Review: 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 on 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 get 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 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.



Review

I started out not liking this book. After I took one look at the size of the font and the first few pages, I wanted to put it down and move on since the book seemed so... childish. Now, I know that you don't necessarily need to have to be a certain age to read any book, but I couldn't help but think that this one just didn't fit my reading level. However, at the urging of my sister, I continued on since she swore that Kasie West is an awesome author. Anyway, I'd have to say I'm glad I did. While the book wasn't the best, I did enjoy it as a light, humorous read. It was a nice break from all the serious literature I was surrounded by at the time.

The Distance Between Us is the story of Caymen Meyers meeting the uber-rich Xander Spence and falling in love with him despite her and her mother's dislike for rich people. He changes her world, and she changes his for the better. Of course, this is an insta-love story that drips cheesiness right to the core, but it somehow works for it not to cause too much eye-rolling. The characters are endearing, and the MC's sense of dry humor adds a nice touch. I found myself thoroughly enjoying the banter between the two characters. The ending felt a little rushed; more like a patched up explanation of things to give them a happily ever after, but it wasn't enough to make me completely condemn the book.

All in all, if you're in the mood for a quick, light-hearted read, this is your book.

Overall rating: 3 stars

Renée 

Review: My True Love Gave to Me: Twelve Holiday Stories edited by Stephanie Perkins

Holiday anthologies are my favorites to read over winter break. The holiday season just doesn't feel complete without reaching for a themed book at least once. And with such a great compilation of authors, it turned out to be an awesome read. I fell head over heels in love with most of the stories and discovered some new authors to read as well. (I also enjoyed figuring out which story each of the couples ice-skating on the front were from, haha)

My Thoughts on Each Story:

1. Midnights by Rainbow Rowell

This one was about New Year's eve, and the countdown to midnight for two friends throughout a few years of their lives. This story was definitely one of my favorites. It was told creatively with the snippets of "countdown to midnights." A great start to the book. 

2. The Lady and the Fox by Kelly Link

I didn't love this story as much as the others. It's about a girl who sees a mysterious man each Christmas only when it snows, and how she attempts to free him from his curse. While, the idea of the story was interesting, the magic curse portion could have been better articulated to give the story more depth. 

3. Angels in the Snow by Matt de la Peña 

Another one of my favorites. This one was about a Mexican-American kid who has to spend the holidays alone cat-sitting for his boss. He meets the love-interest when she knocks on his door asking for help with her plumbing (Yes, I know: classic story-line), but it turns out to be an in-depth and interesting read when you learn more about the main character's past. And the last lines are beautiful. I'm definitely going to read another book by this author.

4. Polaris is Where You'll Find Me by Jenny Han

I felt neutral about this story. There wasn't really anything defining about this story; pretty standard cute Christmas short. It was about a human who was left in Santa's sleigh and adopted by him to be raised at the North Pole (similar to the movie Elf). When she's older, it's a tale of unrequited love between her and another elf at the North Pole. Nothing quite special, but it did make me want to read other books by Jenny Han to see what she writes about in the YA world.

5. It's a Yuletide Miracle, Charlie Brown by Stephanie Perkins

This story was classic Stephanie Perkins with quirky, lovable characters and back-stories, I couldn't help but love. It's an adorable romance short between a girl who goes Christmas tree shopping and the guy at the Christmas tree farm she's been in love with from afar. 

6. Your Temporary Santa by David Levithan

This one was funny and adorable. I've been meaning to read a book by David Levithan (once I finish the stack of books I have right now, but I'll get there!), so this was a nice sneak peak into his writing. It's about a boy whose boyfriend convinces him to dress up as Santa Claus in order to keep his little sister believing in Santa Claus. Overall, it was an endearing holiday story.

7. Krampuslauf by Holly Black

This one was creepily interesting. It's about a girl from the other side of the tracks who throws a New Year's party in order to expose her best friend's rich, two-timing boyfriend's lies. Without giving two much away, holiday justice is served magically. Before this, the only thing I had read by Holly Black was The Spiderwick Chronicles, so it was interesting to see her YA side in this story. I definitely will be checking out her books. 

