Atlas Shrugged is an important, thought-provoking book, but from a purely literary perspective, it's not that well written. The book basically consists of cardboard characters regurgitating huge chunks of Rand's philosophy. After the seventh or so 20 page speech about the evils of collectivism, it starts getting a little old. Rand was certainly inconsistent, and her personal life was downright bizarre, but she was one of the 20th Century's most ardent defenders of capitalism, for which we should all be grateful.
If you'd like to know more about Rand, then I suggest you read the books Barbara and Nathaniel Branden wrote. They both had a huge falling out with Rand, but I do think they are able to give a fair assessment of Rand's many faults and virtues. And if there's an immensely entertaining science-fiction novel by Matt Ruff named Sewer, Gas, and Electric, which deals quite heavily with Both Ayn Rand and Atlas Shrugged, that is worth checking out as well.