We finished this for Fiction into Film the other day, and I don't know what to make of it. I'm still reeling.

I felt betrayed by the end because I went into the story thinking that the fantastical element was intentional - that it was a story of magical realism, like House of Spirits or something.

I'm disappointed because I know it's a "choose your own adventure" type ending, but it seems like one seems more "right" than the other.

So it was great and terrible all at the same time, but it was just as Brother Hartvigsen said: "Whether I liked it or not, it's a novel that has stuck with me."