Poles Apart by Kirsty Moseley
Now, don’t let the title fool you, this pair aren’t that far apart at all.
The story had an unusual twist in that the relationship that existed between them was already established, it was just the whole facts that were not completely divulged.
It was obvious that they both had feelings for each other but having them and acting on them are two completely different things, when the situation is taken out of their hands the fall out is almost catastrophic.
I felt confused about Emma, she was trying her best, raising her brother and child was enough to give the most mature of women running for the hills, but at just 19 she was with it enough to keep a roof over their heads, food in their stomach’s (most of the time) and her brother in school, not to mention the fact that she too was studying.
Working part time a lap dancing club may not have been the career of choice when she was looking for a job, but it was funding everything she and her family needed and in that she had no need for shame.
What I didn’t get was the fact that at 16 when she fell pregnant, she took the decision to not tell him, thinking she was protecting him, letting him go off and fulfil his dreams to be a racing driver- REALLY!!!!
Your average 16 year old pregnant teen is having none of those thoughts I can assure you – and to keep it hidden for years when she sees him almost every weekend, come on!
I liked Carson, he seemed to be just a genuinely nice guy, which made the situation with Emma and her secret even stranger. I mean she had a connection, one that was destined to move beyond the confines of the weekly visits to the lap dancing club.
This was never going to end well, was it?
Carson had it all but what he wanted was Emma, but his lifestyle and hers were Poles Apart, but that didn’t stop him caring and when the truth comes out, the devastation I felt for him was complete.
I couldn’t understand her reasoning no matter how noble her sentiment was but didn’t I like the manner in which Carson handled the revelation, Hell no – he was a first class prick about it but could I understand it – Yep, you bet your arse I could.
Carson flexed his plastic and wielded his position and wealth in such a way as to make me doubt my initial feelings towards him, but he was hurting and in order to get Emma to see what he was feeling, he determined to hurt her back.
He had it in him to walk away and destroy her world in the process but he didn’t want his world without her in it and as such he took her with him.
Emma has no response, no comeback and no will to fight the man she had loved for so long, she had lost her dream with the only man she had ever loved, but she would not lose her child, no matter what it took.
They had a connection that I hoped would help them to survive Carson’s initial pain, one that I hope would let them see that together is where they belonged, despite the route they took to get there.
Carson loved her, but was ashamed at how he had treated her, Emma loved him but was blinded by the fact that he had threatened to take her daughter.
Could they find their common ground, could they have a happy ever after, well it is surprising what you are willing to see when you almost lose it all.
I enjoyed the dialogue, the colloquialisms of the English dialect and the fact that the author used this to perfection. I loved the emotion that was portrayed by both Carson and Emma and the hurt that they felt was strong enough to grab my attention. Emma’s brother was fabulous as was Carson’s sister.
But I felt the story had the ability to be much deeper, to be grittier and punchier – it just seemed to run out of steam.
Good read, easy way to while away a few hours