It took me over a year to finish Donna Tartt's latest novel, but not because the book drags or because I ever lost interest in the characters. I stopped reading it halfway through partly because I wanted to savor the story and partly because reading about intensely likeable characters going through such an epic of realistic struggles was so difficult. That said, Tartt is our contemporary Charles Dickens and this novel is a wonderful experience. I highly, HIGHLY recommend it.