An emotional journey...

I must say I judged this book by the cover. I actually thought that this was a dark erotica story. Well no, it's one of the best and sweetest love stories I've listened to. And what an amazing hero Braden is! It's going to be difficult to find another book with such a perfect man. He was totally smitten and I loved him for that. This story made me smile, laugh, cry and basically made me feel every emotion possible. And not only do you get an amazing main love story, you get a secondary one as well that was equally good and intense.

Narration: This is my first listen by Paula Costello and apparently it's her first narration. Well I could have never guessed that. She's good! Considering she was able to portray american, british and scotish accents so well and at the same time make the story come to life so vividly.. I'd say she's very very good.

I really liked this story and would definitely listen to another book by this author and/or narrator.

71 people found this helpful

B-r-a-a-a-d-e-n-n (can you hear me purr his name?)

STORY (romance) - If you've heard as many audiobooks as I have, you will come across this story line a lot. One lover has a difficult past and the other has to help work through the demons. But this one just really "got me" more than most. Joss has moved from Virginia (USA) all the way to Scotland to get away from her past. She sticks to herself and won't let anyone in...until she meets scrumptious Braden Carmichael in a cab.

Usually I prefer mystery/romances because I tend to get bored with just romance alone. Not this time. I loved the story, the sexual content and, most of all, Braden.

PERFORMANCE - I have a pet peeve about romances I listen to. I like the men to sound like men and the women to sound like women, which is extremely hard when there's only one narrator. Paula Costello does a great job. Braden's Scottish accent may not be perfect, but it is tender and sexy. That's all that matters!

OVERALL (actual overall rating 4.5) - There is quite a bit of explicit sex. I didn't count, but maybe like six five-minute scenes. The F-word is fairly frequently uttered. There is no violence. Recommended for any female who likes hot romances.

16 people found this helpful

Very happily surprised.....

Of course I'm an addictied fan of Fifty; so I'm very quick to point out copy-kats. This book of course does follow the usual path of broken and trying to be in-love.

However, I'm not sure if it was the clever writing or the fabulous narrator that had me glued to it? Either way; I enjoyed the book and look forward to the next.........

PS - Narrator did an incredible Scottish Male accent that almost made me start smoking ..... HELLLLOOOOOO!!!

39 people found this helpful

Great sex AND great story!!

This book caught me in the first 30 minutes! It has a great story full of challenges and fulfillment. The sex is also amazing! I was enthralled and listened in practically one shebang, or at least every free minute I had. It's been a long time since I found a book that really satisfied me in the romance and story areas but this one stuck every need! Definitely worth a credit!

76 people found this helpful

Pleasant Surprise

I had read on many book blogs that On Dublin Street was one of the best romance books of 2012 and I have to agree. The storyline and characters are great. It has humor, romance and sadness as you watch Joss struggle with several issues. The narration was great too. I really enjoyed it!

22 people found this helpful

Braden Carmichael…Come On Down…

Oh…My…

“Dublin Street” is a “can’t put down”, “must listen to again” novel by Samantha Young, and Braden Carmichael is perhaps the best leading man…ever!

This story is rich in emotion with great characters that you will love.
There is a strong sexual content found in these pages, but responsibly written within the context of the storyline.

Mark your calendars for May 7, 2013 when the Second installment of the Dublin series, “Down London Road” will be released on ebooks! I was so impressed with “Dublin Street” that I made a visit to Samantha Young’s website. There, I found out that Publisher’s Weekly announced that Samantha signed a book deal for the third book in the series as well.

I cannot wait…

Credit Worthy??? You’d better believe it!

18 people found this helpful

Paula Costello is my new favorite narrator!

What made the experience of listening to On Dublin Street the most enjoyable?

The narrator is fantastic. Her seamless transition from English accent to Scottish is nearly flawless and made each character believable, approachable and likable. She expertly personified Joss and it was no trouble believing her as Braden, either.

