The color is slightly darker than pictured but still has variation which is great.  Ditto to the other reviews- a bit time consuming to put together but the instructions are easy to follow.  I think they knew it would be a time consuming project as the instructions have funny comments thrown in to help lighten things up.  While not solid wood, the piece is substantial which is nice.  There are few pieces that don't fit together 100% so a few minor spaces.  For the price a pretty good piece of furniture.