating habits, etc. And this was all before Chapter 5. By Chapter 9, the melodrama with all of his women started becoming too much...and we hadn't even gotten to the ex who screwed him over 10 years earlier (am I repeating myself with this diatribe? Why of course I am...just as the author continued doing with the so-called plotline that was very quickly becoming unbearable.). After a while, Ash and Ori settled into a somewhat easy-going set-up, but that wouldn't last long because other women kept popping up to come between them, not the least of which was Lucille, who had waltzed back into the picture and blew everything to hell and back.

When Ash learned that his ex was pregnant and had a criminal after her (someone who was threatening him and Ori, but he hadn't known it was because of his ex), the woman ended up moving in with him, and Ori found out about her and the baby...but not in a good way. There's a bit of mystery around the ex, Ash, the baby, and how this all affects Ori that I won't reveal in this review. Suffice it to say that you need to read the book to get the whole picture.

As if Book 1 didn't create enough push/pull, angst, and drama, the author decided the story needed a second book that would introduce the reader to the MMC's first love...and all the melodrama that would follow that scenario. By Chapter 3, I was so fed up with how many times the MMC repeated that if every woman he hooked up with "didn't like it, knows where the door is.". It became nauseating that he was so destroyed by a woman for TEN F*CKING YEARS that everyone else was made to pay the price for his ex's sins. But even worse than that was how frequently he spouted that he didn't want to have those feelings for Ori that he had for his ex, because he'd "been down this road before and I know how this ride ends. Trust me, it's not pretty, and I'll be damned if I fall down that rabbit hole again. Not even for Ori. No matter how tempting the idea.".

In my Book 1 review, I stated that both of the main characters seemed to be fully developed but in need of some maturing, especially the MMC. However, in THIS book? It's as if the author forgot how she had written them in the previous book and started from scratch because, honestly? Neither one of them was mature OR well-developed. They acted like teenagers on steroids who had a bad case of diarrhea. Everything was blown out of proportion, the storyline was choppy, the plot was virtually nonexistent, and the back-and-forth arguments were entirely frustrating. The MMC had NO respect for the FMC. He crossed boundaries more times than I could count, he invaded her personal space when she asked him to stay away and give her time to come to terms with the situation, and he just out and out did whatever the f*ck he wanted, regardless of her needs or requests.

There were so many times while reading this story that I nearly DNF'd it because it was that repetitive, that much of a snoozefest, and that irritating. It seemed as if the author changed her mind in the middle of writing a romance novel and decided to delve into the crime/suspense genre because almost from the start of this book it vered away from the relationship between the two main characters and began focusing on the MMC and his ex (and HER ex-husband whom she had cheated on with the MMC 11 years earlier). The twist that took had such a traumatic effect on the FMC that I don't know how she ever managed to forgive him for his lies, manipulation, and secrets as quickly as she did.

I only gave this a two-star rating because, in all honesty, no woman (living or fictional) in their right mind would ever seriously choose such a "hero" to spend the rest of her life with. In addition to all the things I felt were wrong with the book, there was also the fact that this book, as its predecessor had done, ended in a bit of a cliffhanger. Oh, this story ended, but the author chose to begin the introduction of Book 3, which has not yet been published. So the ending of the epilogue was partially about Mina (the BFF to the FMC of this story), who will be the FMC of Book 3. I didn't like that, but it is what it is. I don't think I'll be reading it when it is released if it's anything like these first two books.

[Chalice · Rating 2 out of 5]

The couple: Ash and Ori

Romance trope: OW drama
Series: Sparkwood: Scenes From a Small Town
Length: 476 pages

Plot: Ori knows Ash's reputation, but she finds it impossible to resist him despite it. But the hot and cold is getting a little old. It might not even matter though because his old girlfriend, the one who broke him, is back, pregnant with his baby. She's not the only one, though.

