Review: On Dublin Street by Samantha Young

On Dublin Street

Author:  Samantha Young

Release date: 8/31/12

Author's website: Link

Four years ago, Jocelyn Butler left her tragic past behind in the States and started over in Edinburgh. Burying the grief, ignoring her demons, and forging ahead without any real attachments has worked well for her so far but when Joss moves into a fantastic apartment on Dublin Street, her carefully guarded world is shaken to its core by her new roommate's sexy older brother.

Braden Carmichael is a man who always gets what he wants. And what he wants is Jocelyn in his bed. Knowing how skittish Joss is concerning any kind of relationship, Braden proposes a sexual arrangement that should satisfy the intense attraction between them without it developing into anything 'more'. An intrigued Jocelyn agrees, completely unprepared for the Scotsman and his single-minded determination to strip the stubborn young woman bare... to the very soul.

Once again, the fabulous Mandi from Smexybooks has recommended another great book to me!  The character of  Jocelyn Butler's past is filled with so much sadness, that she has a hard time letting people in.  She doesn't want to get close to anyone, so she's built up these walls and doesn't allow herself to have hope that one day she might find someone to love.  Enter Braden Carmichael whom she has an instant attraction to when first meeting him.  When she realizes that he's the brother of her new roommate Ellie, she does all she can to keep her distance from him because he's completely irresistible.  The Carmichael family is warm and inviting and Jocelyn soon finds herself spending more time with them.  This brings up sad memories of her own family but with understanding, patience as well as help from a therapist, Jocelyn's life begins to change and she soon finds herself becoming the woman that she was meant to be.

My favorite part of the story was the ongoing tension and attraction between Jocelyn and Braden.  I loved how the tension was built up until the characters, as well as myself, couldn't take it anymore.  Their playful banter turned serious and the release of the tension lead to some hot, sexy, well written sex scenes.  Whew!  *fans face*  Braden is a man that knows what he wants and became very alpha several times throughout the book.  Jocelyn tried her best to let him know that all that aggressiveness wasn't getting her hot and bothered, but she really didn't have a chance.  Braden was like a Cheetah and Jocelyn was his prey.  She wanted him bad and agrees to have a sexual relationship with him only to keep from getting too close to him.  Over the next couple of months their relationship changes and they both find themselves caring for each other. The change in their relationship was adorable and I think it was exactly what Jocelyn needed.  She needed that love and support from someone and Braden had her figured out right from the beginning.  *swoon*  They have their issues and problems but realize that they can work through anything as long as they have each other.

I'm giving On Dublin Street a rating of:

I found myself falling in love with all the characters in this story and loved how the author brought them all together. There were some tough moments that were absolutely heart breaking as Jocelyn reveals her past to Braden and the reason why she is so broken. He wants her exactly the way she is and knows that things are not going to be easy for the both of them. I found Jocelyn's emotions to be very realistic and could understand why she wanted to keep everyone at an arms distance. But she deserved to have that love and needed the support so that she could move on. It was wonderful for her to finally realize that and let others into her life. On Dublin Street was a wonderful, entertaining read that I just didn't want to end. I loved Samantha Young's style of writing and am hoping that she will write other Contemporary Romance books in the future.