Review: Fall from India Place by Samantha Young

Fall from India Place by Samantha Young
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Current Goodreads rating 4.1

When Hannah Nichols last saw Marco D’Alessandro, five long years ago, he broke her heart. The bad boy with a hidden sweet side was the only guy Hannah ever loved—and the only man she’s ever been with. After one intense night of giving into temptation, Marco took off, leaving Scotland and Hannah behind. Shattered by the consequences of their night together, Hannah has never truly moved on.

Leaving Hannah was the biggest mistake of Marco’s life, something he has deeply regretted for years. So when fate reunites them, he refuses to let her go without a fight. Determined to make her his, Marco pursues Hannah, reminding her of all the reasons they’re meant to be together.…

But just when Marco thinks they’re committed to a future together, Hannah makes a discovery that unearths the secret pain she’s been hiding from him, a secret that could tear them apart before they have a real chance to start over again.

Characters: OMG, I felt like all of these characters were my dear friends, and hearing that Joss, Jo, Liv, and Ellie all either had or were going to have kids made me sooooo happy!!!

It's really weird reading Hannah's story because I had always read about her as a kid.  Anyway, she's very book smart and is a dedicated English teacher.  And of course, she's gorgeous.  She has only ever been with one guy, Mr. Marco D' Alessandro, but she doesn't welcome him back immediately once they meet again.  And she has a totally good reason, you know besides that he left with no explanation.

Marco, Marco, Marco. Half African American, half Italian!!!! Before he met Hannah, Marco lived in the US but got into trouble and was sent to live in the UK.  He's considered the older, "bad boy" who has a soft spot for Hannah. He used to walk her home all the time and listened to her talk.  He was very quiet.

For that reason, I felt like I knew nothing about him and didn't really trust him when he was trying to get Hannah back.  Spoiler: He turns out to be a sweetie with a messed up past.

What I missed most from Samantha Young, however, was the witty banter.  Hannah wasn't that funny, and Marco was too serious.

But i must say, I think Cole was my favorite character from this book.  Cole and Hannah are best friends.  He was there for her after that traumatic event and continues to be there.  All of his girlfriends are jealous of the way he treats Hannah, but it looks like he is going to find the one.  The next book in the series is his story!!!!

Plot: The thing that I liked about this plot was that the characters had a past.  Ellie and Adam knew each other for awhile too, but they never had as serious of history as Hannah and Marco.  

Above all, I liked the message of the book a lot.  Something tragic has to happen before Hannah realized it, but it's applicable to everyone: nobody is guaranteed anything, so tell your loved ones you care.

I LOVE THIS SERIES. I LOVE SAMANTHA YOUNG, but this is not the best in the series.  No way.  Before Jamaica Lane is probably my favorite.

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Review: Before Jamaica Lane by Samantha Young

Before Jamaica Lane by Samantha Young
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

One simple lesson in seduction between two friends can turn into so much more… 

Despite her outgoing demeanor, Olivia is painfully insecure around the opposite sex—usually, she can’t get up the nerve to approach guys she’s interested in. But moving to Edinburgh has given her a new start, and, after she develops a crush on a sexy postgrad, she decides it’s time to push past her fears and go after what she wants.

Nate Sawyer is a gorgeous player who never commits, but to his close friends, he’s as loyal as they come. So when Olivia turns to him with her relationship woes, he offers to instruct her in the art of flirting and to help her become more sexually confident.

The friendly education in seduction soon grows into an intense and hot romance. But then Nate’s past and commitment issues rear their ugly heads, and Olivia is left broken-hearted. When Nate realizes he’s made the biggest mistake of his life, he will have to work harder than he ever has before to entice his best friend into falling back in love with him—or he may lose her forever…

Me right now

Characters: AHHHHHH! I want these characters to be real and be my BFFs.  Joss, Braden, Adam, 
Ellie, Jo, Cam, Hannah, and Cole play major roles in this story! They are super hilarious and caring, always there for each other.  I'm really looking forward to Hannah's story which is the next in the series because Hannah says what's on her mind, no matter how blunt.  And Marco is African American Italian. Talk about beautiful. Finally, I'm rooting for Cole to get a story of his own.  How great would it be to get a stour written by Samantha Young through the male perspective?

Now, I'm done fawning over the secondary characters.

