I absolutely loved this book. It's the most 'because of the vibes' 5 star review I've ever given. I would struggle to analyze this and justify the review beyond the fact that when I put it down it was because I had to, not that I wanted to. When I wasn't reading it, I was waiting to read it and thinking about it. It is possibly the best book I've ever read. At the same time, I can't say I would recommend it, this is the most counter intuitive statement I will have ever put in a review, but it's because I don't know why I loved it so much. If someone else reads it and dislikes it, I can accept that as reasonable. What I can't accept is several of the reviews (the one-star ones) which say that they didn't read the book but dislike the author... that's not a review of the book, that's just random hate. I will, however, endeavor to try to explain why I liked it so much, even though it’s hard to articulate. 

The characters in this are extraordinarily vivid, with the other Ayn Rands books in the past I’ve read (all but Atlas Shrugged at the time of writing) I’ve found the characters immensely absorbing but without depth as they have been embodying a trait or a principle. However, in this book I found several of the characters did have depth, as well as this embodiment of a principle. I can still see they are not as layered as I would expect in other books, but with their place in the story it’s amazing to see this human side of characters like Wynand, Roark and Dominique. Toohey is still a little too much of a villain archetype for my liking and a touch more depth to him would be my only wish for improvement. As the embodiment of collectivism though, and that being the true villain of the piece I can see why it was never going to happen. The struggle and the progression of the average man shown through Keating is brilliantly written. 

The plot is there to serve the characters here and is very much secondary to how the people behave, but it’s still bizarrely gripping. The message of this book, and the moral benefit of it is up for debate. Like most other reviews I will say I am not a fan of Rands philosophy. I am less against it than most it seems but it’s not one I ascribe to, and I can see how if one were massively opposed to capitalism this would not be a fun book to read, but if you’re anywhere near the political center then it shouldn’t spoil your enjoyment of this beautifully written novel. 

The writing here is just superb, the characters brilliant, the atmosphere beautifully dark. It’s a mirror being held up to society and finding it wanting. I’m sad to have finished this but happy I still have Atlas Shrugged to read in the future.