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| Fingersmith | 
 enlarge | Author: Sarah Waters
Publisher: Virago Press Ltd
Category: Book
List Price: £7.99
Buy Used: £0.01
You Save: £7.98 (100%)
New (37) Collectible (3) from £2.49
Avg. Customer Rating:  69 reviews
Sales Rank: 10074
Media: Paperback
Edition: New edition
Pages: 560
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 7.7 x 5 x 1.7
ISBN: 1860498833
Dewey Decimal Number: 823.914
EAN: 9781860498831
ASIN: 1860498833
Publication Date: February 3, 2003
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
Condition: Little River Books dispatch daily from South Wales. Customer satisfaction is our guarantee.
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Amazon.co.uk Review
Fingersmith is the third slice of engrossing lesbian Victoriana from Sarah Waters. Although lighter and more melodramatic in tone than its predecessor Affinity, this hypnotic suspense novel is awash with all manner of gloomy Dickensian leitmotifs: pickpockets; orphans; grim prisons; lunatic asylums; "laughing villains" and, of course, "stolen fortunes and girls made out to be mad". Oliver Twist (which is mentioned on the opening page), The Woman in White and The Prince and the Pauper all exert an influence on it but none overawe. Like Peter Ackroyd, Waters has an uncanny gift for inventive reconstruction. Divided into three parts, the tale is narrated by two orphaned girls whose lives are inextricably linked. It begins in a grimy thieves kitchen in Borough, South London with 17-year-old orphan Susan Trinder. She has been raised by Mrs Sucksby, a cockney Ma Baker, in a household of fingersmiths (pickpockets), coiners and burglars. One evening Richard "Gentleman" Rivers, a handsome confidence man, arrives. He has an elaborate scheme to defraud Maud Lilly, a wealthy heiress. If Sue will help him she'll get a share of the "shine". Duly installed in the Lillys' country house as Maud's maid, Sue finds that her mistress is virtually a prisoner. Maud's eccentric Uncle Christopher, an obsessive collector of erotica (loosely modelled on Henry Spenser Ashbee) controls every aspect of her life. Slowly a curious intimacy develops between the two girls and as Gentleman's plans take shape, Sue begins to have doubts. The scheme is finally hatched but as Maud commences her narrative it suddenly becomes more than a tad difficult to tell quite who has double-crossed who. Waters' penchant for Byzantine plotting can get a bit exhausting but even at its densest moments--and remember this is smoggy London circa 1862--it remains mesmerising. A damning critique of Victorian moral and sexual hypocrisy, a gripping melodrama and a love story to boot, this book ingeniously reworks some truly classic themes.--Travis Elborough
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| Customer Reviews: Read 64 more reviews...
 enthralling reading August 26, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
From beginning to end this novel is engaging. Having only read one other of hers (Tipping The Velvet) I will certainly be going on to read her others. It's easy enough to find out plot details about this so I won't go into that. What I will say is that her writing style is fantastic. I was pleased not to have known anything about the novel before I read it, as I do believe any spoilers will impact upon your enjoyment. All you need to know is that all of the characters are fabulous, evocative narrative really pulls you into Victorian London.
The time is 1862 and we are with a mix of characters from all classes. The way Waters moves between the different strata's of society is impressive, making the journey both enjoyable and knowledgeable. Even the way the characters speak is entertaining and you find yourself supporting both Lilly and Maud at different times. I can't wait to read more by Sarah Waters and can thoroughly recommend this. You won't be able to put it down.
Unputdownable July 21, 2008
This was a fabulous read - one of the best novels which I have read for a long, long while.
It starts off simply enough with the protagonist Sue Trinder leading us gently into her warm but villanous life with Mrs Sucksby in the slums of Victorian London. However, with the arrival of Gentleman, the plot kicks in and we are taken to a sinister old house 40 miles outside of the city, where much of the narrative takes place.
So far, so good. Waters' writing weaves a spell on us as readers, and I began to feel comfortable, settling into well-written, familiar territory, and very happy to be there. However, with the end of part one came one of the most unexpected twists I have ever come across, and from then on I could not put this novel down - how would this be resolved? was the main question now on my mind.
From start to finish this novel never once fails to please, and I would absolutely recommend it.
Forget the lesbians, just read the book! July 9, 2008
This book is a truly enjoyable romp, but spoiled , I think , by the lesbian tag, I mean compairing it to Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit (it is in the reviews) is bizzare. I am no lesbian(And I have nothing against lesbians - I just think this book should be read by everyone) but some how the strong story, the fantastic picture it creates in your mind and the twists and turns kept me guessing and hooked until the end. The nearest book (or series of books) I would compare it with would be 'His Dark Materials', why? Because Sarah Waters writes a vivid story that captures your imagination like Phlip Pullman. (PS Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit is one of my all time favorite books too!)
 Awful tripe! June 5, 2008
0 out of 4 found this review helpful
I hated this book, I resented the time I took to read it when I could havebeen reading something else, something better.
It has a massively obvious plot 'twist' that you could see coming a mile away, the setting was dreary and miserable, the plot boring and the characters were supposed to be narrating different parts of the book but neither had a distinctive voice.
To compare it to Dickens is sloppy and untrue, you actually care about what happens to his characters-Nancy, Little Dorrit, Edwin Drood anyone?-but these were just distasteful and the whole experience left a nasty taste in my mouth.
It seems Ms Waters had invented 'post-modern-Victorian -lesbian -porn' as
a genre of her own and she is welcome to it.
I have absolutely no problems with homosexual characters,such as by Patricia Highsmith etc, but I just feltt this book was smug, self satisfied and drum banging and would not have chosen to read this had it not been our bookclub choice in our local library.
And it seems all her other books are in the same vein.
So good, you need to read it twice. May 24, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
This is the quasi-Dickensian story of two girls, two proud lilies, ensnared in briar thorns. Girls treated like rare books whose covers hide a multitude of neatly-catalogued sins - a pair of complementary titles, indeed. The plot is deep, dark, twisting and treacherous, like the river that runs through it.
This novel is so wonderfully-constructed it needs to be read twice to fully-appreciate it, there are so many themes and details to absorb.
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