Because of Low

Written by Abbi Glines

Narrated by Kirby Heyborne and Shayna Thibodeaux

It’s steamy in the Gulf town of Sea Breeze. Physical attraction is the only way to beat the heat in this second book of the Sea Breeze series from bestselling, previously self-published author Abbi Glines.

Playboy Cage owns the apartment, and he hosts a revolving door of people, in and out, at all times. Most of them are long-legged hot girls who are never there more than a night or two. When Cage’s new roommate, Marcus, enters the picture, he’s just looking to nurse a broken heart. But there’s one particular semi-frequent regular who catches his eye.

Willow—“Low”—is the one Cage wants to marry. But the two of them are night and day, and Marcus can’t see how Low puts up with all of Cage’s womanizing. What she really needs is a real man....like good-looking and sensible Marcus. But that’s going to get real complicated and real messy—real fast.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
• Release date: Feb 25, 2013
• ISBN: 9781442363908

Abbi Glines

Abbi Glines is the New York Times, USA TODAY, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of the Rosemary Beach, Field Party, Sea Breeze, Vincent Boys, and Existence series. A devoted book lover, Abbi lives with her family in Alabama. She maintains a Twitter addiction at @AbbiGlines and can also be found at Facebook.com/AbbiGlinesAuthor and AbbiGlinesBooks.com.

Reviews for Because of Low

[gigisiriereads · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Dear Marcus:

Oh Marcus not again. I was rooting for you to get the girl this time. Even though I knew she was so swooning for you, I was still worried about the trials you would have to go through to get the girl. I was very upset with you when you jumped to conclusions and lost it and was so awful to Low. Bad move Marcus. Anyway, congrats on getting the girl and I hope you two will have your HEA.

Sincerely,
Me

P.S. Another beautiful love story of finding and fighting for love from Abbi Glines.

[itsbookishme · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Dear Marcus:

Oh Marcus not again. I was rooting for you to get the girl this time. Even though I knew she was so swooning for you, I was still worried about the trials you would have to go through to get the girl. I was very upset with you when you jumped to conclusions and lost it and was so awful to Low. Bad move Marcus. Anyway, congrats on getting the girl and I hope you two will have your HEA.

Sincerely,
Me

P.S. Another beautiful love story of finding and fighting for love from Abbi Glines.

[bette_hansen · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Loved this book! I think Willow and Marcus are a great couple having to deal with some pretty weird situations. Very well written and I love all the Seabreeze characters!

[englisherna · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

My heart broke for Marcus in this book. That scene when he discovered ******
Sigh. Crying. Crying. Crying.

I kinda guessed how the conflict's gonna be presented but when it was really happening, IDK, I was still shocked.
Marcus and Low are one of my fave couples together with Cage and Eva <3

