I was very torn on this book. There were moments, flashes of clarity, when the plot was coherent, the characters made sense and I was fully engrossed in this Shakespeare retelling. But then, the moments passed and I was once again completely distanced from the characters and the supposed story that was unfolding.
To start with, it felt dated. At first it wasn't that unpleasant, it was charming. But there was so many plot points that had once been riveting, that are now cliché and over worn. Kathy was abrasive and I felt absolutely no connection with her. Bunny was a ditsy blonde teenager, very nice but can we see something new? Something different?? The father was more intriguing, but overall I didn't really care much for him. Pytor was the most compelling character, although the author seemed to dislike him and the fact that he was Russian.
There were elements of plot that were thrown in and forgotten about. There were moments when the characters were fully established and then something happened that was completely out of character.
I didn't really understand what was intended to be the message of the novel. All I got was that women need mens permission to achieve things and if they don't have it they work with children or as house maids. That, and men should be pitied because they can't show their emotions. Maybe the message was lost in translation from the 16th century , I'm yet to read the Taming of the Shrew so I can't be sure.