A giant doorstopper of a book, and for once I didn't mind. Possibly because nearly every one of those pages was obsessed with character instead of endless world-building. And let's face it, Scarlett is one of the great fictional characters. Frequently unlikeable, she's still complex and fascinating and utterly, utterly convincing. As is Melanie. The story-telling here is just superb, and the only thing it loses points for is the rosy depiction of slavery. Hard to believe someone who is so clear-eyed about character is so blind to historical accuracy and social evil - I doubt Frederick Douglass, for instance, would recognise Mitchell's version of slavery.