Sparks Fly is an office romantic comedy novel written by Zakiya N. Jamal. The novel centers on the relationship between Maximo “Max” Martinez Williams and Stella Renee Johnson, two modern New Yorkers who meet in an unusual place — at a sex club, where they instantly connect. However, things become far more complicated when Stella discovers that Max is the CEO of a major AI company, the older brother of her boss, and the creator of the very AI program threatening her career as a young quiz writer at a struggling magazine. The novel follows both their romance and the digital-age challenges surrounding technology and job insecurity.
Both Stella and Max are bi. The novel does not have mainstream representation because, unlike many other books featuring bi characters, both bisexual protagonists are people of colour with immigrant backgrounds. Max is an atypical example of a very rich and successful bi character who is not hiding his sexual orientation and has never felt that his bisexuality prevents his success. Stella is also quite unusual because she is a “late bloomer” — a twenty-seven-year-old virgin who dreams about great love and serious relationships, the complete opposite of stereotypes about the “promiscuous bi person”.
Stella is also confident in her bi identity and annoyed by stereotypes surrounding bi people.
When dating, Stella didn’t often tell people right out the gate that she was bi. Guys could be weird about it because they automatically assumed that meant she’d be down for a threesome. Women could be weird about it because they assumed she was only trying out being a lesbian and would go back to men once she was done experimenting. One time a woman literally told Stella she didn’t want to date someone who had no experience with a woman, and Stella said, ‘I barely have any experience with men!’
For both Max and Stella, their bi identity exists as a bridge between their very different worlds. They use different labels to express themselves. Stella may call herself queer in conversations with people who do not understand bisexuality, but, like Max, she prefers the bi label.
So are you bi or pan?” she [Stella] asked. “I tend to flip-flop between the two and usually just go with queer if anyone asks.”
It seemed to take Max a second to register what she was saying, but when he did, his eyes finally met and held hers again, although he still seemed hesitant.
“I’m bi,” he said. “Although yeah, like you said, pan works for me. I don’t really care about a person’s gender one way or the other.”
“Ditto.
The novel also contains several spicy moments that may appeal to fans of bi romances.
Unfortunately, Sparks Fly has not received much attention from major LGBT media outlets. However, it has gained recognition from several book bloggers who specifically noted the bisexuality of the main characters.
For example, as Harlequin Junkie wrote:
Despite the conflict of interest, Stella and Max can’t resist their magnetic attraction toward each other, and agree to keep their personal lives separate from what’s happening at work. But the more similarities they discover at home — both Black, book-smart, and bisexual — the more they butt heads at work.
The Lesbrary described it as “a Bi4Bi F/M office romance” — meaning a romance between two bi characters.
They also noted the flexibility of the main characters’ labels:
Both main characters mention they are bisexual, but this is not the main focus of their relationship. During one of their dinner dates, Max nervously comes out as bi to Stella. But she quickly allays his fears by telling him she uses the label ‘queer’ most often as she flip-flops between bi and pan. He mostly uses bi, but he’s not picky about using pan as a label either. Both agree they don’t concern themselves with their partner’s gender.
Max does have an introspective moment where he recognizes the biphobia that still runs rampant. As they dance among other couples who are straight-presenting, he realizes no one there is questioning their sexuality. But if they went to a Pride event together, he knew they’d catch sideways glances.
Kymbeyyyreads review on TheStoryGraph noticed:
As a Bisexual Latine, I knew this book was gonna represent from the get go and it truly did! Bi4Bi romances are my jam, this book is chaotically bisexual in the best way.
Despite the lack of major popularity, this romance received good reviews from LGBT book readers and clubs, and the bisexuality of the characters was frequently noted.
The author herself, Zakiya N. Jamal, announced the book deal for Sparks Fly on her Instagram by describing it as a “smutty Bi4Bi Black romance”, meaning that she promoted it as a bi romantic comedy even before it was published.