New Release & Review: AS DUST DANCES by Samantha Young

AS DUST DANCES by Samantha Young

Series: Play On, #2 – Standalone

Release Date: 7th August 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…

★5 STARS★

I dare say anyone would disagree about the extraordinary life American born Skylar Finch has led. A onetime international singing sensation, she now scrapes by busking on the streets of Glasgow. The pressure of fame and a shattering family tragedy led her to turn her back on the life she once knew. Such is Samantha Young’s writing we are never in doubt at how harsh and cruel the perils of homelessness are and the dangers being faced on a daily basis.

Skylar is brave and resilient but it’s her fragility that made it impossible for me to feel anything but support and compassion for her. She’s survived this far by keeping her head down, but she hasn’t escaped the notice record company executive Killian O’Dea.

Its Killian job to recognize talent and the scrappy busker he’s seen on occasion has an abundance of it. Her voice is stunning but it’s her original pieces that strike a chord within his frosty being. Feisty and defensive it takes all patience he doesn’t have to persuade her to meet with him. He’s driven by success to the point of somewhat ruthlessness and he sees Skylar as a means to get him there. As expected with their strong personalities the two clash, but he gives her his card in the hopes that she’ll see sense.

Confronted with just how chilling life on the street can be for a female Skylar has no choice but to turn to Killian for help. She mistakes his directness for fury at her naivety, but his anger is in fact directed towards those who meant to harm her. He means to help her get on her feet and in return for her to produce an album. It’s not an easy decision for her to make. In doing so it means coming face to face with the ghosts of her past that have haunted her, but she’s also confused and unsettled by her range of emotions evoked by the being in the presence of Killian.

Skylar & Killian’s relationship is one that defines romance for me. It’s confronting the ugliness we sometimes see in ourselves and having someone love us in spite of it. It’s the rawness of our pain and having someone who makes it their mission to sooth it. I adored their chemistry and intensity but even more so the growth they made as individuals and as a couple.

Young did not just write a novel, she composed a compelling love song that captured me from its first note to its last.

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 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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