8. What the Hell Have You Done, Sophie Roth? by Gayle Forman

I discovered Gayle Forman this year with Just One Day, and this story has the same feel to it as the book. It's about a girl who has to spend Hanukkah away from her family at college in "prairie land." She meets a guy who helps her celebrate the last day and get over her homesickness... and the rest is history. Overall, it was an enjoyable story.  

9. Beer Buckets and Baby Jesus by Myra McEntire

This one was funny and I ended up liking it. It's about the town trouble-maker and must help out with the town Christmas pageant because he accidentally burns down the church storage building. Interesting to see how he manages to save the day, and get back into everyone's good graces.

10. Welcome to Christmas, CA by Kiersten White

This one is about a girl who lives in a town called Christmas, and how much she hates it. Not much in the romance department for this one, but it was interesting to see how the main character changes in the end.

11. Star of Bethlehem by Ally Carter

This one is about a girl who switches her ticket with an Icelandic exchange student, pretending to be her while living with the host family. There was also an interesting twist at the end with the main character; I truly enjoyed this one because the main character's lack of family touched me. 

12. The Girl Who Woke the Dreamer by Laini Taylor

This story was my all time favorite because of its fairy tale-esque nature and writing. Laini Taylor never fails to disappoint in that department. It's about a girl whose future is decided by who makes an offer of marriage to her... and the person who does isn't someone anyone would want to be married to. But then, "the dreamer" steps into the picture and story is perfect from there. The writing was beautiful, and I loved the last lines of this story. Overall, a perfect way to end the anthology. .

Overall Rating: 5 stars

Renée 

Review: Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

Cath is a Simon Snow fan.

Okay, the whole world is a Simon Snow fan...

But for Cath, being a fan is her life -- and she's really good at it. She and her twin sister, Wren, ensconced themselves in the Simon Snow series when they were just kids; it's what got them through their mother leaving.

Reading. Rereading. Hanging out in Simon Snow forums, writing Simon Snow fan fiction, dressing up like characters for every movie premiere.

Cath's sister has mostly grown away from fandom, but Cath can't let go. She doesn't want to.

Now that they're going to college, Wren has told Cath she doesn't want to be roommates Cath is on her own, completely outside of her comfort zone. She's got a surly roommate with a charming, always-around boyfriend, a fiction-writing professor who thinks fan fiction is the end of the civilized world, a handsome classmate who only wants to talk about words... And she can't stop worrying about her dad, who's loving and fragile and has never really been alone.

For Cath, the question is: Can she do this?

Can she make it without Wren holding her hand? Is she ready to start living her own life? Writing her own stories?

And does she even want to move on if it means leaving Simon Snow behind?

Review

So... I now finally understand why everyone out there raves about and loves Rainbow Rowell. After reading this book, she manages to capture everything it means to be a teenager: all those emotions of angst, confusion, excitement, nostalgia, and binds it all together in a book called Fangirl. Truly amazing.

As you can tell by the synopsis, Fangirl is the story of Cath growing up out of her Simon Snow obsession (a character akin to Harry Potter), and making it through her first year of college -- a year full of heartbreak, new love, and lots of course work. Cath in general is a great protagonist. She's the type of bookish best friend you would want to piece apart the last episode of Doctor Who or endlessly discuss Sherlock theories with. Her introverted-ness pairs nicely with her outgoing roommate Reagan, and soon-to-be-boyfriend Levi, and leads to some memorable banter. The scene where she reads The Outsiders to him is especially endearing (surprising though, I always thought The Outsiders was required reading for most kids).

And I enjoyed reading the Simon/Baz fan fiction. The passages from Cath's fic, didn't distract from the main story at all. I completely understood the idea of wanting to live in the world forever, like Cath did, but reality has got to come in somewhere, which Cath soon realizes. This book also introduced me to the world of fan fiction, which I had only skimmed over a couple of times, but it is a huge community of people who write the "after" to every possible work: TV shows, books, Disney movies, you name it. Pretty cool.

Reading this book, I basically fell in love with every character even the antagonist/anti-love, who totally gets what he deserves at the end (and it is an oh-so-satisfying end). I didn't want to put this book down at all while reading it. It was basically my constant companion on the bus, to the mall, everywhere, just in case I had a spare minute to read another page or so. Finishing it, I had one of those "book hangover" moments: where do you go after a book that good?
Read more Rainbow Rowell books of course.

Rating: 5 stars

Renée