Black Tangled Heart, by New York Times bestselling author Samantha Young, is LIVE!
“Readers are in for a thrilling and emotional ride with this one! The storyline is engrossing, the characters are complex, and the chemistry is off-the-charts palpable. It’s my favorite book by Samantha Young to date.”
— K.A. Tucker, international bestselling author of The Simple Wild.
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Blurb
To my siblings, Jane was a friend. A pseudo-sister, the girl we grew up with.
To me? She was everything.
Our passion consumed us.
When our world fell apart, I thought our love would be the thing that held us together.
She was the love of my life. But she abandoned me when I needed her most.
And I’ll never forgive her.
For years I’ve been planning my revenge against the people who took everything from me.
Jane won’t be an exception. I’m coming for her.
She knows it.
She says she wants to help me serve my version of justice on the people who hurt me.
I’ll let her.
She probably thinks it will save her from me.
It won’t.
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Review
5 stars and all the feels!
Holy damn, what a ride! Dramatic, romantic, passionate, intense and angsty, Samantha Young brings all the feels to this book, and it’s an amazing read! Full of emotion, this second-chance-romance had me swooning, crying and falling in love over and over again, and I loved every moment of it!
This book is part of the Play On series, but note that these books are grouped together by theme (the arts) only. They are complete standalones with no character crossover, and they can be read in any order.
Jane grew up in the foster system. She’s had a tragic life, but she finds her place when she meets the McKenna family siblings. She becomes best friends with the youngest sibling, Lorna, gains an older sister figure in Skye, and falls madly and irrevocably in love with middle sibling, Jamie. Two years older than Jane, Jamie doesn’t see Jane as anything other than his younger sister’s friend, but he feels somewhat protective over her, but over the years as they get to know each other, his feelings begin to shift.
“Everyone but me is off-limits to you, Jane. You got that?” “I don’t belong to you,” I whispered. It sounded weak. I hated that it sounded weak. Why did he do this to me? How could one person affect me so much? “Yes, you do.” His voice was hoarse. “And I belong to you.”
With teenage Jane and Jamie, we get an absolutely beautiful story of first love. It develops honestly and naturally, there is so much emotion between them, they share an incredible connection and passion for each other, and these two are just it for each other. And can I just say that I fell in mad love with 19 year old Jamie… because wow!
“I’ve never loved anyone like this. It feels too much.” My heart leapt in my chest. “I feel it too.” It was scary. Terrifying, even. Yet it was the most exhilarating ride of my life.
But in a dramatic twist, it all falls apart for our young lovers. It’s a tragic situation which made my heart ache, and it makes sense for the story. It’s not just stupid drama for the sake of it, but an extreme situation which leaves Jane and Jamie apart and broken-hearted.
Years later, and everything is different for both of them. Jamie, in particular, is a changed man, who has thought of little else other than the people who did wrong by him, and he wants revenge. Jane is on that list. And so, we get a second-chance-romance with an enemies-to-lovers twist as Jamie sets his sites on Jane (among others), seeking retribution for all that he’s been through.
The tone for the second part of this book is completely different from the first, and I loved the shift. Jane and Jamie are older now, they’ve been through a lot, and they are in completely different places in their lives. But the chemistry between them still sizzles, and my heart was pounding just waiting to see what would happen when they came back together. I don’t want to spoil the story so I won’t go into details, but I will say that I was not disappointed. It’s not an easy read, seeing two people who are so clearly destined to be together in a place that was so inconceivable from the beginning of their story, but I could understand where they were both coming from, and I was captivated, and could not put my kindle down, desperate to see how it was all going to play out.
It’s harsh and brutal, and the angst is off the charts, but underneath it all is this epic sense of longing that made me ache for both of them. There are so many times I wanted to sit them down and make them deal with their issues, but looking back I can see that it was perfect, it happened as it needed to happen, and I relished the emotional journey that I went on with these characters. And was it worth it? Hell yes! Steamy, emotional, and so freaking swoony, I had tears in my eyes as these two found their way back to each other.
I still loved her. I would always love Jane. It was the kid of love that would never fade.
It all unfolds alongside a mystery/suspense storyline that works really well with the romance, and I was fully invested in seeing how it was all going to be resolved. There are some heartstopping moments, which add to the sense of excitement in the book, and it is really well put together.
