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A review by greensalbet
The Distance Between Us by Maggie O'Farrell
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Because this is one of O'Farrell's earlier novels, the POVs and quick shifts in time can be off-putting. But my real criticism about The Distance Between Us is that it takes on too many themes that aren't balanced equally and ends with a tidy conclusion that is sweet, but forced.
The basic story is about two star-crossed lovers: Stella Ianelli Gilmore is an Irish-Italian raised in Edinburg, Scotland by an Italian-speaking mother, along with sister Nina, who suffered a rare virus in childhood leaving her bedridden for almost two years, and father Archie. Jake Kildoune, a British-Asian young man is the only son of a free spirited single mother from Britain and a nomadic Scottish father he's never met. He is raised in Hong Kong by mum Caroline, who knows little about the man who sired her child. Caroline gives Jake the name of the location her one-night-stand said he hailed from in Northern Scotland when he decides to embark on a genealogical collecting journey in Scotland. Jake learns Kidoune was originally the name of the hippie where his father once lived, but it has now become and abandoned barn on the property behind the Inn called Kildoune.
When our two protagonists meet at the Scotland Inn, one is running from her life, and the other is running towards his life -- trying to find details about his father's roots. And they fall in love.
The basic story is about two star-crossed lovers: Stella Ianelli Gilmore is an Irish-Italian raised in Edinburg, Scotland by an Italian-speaking mother, along with sister Nina, who suffered a rare virus in childhood leaving her bedridden for almost two years, and father Archie. Jake Kildoune, a British-Asian young man is the only son of a free spirited single mother from Britain and a nomadic Scottish father he's never met. He is raised in Hong Kong by mum Caroline, who knows little about the man who sired her child. Caroline gives Jake the name of the location her one-night-stand said he hailed from in Northern Scotland when he decides to embark on a genealogical collecting journey in Scotland. Jake learns Kidoune was originally the name of the hippie where his father once lived, but it has now become and abandoned barn on the property behind the Inn called Kildoune.
When our two protagonists meet at the Scotland Inn, one is running from her life, and the other is running towards his life -- trying to find details about his father's roots. And they fall in love.