While most of the other gals in this book club liked this one, I have to admit it fell outside my normal genre and sometimes outside my comfort zone. While the book was made more interesting to others because of all the details about New York and its history, I found myself bored by the same facts. There were a few times when I got lost in the book as time skipped ahead, or when I (truthfully) had glazed over some fact earlier in the book and therefore couldn't make the connection later on. There were many times when I thought that the plot and Cormac's actions did not seem true to his character as well. And I also thought that the author should leave the enchanted to someone else to write since he interjected it into the storyline. It just didn't flow, or make sense most of the time.

I did like the premise of the book, and when Cormac's character was being driven by his "quest" I was right there with Pete Hamill, letting him take me from Ireland to New York, and beyond. Unfortunately this quest was repeatedly abandoned, and I thought, it lost some of the excitement of the book overall. But like I mentioned before, this was not my typical read.

I gave this book a 2 because I believe that many people will read this and like it- especially if you have ever spent any time in New York city. I however felt it was too long, skimmed over all of the 19th century (which would have been the most interesting to me), and didn't do a good job of sharing time between the city and Cormac. I have read several books where the setting actually becomes a character of its own, but not in this book. My own test for a book is if I must buy it after I read it, or if I just have to read it again: For this book I didn't do either.