The writing is fantastic. The characters as compelling as any I've ever read. And yet, even though I'm giving this 5 stars, I do have serious reservations about whether this book crosses the line from brutal realism into misery porn. At one point in the last 200 pages, I actually started thinking what the point of all the horribleness might be, because the amount of crying passed cathartic awhile ago.

Whatever the case, it's amazingly written, and will certainly linger with me for a long time.