Don't bother reading it!
596504
I read the first book in this series and though the characters are buffoonish and the dialogue clumsy I liked the plot and it moved along at a good clip.  In this second book, the author's writing does not improve and the characters have become more unlikable.  I just can't bring myself to finish it because it is too annoying.
3406652
This was a boring and difficult book to read. It just goes on and on and on.  The flashbacks and endless descriptions and conversations make this very dull. I ended up skipping about a third of the middle of the book , and finally went to the last pages of the book and still knew everything that happened in the skipped hundred or so pages. Normally I really enjoy the authors writing; but this was not one of those books. Dont bother to read unless you enjoy excessive dialog and description. The story was not believable either. A young woman lawyer would not allow a husband to manipulate her like this.  I certainly would not not recommend reading this!
2867430
No wonder people don't read. This is a National Book Award winner? I stuck with it. I usually abandon these bad books after a while. But I stuck with it. Poor choice. I should have trusted my instincts. I have never given a bad review before. I only comment on things I enjoy. But I have to stop people from reading this mess. It's possible it could have been good. It has a decent hook. However, none of the characters is remotely interesting. You just want to smack them all real hard. Don't read it. Please don't read it.
4548290
I only read about half of the book.  It was so stupid that I just quit reading.  I could care less how it ended.
3584744
This book is not worth the read. I would not tell anyone to waste there time on it . Go get your teeth clean instead  !
1850860
This book was so predictable and boring. I hated it. I read the reviews thinking it has "twists and turns ".  ... so misleading. I can't believe it was even published!
944316
I hated the ending of this book....this "wonderful" character gives up her child to a poor family that offers "less opportunity because of their class?" When she has a husband? And has an offer to live in a castle for free? These characters are not admirable in any way. This penniless idiot of a girl has a secret marriage with a soldier in an era of no birth control? What a fool. And a boring fool at that.

The characters and story were so boring that I don't even care if one of the main characters does eventually figure out she's having a sexual relationship with her distant cousin.
I will not read anything by this author again. Attention, everyone out there in internet-land....do NOT buy or read this book. It is dreadful.

I would be so angry if I'd paid full price for this book. Because it is clearly not worth it!
4445920
It was awful.  Disjointed, poorly written, stupid premise.  We picked it for a book club because of its early good rating but 80% of the avid readers just couldn't get through it, it was so bad.  Don't bother buying it.  I'd give it a zero star if I could.
4085689
Don't buy it, don't even read it. Writing is annoying and full of cliches. I ended up having to leaf through it to find out who did it.
4782071
A COMPLETE waste of money. It's worth maybe 50 cents. I may stay away from this Author in general !
2185862
I didn't finish it. I thought all the sex descriptions were unnecessary and I don't want or have time for that kind of nonsense when I am reading a book.  I deleted it from my Kindle within the first few chapters. I am glad I didn't have to purchase it.
1518690
I recommend checking it out of the library, not buying if you feel like reading it. This is not a book you will want to reread. It's dull, uninspiring and reads like a historical type romance novel (style-wise) but without the usual perks of an intriguing plot or a fluent narrative.
3960613
I'm sure I would rate this lower than one star if I were to read it, which I WON'T, Amazon. Get it off my screen!
1410451
This book was given as a gift to dozens of people who attended a business award ceremony in San Francisco a few years ago.  It appeared interesting.  It proved to be the worst book I have ever tried to read.  The author gets lost trying to seem clever.  It's not worth donating to the local library, as I do not want to turn off anyone truly interested in science.  I cannot believe the author and editors let this go to print!
1814819
One of the Amazon First books I got for free and really glad I did not pay for this book.  I honestly did not read to the end.  I started the first few chapters and thought this is really lame.  I perused through it and it picked out the necessary items to get the story's context.  It was easy since the writing is so basic and predictable.  Not worth it!
2762270
Not even one star. I stopped reading it which I bever do
3922287
Don't waste your time reading this hot mess!