Mixed feelings about this book on one hand I really enjoyed it I liked the underlaying messages about woman in society, I liked the duel timelines, I liked the Scottish landscape setting and I enjoyed the dark witty humour, I found the novel fairly well paced and the plot was good. However I found a lot of the plot lines under developed and a little bit confusing am still unsure why Sarah was so effected by the teacher saga, I found the characters at times very flat and stereotypical then at other times interesting and real. It was book that left me thinking, and I did find parts very tender and there was rawness that give the book an edge that allowed for the few flaws. I think the writer tries to shock sometimes with her writing but by being so extreme so of the plot and characters become lost among that. All in all a solid three stars