I enjoyed this book a lot and am looking forward to the rest of the series. 
 ETA: Wow, a lot of people had problems with this book! I can see their point(s), and at another point in time I might have agreed with them, but the timing of my read (after having slogged through a book that I had to partly force read, being sleep deprived, avoiding gift wrapping) just made me happy to read something straightforward, uncomplicated, and not too heavy on the history.