The Distance Between Us

YA Contemporary and Chick-lit, THE DISTANCE BETWEEN US majorly focuses on a sweet and blossoming romance between Caymen Meyers of the lower class and Alexander "Xander" Spence of the upper class. Though this cheesy tale has been told many times over and over again, somehow Kasie West manages to make it fresh and new. The story comes with minor twists that makes it seem much more elegant, endearing, and totally sweet.

Told solely from Caymen's perspective, the story starts off on a seemingly normal day until Xander Spence walks into the doll shop. There is an obvious spark and tension between them, and the urge to yell something like "Kiss already!" is strong. Caymen remains wary and careful of Xander while Xander's feelings are much more visible. Mason (another love interest) is unaware of their dynamic, and he brings more drama to the Caymen and Xander plot. It all mixes together to make one dramatic and delicious story.

It has a quick plot, and everything flows very smoothly. The vocabulary isn't hard to understand, and anyone who is a teen or older can understand this book. The conflict between mother and daughter (or the "don't tell Mom" storyline) is very complicated, and it unfolds very nicely. Everything builds up and up and up, lies stack upon each other, and everything is jammed together until it finally breaks apart. That is when all of the secrets come out. That is when everything in Caymen's mother's past crashes to the ground like the stock market in the Great Depression. The climax is one of the greatest parts of the book.

Because of how worthy Caymen's sarcasm is, it gets its own mention, in its own separate paragraph from everything else. Just saying.

Caymen is a sarcastic teen who has a wonderful mouth everyone would envy. She has that level of sarcasm (though not as good as Rose Hathaway), and she has a wonderful characterization with even more amazing relationships. There are a few major relationships here: 1) Her mother and Caymen. 2) Xander and Caymen. Both relationships are crucial to the plot, and Kasie West does not fail to flesh them out, especially Caymen's romance with Xander.

Overall, THE DISTANCE BETWEEN US stars a romance between two characters. It has sweetness and cheesiness, and it mixes seriousness and light-hearted sass together. The book is best recommended to those looking for a light read plus some romance. It isn't explicit, and it would be perfectly fine for younger teens.

Rating: Four out of Five

What I loved: I loved absolutely everything about THE DISTANCE BETWEEN US. I read this is one sitting and was so sad when I finished because I couldn't keep reading about Caymen and Xander.

This book had the perfect amount of romance, sarcasm, banter, and family drama. Xander and Caymen may not have a hot and heavy type of romance and that fits quite well with their characters. They don't make over the top declarations of love and their relationship develops in a realistic way. They both are strong-willed and independent and no matter what they may say, their families mean the world to them.

What left me wanting more: Nothing at all

Final thughts: I can't rave enough about this book. I can't wait to read what Kasie West comes out with next.

That’s it. Kasie West is now one of my new favorite authors. After being completely swept off my feet by Pivot Point, West has once again warmed my heart with so many cute moments. She continuously manages to create down to earth, relatable characters and all-around fun books.

The Distance Between Us follows Caymen Meyers, a girl who has certain opinions about rich people thanks to her mother’s clear disdain. Her mom has raised her to think very negatively about the Haves verses the Have Nots due to her own troubled past with a rich ex-boyfriend. So naturally, when rich boy Xander Spence walks into their doll shop and “beckons” her, she’s pretty much already had her mind made up. But in a strange turn of events they begin spending more time together on these “career days.” What happens next can only be described as one of the most ADORBS books you can ever read!

While the novel is more romance centered, West never spares her characters room to grow and develop. The time Caymen spends with Xander shows her that her mother’s bias is just that, bias based on her own experiences. In fact, Xander himself is the one to acknowledge that both he and Caymen aren’t that different regardless of income level. Thus, these “career days” are born which helps reveal what they each want to do with their lives despite parental expectations placed on them. And through this, an unlikely friendship blossoms and later turns to first love.

I absolutely loved this story to bits. There was’t a moment I was bored or not entertained thanks to the AWESOME sarcasm from Caymen. It’s not the kind everyone will enjoy, but it was just right for me, leaving me laughing out loud at almost every page. And when I wasn’t laughing, I was sighing at the perfect dialogue between Xander an Caymen.

Kasie West writes the type of romance I love to read. It’s not cheesy or over the top. It’s not unbelievable or unrealistic. It doesn’t make you roll your eyes or make your head collide with a wall from frustration. It’s the kind that makes you all giddy inside. The kind that gets your feels all “a meltin’” and the type that makes you twirl around in your living room like your a Disney Princess. And that’s the best kind of feeling ever!

Final verdict: I’d highly recommend this totally adorable book. If you’re in a reading slump and you need a book to bring a smile to your face, this is your book. If you are looking to be entertained, look no further. If you are just looking for a cute read that will wrap your heart up in a blanket made of feels, read this book and twirl, my friends. Weeeeeee!

