From the blurb, I expected this to be a rather sickly sentimental book, but I was very pleasantly surprised. The book is gripping, insightful and dramatic but very believable. The characters are well-rounded and interesting, and the plot develops with a certain inertial inevitableness, but with enough twists to keep it going. The (Dutch) translation was excellent, it read like it was written in Dutch. What more could you want?