I honestly have no idea what to think of this book. 
 It's entirely obvious that Susanna Clarke is a brilliant woman. She's got an amazing, beautiful mind and a lovely way with words. Her prose is gorgeous. 
 Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrelll really is an amazing feat of artistry and one that few people could complete, that much is certain. However, I sincerely wanted to enjoy and love this book more than I did. 
 For me, the first half or so of the book was rough going. It was hard for me to bring myself to care at all about Strange, Norrell or any of the other characters. I found myself a little fond of Strange, particularly his relationship with Arabella, but for the most part, I wasn't actively engaged in the book and it was difficult for me to keep at it. I have read - and loved - far longer and far more difficult books than Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, so it's not as if a book this dense was foreign to me. 
 I began to find the book more interesting once Strange headed to Spain and I really started to get into it around page 550 or so. I was so interested that I couldn't put the book down! After it took me over a week to read the first half of the book because I kept putting it down, I finished the last 400 or so pages in a few hours! 
 Closer to the end, I leaned towards liking the book. However, the ending left me somewhat dissatisfied in what becomes of Arabella and Strange. Of the two magicians, I had was far fonder of Strange - I had really started to like him very much - and I really came to like Arabella quite a bit. So their ending was...flat for me. I wanted more for them. 
 So I'm conflicted about this book. It's beautiful and lyrical for sure, but for me, it wasn't a satisfying literary experience. I feel as though it's a book I would come to like more upon a second reading, however, I feel completely unmotivated to read it again.