Sylvia Theall

Unlike most glowing reviews, I found this novel overly long and tiresome. The storytelling and the contrast between fact and fantasy with its inordinate number of major and minor characters lost my interest midway through the book. Setterfield’s lengthy prose setting the story was satisfying at times, but the pat ending which, of course, was the “happily ever after” could have been achieved in far fewer characters and pages. Not my cup of tea!