I was kind of mad with the MFC - she was just so stubborn it hurt lol.
It was probably mid book that I started to get really into it, but Ali always has some of the funniest witty banter! And honestly she got me thinking more about Chess (I am an unashamed checkers fan LOL!)
I do recommend this book, it is nicely written and one you can feel close to the characters. It hit really close to home for me when it talks about friendships.