Forever My Lady: A Novel [Paperback]

Jeff Rivera (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 2005

When the streets are hard and life is cheap, both in the neighborhood and out there in the world, boys in the barrio become men before their time. Young Dio Rodriguez, unloved, uncared for, frightened and lonely, was a survivor. By the time he was 14 he had the hand signals to flash and the hard, cool barrel of a gun tucked down the back of his jeans to prove he was a man who could take care of himself. Then he met Jennifer and discovered there was no gun, no gang tough enough, to protect him against the life-changing power of love...

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Dio "Playboy" Rodríguez grows up poor with a drunk single mother in gritty Las Vegas, leading him into gang life at 13. Now 17, Dio hides a softer side beneath a fierce exterior that's known only to his middle school sweetheart, Jennifer. But when a drive-by leaves Jennifer wounded and sends Dio to prison boot camp, their soul mate relationship is put to the test. Rivera, who originally self-published this debut, traces a classic redemptive arc: perpetually scowling Dio resists the authority of drill instructor Jackson and clashes with fellow inmates, but he pours out his heart in letters to Jennifer, forms meaningful peer relationships and gains an appreciation for discipline. A genuine care for dynamic Dio allows Rivera to deliver a sincere story of transformation. (July)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Review

"Very Powerful" -- Randy Powell, Bestselling Author "Run If You Dare"

"You gotta get it AHORA!" -- Tony Kannon, KWIN FM

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Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Joanne/Horatio Books (January 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0976283808
• ISBN-13: 978-0976283805
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (67 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,838,973 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Author Jeff Rivera

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Hard Knock Life, November 8, 2007

By 

Sharon M. Russ "RIredlitlover" (Atlanta, GA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Forever My Lady (Paperback)

Forever My Lady
Jeff Rivera
Genre: Urban Fiction
APOOO rating: 4
Amazon.com rating: 4

A Hard Knock Life

Forever My Lady is a book that vividly tells the influence the street life can have on a person's mind, body and soul. Jeff Rivera shows the constant struggle an individual can have within themselves to survive on a daily basis and in life when they are dealt a bad hand. Rivera proves through his eloquent use of words that the path one chooses in their life comes with many twists and turns.

Dio "Playboy" Rodriguez grows up with many strikes against him. The family that he shares a home with causes mental anguish and abuse in what should be a nurturing environment. It is the family on the streets that welcomes him into the fold and will serve as the force that raises him. The rules of the street life will prove to be conflicting to Dio's heart as he finds love in another lost soul, his middle school sweetheart, Jennifer. The walls that surround the heart of this thug come tumbling down when he falls deeply for Jennifer and the glistening of hope of the life that they could share together. But the future of these two young lovers will hit a brick wall with such force when a tragic event occurs in their life and Dio is sent to boot camp. Will Dio clean up his act while in boot camp? Will love truly prevail for Dio and Jennifer?

Jeff Rivera tells an extraordinary tale of struggle, abuse, perseverance and transformation. In doing all of this, Rivera was able to acquaint the readers with a love story from the streets. Rivera is a talented author with the ability to breathe life into the characters on the pages. Rivera has pieced together a well-crafted book that I would recommend to lovers of urban fiction and young adults.

Reviewed by Sharon Russ
APOOO BookClub

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful and Emotional!, January 5, 2006

By 

Linda Nieves-Powell "Free Style Writer" (New York City) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Forever My Lady: A Novel (Paperback)

This is such a great book. I couldn't put it down and read it in one and a half days. Being a playwright myself, I am very sensitive to dialogue and the dialogue of the characters in this book is honest and real and true. The writer also doesn't waste time giving us unimportant info to set up scenes ...he goes straight to the heart of the story and keeps you there until the end. You actually feel the character's emotions immediately. Excellent book. I highly recommend it.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 4.5 stars, November 3, 2008

By 

D. K. Stokes - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Forever My Lady (Mass Market Paperback)

When Forever My Lady opens, Dio is preparing to interrupt the wedding of his true love Jennifer--with a gun. Then we back up a year to find out how he got to that point.

Dio is a 17-year-old gang member whose life changes when Jennifer ends up in the hospital with several gunshot wounds and Dio ends up in a prison boot camp.

Most of the story takes place at the boot camp, as Dio goes from surly and uncooperative to making friends and becoming competitive and determined to succeed. Through it all, his desire for a better life with Jennifer is his driving force.

The descriptions of his life in the boot camp are interspersed with memories and letters to and from Jennifer, and as the book progresses, you can see his growth both in the things he does and in the way he writes about them.

Boot camp was very vivid, particularly at the beginning, when it was all new to Dio. And it was very familiar. I kept thinking "and I volunteered for this?" (I went through army basic training--boot camp.)

Dio's emotions and motivations were very clear, and right there on the page. I was moved to tears at several points, particularly when as an adult--or simply a reader, seeing things from the outside--I could see what was going to happen, but knew that given his personality and emotions, there was no way to avoid the upcoming pain or heartache.

Huge kudos to Jeff Rivera for treating Dio and Jennifer's emotions with the seriousness they deserved. So often, a teenage love affair is treated like puppy love, when that time of life is when emotions tend to be most intense. Plus, given these characters' backgrounds, they were certainly not children.

My only complaint is that the ending was just a little quick and easy. Maybe it needed to be that way, to fit with the beginning, and after all, Dio did do his soul-searching earlier. But it's not a big complaint--I love the way it ended, I'd just have liked the ending to be a couple of pages longer, is all.

I'll definitely be watching for Jeff Rivera's future books.