Commentary: Gosh, this felt like a new adult soap opera even though they were late 30's/early 40's. So much drama. So much back and forth, for no reason. Poor guy got his heart broke over ten years ago. Glad to see he's a functioning adult. And she just kept forgiving him no matter what he did or said. Again, functioning, huh?
And to mention the arrival of the super secret agent who involves a bunch of civilians in his very dangerous undercover operation. That explains a lot.

Previous book in the series: The First Spark
Next book in the series: Igniting Sparks

[C · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5⭐️

[Etta Lund · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so much better. The two main characters had good growth from the first book. I just love Ori and Ash’s relationship. I’m a totally sucker for bad boys falling in love.

[j a z e l🫧 · Rating 5 out of 5]

IM OBSESSED… i was SAT and NEVER LEFT. honestly when I first read a snippet of the plot on TikTok Ive never read this type of storyline before I've heard similar story lines but never like this. AND IT WAS SOOOOO GOOOD.👩‍🍳💋(chefs kiss)

when ash finally realized that he loves ori but couldn't tell her that, he SHOWED her through his actions, and in his mind he was literally fighting inner battles with his feelings for ori and not being able to tell her. he loved her so much and wanted to tell her so bad but was trying to do something nice and I know that he was kind of helping his ex but it was for a good cause and him and his ex clearly had no chemistry what so ever so I don't really think that he was betraying her in any sort of way. I truly love ash so much and the amount of love he has for ori💕... ohh myyyy. he told himself that he wouldn't love again and he wouldn't put himself in that position again to ensure that he wouldn't get hurt... BUT MS oriana thorne broke down all the walls and lit placed herself in his heart. ❤️

their banter and his soft spot for her..., they look for each other in a sea full of people and when their eyes do meet its lit SPARKS FLYING left and right.✨ its a little like grumpy and grumpy where when ash shoots something to her she doesn't back down but says something just as fiery back. when ash describes her as the little fiery librarian... melts my heart. whenever he says that or that ori is mine, or calls her his WOMAN.... I LIT on my KNEES for this man.😭

and Ms oriana thorne never backs down from a fight, she'll stand tall and face it head on with a smile, and when shes really hurt she'll show you and TELL you. I love that about her, I wish that I could be like her and come up with witty responses on the spot.🫰🏻

" because I cant lose her. not like this."
" I have no choice. to protect the woman I love, I have to lie to her."
" I have to break her heart. shatter any belief she has in me, in us, and in the future we could have had together."😭
" I love you, ori. fuck, I should've told you that sooner. I should have said something on that first day. that first week."
this man and his desperateness for her, his mind is something else... he loves her so much even though he doesn't want to hurt her, he loves her so much that he wants to protect her. 💖
" you mean everything to me."😭
" all the spots in my heart are already filled. by you. " AWWWWWWW🥺
" that's the thing. where you are... that's my home."
" I'm here when you're ready, ori. you're worth the wait."
"ash?"
" yes, my love."♥️you already know that's my WEAKNESSS I FOLD whenever a man says that...
I can't... why cant men like this exists in the real world, I need one RIGHT NOW ASAP GIVE ME 13 MORE!

[Katie Thornton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ash and Ori are back! Chasing Sparks will take you on a rollercoaster ride of emotions. I had my doubts when I saw the length of the books but every page had my attention and I could not put it down. The twists and turns were unexpected however they worked so much better than I could have ever imagined. I was completely in awe of how it played out and truly enjoyed how the story unraveled.

[Smiler The Avid Reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ori and Ash.

Possible spoilers**

I loved their story! The angst, the twists and turns were so addictive.

Some reviews I’ve seen say that Ori became a bit weak, but I beg to differ. She moved with the cards that were dealt to her and managed her feelings with grace and determination. Ash in the first half was frustrating whilst he got to grips with his feelings, but in the second half was between a rock and a hard place.

