Most people who love both The Secret History and The Goldfinch agree with you about Little Friend, for what it's worth. I can see why people call Goldfinch meandering, but if you don't mind slow pacing or characters doing things you wouldn't (and don't have a problem with the idea of digressions about art and antiques similar to TSH's digressions about the classics) I don't think you'll have too much to worry about.