Nate and Olivia, my heart just grew.  Both of these two are nerdy.  Nate writes a blog and Olivia is a librarian! Their neediness was incorporated in their first meeting, and it is fantastically cute.  Out of all of On Dublin Street's female characters, Olivia is the most relatable for me.  Joss is sassier than me, Ellie is cheerier than me, and Jo is way tougher than me.  I adore them, but Olivia is my favorite because she has my personality.  As for Nate, his playboy ways may seem annoying in the beginning, but he's always cared about Olivia and makes her feel beautiful inside and out.  He has legitimate reasons for his notcommitence, but it was frustrating.  I wanted these two to get serious faster because they are too 
perfect for each other.  He's also described as being movie star beautiful, which I quite enjoy.  

Plot: Just wanted to mention that Castle Hill, the Braden and Joss novella overlaps with this book.  

The plot has been done before, but I still loved this book! Samantha Young is bloody brilliant.  While I laughed out loud during most of the book, I admit to tearing up.  This is the first book I've ever read where that's happened.  It was weird.

I devoured this book, and I have been thinking about the characters since I finished it.  They'll always have a happy ending in my head.

Check out my reviews of all of the books in the series.

On Dublin Street

Until Fountain Bridge

Down London Street

Castle Hill

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Review- Castle Hill: A Joss and Braden Novella by Samantha Young

Castle Hill: A Joss and Braden Novella by Samantha Young
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Braden Carmichael never imagined he'd fall as hard and as fast as he did for Jocelyn Butler. He also could not have anticipated how difficult it would be to convince her to give in to love. But now that he has her, he's never letting go. He's got it all planned - the passionate proposal, the dream wedding, the sexy Hawaiian honeymoon - even the perfect family they'll start.

After trying to flee from her painful past, Joss is finally allowing herself to embrace the future. But when things start moving faster than she anticipated, she finds herself panicking over something Braden can't understand. After everything they've been through, Joss is sure that their love can survive even her worst fears. But, this time, she may push Braden too far - and risk losing everything all over again...

You better read On Dublin Street first!!!!

Characters: Braden and Joss are back.  They're still hilarious, but their sensitive sides come out again in this which was pretty depressing.   The characters I love go through some rough patches, and I just love them so much and I didn't want them to struggle.  They're like my friends.  Anyone else feel this way?

Ellie, Adam, Jo, Cam, and Olivia appear for what seems like 2 seconds:/

Plot: I was thinking about writing an entire post ranting about how mad I am that authors write sequels where the characters have trouble when they just got their happy ending.  Yes, life isn't like that, but I read to escape. There should be happy endings all of the time!

Yeah, so the plot was about trouble in paradise.  It was torture, but I had to read it.  Samantha Young writes with such éclat!!

Would I recommend it to a friend?

Yeah, if you read On Dublin Street, you've probably fell in love with these people and continued with the series.  Castle Hill overlaps with Before Jamaica Lane which I recently read. A review for that will be up soon.

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Happy Book Birthday, Samantha Young!

I guess it's different in the UK because Samantha Young's NA Into the Deep has come out today and it's not even a Tuesday!  Yup, all books come out on Tuesdays in the US.  Nerdy me actually looked that up.  Anyway, I've already read the first two chapters from Samantha's website and it is super great like always!!!! Jake is a cutie already.  I can't wait to read the rest.  Go check it out because this woman's books are super duper :)

Review: Wait for You by J. Lynn (Jennifer Armentrout)

Wait for You by J. Lynn

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Traveling thousands of miles from home to enter college is the only way nineteen-year-old Avery Morgansten can escape what happened at the Halloween party five years ago—an event that forever changed her life. All she needs to do is make it to her classes on time, make sure the bracelet on her left wrist stays in place, not draw any attention to herself, and maybe—please God—make a few friends, because surely that would be a nice change of pace. The one thing she didn't need and never planned on was capturing the attention of the one guy who could shatter the precarious future she’s building for herself.
Some things are worth experiencing…
Cameron Hamilton is six feet and three inches of swoon-worthy hotness, complete with a pair of striking blue eyes and a remarkable ability to make her want things she believed were irrevocably stolen from her. She knows she needs to stay away from him, but Cam is freaking everywhere, with his charm, his witty banter, and that damn dimple that’s just so… so lickable. Getting involved with him is dangerous, but when ignoring the simmering tension that sparks whenever they are around each other becomes impossible, he brings out a side of her she never knew existed.
Some things should never be kept quiet…
But when Avery starts receiving threatening emails and phone calls forcing her to face a past she wants silenced, she’s has no other choice but to acknowledge that someone is refusing to allow her to let go of that night when everything changed. When the devastating truth comes out, will she resurface this time with one less scar? And can Cam be there to help her or will he be dragged down with her?
And some things are worth fighting for…

Why do I keep on reading new adult fiction and expecting something new?  So, I'm at the point of insanity according to Einstein I guess.