Some readers labelled it as miscommunication, but for me I didn’t think that at all. He was caught in a set of circumstances that happened whilst he was juggling with his feelings, and then the proverbial poop hit the fan and he made decisions that not only affected Ori, but solidified his own feelings in the process. I think if the author had played out more towards the danger that Ori was in and the more criminal circumstances and the need for Ori’s protection, then Ash’s decisions may have been more palatable.
Ori’s reaction to finding out the truth for some may have felt rushed, but I think she was just relieved that it wasn’t what it seemed. Plus her circumstance’s led to her reaction as well.
A little bit more pushback from Ori might have gone towards feeling like she didn’t give in straight away, maybe some time to make Ash sweat it out for his decisions that ultimately led her to heartbreak for a month. Her immediately understanding why he did what he did doesn’t mean she couldn’t have had a bit of time to mull it over and ruminate in her feelings for a while, even a day or two and then communicating how that time apart made her feel.

I loved reading Ash and how his feelings unfolded. He was running scared and his inner monologue endeared me to him, but at the same time made me want to shake him silly!!

Ori was a mix of strength, but at the same time vulnerable due to how she felt.

I can’t wait to read Mina and Braden’s story.

[Terri Moore · Rating 1 out of 5]

I only feel rage.

[Raffaella · Rating 2 out of 5]

Since I decided to read one book each month without reading the reviews, only reading the plot, this is my first experiment.
I admit that, seeing the cover, I thought it was much more romantic, more like a Nicolas spark novel.
I was wrong.
The hero is a tattoo artist and the heroine is no Scarlett O’Hara, even if she’s a librarian.
They’re late 30s, both single and work in the same street.
They had a nasty fight when she first opened her shop six months before, and avoided carefully each other since.
He’s a manwhore extraordinaire, and that bothered me a lot because he’s not a teenager by any means, but he’s always thinking about sex, and salivating over women’s bodies, it wasn’t funny.
When the book opens, he and the heroine have reconciled and have had sex a couple of times.
He’s a commitment phobic since his first love ten years before broke his heart. Boohooo.
So he doesn’t think of him and the heroine as a couple and she knows it.
It’s more his rational part that doesn’t want to commit, while his body apparently has already committed to the heroine since after having sex with her he will be faithful even if he is propositioned on a daily base by his clients and other women who pass by.
This actually was annoying and not much believable, ok he is kind of a hunk but I don’t appreciate when women behave like they’re starving for a man. Not at all.
And I don’t like manwhores.
He has an adult movie star propositioning him, a journalist that was so explicit that I almost puked and some other women always hanging around.
The heroine tries to behave like she doesn’t care but she does because she’s no prude but she doesn’t feel like partaking of a man when too many women are helping themselves to him.
And there’s manwhore and manwhore. He had one different woman each day if the week, that is in six months they’ve known each other it makes more than two hundred women.
To me, nobody with that kind of score would be worth a try.
Yuck.
And even if eh doesn’t feel attracted to any other woman after the heroine, he keeps looking at other women and appreciating their assets which was disgusting because it made him look like a sleazy scumbag.
Not my kind of man.
When will writers realize that a manwhore is the opposite of sexy because a man who always needs to change his partner to be satisfied is not a strong alpha but a weak beta, and that he needs variety to keep it up.
Whatever, he slowly falls in love with the heroine until his ex comes back.
And here is where I was almost DNF the book. Because his ex is in the beginning an evil cheater who deceived him and cheated on her husband, while afterwards she turns miraculously into a weeping, abused woman who has nothing to do with the woman we met in the first part of the book.
This was an inconsistency I could not accept.
And the government secret mission was ludicrous.
Basically his ex and her ex husband are now secret agents that are on a mission to discover and trap a dangerous guy who trafficked in young girls. The guy was with ow for some time and he thinks the hero’s is ows baby daddy, so the heroine is now in danger because he wants revenge on the hero.
This was definitely ott.
So the heroine takes ow home and says everyone he’s ow baby daddy.
The heroine is of course very hurt, and he tries to tell her this happened before they met.
No matter what, the heroine is not ready to take him back, because this woman is his first love and she thinks he’s still in love with her.
The end was quite anticlimactic, all is well and we can go home and drink ourselves stupid hoping to make sense of this mess.
What I didn’t like.
- the hero is a manwhore. He’s not sexy, he’s sleazy, he’s yucky, he’s always looking at ow like they’re body parts and I don’t care if he doesn’t want to sleep with them, it’s disgusting. He’s late 30s not a teenager. I wouldn’t touch him with a barge pole.
- it’s not realistic that women throws themselves at a man because he’s hot. It’s demeaning and false, there may be women with this kind of attitude but here it looks like all women under 75 are sex staved. It was ridiculous. Are really women that shallow that they’re only seeing a man because he’s hot? Really?
- the hero being commitment phobic because of a relationship gone bad ten years before. Please give us some strong alpha and not these weak beta for once.
- the inconsistency of ow being first a nasty bitch then a pleasant and caring woman. At least try to be consistent. I don’t expect all ow to be evil bitches, it’s not realistic, but when we first meet her she’s a bitch that is ready to have sex with the hero while being with another guy, then a few weeks later she becomes all cute and caring. Nah.
- the government secret mission was kind of ott. It was too much, and the book didn’t need it.
What I liked
- the hero is committed to the heroine because he doesn’t want to be with anyone else, which reminded me of all those idiot heroes in Lynne Graham books when the hero tries to be with ow but is unable to, because his body only wants the heroine. Which was kind of hilarious. Even if he’s a sleazy pig.
- the heroine is no virgin and definitely no doormat. She doesn’t accept to play happy family while the hero is with his supposed baby mama.
- he doesn’t have feelings for his ex anymore. He only helps her because the heroine is in danger.
This could have been a really good book, sadly it left me quite disappointed because the hero was too much of a disgusting pig and because it could have been shorter and better without all the ow drama.
Oh, and the cherry on top. The heroine asks the hero if he is willing to be faithful and he answers that he will be as long as he has her by his side, which means, as long as she puts out. Jesus, how romantic!

