so far this is a dull description of philadelphia’s centennial fair of 1876. i wouldn’t have picked it up if it hadn’t have been a group discussion read and i hope the storyline gets a bit more engaging and less sedentary soon.

I can’t bring myself to pick this book up again to finish it. I’m just bored with the whole thing, characters, plot, even the scenery, which is probably the best bit, is boring me. I don’t care what happened at all. I’m not even intruigued enough to look through other peoples posts in the group discussion to find out what happened in the end of the book.

This book won the 2001 Edgar Award for the Best Paperback Original. I’d expect an award winner to be a well rounded book in terms of writing, characters, plot and setting and to excel in at least one of those categories. I don’t mind that a book I don’t personally enjoy can win awards but I can’t see anything in this book to make it award worthy.