Characters: I have to say, I keep on reading these books because I have stumbled upon some amazing characters.  I like witty characters that can keep the funny diatribes coming.

While Cameron seems very caring, he lacks in the wit department.  Yes, he did have a few chuckle worthy lines, but he just didn't do it for me.

Also, I'm a weirdo, I will fully admit that, and I started this book from the end, then back to the middle until I reached the end, and then started from the front until I reached the middle.  I didn't find out the physical descriptions of the characters until I was more than halfway done because of this.  This may sound vain, but I wasn't into it as much when I found this out.  Whatever, I can picture the characters however I want in my head, so don't judge!

Avery is kinda a dull character.  She's not funny, and I think some of her actions were really stupid.  But she is kind, which makes me like her.

Plot:  Well at least it didn't start off with a friend dragging the main character to a club to get her to hook up with someone.  But yes, the characters live near each other, the girl has some dramatic past, the boy has some dramatic past that his playfully cocky attitude hides, the girl gets drunk and the guy is there,... But I still will admit to liking it just a bit.  It's a guilty pleasure.

Would I recommend this to a friend?
Ehh, not the best new adult out there but it's ok.  I'd recommend On Dublin Street by Samantha Young or The Edge of Never by J.A. Redmerski.  While their plots are similar, those characters at least have got some fire and sarcasm.


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Review: Until Fountain Bridge by Samantha Young

Until Fountain Bridge by Samantha Young

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Summary: An exclusive novella featuring Ellie and Adam, much loved characters from On Dublin Street and Down London Road

Ellie Carmichael has been in love with Adam Sutherland for as long as she can remember. What started as a childhood crush on the protective and best friend of her older brother bloomed into full-blown infatuation over the years. Unfortunately, it also meant full-blown heartache, as Adam refused to fall for his mate's little sister.
But it takes a crisis for Adam to realize he's wasted too much time denying his feelings for her. Unwilling to waste a second more, he decided to make Ellie his, no matter what the consequences. Now happily settled with the woman he's pined after for years, he's about to find out what their ten year courtship was like for her, through the journals she kept during their ups and many downs. And though Adam may have Ellie now, he has no idea how close he came to losing her . . .

Characters: Characters include primarily Ellie, Adam, Braden, and Joss.  If you've read the other On Dublin Street novels, you've figured out that Ellie is an absolute sweetheart and perky, maybe a little too perky for some folks.  But she's much more relatable in this story, something I really enjoyed.  You see her frustrated and hurt as opposed to her usually happy self which was getting a little boring for me.  I love characters with depth, so Ellie in this light was refreshing.  As for Adam, oh what a sweetie but an idiot!  He has moments where he is kind and funny, but he was a tool at other times!  He had his reasons,because he didn't want to lose Braden by dating his sister in the event that things went sour,but he acted so immature sometimes.  I would have been exhausted trying to figure out his deal if I were Ellie, but I'm so glad they get together:)  Just a little side note, what's up with the men in these books loving to get physical and throw punches? I don't like it.

Plot: First, I enjoyed that it overlapped with On Dublin Street's plot.  Well, obviously it had to since they got together during that book, but it was cool to see certain scenes twice.  Again, Samantha Young brings the emotion and lots of tension.  I love the drama!

Writing: How do I always find myself ripping through the pages of her books?  I just love the writing, with the occasion humorous but thrown in there even though neither Ellie or Adam are nearly as witty and audacious as Joss and Braden.  One thing I did think was a little odd was that a few of the journal entries were from when Ellie was pretty young, and it was odd that she was talking of pretty mature content.  And also, who writes diary entries that detailed?  Something I wished there were more of has to be the commentary from Adam.  After each chapter, he barely comments.  I wish he would have laughed at some parts or had more funny and playful lines.

Would I recommend it to a friend? Yes, I'm loving Samantha Young's work!  If you're read On Dublin Steeet, you gotta read it!


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