REVIEW - Before Jamaica Lane by Samantha Young

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…

After each of the books in the Down London Road series, I'm always like "I don't think I'm going to read the next book, there's no way it can be as good as the books before it." Then here I am, an addict to all things Samantha Young, especially this series. I don't know why it is, maybe because every book in this series follows the same delicious recipe: super sexy alpha male, feisty yet vulnerable heroine, funny and swoon-y one-liners, playful banter, heaps of sexual tension, and best of all, hot, hot, hot love. Before Jamaica Lane is no exception. Nate is the charming playboy, Liv is the beautiful but insecure girl-next-door type. 

"Sometimes you meet people who you're just comfortable with and Nate was one of those people. We both felt free to be who we were around each other, and we'd bonded over two things. One was our sense of humor. We were both a little nutty. Second was our inner geek. We both embraced our inner geek."

Liv and Nate became best friends when she moved to England from the U.S. with her dad. Have I mentioned how much I love these kinds of stories? The whole best friends to lovers plot always tickles me. I guess it's because it seems more real to me than any other story. You know what else I love even more than a friends who fall in love story? The friends with benefits who fall in love story. That's right, Liv and Nate fall for the trap of friends with benefits. How? Well Liv has issues with talking to guys, a lot of it because of her low self-esteem. She awkwardly kind of has a crush on this guy she sees at the library where she works, but she seriously can't talk to him. Naturally, she turns to her experienced best guy friend for help. At first it starts off with reasonable help, like boosting her confidence, teaching her how to talk to cute guys, etc. Then someone has the brilliant idea that she also needs to know how to be in the bedroom... We all know how that ends. However, we all know Samantha Young doesn't write by the book. There's nothing generic about this story. Which makes the ride all the more fun.

"Nate had crept inside me until he flowed in my blood and rested in my breath. He'd become  integral to a life that I looked forward to living every day, and the knowledge that I would no longer hear his laugh, or feel his lips on mine, or feel complete when I looked in his eyes, was insufferable to my body."

I feel like every time one of the On Dublin Street books releases, I say it's my favorite. But, they're really all just so good. Both Nate and Liv made my emotions go all over the place. They made me laugh, they made my heart hurt, they made my heart melt, and most of all they made me fall in love with each of them individually and with their relationship. Liv had her insecurities, and you couldn't help but feel bad for why she has them. I hated how her growing up was so affected by her mom's sickness and death. She's so confident, supportive, and funny with her friends, but on the inside she's sad and afraid. I loved all her awkward encounters with the guy she had a crush on, Benjamin. Most of all, I loved watching her grow into her body. By the end of the book, she knows who she is and what she wants. Nate is different from Braden, Cam, and Adam, in that he is more playful AND playboy-ish than the others. He too, lost someone he loved around the same time that Liv lost her mom. He has some growing up to do too in this book, mostly him learning to let go of the past. He's a guy I definitely want to be my best friend, especially if he's going to teach me how to "get laid" like he decides to teach Liv. I'll admit there were times when they both frustrated the crap out of me, with being in denial about their true feelings for each other. But, that's all part of the game I guess. Besides, Liv held her own and made Nate work for it, which is something we don't see often enough and it was great. Watching them fall in love was adorable. And hot. Come on, all that "practice" just wasn't necessary.

"I didn't want to fall for you. You, more than anyone, know that. And I'm man enough to admit that it scared the absolute shit out of me. It still does. There's been no one since you and I don't want anyone else. You ruined me for anyone else."

My favorite part about the On Dublin Street series is how each story interconnects so well. The plot from Braden and Joss' novella, Castle Hill, flows perfectly with Before Jamaica Lane. It also fills in lots of holes from their story, as in it goes in more detail. I don't think I'll ever get tired of this family. That's probably another reason I keep picking up the next book in this series. The love that forms in each book is just so real and captivating. I love, love, love the ending to this book. Well, I love the ending of every one of Samantha Young's books, but this one had me happy giggling and smiling ear to ear. I can't wait to see more of this family in Fall From India Place.

"No one has ever made me feel like the person I've always wanted to be until you. You make me feel beautiful, Nate. All the way through. No one else has ever given me that. No one."
"I'm glad. Not just because you deserve to feel that way...but because it makes you mine."

Samantha Young is a New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author from Stirlingshire, Scotland. She's been nominated for the Goodreads Choice Award 2012 for Best Author and Best Romance for her international bestseller ON DUBLIN STREET. ON DUBLIN STREET is Samantha's first adult contemporary romance and has sold in twenty-five countries.

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