Review: The Problem with Forever by Jennifer L. Armentrout
SYNOPSIS:
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.
REVIEW:
Can I get an amen? This book has taken me months to finish, actual months! I don’t know what it is but I could not fall in love with Mallory or the descriptions in this book. So let me start with the plot and take you through my issues with this book. The plot sets up for an intense book, my feels and tissues are ready. I read about the hardships of Mallory’s life and how she is struggling and in therapy but for me, it doesn’t do it justice. Mallory is too soft and complacent as a character and while she did grow throughout the story, her growth would literally happen in the turn of a page. One minute she is crippled by the idea of going to a party but the next minute she is standing up to her parents. As a result of this, she came off as fickle and insecure.
Now lets talk about Rider, Rider is a strong character. I love a good swoony, knight in white armor hero, but again their was no character development. Rider should have been the one in therapy and at the end of the book you don’t really see him emotionally grow. He is doing things to better himself, but he is still trapped in his childhood persona. I think I struggled throughout the entire story to develop any emotional connection to these characters. The only character I truly enjoyed was Mallory’s best friend, Ainsley. She provided much needed sass, personality, and comic relief.
I also wanted to talk about how weird any kissing or intimate moments were between Rider and Mallory. The descriptions had me cringing and made me feel uncomfortable. It was a lot of “I don’t know what to do with my lips” and overall just very naive and innocent. But to the point where it was hella awkward instead of cute and endearing. I am just really disappointed that this didn’t gut me like typical JLA books do.
LINKS:
Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes and Noble