[janersm · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

As I mentioned in my review for Breathe, I broke my boycott of books by Abbi Glines. I had been hoping that my disdain for the books I'd read was misplaced. And with Breathe, I figured out that it wasn't. Considering how negatively I felt towards Marcus Hardy in that book, it doesn't surprise me that in Because of Low, I also found him to be a loathesome, misogynistic miscreant. (Say that three times fast.)This book is so much more degrading toward women than most books by this author. That's really saying something because it is a common feature of her books to have women portrayed as objects and toys for the male characters to manipulate, abuse, etc. So when I say that this book is absolute misogynist trash, believe it. Marcus is having family issues because his daddy decided to cheat on his mom. While he hates his father's decision and often complains about it in his own inner monologues, his vitriol is unleashed on the other woman. The nicest things he calls her is: gold-digger, that slut, and his little girlfriend. He repeatedly calls her a whore. He even calls her a "paid-for" toy. He often suggests that his dad is being used for his money and that that indicates how he's a sucker. He thinks one time that he might kill his father, but then he suggests that he might have an even more elaborate plan for his father's girlfriend. That part honestly had me a bit freaked out because it took the sexism into a whole new level of awful.Marcus has an obsession with stalking and sexually accosting innocent girls. That too carries over to this book. But this time, the innocent girl is interested. He wonders things like if Low knows that her BFF "had bagged" a certain number of women that week. Bagging or being bagged is grotesque. It not only objectifies women, it makes sex sound like something that is done to one party by another, when it's not. Even in power-play sexual relationships, sex doesn't work that way. When sex is something done to a party by another party, it's called by another word: rape. So, we either need to call the sex between Cage and various women sex or we need to call it rape. If it's consensual, then we should go with sex. If it isn't, someone should be calling the fictional police department of the fictional town of Sea Breeze to report this sexual predator.Marcus talks about how he has a righteous fury toward Cage over any possible sexual relationship between Cage and Low. He envies him touching her. Marcus fails to understand that Low is a grown-up. She gets to do what she wants with her body. He gets angry because Low wears cowboy boots when she goes out. They're so hot on her that he can't handle the thought of any guy being attracted to her while she wears them. He needs to stop this crap. He talks about going caveman, which is trashy book talk for basically wanting to take a woman back to his apartment/house/mansion and coerce or force a sexual act out of a woman because she's either pissed him off or because he is feeling insecure. It's really a degrading phrase for all of humanity.The author uses the term "female" or its plural "females" in many of her books to refer to women. This is sexist and transphobic language. It's sexist because it breaks women down to their reproductive organs--female is the term for biological sex. It's transphobic because not all women are born female and not all people born female are women.As usual with her books, there are also slams at single parents. Tawny is portrayed as so uncaring that she leaves her daughter's care arrangements (baby-sitters being lined up) to her sister. She is portrayed as being a cruel individual because she kicks her sister out any time that her daughter's father happens to be around, so she leaves her sister homeless. There are also references to Low's mom dying of cancer, which is something that is not uncommon in her books. And Low's dad is a deadbeat & Marcus's almost turns into one; these are other things that come up quite often in her books. There are slams of people who have had plastic surgery--a lot containing talk about breasts being fake and how that makes women ugly or trashier. Low even does this with Trisha. She sees her as a sex object first and can only picture her being good at sex work. This sort of judgment doesn't work both ways, as she respects her and takes up for her when the guys suggest Low might not be very smart. And if a woman is into casual sex? Oh, honey, don't even go there. That must mean that she's an airheaded slut because that's how they all behave in these books. But the guys who like casual relationships aren't portrayed as stupid. Lead male characters who have history of casual relationships are suggested to be lacking morally, but that doesn't keep them from ending up with a girl who has only had and will only ever have sex with them. Yep, the douchebags always get the virgins. I feel like this plot was stolen from an MRA website.The male characters in the books need to learn to stop ignoring when women say that they aren't interested. In this book, it was Cage who didn't get it. But both Marcus and Cage spent some time talking about Low as though she was some prize in a contest, not a person. Cage also had a tendency toward trying to tear Low down. It was presented as a best friend being compassionate and caring, but it was a type of bullying. He tried to ruin any confidence that Low had about her relationship. If he was trying to convince her to leave Marcus because he's a jerk, I could have gotten behind that, but he suggested that Marcus would leave because Low was too poor for him. Great. Really great friendship you have there.And, for the love of all that's good in the world, can we stop talking about suicide and mental illness like it's a character flaw? It isn't. These are actual health conditions and do not deserve this kind of crap. Basically, there is a lot about this story that squicks me out. And that's not even the more technical facets. The grammar is atrocious. The editing is awful. There's a lack of development of the story. It feels like Glines writes pretty much the same story over and over. That might be popular with some, but it's boring for others. I think she might be a decent writer if she would stop doing that and start writing books that she puts a full effort behind. I am going to try to finish this series, even though I'm pretty sure that no book in it will ever get above a 2-star rating. People who enjoy Glines' books will probably love this one. People who don't won't. It's really that simple.

[breakingbooks-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

As I predicted I liked this book better than the first. I felt as though I knew the characters a little better. I just wish Willow and Marcus weren't so perfect. It kind of made it a little more dramatic than I liked.

[nataniar-2 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Loved Marcus's story!

[vanyadrum · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I loved Breathe so much, that I just went on and started on Because of Low right away. Guess what? I finished it in less than a day! It was an amazing book! Loved it! And it reminded me so much of Beautiful Disaster that I went on and re-read that too. Weired, huh?