[SHAY · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can’t find “Catching Sparks” to read it. It was supposed to be released in 2023 and then I saw it was going to be released March 2024. I really enjoyed “The First Spark” introducing Ori & Ash. I was looking forward to the upcoming series of Spark Ridge. Can anyone here please tell me where it can be read/purchased? Thanks

[Reading With April · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved Ash and Ori's story 🥰 It was just what I needed to get my out of my reading slump.
This story had the love, angst, and spice. Ash will forever be a top guy for me, the way he never gave up and fought through everything for Ori.
I pretty much dove into this blindly and so glad that I did because I devoured it.

[Katie Mettner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well, I didn’t see that coming. At least not what happened at the midpoint of this wonderful later-in-life romance from M.L. Broome. Chasing Sparks isn't your typical girl meets boy, falls in love, and has some spicy time between the sheets. Is there spicy time between the sheets? Yes, but we’ll get to that. Ori and Ash’s romance is an emotional journey that plunges you headfirst into the messy realities of abandonment, the scars it leaves, and the long process of healing that can look different for everyone.

Ash, our love-challenged tattoo artist, is etched with emotional scars from a woman's betrayal. His gruff exterior hides a deep well of pain stemming from her lies, that have left him unable to trust his heart again. He makes it KNOWN to every woman who propositions him that he is ONLY in it for the spice. It's his shield to avoid giving too much of himself to anyone ever again. Enter Ori, the owner of the bookstore next door to his tattoo shop. He just happens to have fallen in love…with her coffee, but he doesn’t realize that Ori carries her own burdens. The tiny fireplug that he sees and sweetly calls ‘Little One’ has a lot going on in life, and she finds refuge in the familiar scent of old paper and the escapism found within the pages of a book. What he doesn’t see is that she’s not that much different from him, except she still believes in the fairytale of love, something he no longer subscribes to. In typical Ash fashion, he makes it equally clear to her that he's not in it for anything other than a roll in the hay, which she accepts. Until they both start thinking that maybe a roll in the hay isn't enough, even if they don't know what to do about it.

