Review: You can't help who you fall in love with!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 12 21, 2013
Even though this is a teacher/student love story, it is not drama/angst filled like most in this genre. Technically, it is a forbidden love because of the dynamics of the relationship, but I didn't feel that way at all while reading this text. Perhaps I feel this way because there is only a four year age difference, and Wren should actually be a freshman in college. This made it easy for me to see a romance working for them instead of blowing up in their faces.The heavy scenes in the text do not center around being found out; the focus is rather on the fact that Wren and Dalton are not whole people - one is dealing with the death of her 3 immediate family members while the other is hiding a potentially fatal illness from both himself and the people around him. Both are afraid to let someone in. Wren doesn't want to lose anyone else, and Dalton doesn't want anyone to have to watch him die if in fact he is sick.There is an instant connection between Wren and Dalton when he starts his teaching position as her History teacher. Ethically, Dalton knows that it is wrong to feel anything for a student, but despite his best intentions, he is drawn to Wren; he feels things for her that he has never allowed himself to feel with anyone, and it gets to the point where he doesn't want to stop his feelings for Wren because she calms and balances him."You can't choose who you fall in love with, all you can do is be damn thankful you've found someone who understands you."Even though Wren and Dalton are only teacher/student for a few weeks, it is enough to get Dalton in serious trouble if their relationship gets out, which you can probably know going in that relationships like this one are always found out. Despite the predictability of this plot line, how it is handled isn't scandalous, and I feel it is done this way because the story is not really about their forbidden romance but more so about two young people struggling to survive the hands that life has dealt them and where they find the most comfort is with one another."You can't live life waiting for things to go wrong, because then you're not really living."The ending is marvelously written to depict true life circumstances. Missy Johnson could have chosen to give Wren and Dalton their happily ever after with all things perfect, but she doesn't. When dealing with death and illness, things do not end perfectly. It is clear in the epilogue that there will be struggles to endure, but both Wren and Dalton are willing to fight for each other despite the hardships because they both know each other is worth the risk."Everyone is going to die. That is part of the journey of living. What matters most is living each day you do have like it might be your last."Always You is a sweet story with a meaningful lesson about living and dying. I love the fact that it isn't angst driven; it is less about the taboo relationship and more about what two people in love can help each other overcome.Complimentary copy provided by author/publisher for an honest review.4 poison apples! (from The Fairest of All Book Reviews)