[Back to Back x 4] Book Reviews: Sea Breeze series by Abbi Glines

Well, this is the first time I’m doing a back to back times four book reviews! LOL. I downloaded the ebooks of the first four books in the Sea Breeze series of Abbi Glines last week, and I was hooked, I finished four of them. And there’s a fifth one coming this year, so I’m excited with that too. Anyway, I decided to just post my reviews in one blog post. :)

Suffice to say, I loved them all.

Let’s start with the first book, Breathe..

 Breathe by Abbi Glines

 Sadie White's summer job isn't going to be on the beach life-guarding or working at rental booths like most kids her age. With her single mother's increasing pregnancy and refusal to work, Sadie has to take over her mother's job as a domestic servant for one of the wealthy summer families on a nearby island.
When the family arrives at their summer getaway, Sadie is surprised to learn that the owner of the house is Jax Stone, one of the hottest teen rockers in the world. If Sadie hadn't spent her life raising her mother and taking care of the house she might have been normal enough to be excited about working for a rock star.
Even though Sadie isn't impressed by Jax's fame, he is drawn to her. Everything about Sadie fascinates Jax but he fights his attraction. Relationships never work in his world and as badly as he wants Sadie, he believes she deserves more. By the end of the summer, Jax discovers he can't breathe without Sadie.(goodreads)

My Thoughts:

This has cliché written all over it, but I still liked it. Breathe is a dramatic story of a struggling teenager, who has only known her mother in her life. No other friends, never had a boyfriend, no social life. It does not help that her mother is not smart when it comes to her love life, for example, having Sadie with a married man. Not so wise, right? And now, she’s pregnant yet again, and the father of the baby? not around. And so, it’s up to her mom and Sadie to raise this baby. When will Sadie ever get her happy ever after?

I like Sadie. She’s beautiful, inside and out, and she doesn’t know it. She’s smart and not so clueless. I think the song “What makes her beautiful” by 1D is for her...She’s had a rough life, and now she’s resolved to work as her mom’s substitute in one of the wealthy vacation houses in the nearby island. Little did she know that this house (mansion) was owned by the very famous rock star, Jax Stone. Yeah...the help and the rock star. Kind of usual, but it was still sweet. The undeniable attraction part, the finding a best friend in the midst of it all part, the falling in love part, the giving it a chance part, the heartbreak, the additional challenges, the realization, the getting back together. Everything’s in here. What only made it more interesting to read is that Sadie’s family problems and how she handled it was brave. Love her. And yes, love Jax too. :)

Next up is Because of Low. This one’s about Marcus, the “other guy” from Breathe, the “best friend”. Seems only fair to give him his own story, don’t you think? Well, I think yes. :)

Because of Low by Abbi Glines
Warning: contains strong language and some sexual situations

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 York. 
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.

My Thoughts:

This was better than Breathe. For me. :)

Breathe, the first novel from the Sea Breeze series, was super sappy and it was the shocking/kind of impossible cause and scenarios. But it was still nice, I still liked it because of the drama part,haha. But here in Because of Low, it was more mature in the love story part, and the twist in the story, though predictable, was still heart-wrenching.

I'm not sure why, but I felt more of the heart reactions here. More feelings of rush, butterflies in the stomach, heart-bloating as well as heart-ripping sensations. My heart was literally in chaos. Lol. 

Marcus Hardy was the other guy in Breathe, and it's just not right for him not to have his own happy ending, because he deserved to be happy too. I liked what he said in Breathe, that the love Sadie had for Jax, he wants to experience it too. And well did he experience it! Willow or Low was it for Marcus. There are just some little complications: Cage York the uber playboy roomie of Marcus claims that Low will be his future wife, and the bond that they have? It was tight as their love for each other was "unconditional". Plus, Marcus still has to take care of his family, the one his father is currently tearing apart. And near the end of the story, another revelation will ultimately challenge Low and Marcus. Will they still end up with each other despite the current situation.

This book is just it. I laughed, I cried and I died (of happiness). :)

Okay, the third book is called “While It Lasts” and Cage York, Willow’s best friend, stars it. This is the playboy changed because of love. 


