On Dublin Street (On Dublin Street Series Book 1)

Ok while Bredan is kind of a cave man egotistical overbearing a type hero who can be kinda almost swoonworthy we just don't really get to know him. Joss is seeing everything thru a scared ass I don't want to know anyone fog that that's just it. It's all a fog with lots of the F word and sex. And honestly the breakup she forced on him was a contrived way to cause tension.... Really annoying childish tension . I'm sick of this girl tension. And then the end is somewhat anticlimactic. Disappointed how this was ever rated as a top romance. Boo - I did finish it through so there is that.

This story is a really easy read and really easy to like. The characters are interesting and complex enough for you to forget the slightly clichéd ”filthy-rich, sexy and cocky guy meets young and beautiful woman who doesn’t want to be caught but falls in the end”-trope.It’s hot and romantic. It’s the perfect read when you’re looking to be entertained.I really enjoy stories with strong female characters. There’s nothing that gets me irritated as fast as wimpy, meek or overly undescisive women. Joss is strong and confident. She doesn’t make excuses and she takes what she wants. She’s basically awesome.But. Something that lowered the overall impression of the story, was the large number of spelling errors and typos. Proof-reading is a thing and should really be applied, you know. English isn’t even my first language, so when I reflect on the numerous typing errors, it’s bad.But in conclusion, this is a great book if you’re not looking for anything too heavy. You’ll get love and steam interspersed with some drama. It’s the perfect mix. Just don’t expect to remember the plot after a few months, it’s quite forgettable.

I only recently discovered these sexy romances and I think Samantha Young is way near the top close to the Queen and Princess of this type of book Helena Hunting. It's basically a formula - meet - resist - have sex - fall in love - break up - make up - get a ring. She is (almost) always beautiful and thin and he ALWAYS has washboard abs. So working within these narrow boundaries the authors have to be creative with their characters and situations, and essentially the dialogue must be smart and snappy and I think Ms Young has done an excellent job of this. I was however very disappointed to see how many grammatical and spelling errors there were in the book. It's not the first time I've noticed this - and believe me I have read these romances almost exclusively for months while trying to get myself out of a bit of a dark hole. In a way it cheapens the whole genre - almost as if the publishers see this type of novel as trash and so don't really give them the attention they deserve because they think the sort of women who read them won't notice. Anyway, on to Book 2!

Someone recommended this book to me, so I grabbed a copy. It's actually the worst. The male lead is possessive, controlling, and definitely verging on abusive. The "cool and collected" female lead was irritating and uncomfortably acquiescent. Also, this author needs a new editor. One who knows how to use a comma correctly.Don't waste your money.

Wow! What a breath of fresh air that was!This book truly surprised me since I wasn't expecting too much out of it. But it was all I could have asked for. It was funny, it was witty, made me laugh so hard at some times, but there was seriousness in it and deep issues that tore my little heart appart. The characters just grew under my skin and I fell in love with them from the start.Jocelyn - she was not your typical girl, looking for love and the prince in shining armor, just the opposite. She was such a badass, independent, strong and witty from the outside, but I instantly knew that was a cover for her true inner stuggle. And it was. The more you get to know her, the more you see how vulnerable and broken she was. She claimed she didn't want a relationship of any kind, well...she didn't...until him ;)Braden - OMG he was simply swoon-worthy. Such a dirty talker and his behavior was a bit too alpha bounding with caveman at places, but he was such a caring, loving and patient person...sigh...Their banter throughout the whole book was off the charts - funny and witty - it really made me laugh every time they started bikering with each other. And those little fights just led to hot, explosive, steamy scenes that were intense but really powerful to read. Because little by little they opened up to each other and the physical gave way to so much more that simply stole my breath!The writing was exceptional. It was a combination of emotions going one after another till the very end. I have a thing for an author who could manouver so well between feelings and evoke in you a hurricane of emotions. This one surely did and I can't wait to meet the rest of the gang of this series ;)

