This book is about as opposite as you can get from the Harry Potter series. It’s about several average families and small-town politics, in an ordinary English community. It seems to pride itself on a realism that is alternatingly gritty and mundane. The pacing especially is quite different from the page-turning Harry Potter books. The perspective is split between so many characters that the story never really gains momentum until the end, and the plot is almost non existent.

However, I found the driving themes and some central characters rather compelling. The ending left me feeling unsatisfied, deflated, and unsure of whether I “liked it” per say. But it did make me think and feel and I don’t regret the time I took to read it. It’s definitely a book that’s more about the journey than the destination.