I had to trudge through the first hundred pages before I realized that any of the characters were going to have ANY likeable or redeemable moments. But I like Sara Gruen. So, I trudged on, and then all of the sudden, I was swept up in the writing and the scenery (I'm going through a Scotland phase) and the plot started moving and I was still awake at 1am finishing the book which is a tremendous sacrifice in my life. It still doesn't live up to Water for Elephants, but it stayed with me a bit after I finished it. It was a good solid historical fiction that was a nice reprieve from the young adult fiction that usually fills up my reading list.