The characters lack depth so it's hard to care about or remember them despite the horrific incidents in their lives. Though they do surpass them, because the story is so disjointed one never really learns how or why, and loose ends are not tied up, nor is there a satisfying ending. Some lovely poetic passages reveal "truths" I personally disagree with mixed in with a more simple, adventure narrative style, often to describe atrocities. Basically an unsatisfying mish mash with chance occurrences that normally wouldn't happen so if, as the author claims, this is his attempt to reflect life's "non-ending" vs art, the neat parallels and chance meetings don't reflect that either.