What I Loved:
Kasie West debuted earlier this year, and she's pretty much one of my favorite authors already. She excels at characters and romances. Basically, her books make my heart oh so happy. The Distance Between Us has a little bit in common with Pivot Point, but is largely a departure from the much more serious tone of that series. The Distance Between Us is fluffy good times of the highest order.

To figure out if you would enjoy The Distance Between Us, ask yourself if you like the following things: Pretty in Pink and The Gilmore Girls. If you answered yes to one or both, then you should probably make reading this book a priority. If you haven't seen them, then you should probably rectify that AND THEN read this book. If you don't like either one, well, GOOD DAY SIR.

Caymen, whose name is never explained, which is to me the biggest flaw of the book, is my girl. Seriously, she is acerbic and sarcastic like you would not even believe. I imagine that some readers will be rubbed the wrong way by her attitude, but it was like coming home. People never know if she's serious or joking, because she always says things with a straight face. Also, she cannot resist answering a stupid question with an especially sarcastic response, and, oh, how I love her for it.

Here's where things get quirky. Caymen works in a doll store, owned by her mother. Dolls and More barely pays the bills, and Caymen has been raised to hate the privileged, like the man who left her mother. As such, Caymen is disgusted when this obviously rich guy comes into the store and beckons to her, as he talks on the phone. His outfit alone would probably pay expenses for her and her mom for a month. He also happens to be kind of cute, but, ugh, so stuch up and rich.

Of course, that's not all there is to it, because cute, rich boy (Xander) comes back. The relationship between these two is super sweet, especially because all of their problems coming together are really internal aside from her mom being iffy on her dating a rich boy. However, otherwise, the only obstacle really is Caymen's trust issues, which are pretty mighty. Xander definitely becomes a candidate for best book boyfriends, because he is so considerate, doesn't overreact, and apologizes when he's been out of line. There's a lot of bonding and banter here, and, though they do get serious, it feels real and not like forever love; maybe it will last and maybe it won't.

Social classes and economic disparity are central to The Distance Between Us, which is pretty great. Caymen's poor, like shops at thrift stores because she has to poor. There's an incredibly adorable moment where Caymen takes Xander there because his clothes are too nice for a particular outing. The treatment of some of it's a bit idealized, since most of the discomfort about her economic status comes from her. However, Caymen does have some insulting friends, like the ones that show up in Pretty in Pink. Anyway, I really appreciate that West chose a heroine who's not in the upper or middle classes.

On top of that, West, like in Pivot Point, does a fantastic job building out the supporting cast. There's a healthy female best friendship depicted between Caymen and Skye, who couldn't be more different, but love and support each other endlessly. Skye's boyfriend, Henry, who initially is kind of weird and didn't mesh with Caymen or me, turns out to be a sweetie and hilarious. Xander and Caymen's families both are well built as well. I love that West doesn't skimp out on the supporting cast. I love it so much.

What Left Me Wanting More:
Seriously, what kind of name is Caymen? You can't just not explain why a character has a weird name like that.

The Final Verdict:
When you find yourself in need of a fluffy, happy-making read, look no further than The Distance Between Us. With well-developed characters, snappy dialogue and abundant humor, Kasie West's novels are must reads for me.

I was really looking forward to reading this!

What I Loved: Caymen is a champion for sarcastic girls everywhere and I loved her! She has spent her whole life living with her single mother above their creepy little doll shop in the same small town believing that rich people are of the debil. Okay, so maybe that's a bit extreme, however, her mother has done a pretty decent job of clouding Caymen's judgement where people with money are concerned. There is so much Caymen would like to see and do and experience but she doesn't dare pursue it because she knows without her, the shop would fall apart and where would that leave her Mom?

Everything changes when tall, dark and persistent Xander walks into the store one day. He's not only rich, but he's cute, funny and he "gets" Caymen's dry sense of humor. Together they embark on a journey of "career days" where they take turns trying to help each other figure out what it is they really want to do with their lives, because you see, even rich kids have expectations put upon them by well-meaning parents.

The more time Caymen spends with Xander, the more he unnerves her. Xander is one of the few people in her life, besides her BFF Skye, who can see right through her veneer, can tell when she's using her sarcasm as a defense mechanism. He doesn't let her make excuses or settle and he's constantly encouraging Caymen which makes him all kinds of swoonilicious. All.Kinds.

But then the unexpected happens and Caymen's world is turned upside down leaving her hurt, confused and faced with the truth that she and Xander may be more alike than she ever imagined.

What Left Me Wanting More: Nothing.

Final Verdict: Intelligent, witty and romantic. Makes for a great summer read!

Favorite Quote(s): "In case of fire there is no clear exit to the door. I'd be pushing babies out of the way to escape. Fake babies, but still."
"Redrum."