I think I got through about 20 percent. Why couldn't I finish it? Maybe it was too real. Maybe too hopeless. Maybe lengthy conversations about love are just too boring. The characters annoyed me. She became increasingly insecure, constantly seeking reassurance, when she was separated from her lover. She whines, she pouts, she makes accusations. Although, if I were in her situation, almost a prisoner, as well-chaperoned women were at that time, I would have been just as miserable and passive, since women had few alternatives then. These lovers loose a chance to be together long-term, because they don't have enough self-control and discretion. It's possible that the book gets better later on; I just couldn't stand it any longer.