War and Peace (Tolstoy) - Ch 7-28 (End of Part 1)

Sorry for the late update on this one. I was originally intending to post every six chapters, but I ended up finishing Part I before I decided to post. I'll try to post more often.

This book is not dry. It's long, but it's not dry. It's all thanks to the characters: They're all so interesting and compelling. They almost seem like real people.

Anyway, the main bulk of the part took place at the Rostovs' house, where a couple 'ships' emerged:

• Nicholas Rostov and Sonya Alexandrovna: Nicholas Rostov is the eldest son of the Rostov family, and is going to the military. Sonya Alexandrovna is his cousin (Pretty sure that's incest?).
• Boris Drubestsky and Natalya ('Natasha') Rostova: Boris is the only child of Anna Mikhaylovna Drubetskaya (who is an incredible mother by the way, doing everything for her son. She's incredibly brazen about it, too), and Natalya Rostova is the youngest daughter of the Rostov family.
• Vera Rostova and Berg: Vera Rostova is the oldest child and daughter of the Rostov family, and is a huge jerk, always picking on her younger siblings. Berg, with a last name that I do not know, is a self-centered military officer who is to marry Vera.

Spoiler Alert: Pierre, my favorite character, manages to successfully become Count Bezukhov, becoming legitimized and inheriting father's massive fortune. There was a whole intense race between Anna Mikhaylovna, who was supporting Pierre in hopes that he would give her and her son some support after becoming the count, and Prince Vasili Kuragin, who wanted to split the fortune between himself and Pierre's half-sisters.

I really hope that Anna Mikhaylova and Boris are successful in their endeavors going forward. Anna deserves it.