Anyway, I was stricken by Low's story. I mean... Marcus's story is pretty common... a cheating father leaves his family for a younger woman. But Low's story... geezh! What kind of person should you be to leave your own sister on the street with just a suitcase in hand?

I was impressed by Low. She was so utterly strong, even in her weakest, darkest moments. Even when her heart was breaking and she was barely living. She was just this pillar of inner strength. Of course, without Cage she might not have survived to be who she was in the first place, but hey, even a pillar needs a foundation, no?

So, this story was obvious to me from the middle on, but that didn't make me enjoy it any less. The only thing that I didn't like about it, was Marcus's bossy tone. He was constantly bossing Low around. "You won't sleep there." "You won't wear this." "You can't do that." Gee! Who on earth did he think he was? He was definitely not the sweet guy we met in Breathe. Here he's got his own character, his own personality, his own brutal life that makes him behave like a total butt. If I were Low, I'd definitely find a way to kick him somewhere where it would hurt. And then I'd kiss him senseless, but that's beyond the point.

In conclusion, I recommend you read this book, but keep in mind that it is not Young Adult. It's New Adult and has some scenes that I think are inappropriate for younger readers.

[pahel-2 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

At first I was damn sure this book couldn't b better than 'Breathe'...& it remained in my bookshelf for weeks...Todae i finally thot of tryin it..nd i cant evn xpress hw amazin it was...Surprisingly i found it way better than 'Breathe'!! It had the perfect balance of emotions, drama and passion! I absolutely loved Willow! With her cute but daring personality, she bcam evn more real than Sadie..! Nd well wot 2 sae abt Marcus..in Breathe v got to c a kinda soft side of hm..buh in Because Of Low...OMG..he tohtally blew me away! He was total swoon-worthy...and made Jax look lika kid =P His sexiness and charm definitly got hm in mie book boyfrnd list..:P Over all people u definitly hav to read dis book! A big cheer to Abbi Glines for another awsum book!

[saders18 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Marcus Hardy is instantly attracted to Willow "Low" Foster the second he lays eyes on her, only problem is she's sleeping in bed with his new roommate Cage York. I fell hard for Marcus in Abbi Glines previous book "Breathe" only problem is in this book I also fell extremely hard for Cage, though he's an idiot and I know Low shouldn't be with him, it's hard to see him lose her because he truly loves her. I adore the way Cage looks out for Low and how insanely protective he is of her. Low's lived an extremely unstable, crazy, painful life style, the one and only thing Low has to be thankful for is Cage, the only person besides her evil sisters daughter, she considers family. Cage is her whole lives foundation, she's never not had Cage to be there for her and for her to fall back on. Marcus's life is full of people whom love him and lots of family, his and Low's life are quite different but that doesn't stop them from slowly falling in love with one another. Finding a balance between Marcus and Cage without hurting or losing either of them is a challenge, this love story isn't easy, and it isn't perfect. They find themselves hitting alot of bumps along the way but nothing they can't push through.. until Marcus is faced with a choice.. his family.. or Low. “Because he’s her safe house…Because every time you aren’t there to pick her up, I can assure you Cage will be. She knows she can call him. She knows no matter what he’ll love her. Unconditional love is hard to compete with.”"My heart never left you.” -Marcus"My chest expanded and I suddenly wanted to beat on it with my fist. The girl was making me go all caveman." -Marcus Hardy"There's a thin line baby. A thing line between love and hate." -Cage York"Low, a guy doesn't fall in love with you and have you love him back then just throw it away. You're too special. After being loved by you, he can't completely forget. He's haunted by it. I'd bet my life on it." -Cage

