I will admit, I'm always slightly thrown off when first looks don't start at the actual beginning of a book - with the exception perhaps of short stories or a collection of essays, I find it difficult to just jump in even if it's only on the second chapter (as was the case with this first look). That being said, this one didn't really get my attention. I love New York City, I actually also love opera, but this just didn't grip me the way I hoped it might. It was a relatively short first look, and as I said it didn't start at the beginning, so perhaps this is a work that for me just requires a little bit more context. But this didn't make me say to myself 'I need to keep reading that' or even 'I might like to read another chapter'.