People have told me many great things about this series and not to judge the first book. So, I sucked it up and finally finished this book after my 2nd attempt. There was just so much going on in the story and I didn't quite connect fully to what the hell was going on. However, the last 1/4 of the book had me on my toes and it held my attention to the end. I won't give up on this series just yet. I will have to see how the next book unfolds.