Review: Down London Road (#2, On Dublin Street) by Samantha Young
Sexy, sweet and engaging!!!
Samantha Young does it again with Cam and Jo’s story!
- Stars: 4 sexy stars!
- Main Characters: Cameron “Cam” MacCabe and Johanna “Jo” Walker
- Genre: Contemporary Romance
Synopsis
Johanna Walker is used to taking charge. But she’s about to meet someone who will make her lose control….
It has always been up to Johanna to care for her family, particularly her younger brother, Cole. With an absent father and a useless mother, she’s been making decisions based on what’s best for Cole for as long as she can remember. She even determines what men to date by how much they can provide for her brother and her, not on whatever sparks may—or may not—fly.
But with Cameron MacCabe, the attraction is undeniable. The sexy new bartender at work gives her butterflies every time she looks at him. And for once, Jo is tempted to put her needs first. Cam is just as obsessed with getting to know Jo, but her walls are too solid to let him get close enough to even try.
Then Cam moves into the flat below Jo’s, and their blistering connection becomes impossible to ignore. Especially since Cam is determined to uncover all of Jo’s secrets even if it means taking apart her defenses piece by piece.
My Review
I was so excited to dig into Down London Road because I’m such a huge fan of On Dublin Street. Samantha Young doesn’t disappoint with this book. Her writing and storytelling is engaging and it was great to see Ellie, Adam, Joss and Braden again! To me, the books felt a little different from On Dublin Street, which seemed steamier, but Down London Road hooked me in a different way, introducing great new characters like Cam 🙂
Remember Jo? She’s Joss’ gold-digging friend that works as the other bartender at Club 39. As it turns out, there’s a lot more to Jo than what we thought. She’s burdened with a difficult situation out of her control that makes her seem money-hungry and only surface-level deep. Although she refuses to take money from Braden and Joss, she seeks out men with money … men that can provide much-needed security for her family, including her younger brother Cole. Her current boyfriend Malcolm is wealthy and she definitely feels something for him. He’s good to her and their relationship seems to be evolving. But is she happy? Soul-mate happy?
Soon, Jo meets a gorgeous guy at an art exhibit she attends with Malcolm. They lock eyes from across the room and the pull between them is almost physical. He’s good-looking and muscular with messy blonde hair and sports a tattoo which peeks out from his t-shirt. Definitely not her typical kind of guy. His gaze is searing. Cam and Jo meet amidst a storm of misunderstanding and preconceptions and things definitely start off on the wrong foot.
“I don’t need to know you, sweetheart. You’re a walking cliché.”
Cam thinks he knows the kind of girl that Jo is and they exchange some hurtful banter despite the attraction they so clearly and surprisingly feel for each other.
“Well, I guess that makes us a pair. I’m a brainless, morally corrupt, money-grabbing bimbo and you’re a jumped-up, pretentious, artsy-fartsy know-it-all dickhead.”
Soon, they find themselves around each other all the time and the thin line between hate and attraction blurs. Cam is still horrible to Jo however…
“Not once in my life had I ever been physically attracted to a guy who was so utterly horrible to me.”
We learn a lot about Jo in this book. She’s basically been forced to give up herself and her happiness for her family. Her burden is born from necessity, but also self-placed. She goes through a lot of self discovery in this story and we realize just how selfless she’s really been. But there’s definitely been a cost.
“I was the perfect girlfriend Thinking back, I couldn’t remember a time we’d ever gotten into a fight. Why? Because I never argued. I always agreed with him or curbed my tongue. I didn’t care what we did as long as it made him happy. I was the epitome of congenial blandness.”
Admittedly, it took me awhile to warm up to Jo, but as she’s going through this self-awakening, I also found myself growing to like her more and more. And Cam… Cam I just loved! Once he gets to know the real Jo, he’s so kind and caring and just what Jo needs to “wake up.” And they are fabulous together!
Without giving away too much, this book is about letting go of your insecurities and being brave enough to seek your own happiness. It’s sexy and captivating and I really enjoyed it! Particularly, the last 20% of the book… it had my heart racing and I couldn’t put it down! It’s a great read and Samantha is a certainly an expert at hooking you to her stories!!!
Don’t forget to join our book club discussion this friday on Down London Road!
https://www.facebook.com/events/358610987572524/
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elizabeth d said:
Great Review. I really enjoyed On Dublin Street & thought Samantha’s writing was fabulous. Glad to hear this one is a hit as well!!