Tolstoy has a unique style and the mixture of serial drama, the authors philosophising, and historical detail was a new format for me. I have to say I really enjoyed it for the most part, the serial drama was brilliant, 5 stars, the characters were all well written and they developed throughout. The historical information was interesting, and though sometimes dry definitely added to the enjoyment. The philosophising of the author I could have done without though, especially in the epilogue. It felt as though there was a lot of repetition in these parts, and most of it felt unnecessary given they are the conclusions you would draw yourself from the story. 

The character arc of Pierre, whom I found to be the protagonist, was marvelous. His introduction in the first chapter to his attitude plus 1000 pages in is so dramatic a shift you wouldn't believe it if you hadn't spent hours reading the story of his life. The dynamic of Natasha and Sophie was also very interesting to see, how it changes throughout their life was quite extreme. 

I knew very little about this period in Russia going in and was very entertained and gained knowledge at the same time.

Its a book you have to read if you're in any way a serious reader and a classic for a reason.