Our group rated this book a 4+. Many felt it was difficult to get into at first because each chapter jumped from one time period to another, and many characters were introduced. As we continued reading it, however, the different strands started to come together. We enjoyed reading as the mystery of Nell's beginnings began to unfold. Though it was an unusually long book,(almost 600 pages) most agreed that it was well-written and worth reading to the end.