Sunday 25 August 2013

Review: The Distance Between Us by Kasie West

The Distance Between Us by Kasie West
Seventeen-year-old Caymen Meyers studies the rich like her own personal science experiment, and after years of observation she’s pretty sure they’re only good for one thing—spending money on useless stuff, like the porcelain dolls in her mother’s shop. So when Xander Spence walks into the store to pick up a doll for his grandmother, it only takes one glance for Caymen to figure out he’s oozing rich. Despite his charming ways and that he’s one of the first people who actually gets her, she’s smart enough to know his interest won’t last. Because if there’s one thing she’s learned from her mother’s warnings, it’s that the rich have a short attention span. But Xander keeps coming around, despite her best efforts to scare him off. And much to her dismay, she's beginning to enjoy his company. She knows her mom can’t find out—she wouldn’t approve. She’d much rather Caymen hang out with the local rocker who hasn’t been raised by money. But just when Xander’s attention and loyalty are about to convince Caymen that being rich isn’t a character flaw, she finds out that money is a much bigger part of their relationship than she’d ever realized. And that Xander’s not the only one she should’ve been worried about.



Title: The Distance Between Us
Author: Kasie West
Series: None
Publisher: Harper Teen
Publication Date: July 2nd 2013
Source: Bought
Rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Thoughts: 

"Because I'm afraid that once you catch me, the game's over."

It's official: Kasie West is my new favorite author. After all, I don't think it's coincidence that "Kasie West is the best" rhymes. Anyway, on to the book!

The story follows Caymen, who is very poor and lives above a doll shop with her mother. She's the product of a short and unsuccesful relationship between her mother and a rich guy, and is raised with the idea that being rich is a flaw. Caymen is an absolute delight. Her particular brand of humor - which is dry, very dry - had me laughing a couple of times, and smiling throughout the whole story. She's easy to read and easy to like, but not without flaws (just as I like 'em!). She has a habit of jumping to conclusions a little too fast, but it was never annoying. In fact, I couldn't help but root for her. If she were real, I would definitely be friends with her.

Then there's her best friend, Skye. She's not the typical slutty 'best friend', but very sweet and supporting. I really loved how her and "Toad"'s storylines conveyed the message to look further than just the outside, and that having a sweet boyfriend is more important than having a hot one.

Since the moment Xander showed up with his hot chocolate, I loved him. He's rich, very much so, but he's also sweet and caring and just all around "awhhh". I really loved Xander and Caymen's banter, and the little  game they played and their way of saying something but actually saying something else. They were just a very cute couple. Their relationship was also very well developed. Something that started with a bit of snark and dry humor between the two of them, slowly grew to a sense of caring and love. By the time they declared they loved each other, it was believable. West really gets a gold star for writing relationships, whether they were romantic, between friends, or between family members.

The plot was also convincing. This wasn't just a story of two people falling in love, there was always a plot present. I didn't see the climax coming, or at least, I didn't expect it to be the way it was. The build up was slow and subtle, and it convinced me entirely.

All in all, I really recommend this book for fans of a sweet, slow romance, awesome characters, and a solid plot to back it all up. And Kasie West has a new fan.

5 comments:

  1. I loved Caymen and Xander as a couple too! I wish I had a cute boy who would bring my hot chocolate in the morning lol. I love romance books like these. Cool review =)

    ReplyDelete
  2. I've read a couple of good reviews of this and I so want to read it now! The main characters sound so cool
    Also, love this "Kasie West is the best" :)

    Now following your blog :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think you'd like this! Caymen is very funny :)

      Awh, thank you! :D

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  3. Ahhh, Kasie West... I've always been wary of this author because I never really liked Pivot Point (was that her other book? I've forgotten already!). But there are sooo many reviews praising this one, though. I'm not a great fan of contemporary but it must be better than her dystopian one. I'll check it out! Awesome review!

    Faye @ The Social Potato

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