Title: On Dublin Street
Author: Samantha Young
Publisher: Samantha Young (31 August 2012), Penguin (17 January 2013)
ASIN: B0094J01VG
ISBN: 978-1405912983
On Dublin Street has been gathering some serious, serious momentum since its release in August of this year. Originally self-published by its author, Samantha Young, in less than three months it’s been picked up for re-release by Penguin, has over 16,000 Goodreads reader ratings (most four stars and above), and made it into the final round of the latter’s Choice Awards for 2012. That’s pretty damn impressive.
Jocelyn Butler (Joss) is hiding from the life she once knew. Having lost her immediate family in a tragic accident at the age of fourteen, she has spent her adulthood getting as far away from her past as possible. Quite literally, by packing up her entire life and escaping to her mother’s country of birth, Scotland. Emotionally shuttered and unwilling to properly deal with the deaths of parents and sister, Joss is living in a self-imposed bubble, existing without actually living.
Enter Braden Carmichael, a stubborn, sexy and irreverent Scotsman who refuses to let her lock herself away – physically or emotionally.
From their very first meeting in the back of a black cab, the reader is immersed in a Battle Royale of wills as Braden tries to smash down the metaphorical walls Jocelyn has built around herself and she attempts to shove him unceremoniously away. The candid and heated exchanges – particularly in the early stages of this book – as the pair verbally spar with one another are electric, mercilessly ratcheting up the tension and pulling the reader through the story with both hands.
‘I rolled my eyes. “You’re an ass.”
Braden sat up with a snort. “Usually a woman calls me that after I’ve fucked her and called her a taxi.”’
Without question, Braden is one of the best romantic male leads I’ve come across this year. Very Alpha, but his obvious intelligence and compassion balance out his ‘king of the mountain’ tendencies and stop him from becoming obnoxious. It’s very difficult not to like him, which makes Jocelyn’s continued resistance to a ‘proper’ relationship with him all the more frustrating. (Yes, I fully admit there were times when I wanted to reach into the pages and shake her.)
Grief, and the way it manifests itself, is also a strong theme throughout the novel. We all deal with loss in different ways and while the romance developing between Joss and Braden is at the forefront of On Dublin Street, death and the role it plays in the lives of those we love – and those who love us – is a persistent presence.
While I wouldn’t exactly class On Dublin Street as an erotic romance, it’s certainly not shy. The language is nice and blunt (especially Braden’s), the sexual encounters smoking.
‘“You know, Braden, I’ve watched you over the last few months and you’re such a gentleman to everyone but me. What’s with that?”
“I want you in my bed. Gentlemen are boring in bed.”
Good point. “Gentlemen are gentlemen in bed. They make sure you’re having a good time.”
“I’ll make sure you’re having a good time, and that you’re okay with everything we’re doing. I just won’t be well-mannered about it.”’
On Dublin Street is an excellent contemporary romance that absolutely deserves the attention it’s getting. The Edinburgh setting, the cast of characters (Braden and his sister, Ellie, in particular), and the engaging writing all combine to create a romance that you’ll be thinking about for days afterwards. This book took my Romance vote for the Goodreads Choice Awards 2012.
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* Please note that, following re-release by Penguin, the cover art for On Dublin Street may differ from that featured in this review.