I loved this book. It took me on a wild ride of emotions, and I fell in mad love with these characters and their story. Samantha Young writes so beautifully, and this is among my favourites of hers. Fantastic – 5 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
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As Dust Dances (#2)
Review
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Excerpt
I stared dully at my painting. My creative mood had left the building, under the weight of the many questions going around and around in my head. Adrenaline made it hard for me to sit still. Cursing Jamie under my breath, I grabbed my laundry basket and headed toward the front door. Peering through the peephole, I double-checked his door was shut before I left my apartment. Glowering at his door as I passed, I hurried downstairs. How the hell had he maneuvered himself into my building? And why?
To my gratitude, the laundry room was empty as I crashed around inside it. I hauled out my stash of detergent and softener from my allocated locker and started separating my whites. That rat bastard. My heart raced, sweat gathered under my arms, and it agitated me. An encounter with Jamie was the equivalent of fifteen shots of caffeine.
And I hated that he knew I was lying to Asher. Something he could easily hold over my head.
“You are a very angry laundry doer.”
Jamie’s deep, rich voice startled me. Trying to control my breathing, I glared over at him standing in the doorway. Arms and ankles crossed as he leaned casually against the jamb. He wore a T-shirt and jeans. Nothing had changed there.
He was still the sexiest man I’d ever seen.
God, I hate him. “
What the hell are you doing in this building?” I turned my back on him, marching over to the stacked washers and dryers.
“I had no idea you lived here,” he lied, his voice growing closer as he crossed the room toward me.
Attempting not to react physically, to not hunch my shoulders in tension, I stared unseeing at the machines. What was I in the middle of doing again?
“What a surprise to find out you’re my neighbor.”
I snorted in disbelief and turned around, shocked to find him already in my personal space. “Liar.” I dragged my gaze insolently down his body and back up. “Move away. And I mean that in more ways than one.”
“Oh, does my presence bother you?” His wicked smile caused somersaults in my belly.
“What are you doing here?” I ignored his proximity. Okay, I tried to ignore his proximity.
In answer, he stepped into me and I stumbled against the machines at my back. Jamie pressed the palms of his hands on the dryer, caging me in. My breath caught and held as his scent flooded me. That dark, earthy scent was enticing, and my body betrayed my emotions.
Feeling panic rise, I pushed at his chest, but he wouldn’t budge. “Jamie?”
Those ocean eyes wandered over my face, cold, calculating. “He doesn’t know who I am. You haven’t told him.”
I lowered my hands. Touching him was even more discombobulating. “No.”
He bent his head toward mine until our noses almost touched. I sucked in a breath. “I wonder why you’re keeping it from him?”
Determined not to let him see how much he affected me, I glared up at him. He’d only have to touch me, hold my hand, to realize I was trembling. His face was so familiar. His lips were lips I’d thought I’d kiss for the rest of my life. Why did the pain of it never dull? Why did it still feel like a shard of glass through my chest? “Did you leak those tapes of Foster Steadman to Asher’s mom?”
Something menacing flashed in his eyes before he banked it. “And if I did?”
“Are you being smart, Jamie?”
“Are you asking out of concern for me or for your billionaire boy toy?”
“Jamie.”
“Never mind. I don’t care.” The bastard dipped his nose to my throat, and I tensed against the stacked machines. He inhaled, his nose brushing my skin, and my fingers bit into the washer behind me. “You smell different,” he whispered, lifting his head to my ear. “Expensive perfume. You’ve come up in the world.”
I felt his breath caress my skin seconds before his teeth touched my earlobe. Gasping, I instinctively pushed my palms against his stomach as he bit down hard, causing a flush of heat between my legs.
With a dark chuckle, Jamie released my ear after one last nibble and whispered, “Is he the jealous type, Jane?”
About the Author
Samantha Young is a New York Times and #1 International bestselling author from Stirlingshire, Scotland. On Dublin Street was Samantha’s first adult contemporary romance series and has sold in thirty countries. She has since published over thirteen romance titles including the New York Times Bestsellers Into the Deep, Hero, and her most recent contemporary romance Play On. When writing Adult Paranormal romance she writes under the pen name S. Young.
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