ARC Review & Excerpt: Play On (Play On, #1) by Samantha Young

Releasing September 12th 2017

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Synopsis

Nora O’Brien chased a dream from Indiana to Scotland, so sure it was the right thing to do.  Three years later she was left in her adopted country with nothing to her name but guilt and regret.

Until Aidan Lennox entered her life.

Older, worldlier, a music producer and composer, the sexy Scot should never have made sense for Nora. But somehow in each other they found the light they were looking for, the laughter and the passion—the strength to play on despite their past losses.

But when life dealt Aidan another unlucky hand, instead of reaching for her he disappeared.  The agonizing loss of him inspired something within Nora. It fired her spirit— the anger and hurt pushing her forward to take control and reach for her dreams.

Finally pursuing a career on stage while she put herself through college, everything is how Nora wants it. She’s avoiding heartbreak and concentrating on her goals.  Sounds easy but it’s not. Because Aidan is back. And for some reason he hates Nora.

He’s determined to be at war with her.

And she has absolutely no idea why.

 

 


Review

4 stars!

This is the first book in Samantha Young’s new series, Play On, and it’s a beautifully emotional romantic drama that kept me enthralled from start to finish. Reminiscent of On Dublin Street, Young takes us back to Edinburgh with the story of a young American girl struggling under the weight of grief and uncertainty and figuring out who she is and what she wants. Add in a love story that is sweet, emotional, passionate, full of chemistry (and yes, angsty), some twists and turns and a whole lot of feels, and this is a great read.

Nora is 18 years old and living a difficult, dead-end life in middle America. She had dreams of something more but they never came to be, and just when she is facing a future of nothing really special she is presented with the opportunity of a lifetime to travel to Scotland and experience the life she’s always dreamed of. So she starts afresh in Edinburgh, but her dreams are again put on hold as the reality of life and the decisions she has made weigh her down. She will experience loss, doubt, guilt and regret and hit rock bottom before she finds the strength to start to pull herself together, with her inspiration coming from an unlikely source – a lively young girl and her gorgeous yet broody uncle.

Sylvie and Aidan blast into Nora’s life. They are both suffering after their own loss and she feels an instant connection with both of them, but it’s the gorgeous, successful and mysterious older man, Aidan, that truly begins to bring her back to life.

I’d never experienced anything like it, this heat between us, this want. It was like we knew the only way to feel anything good was to disappear as freely and deeply into one another as possible.

Aidan has burdens that weigh on him, but so does Nora, and they muddle through their attraction, pushing and pulling, and slowly opening up to each other. All while the sexual tension builds and they easily and naturally fall for each other.

“I’ve never wanted anyone the way I want you. Aye, I want you in my bed, so much it’s painful, but it’s more than that. I just want you. Here. Talking with me. In my life. Knowing I can pick up the phone and call you or touch you whenever I want. Never have I felt that way with anyone.”

I loved this romance! Holy damn, Aidan Lennox is gorgeous! Kind, intelligent, caring, and hotter than hell, he may be broody but he doesn’t mess around when it comes to what he wants, and there’s no game playing where he’s concerned, and I love that! He wants Nora and he lets her knows, setting about making it happen and completely melting me along the way.

“No misunderstandings,” his eyes blazed with determination, “tonight you’re in my bed. I’m going to make love to you and fuck you and come with you until every muscle in your body aches.”

But life is never easy. Nora and Aidan know that only too well, and when the unthinkable happens, it sends their lives spiralling out of control once again.

I don’t want to talk too much more about the story because you just need to dive in and experience it. This story was unexpected, and the twists and turns had my heart pounding as I tried to figure out where it was all going to go. And OMG, the feels! I felt everything right alongside these characters – one scene in particular absolutely shattered me! I was so drawn into their lives and what they were experiencing, and my emotions were a rollercoaster as it all played out. It’s dramatic and emotional, and yeah, it gets angsty, and there were moments when I wanted to start slapping people, but I was glued to my kindle as the story unfolded.

And it all works to enhance the emotion, building the book to the inevitable ending that was sweet, hopeful and deliciously satisfying.

“I couldn’t stay away from you if I tried. You? You’re everything.”

I loved this book. Like I said, it did have shades of On Dublin Street about it, but that is one of my favourite books of all time, so the similarities didn’t bother me one little bit. Dramatic and emotional, I was sucked in from the very beginning and loved the twists and surprises – even when they hurt. The love story is gorgeous and is beautifully and emotively written, as is Nora’s journey, and I loved immersing myself in it all.

“Just because it takes more than falling in love to find yourself doesn’t mean that losing yourself in another person can’t be fucking beautiful. I promise you … being lost in each other for the rest of our lives will be the best thing to have ever happened to either of us.”

Young says that this new series will be centred around the arts scene in Edinburgh. We are introduced to some of Nora’s theatre friends, and though I don’t know whose story will be up next (my fingers are crossed for Jack), it’s already an auto-read for me, and I can’t wait to get my hands on it.

I loved it – 4 stars.

An Advanced Review Copy was generously provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.

