I thoroughly loved it. It's a very character driven book that benefits from being set over a longer period of time, displaying character change as well as change of opinion about characters in a fascinating way. I couldn't read about these people without them evoking some feeling in me and I was thinking about them when I wasn't reading.
While it explores the roles an unmarried woman can have in society, it's also very much about affection. The writing feels quite old but it's still not too hard to read with the story being easy to follow and the depth being in the details.
While I think this is a book that would be fun to analyze and discuss, it's also really engaging. I can't remember the last time I had so many lively reactions to the events of a book. This should be so much better known.