Abbi Glines crafts a wonderful contemporary story in BECAUSE OF LOW. Low is unique and quirky. Glines introduces her crying, but in that opening scene with her, I could tell Low is not a weak girl. She is a girl who worries very much and is hurt by the people around her, but most importantly, she is a fighter. Seeing her through Marcus's eyes in the alternating narrative shows that even more, as well as providing great insight to his character in her narratives. Marcus is a guy who isn't quick to trust, but he is a fighter as well, giving them a solid and believable foundation for a relationship that could last. The journey in seeing them discover everything they have in common is enjoyable and highly pleasurable to read.

The secondary characters in Cage, Sadie, and many others work well in the environment Glines created. Picturing all of them interacting in Cage's apartment is easy with the small, but significant details put into the story that draw the reader in. Those details are part of my favorite thing of BECAUSE OF LOW and that is the voice in this story. Some points in the plot, though not all by any means, are predictable, but instead of heavily detracting from the story as it normally would for me, Abbi Glines has such an engaging and powerful voice as an author that the moments that became predictable hardly fazed me.

BECAUSE OF LOW is truly enveloping all throughout, and I look forward to reading more of this author. For fans of YA/NA contemporary tales, I would highly recommend this story of love, courage, and bravery in taking charge and standing up for yourself and sometimes even standing up to yourself.

Book Summary