 

Play On series

Ebook covers

     

Paperback covers

     

Play On (#1)
Review
Buy:  Amazon 

As Dust Dances (#2)
Review
Buy:  Amazon 

Hold On (#2.5/Big Sky Crossover Novella)
Review
Buy:  Amazon

Black Tangled Heart (#3)
Review
Buy:  Amazon  |  Paperback

 


Excerpt

Silence fell over the car and I could tell he was lost in his thoughts about it. Wanting to
leave him to muse, I watched traffic. And then I realized we were driving out of the city
center. “So … where are we eating?”
“There’s a pub right on the promenade at Portobello Beach. It’s a nice day. I thought we
should enjoy it while it’s here.”
That was something people said a lot around here. Scottish summers were mercurial
beasts, with more rain than anything else, so when the sun came out, we appreciated and
made the most of it.
“Sounds good.”
With Jim, I’d been comfortable with him from the start. Silence fell between us and I’d
never felt the need to fill it. Similarly with Aidan, the silence between us didn’t bother me.
But the atmosphere between us wasn’t comfortable. I was too aware of his every movement,
watching him out of the corner of my eye as he drove us east to Portobello.
“Sylvie cares about you,” Aidan said suddenly.
Warmth filled me at the thought. “I care about her. I won’t hurt her, Aidan.”
He glanced at me, his expression sincere. “I know that now, Nora.”
Relief moved through me. “Thank you.”
“I just want her to be okay.”
“It would be expected if she wasn’t,” I told him. “She lost her mom. You can protect her
from everything, but you can’t protect her from that loss, and thinking that you can is only
going to make you feel like you’ve failed somehow. And you’re not failing.”
He was quiet so long, I thought maybe my presumption had pissed him off. But he said,
“How did you get so wise?”
When it comes to loss, I know what I’m talking about. I didn’t say it out loud. “Born that
way, I guess.”
Not too long later, Aidan parked on a street facing the water. The sun glinted off the
waves in the distance and I could see the promenade was busy with people eating lunch,
walking their dogs, or just hanging out. The salty sea air immediately put me and everyone
else in a good mood. It was a little past one o’clock so people were on lunch breaks, but with
how busy the beach was, you’d think it was a weekend day.
“Do you think we’ll get a table?” I said. He insisted on opening my door and taking my
hand to help me down.
Warm, calloused skin slid over mine and I drew in a breath at the sparks of electricity that
danced up my arm. My eyes flew to his. Our eyes locked.
Did he feel it too?
As if I’d asked the question aloud, he squeezed my hand and closed the door once I was
out of the car. To my shock, he kept holding my hand, leading me down the street toward the
promenade.
“I called ahead,” he said. “I know a guy who works at the pub.”
I hurried to match his long strides, my heart banging hard against my chest as I stared up
at him. Feeling my gaze, he looked down and gave me a quizzical smile.
“What is it, Pixie?”
I decided to be honest. “You’re holding my hand.”
His smile transformed into that sexy one that cut me off at the knees every single time.
“So I am.”
He didn’t let go.
I bit my lip to stop the girlish giggle that wanted to escape. “Is there a reason for that?”
“So you don’t fly off to Neverland, of course.” He winked.
I laughed. “Cute. Very cute.”
Aidan stopped to push open the door to the pub, his beautiful eyes filled with laughter.
I let him lead me inside. There was an area, a few steps up from the bar on our right, with
tables at bay windows overlooking the water. The place was packed, no tables free at all.
“Uh …” A young woman with bright blue eyes and short, white-blond hair glanced at the
seating and then back at us. “It’s about a thirty-minute wait right now.”
“Where’s Giggsy?” Aidan asked.
“Right here, mate.” We turned to watch a guy walking down a passageway by the bar.
When he reached us, his eyes flicked to Aidan’s hand in mine and he shook his head
laughing. “They get younger every time.”
“Fuck off, Giggsy.”
“Nice. And here I’ve been enduring bleeding ears from these buggers,” he thumbed
behind him to the bar staff, “to reserve you a table last minute on the promenade.” Without
saying another word, he strolled away and Aidan followed. He led us up the platform to a set
of French doors that opened out onto the promenade and to my delight, to one of only four
tables set out there, looking over the water.
A sweet breeze blew up off North Sea offering a light relief from the rare hot September
sun. Gulls cried out as they flew high in the sky above us.
“There you go.” Giggsy gestured to our table and Aidan held out a chair for me. “What a
gentleman.” His friend clapped him on the shoulder. Aidan rolled his eyes and Giggsy mock
frowned at me. “Please tell me you’re legal.”
While I was mortified by the idea that I looked that young next to him, Aidan sighed
heavily. “Have you got a death wish?”

 


About Samantha Young

Samantha Young is the New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of adult contemporary romances, including the On Dublin Street series and Hero, as well as the New Adult duology Into the Deep and Out of the Shallows. Every Little Thing, the second book in her new Hart’s Boardwalk series, will be published by Berkley in March 2017. Before turning to contemporary fiction, she wrote several young adult paranormal and fantasy series, including the amazon bestselling Tale of Lunarmorte trilogy.  Samantha’s debut YA contemporary novel The Impossible Vastness of Us was published by Harlequin TEEN in ebook and hardback June 2017. Play On is an adult contemporary romance and the first in a brand new series set in Scotland.

Samantha has been nominated for the Goodreads Choice Award 2012 for Best Author and Best Romance for On Dublin Street, Best Romance 2014 for Before Jamaica Lane, and Best Romance 2015 for Hero. On Dublin Street, a #1 bestseller in Germany, was the Bronze Award Winner in the LeserPreis German Readers Choice Awards for Best Romance 2013, Before Jamaica Lane the Gold Medal Winner for the LeserPreis German Readers Choice Awards for Best Romance 2014 and Echoes of Scotland Street the Bronze Medal
Winner for the LeserPreis German Readers Choice Awards for Best Romance 2015.

Samantha is currently published in 30 countries and is a #1 international bestselling author.

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