I'm a fast reader, but this book took me a long time. I think part of it is the fact that 90% of this book is describing winter (at least it feels like it) in perfect detail, and it has been such a truly horrible winter altogether. 
 But more than that, I found this book exhausting at parts. I found myself skimming, just because I felt bored or that I had already read about winter or the city or the poor in the city and how no one really cares about them, fifteen times before. 
 I was going to put this book down, I really was. BUT 1) I hate putting books down, and 2) there were glimmers of greatness. 
 These glimmers were the characters. Some of the characters were so rich, and genuinely interesting, that I managed to make it through, just to see how it would play out. There was a third of the book that I was completely invested in the characters. 
 The rest...I mean, it was beautifully written, but there was just a little too much for me. 
 I'm glad that I got to the end - as I found the end to be the best part. It was engrossing, and stressful. I'm glad I finished, but I don't think that I would re-read. At least not for a long time.