\"The way this man writes is magical.\" (I\\\'m stealing this phrase from our local Bookshop). And as one of our members pointed out, written in the \"present\" makes you feel that you are really experiencing what he writes. Getting to know the 2 main characters was done in an interesting way - you knew they were going to interact at some point, so any \\\"suspense\\\" is gone, but so well developed it didn\'t matter. One of our members felt it should have been a bit shorter - a book this long is intimidating before you even start reading. All of our members at the meeting gave it a 4 or a 5, so it was a really well-liked book.

I had to re-read the book immediately after I first read it because I missed so missed and was confused because of the writing style. First read thru, I was less than impressed. Second read thru I was astounded. The way he introduced seemingly unimportant characters in the beginning and wove them into the story to become major characters towards the end was brilliant.

At first I didn't understand how it was considered a love story. After reading it again, there were several love stories in the book and it added to the complexity of the story.

They WERE the worst of times. People were desperate and brutal. It's hard to understand how they enthusiastically gathered to watch the beheadings...... how they sharpened their tools to attack others, etc. How were people so vile?? Are humans basically full of hatred? Is it easier to hate than it is to love?

There is plenty for a book club to discuss about this book, particularly about human nature and unexplainable behavior.

A very quick moving book with twists and turns that keep your interest. There was plenty to discuss at book club. Not our typical type of book, but it was fun for once to read a "mystery" and be entertained.