Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell

I had never heard of this book before but as I was glancing through a used book store in England, the image of the raven caught my eye and I thought "That looks like something that is both rewarding and immediately entertaining". And it was, though it took me forever to read it. I think it was certainly assisted in being published by the success of Harry Potter, though this is not a children's book and its tone, allusions, and ideas are all quite different from Rowling's series.
I certainly did not know what to expect through its duration and found myself being glad that I had a bit of English culture to help decode some of the book's themes. I'd like to discuss it with others but I haven't met anyone else who has read it yet.