The beauty of Chasing Sparks lies in its unflinching portrayal of relationships when two people want different things from one. It doesn't shy away from the ugly, messy parts of anger, resentment, abandonment, denial, and the crushing weight of emptiness. Ori and Ash both struggle with the same things, just in MUCH different ways yet both feel authentic and relatable, making their connection all the more powerful.

And now we’ve made it to the spice! SO, SO much spice, But let me say, that while frequent, it it never feels gratuitous. M.L. makes it work for her as part of their journey, a crucible that forges a stronger connection between them each time AND as a way for Ash to heal his heart as Ori nurses him back to health.

Then the second half of the book hits and things.get.ugly. You’re certain all is lost until you realize that when everything looks to be falling apart, it’s actually falling into place for both Ash and Ori to give them a better shot at love after all.

Chasing Sparks is an emotionally resonant read with all of the angst and snark that is M.L. Broome’s trademark. It's a story about finding light in the darkness, the transformative power of love even when you don’t believe in it, and, more importantly, the courage it takes to heal wounds of betrayal when it requires risking your heart to make that happen. It's a must-read for anyone who appreciates a romance with depth, complexity, and a healthy dose of angsty humor and spice. Ori and Ash leave you with hope and the quiet understanding that even the deepest scars tell a story. Love is resilient, and no matter how much you think you can outwit it with determination and snark, if it’s real, it won’t take no for an answer. Well done, Ms. Broome!

[The Book Dragon's Hoard by A.V. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This wonderful second instalment of the Sparkwood series is so wonderfully different from Broome's other works. I'm absolutely in love with Ori and Ash, especially since Ash, too, is very different from this author's other MMCs who I often want to smack upside the head before giving them a hug. Ash just gets a hug from me.

The story itself has wonderful smalltown vibes. There is low drama, mostly brought about by miscommunciation, but in an interesting way. It's rare for an author to go into the effects of a "rule" or "belief" that a character purports when they cling to that idea well beyond their own changing experience, and hence have a disjoint between their words and actions, and what they believe about themselves or others. Sometimes, it takes us time to adapt to change. Sometimes, we are so afraid of opening up to change that we cling to the words we used before. Sometimes, we risk losing everything because we're so stubborn we refuse to acknowledge a change in ourselves and instead continue to run on whatever "rule" or "belief" was valid for us before, because that's easier than acknowledging a change. And this is even more of an issue for people who've been set in their way for years, or even a decade, as in the case of both characters.

Both Ori and Ash have put up walls because of traumatic past experiences, and because they are both rather stubborn and not open to acknowledging when things change for them, they have a rather long road in this novel, since their attraction and fabulous relationship potential was established in the first book. Of course, Broome can't leave it at something so simple, so the second half of the book ramps up with the drama in unexpected ways, which added a lot and definitely made me sympatize with both characters while some unavoidable and unfortunately necessary secret-keeping was going on.

While it's different from Broome's other works, this duet is a wonderful addition to this author's heartfelt exploration of how people's pasts often stand in the way of their present happiness. And this one is a gentle read, which was exactly what I needed. Sometimes it's nice to have a slightly cozier read.

[✩ layla ✩ · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first half of this book was a solid 4.5 stars. I actually enjoyed it! I was finally reading about a heroine who knew she was worth more than being treated like an afterthought, a heroine who put boundaries in place and held true to them. I liked the way she didn't let him get away with a half-arsed apology and took him to task. The only thing I had a problem with was her telling him she loved him but knowing he didn't feel the same way about her (he knows he feels strongly for her, and all his actions say otherwise, but he tells her it can't be serious because "he doesn't do serious" 🙄 Still, I was thinking, this book had to be some kind of unicorn compared to the complete doozies I'd been reading. And I would have kept thinking that way had the story stopped there.

