For darkness shows the stars

By the middle of the book, I was starting to become bored with the story (it seemed to be dragging on with no purpose), but an interesting twist really perked it up. Alternating chapters are told through letters exchanged between the main character and her love interest, and I thought the gimmick didn't really work for this book. The supposed "secrets" and background information that is uncovered in the letters is still addressed in the present day text, making the letters kind of pointless. I did appreciate Peterfreund's nuanced characters and her skillful recreation of a Jane Austen-like web of character relationships.