I found that this novel was a bit of a disappointment. On the one hand, Vittorio is a deep character with enough angst coursing through his body he could put Edward Cullen to shame. Vittorio is angry, lustful, depressed, and confused as he moves throughout the story, and Rice manages to capture that rather well. However, many of the scenes are described rather dreamily. This could be on purpose, as Ursula seduces Vittorio, and we the readers are taken along for the ride. If so, then it is an interesting technique that has a lot to offer. However, given how slow the pace is throughout the story, trying to actually get with the plot is a struggle because of this affect. Furthermore, I think that the novel suffers from the amount of angst Vittorio goes through, especially because of how slow the story can seem at times.