Very smoothly written. Good mix of description, characters, plot. I usually don't read popular fiction or murder mystery, etc. This is my first Elizabeth George book, so I'm not sure if all her books are this well crafted. Nothing super thought-provoking here, just a good yarn with empathetic characters. The author's ability to bring characters to life with a small amount of words allows her to have a bunch of characters that all seem real and alive.