by
Jennifer L. Armentrout
Genre: Young-adult, Contemporay, Romance
For some people, silence is a weapon. For Mallory “Mouse” Dodge, it’s a shield. Growing up, she learned that the best way to survive was to say nothing. And even though it’s been four years since her nightmare ended, she’s beginning to worry that the fear that holds her back will last a lifetime.
Now, after years of homeschooling with loving adoptive parents, Mallory must face a new milestone—spending her senior year at public high school. But of all the terrifying and exhilarating scenarios she’s imagined, there’s one she never dreamed of—that she’d run into Rider Stark, the friend and protector she hasn’t seen since childhood, on her very first day.
It doesn’t take long for Mallory to realize that the connection she shared with Rider never really faded. Yet the deeper their bond grows, the more it becomes apparent that she’s not the only one grappling with the lingering scars from the past. And as she watches Rider’s life spiral out of control, Mallory faces a choice between staying silent and speaking out—for the people she loves, the life she wants, and the truths that need to be heard.
"Forever was something we all took for granted, but the problem with forever was that it really didn't exist."I thought this was going to be too cheesy to handle kind of contemporary romance. I didn't realize I was in for a treat on this book. The problem with forever was... Wow. The first contemporary romance book I've read from JLA. Everything I've read from her always has a touch of paranormal and fantasy, and boy was I blown away.
"Words were not the enemy or the monster under my bed, but they held such power over me. They were like the ghost of a loved one, forever haunting me."Mallory Dodge, had a tough childhood. She's an orphan. She never got the chance to knew who her real parents were and knew the reason why they gave up on her. She grew up in a lifeless home who adopt children just to get the money but doesn't really give a crap on the adopted child. To say that it was horrible was an understatement, it was traumatic. She lived on a house where the supposed to be father of the house is a drunken bastard who beat a child for being a pain in the ass and a mother who is always too numb and too low on drugs. It was the reason why speaking, or giving voice on her thoughts was so hard for her. It was until the Rivases stepped on the story and adopted Mallory and treated her as their real daughter that she gets to have her second chance in life.
"Our story was something straight out of an Oprah special or an ABC Family movie. Unreal. Saying thank you would never be enough after everything they had done for me."However, the scars from her past was still there to haunt her, restricting her to speak her mind freely. She believe that she's defective, something that needs to be fixed and she's afraid it will stay forever.
Then come the characters. If you've been reading JLA's book for quite sometime now, I'm sure you'll agree with the fact JLA's character was usually kick-ass, physically strong and dependable. I'm afraid you won't meet that kind of character in this book, because Mallory, the MC, is a weak character that has suffered traumatic events growing up. Speaking, which should have been as easy as breathing for some people except ofcourse if you're mute, was something hard for her.
"My name is Mallory… Dodge." I drew in a deep breath, speaking to no one. ''And I like… I like reading. And I don't like… I don't like who I am."Characters like her are usually a pain to read POV's with, but with Mallory, I can't help but sympathize with her and be proud with the growth she had throughout the events of the book.
Now comes Rider. This is one thing I can say is very familiar with JLA's book, because just like the hero from most of her books, Rider is a swoon worthy character. He's mysterious and handsome and strong, he's Mallory's savior growing up, but of course, beneath he's hotness hides a scared and soft and troubled boy who is also looking for love and people who have faith in him.
The Problem with Forever is different to what I'm used at reading from JLA a good different. She nailed the contemporary and emotional part of this book. It's obvious that the author made a thorough research about anxiety, traumatic experiences and even about adoption. The feelings involved were real and raw and heart-breaking. I guess I'll just have to end this review by sharing one of my favorite quotes from this book.
"Love scared the hell out of me. I didn't want the heartbreak."This book was more than a story of a lost love that was eventually found again, but I still picked this quote out of hundreds of quotable ones because it personally hits me. The problem with forever will teach its readers, how to accept past as part of present and how not live with denial and regrets. Truly heart-touching and heart warming. Do I need to say it? Of course I highly recommend this to everyone!
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# 1 New York Times and #1 International Bestselling author Jennifer lives in Martinsburg, West Virginia. All the rumors you’ve heard about her state aren’t true. When she’s not hard at work writing. she spends her time reading, watching really bad zombie movies, pretending to write, and hanging out with her husband and her Jack Russell Loki.
Her dreams of becoming an author started in algebra class, where she spent most of her time writing short stories….which explains her dismal grades in math. Jennifer writes young adult paranormal, science fiction, fantasy, and contemporary romance. She is published with Spencer Hill Press, Entangled Teen and Brazen, Disney/Hyperion and Harlequin Teen. Her book Obsidian has been optioned for a major motion picture and her Covenant Series has been optioned for TV. Her young adult romantic suspense novel DON’T LOOK BACK was a 2014 nominated Best in Young Adult Fiction by YALSA.
She also writes Adult and New Adult contemporary and paranormal romance under the name J. Lynn. She is published by Entangled Brazen and HarperCollins.
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