Who was your favorite character and why?

I loved Joss. Vulnerable strength and genuine attitude. I loved experiencing her transition through the story from being afraid of her feelings and the truth of her inner dialog, to allowing that truth to come out and accept the affects of her reality. And she's witty and funny - always awesome attributes!

What does Paula Costello bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The Scottish brogue is one of the toughest accents to imitate and she seems to nail it. The way she sounded was much better than the horrid accent in my imagination.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I laughed out loud - "I guess I'm having sausage."

Any additional comments?

Awesome story, fantastic narration. Worth every penny.

26 people found this helpful

Enjoyable Read

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. The main character had lots of baggage and while it did weigh heavy, it didn't overwhelm. There were some unbelievable and impractical plot twists, but overall this was a very sweet story, full of sympathetic characters. I thought the narrator did a very good job. She managed both the American and Scots accents well.

16 people found this helpful

guess I'm going to be the unfavorable review

Disclaimer: I've never been much of a "girly girl," always rolled my eyes at chick flicks and chuckled at the covers of romance novels. But I was curious to try one at some point, and yes my boyfriend broke up me and I was frustrated. So take my review with a grain of salt, but I'm going back to eye-rolling and snickering.

First, predictable and repetitious. Sure, you know what is going to happen, if you wanted a mystery you would read a mystery. Of course you know that the chick is going to get the hot dude and that there will lots of sex, that's why you're reading this. But come on, how many times do we need to hear the same things happening again? I also thought the book began a bit abruptly--two sentences in and said chick is already in close quarters with said hot dude, who is already eying her thighs.

Next, the unhealthy nature of the "relationship." I know a lot of folks have enjoyed the "50 Shades" series, but I am personally annoyed and offended by the heroic portrayal of women being taken advantage of. Much of the book I was frustrated Joss' almost-attempts at standing up for herself, thinking "finally, don't take that sh*t, that-a-girl" until she yet again melts before the handsome douchebag. Telling her that she can't wear short dresses out in public because he doesn't want other men to see her taking pride in her body, can't wear her hair down because he doesn't want other men to see how nice it looks.... little red flags anybody?

Not to mention, Barbie and Ken? Of course the hot dude is going to be mid/late-twenties, handsome, extremely well-muscled, rich, smart, charismatic... of course. But when the author started describing Joss as looking more "plain," enjoying a "casual" appearance I cheered. Why, Joss even calls herself short! She even picked fun at the blonde bimbos. Cool, a "normal" heroine! But apparently looking "plain" means having fantastic hair, great legs, and jugs for boobs. Oh, and 5'6" is "short." [Need I comment that this 5'2" reviewer snorted in disgust at all the times Joss complained about her height?]

Am I just an insensitive, hard-to-please, fault-finding reader? Maybe. If your personality more closely matches that of the other reviews, hey you might enjoy the book, to each his own. But if you're newer to this genre and saw that this was ranked as a top novel, I would recommend trying to find something else.

The audiobook's redeeming quality was the accents. I thought the narrator did quite a good job impersonating the accents for the characters, though I am a sucker for Scottish and Irish accents. I almost wished that Joss' character had been Scottish too, so that the whole novel would have been read with such a delightful accent.

23 people found this helpful

I THOUGHT 1587 LISTENERS CAN'T BE WRONG...

... and guess what? they weren't - this IS a 5* listen and I too was mesmerized by the slow build-up, the emotional issues, the depth to the characters, the unwavering chemistry between Jocelyn and Braden, the sex scenes and all the debilitating drama that unfurls along the way. Braden Braden Braden you will always hold a piece of my heart for seeing beyond, for holding on and for being you.

Thank you Samantha Young for creating such intense characters and I look forward to visiting them again soon when I next take a walk down Dublin Street.

Worth a credit? A well narrated well written compelling and complex love story that drew me in from the start and kept me clinging on to every chapter.. so YES v e r y creditworthy.

18 people found this helpful