I have had this paperback on my bookshelves for over five years. FIVE YEARS!! I cannot believe that I have had access to one of the best stories I have ever read and not done so! I’m going to be kicking myself for a long time to come I can assure you. BUT first I'll need sleep because I forced myself to put the book down and grab two hours, as I knew I had to somewhat function today. The lack of sleep will be so worth it and I know I am going to be thinking of this story for quite some time and hopefully the tears will stop flowing soon!I was consumed by this story. I’m chuckling to myself right now because I nearly didn’t choose to read this book as I have been binging on RomComs as of late, but I had chosen On Dublin Street for my blog’s January read and last night I thought I should start it whilst I had the chance. The fact that this book, one that I knew I wasn’t really in the mood for, managed to grab my attention and make me feel so much all the way throughout the story is truly remarkable. Even when I wanted to roll my eyes within the first few scenes when I guessed who Braden was to Joss from their initial meeting, assuming this was going to be, forgive me for saying your ‘typical romance story’, I didn’t expect to find myself so in love with this story, addicted to the way Samantha Young’s words were bringing out all the emotions in me and connecting with the characters that she had created. There are some very valuable messages conveyed in the story that I will take away with me and hold dear to my heart.I couldn’t help but love Joss, Braden, Ellie and Adam, and whatever emotion they were experiencing I was right there with them. I adore Joss - Her story broke my heart at times and I got it…. I truly understood where she was coming from. Her personality is amazing. Her one-liners, the banter she creates between herself and Braden, plus the struggles that she has makes her a very special young lady indeed. Someone who deserves nothing but a lifetime of happiness.I understood both Joss and Braden’s actions, even when I wanted to reach into the book and give them a shake to realise what was happening between them and also right the wrongs that they were doing to each other.If you’ve got this far through my rambling review… thank you for persevering! I know the majority of romance readers will have already read and enjoyed this book and you may be ready to reread and relive this beautiful story once again. For those who have yet to read it, please do! I’d love to award this book more than the five stars that I am able to. It will definitely be listed as one of my top reads of 2021 at the end of the year.

3.5 starsThe plot line in one line:A 22 year old who has not overcome the grief of her family dying, eventually – and unexpectedly - finds courage and resolution in the company of a new flat mate and the arms of a passionate Scotsman.The good and the bad:While I found On Dublin Street an enjoyable read on the whole, it wasn’t until the last quarter of the book that I found myself liking the hero and heroine. Joss is a bit of a depressing and cold woman which is unsurprising given her loss, but as a very happy person myself I struggled to relate to her negativity. I think I might have felt differently if in the book we got to experience happy, pre-bereavement Joss, in order to understand that she’s not really a cold person underneath it all. Come the last part of the book though, as she deals with her grief, she changes and becomes much more likeable. I found myself rooting for her as she came to terms with her problems.Joss’ love interest, Braden, is cocky and domineering from the outset. I didn’t like that he flirted so heavily with Joss when he had a girlfriend, and sometimes his aggression (grabbing Joss and not letting her leave when she wanted to), which was passed off as passion and being what she needed, seemed a bit oppressive to me. Again, come the end of the book, I liked him much more having seen how he stuck by Joss despite her issues.Joss and Braden have a highly-charged sex life from the outset. It’s the very passionate, angst-driven type of sex. Lots of hard banging in moments of rage and lust. While I enjoyed these scenes, I felt there was a lack of balance between the development of their sexual relationship and their non-sexual relationship. Joss and Braden are falling in love and yet you don’t really get an insight into their non-sexual chemistry and moments until the last part of the book.The only other negatives are the careless typos and punctuation errors, and the fact that some relevant details are not clarified for ages. Like, we don’t find out Braden’s eight years older than Joss until about halfway through the book.I know my review sounds quite negative overall. Maybe it’s because I usually read happy-clappy romances, whereas this book is really more about dealing with grief and trauma (by finding love). I did enjoy it overall, and I would read another of Samantha Young’s books, but I feel I need to read something a little lighter first.

Well im ashamed to say that this was my first Samantha Young book and i can definitely say it wont be my last!!!!Ive been wanting to read this for a while and glad i finally got myself round to it!Joss has had a rough childhood losing her closest family which she struggles to deal with when she decides to move from America to Edinburgh as thats where her mum originally was from.While looking for a new roommate she shares a taxi with a hot suited alpha male who at the time she doesnt realise will actually change her life so much!Braden is a strong confident ladies man that will let noone walk over him... he has great businesses and is a huge family man.Who says opposites dont attract??This book has alot of emotional parts.. loss heart break love emotions and struggles with opening up to people this book has it all!Now my struggle is what Samantha book to read next!!!

