The One Real Thing By Samantha Young

[amazon_link id=”0349412588″ target=”_blank” ][/amazon_link]’The One Real Thing’ is the first book in the new ‘Hart’s Broadwalk’ series by Samantha Young.

Welcome to Hartwell, a quiet seaside escape where uncovering old secrets could lead one woman to discover the meaning of a love that lasts. While Doctor Jessica Huntington engages with the inmates at the women’s correctional facility where she works, she’s always careful to avoid emotional attachments in her personal life. Loss and betrayal taught her that lesson long ago. But when she comes across a set of old love letters in the prison’s library and visits the picturesque town of Hartwell to deliver them to their intended recipient, she finds herself unable to resist the town’s charm-and her attraction to the sexy owner of a local bar proves equally hard to deny. Since his divorce from his unfaithful ex-wife, Cooper Lawson has focused on what really matters: his family and the boardwalk pub they’ve owned for generations. But the first time Jessica steps into his bar, Cooper is beyond tempted to risk his heart on her. Yet as their attraction grows hotter and Jessica remains stubbornly closed off, he begins to realize it will take more than just passion to convince her there’s only one real thing in life worth fighting for….

‘The One Real Thing’ is the first book that I have read by Samantha Young and I must say that I enjoyed this tender and erotic tale about starting over.

The story is seen through the perspective of the main characters, Jessica Huntington and Cooper Lawson and starts right at the point when the pair meet. Jessica has reached a point in her life where she doesn’t know what she’s doing, unhappy in her job as a prison doctor and in a loveless relationship, she wonders what’s next in her life. So when, she stumbles across secret love letters that are addressed to a town called Hartwell, she decides to take a long earned vacation and return the letters to the recipient. But when she arrives in the seaside town, she immediately falls in love with the charismatic town and people. Cooper is the brooding man that all the woman flock over, handsome with a heart of gold, he is drawn to Jessica and she is drawn to him, he helps her find a purpose in her life and find a way to be happy, together they embark on a tentative friendship as they learn about life and each other.

This story is carefully and thoughtfully structured with heart-warming characters, that you develop a genuine connection and concern for. As Jessica tries to find out her place in her life, I felt an empathy for her, as at some point in everyone’s lives, we have all felt that way. But, as the story progresses, we see a happier version of her bleak herself as she lets go of the shackles of life and puts her own needs first. Her relationship with Cooper is a fun one, as he brings her out of herself and she makes him happy and forget about the old dramas in his life. Their relationship is intense and does make for quite saucy reading at times. Set against the backdrop of the sweet sea side village of Hartwell with its quirky shops, engaging characters and mysterious ways, I found this romantic book impossible to put down.

A fun and sexy story from the very first page, ‘The One Real Thing’ is an intriguing and emotional story about starting over and new beginnings and a wonderful start to a new series.

You can buy [amazon_link id=”0349412588″ target=”_blank” ]The One Real Thing (Hart’s Boardwalk) from Amazon [/amazon_link] and will be available to buy from good bookshops.