AS DUST DANCES
Series: Play On #2
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: Samantha Young
Release Date: August 7, 2018
Once upon a time Skylar Finch was the lead singer of a hugely successful American pop-rock band. But fame made her miserable. When years of living a lie suddenly ended in tragedy, Skylar fell off the map.
Eighteen months later she’s sleeping in a tent in a cemetery in Glasgow, making just enough money to eat by busking on the streets. She manages to avoid recognition, but not the attention of one of Glasgow’s ambitious A&R executives.
Killian O’Dea works at Skyscraper Records, Scotland’s most successful record label. Raised by his uncle and owner of the label, Killian’s upbringing would have been devoid of affection entirely if it wasn’t for his loving sister. Killian is unflinchingly determined to bring the label more success than ever, and the young homeless woman who busks on Buchanan Street is going to help him do that. Her music speaks to him in a way he refuses to over-analyze. All he knows is that if it can touch his dark soul, it’ll set everyone else’s alight.
Skylar makes it clear that she doesn’t want to sign with him. But when she experiences the dangerous reality of a woman sleeping rough, Skylar has no one else but Killian to turn to. An undeniable connection forms between them. But Skylar doesn’t want the career Killian is trying to forge for her, and when her past comes back to haunt her Killian will be faced with a decision that could ruin him. He must either free Skylar from his selfish machinations and destroy everything he’s ever worked for, or lose a woman who has come to mean more to him than he ever thought possible…
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It was my turn to stare at him quizzically, but he didn’t acknowledge the look. He sipped his water and stared around the restaurant as if this weren’t awkward and weird. His nose had a slight bump in it, his cheekbones high, and his jaw chiseled and angular. Overall, he had a very hawklike profile, masculine, rugged, and intimidating. And at that moment I felt like prey, stupidly allowing myself to be caught.Still, I couldn’t shake the feeling that he genuinely didn’t want anything sexual from me.
I stared at him unabashedly, wanting answers.
He remained steadfast, ignoring me, until the waitress he’d called out to returned with a plastic carrier bag. “Will this do?”
“Aye.” He took it from her. “Thanks.” When I returned to the main restaurant, I put the folded-up wet clothes beside me on the bench, my underwear tucked out of sight.
I couldn’t meet the stranger’s eyes as I reached for the Diet Coke I’d asked for, savoring the taste. On tour, I’d needed lots of energy so I’d eaten well and drank plenty of water. Soda was a treat at the best of times. But I hadn’t had a Diet Coke in months, and it tasted great.
“Excuse me,” my companion’s voice jolted my gaze upward and I saw him wave down a passing waitress. “Do you have a bag?”
“A bag?”
“Carrier bag, paper bag. A bag.”
“Um … let me check.”
He held it out, staring at me with those eyes that would’ve been much more suited to a Lothario, to someone who knew how to be charming. “For your clothes.”
Oh.
It was a kind gesture, also at odds with his demeanor, and my suspicion increased. I took the bag, however, sliding my wet clothes into it and out of sight. Exasperated, I said, “What the hell do you want?”
“Food first.”
“So I’ll be well fed, satisfied, and more amenable to whatever the hell it is you want from me?”
He looked at me now, really looked at me, and the corner of his mouth curled up ever so slightly. “Exactly.”
“A good villain doesn’t admit to his plan, you know.”
“I’m not a villain.”
“What are you?”
“Fo—”
“Food first. Yeah, yeah.”
And so we sat in silence until the food arrived, and the smell of my sea bass made my stomach grumble loudly. Years ago, it would’ve embarrassed me. Now I couldn’t give a shit. All I cared about was that fish.
I dug in, closing my eyes in joy as I ate.
When I opened them to scoop up buttery mashed potatoes, I felt his gaze on me.
The furrowed brow, the glimmer of concern in his eyes, made me stiffen. But just like that, his expression cleared, blank, and he went back to eating his burger as if I didn’t exist.
I savored every morsel of that meal, including the Chocolate Fudge Fixation I ordered for dessert.
My belly felt full and satisfied, and exhaustion began to force my eyelids to droop.
And I knew it was time to pay the piper. “So …” I pushed away my empty dessert plate and slumped back against the booth, my expression baleful. “What the hell do you want from me?”
His answer was to reach into his wallet, pull out a business card, and hand it over.
I stared down at it, disbelief flooding me.
I was tethered to him somehow and I didn’t think I’d be able to cut myself loose so easily.
As Dust Dances was a gripping, beautiful and emotional romance. It was a story of pain and perseverance, of strength and second chances, and of love where you least expect it. It also had a delicious enemies to lovers vibe in a way that only Samantha Young could deliver.
“What?”
“Of injuries. Eye, ribs, wrist, and now this insistent, condescending pain in my ass.”
Once upon a time Skylar Finch had a taste of success when her band became famous. Skylar loved making music, but she was unprepared for what the fame will bring.
She tried to deal with the fact that what was once her dream was now making her miserable, but then a terrible tragedy broke her completely. Now Skylar is homeless and busking on the streets of Scotland. Having left everything behind, including her identity, she’s trying to move on while hiding in plain site. No one knows who she is here, and she’s happy that way. The last thing she expects is for her music to catch the eye of a music executive, or for him to stir something in her she long thought dead.
