I really enjoyed the perspective this craft-book gave me on what fiction is. I think Maass's ideas are explained concisely and creatively. I also really enjoyed the example books he gave, and have actually listed the majority of them in my TBR (and the three I've picked up have NOT disappointed!).

I think the only con to this one is that Maass can be a little presumptive at a few intervals, but it's not anything that can't be overlooked. All in all, I think this book really helped me develop my writing style further, and that's worth the cost of this book alone.