REVIEW: Because of Low by Abbi Glines

Author: Abbi Glines

Pages: ebook

Genre: Young Adult

Amazon: Because of Low

Synopsis. (Goodreads)

In my debut novel, Breathe, Sadie may have fallen in love with the teen rock star, Jax Stone, but readers fell head over heels for Marcus Hardy. This is his story…

Marcus Hardy had hoped to enjoy a year away at college while he put the summer he’d rather forget behind him. But instead, he’s jerked right back to the coastal town of Sea Breeze, Alabama due to a family crisis. His dear ol' dad found himself a girlfriend only a few years older than Marcus. So now his sister needs help dealing with their mother who is mentally falling apart. The only bright spot to returning is the fascinating red head who sleeps over several times a week. The problem is she's sleeping in bed with his new roommate, Cage Watson.

Willow “Low” Foster needs a place to live. Running to Cage’s apartment every time her sister kicks her out isn’t exactly a long term solution. Juggling her courses at the local community college and a part time job doesn’t produce excess income. But Cage has a new roommate and suddenly sleeping over at her best friend’s apartment isn’t such a bad thing. Not when she gets to see those sexy green eyes of Marcus Hardy’s twinkle when he smiles at her like he wants her there.
Even though Cage seems a little territorial where Low is concerned, Marcus finds time to spend with Low without upsetting his roommate. Cage may use his small college baseball star persona to sleep with every hot female in his path but he’s still under the disillusion that when he’s through sowing his wild oats, he’s going to marry Low. Marcus intends to change that assumption for both Cage and Low. Until his carefully laid plans come crashing down with a revelation he never expected. He’ll have to choose between Low or his family. Because once the truth comes out.... there’s no other choice.

REVIEW: 4 out of 5 stars

We first met Marcus Hardy in Abbi Glines debut novel, Breathe where he worked alongside and fell for Sadie White. I absolutely adored Marcus in this book so I am relieved Because of Low is his story.

Marcus has left college to return to Sea Breeze, Alabama to help his mother and sister through a family crisis, his father has decided to find himself a much younger girlfriend so he is left to pick up the pieces of his broken family.

Willow ‘Low’ Foster has had a lot to deal with in her young life, she spends most of her time worrying about where she will sleep, her horrible older sister Tawny allows her to stay with her only on nights where she looks after her young niece Larissa so at other times she is either in a shelter or with her closest friend, Cage York. Low initially came across as quite weak and defeated but she grew in strength as the story progressed.

I didn’t have a very good first impression of Cage, he seemed sleazy and self absorbed but the one constant in his life has always been Low and his belief he will one day marry her.

When it came to love triangles, this one was quite interesting; whilst there was no doubt in my mind who Low would end up with it was still a struggle to see it all play out. The emotions evoked were very real and someone was always going to be hurt.

The bond Cage and Low shared to me was based more on mutual trust and the knowledge and understanding of the past they shared, I didn’t see anything romantic there whatsoever but a really sweet friendship where they had come to rely on each other to always be around, I just wish Low could have been upfront with Cage from the onset rather than allowing him to believe they had a future. I really hope we see Cage with a story and HEA of his own.

I absolutely adored the gorgeous, green-eyed Marcus; he was so sweet and caring and the chemistry and attraction between him and Low was undeniable. I liked seeing them learn to trust one another and open up despite the hurdles they encountered along the way.

I enjoyed the journey each of the characters had to make as well as the decisions, it was a tough and emotional road for them but they came through with a more positive outlook, there were a number of miscommunications that could have and should have been sorted out before they exploded but the personal struggles were dealt with well.

I really enjoy Abbi Glines writing style and the beautiful romance stories she writes. Because of Low was such a heartfelt, enjoyable, emotional roller-coaster that kept me captivated, I literally finished it in one sitting.

Overall, I really enjoyed Because of Low and definitely look forward to reading more books by Abbi Glines.