mˈæɹiən kˈɛstɚ kˈuːmz ɪn hɜː ɹᵻvjˈuː fɔːɹ hjˈuːmən ᵻvˈɛnts wʌz mˈʌtʃ mˈoːɹ pˈɑːzᵻtˌɪv, sˈeɪɪŋ, "ðə ɹˈaɪɾɪŋ ɪz fɛlˈɪsɪɾəs sˈʌmtaɪmz hjˈuːmɚɹəsli kəlˈoʊkwɪəl, sˈʌmtaɪmz vɜːdʒˈɪniəwˈʊlfɪʃ ɪnðə sˈʌɾəlɾi ʌv ɪts ˈeɪpɚsəs ænd ðə moʊmˈɛntəm ɪz ˌɛnɚdʒˈɛɾɪk θɹuːˈaʊt tˈuː ˈɔfən sˈʌtʃ hˈɛdi plˈɑːts lˈuːz stˈiːm ænd ˈɛnd ˌʌp tʃˈʌɡɪŋ wˈɪɹili ˌɪntʊ ðə stˈeɪʃən fɚðɪ əblˈɪɡətˌoːɹi fɪnˈɑːli.
Marian Kester Coombs in her review for Human Events was much more positive, saying, "the writing is felicitous--sometimes humorously colloquial, sometimes Virginia-Woolfish in the subtlety of its aperçus--and the momentum is energetic throughout (too often such heady plots lose steam and end up chugging wearily into the station for the obligatory finale).