The characters are either poorly drawn, obnoxious, or both. Halfway through the book I still knew no more about the sleuth except she is female and a journalist. No idea what she looks like, what she likes..she is a cipher. The villains are obnoxious and annoying, although to the author's credit I can imagine what they look like...mainly because each is a stereotype of people I would not care to know. The only character who stands out is the pouty princess, and she is still two-dimensional and a thoroughly unlikable person. I kept hoping the book would get better, but halfway through I gave up. This book is terrible! Why someone thought this was publishable I'll never know!