The chemistry between Skylar and Killian is instant and fiery, though both of them try to deny it. Killian bullies her off of the streets and into a contract with the record label that his uncle owns. Still trying to prove himself to a man that barely tolerates him let alone respects him, Killian is determined to make Skylar a success. The attraction between them is one that they’re both attempting to deny. Their relationship begins as a deliciously angsty push and pull. Killian tries to keep it professional, and in doing so comes off as cold and calculating when he’s anything but.
Skylar was one of my favorite heroines. This woman is a survivor and music is truly a part of her. I loved the way that Samantha Young weaves the music into the story. It was effortless and the perfect icing on top of an already amazing story. Skylar has already survived so much pain in her young life; the more you learn about her, the more you connect to her and root for her.
The romance was perfectly paced and developed. It wasn’t instant and it wasn’t a super slow burn either. It developed in such a way that just felt real. You feel the connection between these two characters immediately, but it only burns hotter as the story develops. You get to see more of Killian’s softer side as he stops fighting the inevitable. Their romance is forbidden and they attempt to keep it a secret, you can’t help but read on as you sit on pins and and needles as you wait for that other shoe to drop.
This was a perfectly swoony and emotional story of love and sacrifice, and pain and perseverance. I adored it and only hope we’ll be getting more books in this series.
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 will be published by Harlequin TEEN in ebook& hardback June 2017
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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RICHER THAN SIN
Let’s talk about addicting reads for a hot second here. Because this book? This is a second chance romance meet Romeo and Juliet vibes. It’s sizzling hot. It’s deliciously angsty. It’s a page turner from beginning to a jaw dropping end. This author knows how to deliver a cliffhanger that leaves her readers rocking in a corner, craving their next March Fix until the next book is out. And this reader? I’m officially hooked!
Told in alternating parts of past and present, Richer Than Sin starts with a jaw dropping prologue that immediately sets the tone of this book. It’s a mystery wrapped in some angst, with Meghan’s signature sizzle sprinkled in. Lincoln Riscoff is the son of one of the most wealthiest and influential families. It’s also a family that has had a long standing feud with the Gables, and no matter how many years have passed, the hate and animosity these families have towards each other has only grown. When a beautiful girl catches his attention, it’s much too late by the time he realizes that she’s a Gable. Nor does he care.
A New York Times, #1 Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestselling author of over twenty novels, Meghan March has been known to wear camo face paint and tromp around in woods wearing mud-covered boots, all while sporting a perfect manicure. She’s also impulsive, easily entertained, and absolutely unapologetic about the fact that she loves to read and write smut. Her past lives include slinging auto parts, selling lingerie, making custom jewelry, and practicing corporate law. Writing books about dirty talking alpha males and the strong, sassy women who bring them to their knees is by far the most fabulous job she’s ever had.
ONE TO KEEP
After the delicious push and pull between Stefan and Jennifer in the last two books, I was absolutely dying to get my grabby little hands on their book. But I was also hoping for two things from this book; a grovel from Stefan, and for Jennifer to grow a little more. Jennifer has always been incredibly open in her desire for Stefan, that at times I almost felt like she made it too easy for him.
PRETTY VENOM
OH MY GOD! THIS BOOK.
The story takes a delicious turn from enemies to lovers and back again in this ulcer inducing romance, and this reader couldn’t get enough of it. Heartburn and bald spots and all.
And this is where the angst really starts. Callum’s brand of punishment and cruelty truly takes a turn from painful to downright eviscerating. The man puts Renee through hell. Every move, word, and look is calculated for maximum pain. That warning is no lie, because the things he does makes you want to peel your skin off and throw it at him. But at the same time, knowing what he’s going through in his head, you get where the anger is coming from. You hate him for what he does, but you understand why he’s doing it. It’s a special sort of hell, because as much as it hurts, it’s also absolutely riveting.
IT SEEMED LIKE A GOOD IDEA AT THE TIME
Kylie is a New York Times and USA Today best-selling author. She was voted Australian Romance Writer of the year, 2013 & 2014, by the Australian Romance Writer’s Association and her books have been translated into eleven different languages. She is a long time fan of romance, rock music, and B-grade horror films. Based in Queensland, Australia with her two children and husband, she reads, writes and never dithers around on the internet. You can learn more about Kylie from 
COOPER’S CHARM
This was such a wonderfully charming, feel-good romance and quintessential beach read, Cooper’s Charm is a definite winner. You get two romances for the price of one here; with both Rose sisters finding their individual roads to a HEA.
THE CHASE
Opposites attract in this brand new spin-off series and I frickin’ loved it! See what I did there? Alright, that was entirely too cheesy but I simply couldn’t resist.
Colin “Fitzy” Fitzgerald is the quiet, self professed nerd of his hockey buddies and roommates. Where Summer is the social butterfly, he’s the hermit. He knows that Summer has a crush on him, but no matter how strongly he may be attracted to her as well, she’s the opposite of the type of girl he needs.
PROTECTED
NY Times and USA Today bestselling author Lexi Blake lives in North Texas with her husband, three kids, and the laziest rescue dog int eh world. She began writing at a young age, concentrating on plays and journalism. It wasn’t until she started writing romance and urban fantasy that she found the stories of her heart.
HOT SEAL Target
