Who can read this DRIVEL? Poorly written, with an almost juvenile writing style. Boring. Predictable. The interactions between the Kahlen and Richard, laughable. They have known each other for, um, one day, and already she has "a secret smile just for him!" Ugh. I kept reading parts of it out loud to my family and LAUGHING! I had to quit after about 100 pages. I am surprised I managed to get that far and shocked that this is a bestseller. Compares in my mind to the Eragon books by Christopher Paolini, except his are written by a teen, and for a pre-teen and teen audience. Still can't stand them, though. I would skip this book without hesitation.