While It Lasts by Abbi Glines



(recommended for ages 17+ only)

Maybe driving home after a few (or more) shots of tequila had been a bad idea, but hell, he did it all the time. The cops had to have been freaking bored to have pulled him over. He wasn’t even swerving! That’s Cage York’s story and he’s sticking to it.
Unfortunately, his baseball coach isn’t buying it. Cage has a free ride to the local junior college for baseball -- or he did, until he’d gotten a DUI. Now, Cage has to decide: does he drop out and give up his dream of getting noticed by a college in the SEC, and possibly making it into the Major Leagues -- or does he give in to his coach’s demands and spend his summer baling hay?
Eva Brooks planned out her life step by step when she was eight years old. Not once over the years had she lost sight of her goals. Josh Beasley, her next door neighbor, had been the center of those goals. He’d been her first boyfriend at seven, her first kiss at ten, her first date at fifteen, and her first tragedy at eighteen. The moment she’d received the phone call from Josh’s mother saying he’d been killed along with four other soldiers just north of Baghdad, Eva’s carefully planned life imploded in the worst way possible.
Cage isn’t real happy with his closet-sized bedroom in the back of a foul smelling barn, or his daily interactions with cows, but he knows that if he doesn’t make his coach happy then he can kiss his scholarship goodbye. Only a sick and twisted man would decide his punishment was to be working on a farm all summer. No hot babes in bikinis waiting to meet a Southern boy to make her vacation complete. Just him and the damned cows.
Oh -- and an uptight, snarky brunette with the biggest blue eyes he’s every seen. But she doesn’t count, because as hard as he’s tried to charm her out of her panties - he’s pretty sure she’d rather see him hung from the rafters than let him get a taste of her pretty little lips.

My Thoughts: 

This book is absolutely for mature readers only, lol.

But, I liked that Cage had his fair share of story too! The transition of him being a bad womanizer to a loyal one-woman man was very entertaining to read. I liked Eva, she was true to herself. Yes, she got scared and confused along the way, but if I were her, I would be too. Her fiance died in Baghdad, and he was still young and they had ao mich planned. Since they were five, they already had each other. They were supposed to grow old with one another. And so her struggle to put her trust on someone who had a dirty record was really hard. But here, we can see transformation and redemption. I was just glad Abbi Glines did not put any more complications at the end of the story. Though it was quite hanging, the part about Eva talking to her father. After all, he was just concerned. It made me think of eloping stories. But this certainly was not eloping. Anyway, I just thought the endin was not concrete, but anyway, it was good.

The fourth book, Just For Now, is the story of Amanda, Marcus’ younger sister and Sadie’s best friend, and Preston, Marcus’ best friend. Yeah, typical sister and best friend of the brother story. Lovely all the same.

Just For Now by Abbi Glines

(ages 17+ only)

The day Preston Drake figured out that wealthy women paid well for a set of tight abs and a pretty face his life turned around.
The run down rat-infested trailer he had shared with his alcoholic mother and three younger siblings was now only a place he visited to pay the bills and stock the pantry with food. 
He no longer worried about his family starving or living without electricity. The money he made entertaining rich older women more than covered his family’s needs and his own. He had it all figured out. Except…There was this girl.She was as innocent as he was tainted.
Amanda Hardy wished her knees didn’t get weak when Preston walked into a room. She hated the fact her heart raced when he flashed his smile in her direction. He had a different girl in his bed every night. He was the kind of boy a smart girl ran from. So, why was she coming up with ways to get close to him? Even when it was obvious he wanted to keep her at a distance.
Maybe her heart knew something the world didn’t. Maybe Preston Drake was more than just a pretty face.

My Thoughts:

Jason was the sweetest! Rock is such a great friend! Trisha was very thoughtful and she desreved to be happy. Marcus and Low are so cute together! Cage and Eva are like one person, so sweet!. Sadie and Jax stiil made me feel like all the love story cliche are with them, lol.

OH! This book was about Preston and Amanda! Forgot about them, huh. Lol. But anyway, Amanda was one determined girl. And her forgiving attitude and open mindedness saved her a lot. Preston, on the other hand was really responsible especially towards his siblings, but his ways were not right. Somehow, even if I didn’t look up (of course not) on his way of handling things, you can still see the sweet guy in him. Amanda and his story were too complicated, but in the end it worked. :)

So that was it! 4 reviews in one post. :) I love Abbi Glines! weee!