[tabathav_2 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Abbi Glines has done it againThat is exactly what I thought about 5 pages into this book. I don't know what it is that pulls me to her books... wait, yes I do. Her writing style is exceptional, her plot lines know how to keep you hooked and you can't help but connecting emotionally with the book.I bet you've never had to ask yourself, "how do I get a girl someone else claims they are going to marry one day?" That is exactly what Marcus Hardy found himself. Marcus has found himself back in his hometown to handle some family issues that are going on. While here, he gets an apartment with a friend of his, Cage. During this stay, he encounters Willow, or as we all know her - Low. Not only is she Cage's best friend, but she also happens to be the girl Cage tells everyone he is going to Marry one day. How does one have any kind of chance against that?Willow. Here she is battling some issues of her own. Here she is struggling with school, work, anxiety, watching her niece and worrying about where she is going to stay every time her sister decides to kick her out. Cage to the rescue! Anytime she needs him, he is there. Again, how do you compete with something like that? - Enter Marcus stage left (: From the moment he opened the door and saw Low standing there, he was hooked. Before he knew it, every thought he had was about her.But as usual, not everything can last forever. While Marcus is busy holding his family together, due to his dad leaving his mother for a much younger woman, Low is attempting to hold her own life together with the added fear that Cage no longer wanted to be there for her. Insert tons of emotional drama here. - Seriously, this book had me in tears around this part. How do you overcome everything blowing up in your face and the one person you thought you were going to spend forever with is suddenly the one person you don't want to see anymore?This is the problem Low found herself dealing with. How do you explain to the love of you life that you had no idea it was your sister that stole your dad from your mom AND had a baby with him? Before she could get the chance to, Marcus walked in on her confronting her sister and his father and thought that she knew the entire time, informing her he wanted nothing to do with her again. Enter Cage stage right! Where do you go from here? How do you pick up the pieces of two broken hearts? As everyone always says, the heart needs time to heal.The way this book was written simply amazed me. Not only did it end with the two of them getting back together, it showed the struggles and steps they took to get to that point. To me, this was one emotional book and I loved every single moment of it. I can honestly say not one part of this book turned me off. As we all know, I love me a good underdog story!

[damarisgcr · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Every time I pick up one of Abbi Glines books, I find myself up all hours of the night until I finish the book! Because of Low is a book that I believe lots of readers can easily relate too. Abbi Glines touches some real life situations that can happen and/or are happening today. You have your two main characters who are both dealing with a lot at such a young age. Marcus is back in town because his mother and little sister need him. His father has done them wrong. I felt so bad for Marcus. He was a teenage boy having to be the strong one for his mother and sister. So much on his plate and he still tried to have a normal life. Then you have Willow “Low”, who has it a lot worse than Marcus. She basically lives with her sister who only allows her to sleep at home when she needs something from her. Willow is basically homeless and lives from place to place. It was really sad to see a family member treat another the way Willow’s sister did to her. There hasn’t been one book that I’ve read by Abbi Glines that I have not truly enjoyed. Every book I’ve read by her has kept me up all hours of the night. The same goes with Because of Low. I just couldn’t put it down. And even though I already predicted how things would go, I was at the edge of seat waiting for it to all happen and to watch Marcus and Low’s world fall to pieces. There were some parts that I felt were so sad because in the real world things like what Low and Marcus experience happen, a lot. The story does end on a positive note, and Marcus and Low grow from it all. I really liked this book and I would definitely recommend it to readers. Although, I feel it’s for teens sixteen and older. If you haven’t read any of Abbi Glines books before, I think you should definitely pick one up. They are awesome!5 out of 5 stars!

[urbanfan · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I've come to realize anything by Abbi Glines I will adore.Why I read this book: It was written by Abbi Glines. There doesn’t need to be any more of a reason. What I Liked: This is a true Glines contemporary romance. The characters are lovable, the romance has just enough conflict to make you squirm, and the ending makes you sigh and smile. Even though this is a spin-off from Breathe, you really get to know Marcus more. That boy sure knows how to get himself in trouble while not even realizing it. haha Low is a interesting character with trust issues. Her relationship with her best friend Cage (Marcus’ roommate) is odd, his own realizations at the end of the story helped me be OK with that part of the plot line. I liked the dynamics and the conflict…well…yeah. It’s a doosey. The writing style fits Glines and flows just like her other contemporary romances. The plot moved along, the right things happened at the right time to make me shake my head or hold my breath in anticipation. What I Didn’t Like: Not much. I really didn’t care for Cage, BUT Glines made him just protective enough to be annoying to me yet able to back off when I wanted him to as not to become a truly annoying character. Others have loved this character though. Not to say I didn’t like him, I just didn’t like the presumptive nature of his future with Low yet he still lived a particular lifestyle right in front of her.