Neil Gaiman is one of the most popular, talked about and applauded modern fiction authors online (which is key for me as I also try to connect with readers via the Internet). For that reason I've been meaning to dip into his books and find out what all the fuss is about for some time now.

And I do get it. But.

That's my teaser for this review. Now, here's the long version:

I get it because in The Ocean at the End of the Lane Gaiman is a quick and natural storyteller, moving the plot and the people along swiftly. He begins by teasing the reader that-something-momentous-happened-in-the-past, then he whisks them back to the beginning and introduces us to the people we need to know better, highlighting their quirky character traits and pulling on the reader's greatest weapon to empathise - nostalgia. Before you know it mysteries are unravelling and peculiarities of a sci-fi nature are popping up out of nowhere. There follows high-energy action scenes and tension building "how are they going to get out of this?" scenarios that suspend belief in a way reminiscent of Harry Potter.

Which is fantastic... except this is just not my cup of tea. While there are huge chunks of lesson-learning prose that I could quote to highlight how good an observant writer Gaiman is (and many other reviewers have done this), it's fair to say that I just don't really like the YA or sci-fi genre and because this book dips into both I personally found some of the action and plot development a little clunky for my liking and I imagine it took me much longer than most to get to that point when I am able to do some serious belief suspending.

However, have I added this to my "to-read-to-my-future-children" list? Yes, absolutely and I look forward to doing so.