The Distance Between Us by Kasie West
on 2nd July 2013
Pages: 320
Goodreads

Money can't buy a good first impression.Seventeen-year-old Caymen Meyers learned early that the rich are not to be trusted. And after years of studying them from behind the cash register of her mom's porcelain-doll shop, she has seen nothing to prove otherwise. Enter Xander Spence—he's tall, handsome, and oozing rich. Despite his charming ways and the fact that he seems to be 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 just when Xander's loyalty and attentiveness 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. With so many obstacles standing in their way, can she close the distance between them?

Caymen Meyers has always known there are two kinds of people in her town. Those who are rich and those who make their livings catering to the wealthy. After spending her life watching her mother struggle to make ends meet, Caymen knows people with money aren’t like her and her friends. When she meets Xander Spence, Caymen thinks he will be no different from any of the other wealthy people she’s met before. He has the audacity to beckon her when he’s browsing in the doll store where she works! But despite his bad first impression, Caymen comes to learn that despite all his money, maybe Xander is different. They may come from worlds apart but perhaps they can overcome the distance between them.

If you are looking for a well written, funny, thoroughly entertaining and romantic read – look no further than The Distance Between Us. From the first few pages I was hooked. Caymen is a great narrator – sarcasm and all. She’s a little bitter about the hand life has dealt her so far and is resigned to withering away in her mother’s slightly creepy porcelain doll store. Her sense of humour is ‘dry’ and it works well with everything else going on in the novel. Her relationship with her mother is complicated with duty, guilt and obligation tied together with a lot of love.

When she meets Xander she’s convinced he’s just like every other rich person who expects her to wait on them hand and foot. And he is – but at the same time he isn’t. He also wants more to life than what is expected of him and together the two of them form a friendship. Their camaraderie is fantastic to read. Caymen and Xander both challenge each other to step outside of their comfort zones and try to look at life in a different way. Their career days were perfect! I couldn’t wait to see what they came up with next! The romance between the the two develops at a wonderful pace with Caymen being scared to admit there is anything more than friendship going on but at the same time not being able to resist Xander’s charms. I loved the duality of the title with it referring to both their vastly different backgrounds but also to a quote from Caymen’s mother, “the difference between a ‘boy friend’ and a ‘boyfriend’ […] Just a little space.”

One of the highlights is the romance in this novel. Caymen is closed off but somehow Xander manages to get under her shell. He’s charming and manages to break all the stereotypical behavioural traits Caymen has come to expect from someone of his standing. The chemistry between them is there from their first meeting and it was amazing to see how it grew over the novel. This kind of slow burning romance was perfectly executed.

This book deals with social issues, friendships and also family relationships. Caymen’s mother disapproves of Xander because she doesn’t want her daughter to be hurt the way she was. The parent/child dynamic is an interesting one and I like how the author examined it from a number of different angles.

The Distance Between Us was a pleasure to read. This is the kind of novel which is a perfect beach read or for one of those days when all you want is just to curl up with a cute book. Sweet with poignant moments, Kasie West has managed to combine a beautifully written story with wonderfully interesting characters and a swoon-worthy romance. I will definitely be on the look out for anything else Kasie West writes!