I'm going to apologise straight off the bat. This is going to be a review of gushing praise. It's been a long time since I read a book that I genuinely couldn't put down, that made me laugh until I cried and that left me thinking about it long after I'd finished the last page. On Dublin Street was all of those things. I've been a fan of Samantha Young for just over a year and have read most of her YA novels, so I really didn't know what to expect from her first foray into the world of adult literature. To say I was pleasantly surprised would be a gross understatement.The story revolves around Joss Butler and Braden Carmichael *swoon*. Joss lost her family to a car accident and has moved to Scotland from the States to escape from it all. Braden is a wealthy business magnate who happens to be the older brother of Joss's new flatmate Ellie. It's a story about love, about friendship, about redemption and mostly about how sometimes you need a little help laying your ghosts to rest.Joss is funny, witty, brave and yet damaged. There is so much depth to her character and the way Samantha has portrayed her panic attacks is spot on. You don't ever forget the way they make you feel, or that moment when your world crashes down around you. The way Joss deals with it is maybe not the healthiest, but there is no way to rationalise irrational guilt. It's easy to understand how losing everyone you love would make you afraid to care again. It irritates me that so many have likened this to 50 Shades. Joss is not some vapid watercolour of a girl. She's fiery and strong and intelligent. Plus she has her own money so it's not exactly a Cinderella story. She's an immensely likeable character.When Braden crashes into her world, he upsets everything. He's brash, cocky, determined and fiercely loving and sets about crawling under Joss's skin in any way he can until she eventually gives in to him. I cannot lie. He is my new favourite male character. Of. All. Time. His occasionally filthy texts made me snigger outright and boy is he sexy!! *fans self*. That whole scene in the club where he tells her he doesn't share and then makes out with her on the desk? I fear I shamed myself utterly with a series of unintelligible fnnnrrr noises. There was swooning. Much swooning. When you discover that he too is damaged by past hurts, it only makes you like him more. I think what's great about his character is that Samantha hasn't made the mistake of so many other contemporary authors, who seem to think we all want to read about guys who are possessive to the point of domestic abuse. Braden is possessive, but he gives as much into the relationship as he takes out and he's not creepy about it. It was refreshing to read about him after all the 50 shades inspired, 2-dimensional, whiny control freaks.Ellie as a supporting character is brilliant. As a reader, you fall in love with her from the first moment she turns up to show Joss around the flat wearing a fake moustache. Her sweetness shines through as a counterpoint to all the darkness around her in the book and makes it all the more poignant.As expected, the book is steamy and emotional in places, but it's also surprisingly funny. Runner up for the giggles award is the moment where Joss literally kicks Braden out of bed. First prize goes to the sausage comment at the French restaurant. I laughed so hard I dropped my kindle and snorted tea through my nose. I was in helpless giggles for a good hour afterwards. I'm still giggling about it 24 hours on.All that said, I think the raw power of this book is in the way you see yourself in the characters. I read the whole thing in one sitting and then sat up until 5am, unable to sleep because it made me think about things. We've all been through some dark stuff in our lives. Some have just walked more shadowed vales than others. The point is, we all kid ourselves that we're fixed or that we're dealing with it. I suppose some of us are. But if we're really honest, how many of us have put our ghosts in the iron box in our hearts and forgotten about them instead of actually dealing with them? When you read such a powerful story about a woman who has to face up to her ghosts or destroy her life, it's hard not to feel shamed into examining your own feelings and thoughts. I read things about Joss and saw them in myself, things I'd had no idea were even there. There are things I still can't talk about, can't think about, even though I thought I was `fixed'. That's where the power of this story lies, and I think I'll be carrying it with me for a long time to come.

Jocelyn moves to Scotland after a tragic accident destroys her life. A loner and deeply affected by her grief she lives life as alone as she can. When circumstances see her moving to a new apartment she meets and eventually befriends Ellie. Sweet and innocent Jocelyn can't help but leave her guard down a little to leave Ellie in. The only problem in this is Braden! Ellie's brother. He's relentless, cocky, determined and oh so hot. After denying her self for as long as she can Jocelyn throws caution to the wind and agrees on a friends with benefit rule with Braden. Knowing she is in for trouble but unable to stop it, she finds her self on one hell of an emotional roller coaster. She thinks of things with Braden she shouldn't be thinking of. Life isn't fair and only takes from you. But just as her walls come down some and her heart opens a little to him tragedy strikes again. When some one close received bad news Jocelyn fights to cope. Pushing away Braden, Jocelyn makes some bad choices and says some pretty shitty things.Can Braden break through her walls? And when all is said and done would Jocelyn have done to much damage to put it right?Oh. My. God. I loved Braden. His confident sure attitude kept a little grin tugging my mouth the entire way through. I loved the steamy scenes and want a Braden of my own, LOL! The story was well written and I couldn't put it down until I had finished it. All characters were strong and likable although if I had to pick out a bad point, I would have honestly very happily slapped Jocelyn a few times throughout. This is the type of book where you really root for the HEA.I would insist on reading this book as I really did love it and read over and over again.