Unfortunately it kept going. And the plot jumped the shark.

The whole scenario with the hero's ex just didn't make any sense. The fact the hero had to be the one to help her (the ex) was lame since she already had an ex-husband (yeah i know. exes everywhere in this book lol) who SHOULD have been more than capable of protecting her, but he apparently is shit at his job since the hero had to step in. the hero could have told the heroine what was really happening but apparently he was told he couldn't. so he didn't. again, lame. he should have defied them all and just told her (the heroine) the truth. but nope. guess there wouldn't have been a story then.

what annoyed me the most was the heroine had gone from this fierce, take-no-shit-but-still-sweet-as-hell kinda woman (my favourite!) to a typical romance heroine who is boring and had zero personality outside of wanting the hero. it annoyed me so much i ended up skimming to the end.

still, it gets points for the first half so at least there's that 😉

and this is the 2nd book i've read in the past couple of days where the heroine is older (late thirties?) but acts like a teenager. weird.

[Realistic Reviews · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF at 60% (skimmed through the last chapters to see how it all plays out)

Save yourself the trouble and don’t read this book. For characters that should be in their late 30’s to 40’s, you’d think they’d be able to communicate better but neither of them don’t. I understand the miscommunication trope but this book took it to another level that I had to take multiple breaks so I wouldn’t rage.

Asher needs therapy with how often he kept saying he doesn’t do relationships and love is not real over a relationship that was 10 years ago. I guess I’ll him credit for being monogamous during his FWB relationship with Ori, but overall, he was a walking red flag.

Ori also needs therapy for her self esteem issues. She kept going back on her word that she didn’t care what Asher does with other women yet takes him back anytime he shows slight interest in her? She has no respect or backbone for herself. Ori allowed Asher to trample all over her, like where was the grovel? She gave in too quick.

And it does not make sense for civilians to be involved with homeland security investigation on human trafficking even as confidential informants. Neither of them had insider knowledge of criminal organizations or activities.

[Lina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was really excited to read the next book in the series and to see what the future will hold for Ori and Ash.

"Chasing Sparks" starts as soon as "The First Spark" finishes. Ori and Ash are something like together, and she still has her doubts regarding their relationship. She is still adapting, and it's still difficult for her to believe he is committed to their love. If I have to be honest in this book, I didn't agree with some of Ash's decisions, but I loved the fact that he was determined to prove to her that he is a different man from before, and she is his forever.

We still had drama surrounding these two and the main one was Ash's ex-girlfriend showing up in their small town, being pregnant. Everyone thinks that the baby is Ash's, but the truth is very different. Sadly, Ori starts believing the rumors and that makes her break away from him, hiding her own secret. But seeing Ash as a changed man made me love him more. Because he never allowed her to hide from him and gave up on their love.

I also loved their steamy scenes. They were so damn hot. The spice was off the charts and the smut was plenty...plenty for my soul 😈.

I actually loved reading their story and their deserved happily ever after ♥️.

[Sammy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked this book it was ok. frustrating but okay
Don't get me wrong, the MMC & FMC had some amazing chemistry, but the miscommunication i absolutely HATE.

The weird plot twist with the ex and HLS guy kinda ruined it, and then that little twist fizzled out fast. I found it to be just stupid and an absolute waste.

I was quiet let down with this book it had so much potential, but the plot twist and the lack of communication put me off.

