The Fire Between High & Lo by Brittainy C. Cherry

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Title: The Fire Between High & Lo
Author: Brittainy C. Cherry
Series: Elements #2
Published by: Audible Studios
Release Date: June 19, 2016
Format: Audiobook
Narrator: Graham Halstead, Emily Woo Zeller
Length: 9 hours and 3 minutes
Genres: Romance, Contemporary
Reading Challenges: Lenoreo's 2018 #LetsReadIndie Challenge, Lenoreo's 2018 Finishing the Series Challenge, Lenoreo's 2018 New Adult Challenge
Find it: Goodreads ✩ Amazon ✩ B&N ✩ iTunes
My rating:

Blurb:

There once was a boy, and I loved him.

Logan Francis Silverstone was the complete opposite of me. I danced while he stood still. He was quiet, and I was always running my mouth. He struggled to find a smile while I refused to frown.

The night I saw the darkness that truly lived inside of him, I couldn’t look away.

We were broken together, yet somehow whole. We were wrong together, but always right. We were the stars that burned across the night sky, searching for a wish, praying for better tomorrows.

Until the day I lost him. He threw us away with one hasty decision—a decision that changed us forever.

There once was a boy, and I loved him.

And for a few breaths, a few whispers, a few moments, I think he loved me, too.

***

Book #2 in the Romance Elements Series.

Complete standalone.

My Review:

4.5 stars — So I finished this audiobook almost a month ago, and partially wrote this review and then promptly…forgot about it.  So I have no idea what I’m missing.  I just know I really enjoyed this book, probably more than I was expecting to.  I feel like someone I know said it was their least favourite of the Elements series, so I had lower expectations.  But I was sucked in right from the start.  These books are truly out of the norm for me, as they deal with characters that are…not always the best.  But for some reason I fall in love with them anyways.

Before I go further, lets talk about the narrators: honestly, they were both really good, easy to listen to.  I LOVED the way they voiced each other as well, it felt like 4 narrators because their Logan or Alyssa voices were so distinct.  However, I found that sometimes their Emily and Kellan voices weren’t distinct enough, so occasionally I had a hard time distinguishing who was talking in the group settings.  Otherwise, I would definitely look for more books narrated by these two, they added so much emotion.

As I said above, these books are so fascinating b/c they showcase really fucked up people falling in love.  And because of things like addiction, there are some very unhealthy moments in their relationships…moments where I wasn’t rooting for the couple, b/c it just wasn’t good for them.  But that’s part of the journey.  The love was always there, just waiting for them to get to the right place.  By the end I WAS rooting for them to succeed, and I was happy with the steps their relationship took.

I was seriously compelled and sucked into the relationship between Logan and Alyssa right from the start.  They had AMAZING chemistry with one another, from friendship to more.  I FELT their connection down to my bones, and I wanted to know everything.  Their interactions often made me smile SO MUCH because they could be so sweet with one another.  I think that’s what made the harsh moments so hard.

This book really made me think a lot.  Logan did not always behave the best, but I do believe that addiction can really bring out the worst in people.  At times, when they were being unhealthy, I wasn’t sure I wanted that kind of romance showcased.  But don’t addicts deserve happy endings too?  Not all addicts are bad people…addiction doesn’t discriminate.  But it’s so HARD to watch someone who is otherwise a great person become so mean and awful.

It was hard to watch the bad decisions, but it did make it that much more satisfying when they started making the right decisions.

Kellan and Emily added an interesting element to the story.  I LOVED the way Kellan was there for his brother, and I couldn’t help but wish he could have done more earlier in Logan’s life.  I liked that they talked about Kellan and Alyssa enabling Logan a bit.  I could see that being common.  I hurt for the struggles Kellan and Emily went through, and I worried about them.  I loved that they all had dimension, and we got to see their hopes and fears and struggles as well.  Made for a richer story.

I will admit I had a harder time understanding Logan’s love for his mother.  She was truly horrific to Logan when she was using, and I just felt like we didn’t get to see as many of her redeeming qualities.  I was not as forgiving as he was.

That was all I had previously written for this review, so I’ll leave it there.  This book was impactful.  This series was impactful.  I can see it not being for everyone, but I surprised myself with how much I loved it.  Definitely recommend.