I read the whole book, and I love Oriana and Ash, but there was so much unnecessary bullshit that just didn't need to happen.
the ending made me happy. But she should never have had to go through any of that had he just been honest with her.
Ash is an amazing guy and quick with his words, and in his own way, he was trying to tell her how he felt about her, but Oriana was so quick to jump to so many silly conclusions it just got boaring.
The fact it took him almost losing her for him to truly realise he loved her and wanted nothing but her erked me.
Even then, you only ever hear him say he loves her once.
Yes, he has done some amazing surprises and grand gestures, but I think we would have loved to hear Ash SAY I love you to Oriana.
Don't get me wrong, the man knows how to surprise his woman 😏

I do feel let down with this book, tho 😢

[Emily Roseno · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.75⭐️

This books was terrible and absolutely horribly written. The characters (especially the MMC) were so unlikable, the story line fell apart so many times I lost track, and the book led up to what could have been a decent climax for nothing to happen. Severely disappointed., And SO many wishy-washy characters—they had the emotional stability of a tired infant. One second the characters were pissed at each other and the next they were in love and making out with NOTHING happening to change it. The MMC was a walking red flag and not in a hot morally gray kind of way. He was just a dick who had the emotional intelligence of a lemon. I ended up skimming most of the book just to get through it because it made it such a struggle to want to read.

[Kricketland · Rating 4 out of 5]

WHAT TO EXPECT:
✔️ Slow Burn
✔️ Protector Role
✔️ She Falls First, He Falls Harder
✔️ Return of an Ex
✔️ Surprise Pregnancy
✔️ Small Town
✔️ Second Chance
✔️ Touch Her and 💀

Chasing Sparks is the second book in the Sparkwood series and the second half of Ash and Ori’s story. I liked Chasing Sparks more than the first book in the series, and I was pulled into the characters more this time. I found the drama with the ex a bit weird, and maybe that is where I felt there may have been a missed opportunity to increase the angst in the storyline. I would have liked to feel more tension between Ash and Ori, but I found Chasing Sparks a cute, enjoyable, spicy read with mild angst and a HEA. For these reasons, I am rating Chasing Sparks 4 / 5 stars.

[kiwifriut · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF @ 75% but should’ve stopped earlier

Oh boy.

The couple fell incredibly flat for me. Often I found myself forgetting how old they were based on their juvenile thoughts and dialogues. At their grown age I would help they had learned to communicate as adults but alas.

The internalised misogyny was strong in this one. Other than FMC, her employee (who is set to be mc in another book), and maybe Lucille(?), all other women are presented as vapid whores. Every. Other. Female. Character. As a woman, hard to read FMC’s thoughts tearing other women down.

Two stars only because the lunacy of the plot made for good hate reading.

[Anne Young-Cronister · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh-Em-Gee Fantastic book!! You. Will love Oriana and Ash!
He’s a tattoo artist and she’s a bookstore owner!! What a great combination!! The sparks certainly fly for these two!!
The excitement and heat was excellent as per the need to have an HEA!! Excellent on both sides! I loved the Rum & Ruin! This is an excellent book to read! I don’t do spoilers so this review isn’t that big. I couldn’t put it out of reach very long! Just when Real Life had to be done! I loved this book!!

I reviewed an advanced copy of this book.

[Ashlee · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked book two a lot better than book one. I felt like this book had a plot, whereas the first book really didn’t. This book was a little heartbreaking since Ash’s ex came back in and needed him to help her. Ori, not knowing anything because Ash couldn’t say anything, broke my heart a little bit. You hope everything would work out just fine, but you never know. This book is a fast read. There were a few things in this book that I didn’t see coming, but you also hoped something would happen. All in all, it was a cute book. I am excited for book three, given the epilogue in this book.

[Roxana Lozano · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ash and Ori story continues and after his ex Lucile comes back into the picture Ori is just heart broken; willing to give Ash his happy ending w his ex because she thinks he is still in love w her. But Ash realizes he is in love with Ori and only wants her but he keeps making the wrong decisions trying to keep Ori safe from Lucile ex. Who is trafficking girls and wants Ori to sell her mansions investment to him. She also finds out that her hired contractor is her half brother. It’s a rollercoaster of events, emotions but they finally get it together