Fingersmith

Rating:
Summary: Not as Expected
Review: I felt compelled to write a review of this book because I believe it was highly overrated. Sarah Waters gets the feel of the period occasionally, but one is never in doubt that one is reading a contemporary novel that somehow rings false. It often felt like a Dickensian rip-off; many of the characters and their situations reminding me of similar ones in Dickens' work -- so much so, that the ending was quite predictable.

The writing conventions are rather obvious as well. Sue's story is told in the past tense, Maud's in the present, although the voices are not that distinct. A few slang expressions and grammatical errors are thrown in for Maud to show she was raised by thieves, but this voice becomes blurred towards the end of the novel.

Basically this is a potboiler for lovers of Victoriana. Read Wilkie Collins "Armadale" for a real adventure.

Rating:
Summary: Simply incredible
Review: Fingersmith is, quite simply, one of the best books I have read in a long time. Sarah Waters is the newest British author to capture my attention. Fingersmith, her newest book, is set very evocatively in a den of pickpockets and thieves in Victorian London.

Reading Fingersmith is like taking a journey. In the same way that Dickens, Wilkie Collins or Charles Palliser could transform a reader, Waters is a magician. Her characters are believable and real; her setting is breathtaking (you can practically smell the stench of London); the plot is complex, but accessible. All and all, Fingersmith is virtually perfect.

The main character, Sue, is filled with a combination of wide-eyed wonder and worldliness. Her story is one of love, betrayal and struggle; but this is no historical romance. Sarah Waters writes in a very literary style and new readers are sure to recognize her talents.

Rating:
Summary: Great, enjoyable book!
Review: I haven't finished reading this book yet, but I LOVE it! It is full of unexpected twists and suspence. I have bought the other 2 novels by the same author and I can't wait to read them.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent read!
Review: This book is a true treasure. I feel like I made such a great discovery that day I found it on display in a book store. Ms. Waters' writing is gripping and compelling, and her story telling ability is top notch. While the book partly involves a relationship between two women, it is not central to most of the story and the book should appeal to a broad range of readers.

Fingersmith has some dark and gothic overtones, which makes it all the more flavorful of a read. The absolute best thing about this book, however, are the plot twists and turns. There are at least two points in the book where you simply don't see what's coming. I can't remember having ever been that surprised by a writer and I loved it.

If you enjoy books with historical settings, devious plot turns, wonderful writing, and/or unusual characters, then don't pass this one up!

(Note: Tipping the Velvet is also an excellent read. The other book I've read of hers, Affinity, is only for those who don't mind a dark story with no light to brighten it. It's very well written like the others and has some interesting plot turns, but left me feeling like a bit of a masochist at the end for reading it.)

Rating:
Summary: Another great novel from Sarah Waters
Review: After reading and enjoying Sarah Waters's previous novels, I knew Fingersmith would meet my expectations. However, I had no idea! Fingersmith, as usual, had the gorgeous, atmospheric qualities that I think is Sarah Waters's trademark. And of course, the writing is simply genius. But more than that, Fingersmith is fantastic -- this novel told a darn good story.

Set again in 19th century London, Fingersmith begins with Sue Trinder's tale as an orphan and a thief. She lives in a house filled with other orphaned babies and an assortment of pickpockets, or "fingersmiths," along with the lady of the house, Mrs. Sucksby, who took care of Sue since she was an infant. Now 17, Sue's opportunity to show her appreciation to Mrs. Sucksby finally comes -- in the form of Gentleman, a seedy con man and friend of the household. Gentleman is armed with a plan to make them all rich and enlists Sue as his helper. But things aren't always what they seem, and as the plan unfolds, all sorts of secrets and twists come unraveled.

Fingersmith is everything I had hoped it would be -- beautiful writing, a stunning cast of characters, and a riveting, compelling storyline. I was helplessly drawn into the slums of London as well as the drab, solemn English countryside where Sue and Gentleman spend their days spinning their treacherous web. I will admit that there weren't as many shocking surprises (for me, anyway) like Affinity, but this novel was much like Tipping the Velvet in how it pulls in the reader from the beginning with a rousing good story. I can't enough good things about Sarah Waters, her novels, and her talent. She's exceptional, and Fingersmith is nothing less than stellar.

Rating:
Summary: Great book until the end...
Review: I read and enjoyed "Tipping the Velvet," and appreciate the time frame in which Sarah Waters writes. Yet in both "Fingersmith" and "Tipping the Velvet," she does not seem to know how to end her stories. She weaves a tapestry of intrigue in both books, then suddenly seems to realize, "uh-oh, I'm on page 500-something, better tie up some lose knots here." The blinding speed with which we discover what happens to each character in Fingersmith felt, to me, like sitting down to a gourmet meal and consuming it without chewing. Overall, I enjoy her writing, and we are never left wondering. But I do look forward to reading an ending that is written at the level of the rest of her skills.

Rating:
Summary: So much promise
Review: I know i am not going to win many friends by giving this book only three stars, but each to their own.....

this book started *so* well - a Dickensian style story based in Victorian England, it tells the tale of Sue, who leaves the den of theives she has grown up in to live in a Manor House as maid to an odd girl whom is to be tricked out of her fortune.Unfortunately, Sue comes to feel for her mistress, but is trapped in a plot to undo her. To tell more would be to give the plot away. But so far, so good. This is about the first third of the book.

Then we read the story from the point of view of the other girl, Maud. We learn of her bizarre past, which i don't think i am giving too much away by saying it includes mad houses, an eccentric Uncle and erotic literature.

In the final third the plot gets very convoluted - it includes babies swapped at birth among other melodramatic turns. I continued to read to see if the book would live up to its promising start, but it never does, which is a pity. And the ending is very pat and boring. In general, it is over long and too melodramatic.

There are some plusses - it manages to avoid some pit-falls of over dramatic writing, and the sex is written in a non-cringeworthy manner.

Rating:
Summary: The only question is...why didn't it win the Booker???
Review: "Fingersmith" is the first Sarah Water's book I've delved into, partly because I've been scarred by terrible Victorian fiction in the past, and partly because I was afraid how her novel's would treat their overtly lesbian material. I was overjoyed to find it subtle and touching, without any signs of being tainted by public perceptions of lesbian relationships.

"Fingersmith" is a multitude of things. It is a mystery, a thriller, a horror and a love story. It is also a superbly detailed and well crafted historical novel. I'm gushing I know, but the truth is that I couldn't put it down.

The story is that of Sue and Maud, the love they bear one another and the tangled web that lies, deceit and family machinations weave around them. Add some intriguing plot elements (a bibliography of indecent literature and a madhouse) and stir with a truly delicious, but layered, villain, and "Fingersmith" comes out ripe and lush. There are some ingenius twists and turns, and true gut clenching moments when disbelief mingles with pure enjoyment.

I'll step back a moment to attempt an objective evaluation of the craft and style. Sarah Waters does not write in the slickest of prose, and many people may feel compelled to turn back after the first chapter. It is true that the first person narrative lends itself to a disjointed and clumsy beginning, but it won't take long for your palette to adjust. For those coming to the novel fresh from forays into other Booker material (and particularly this year's winner "The Life of Pi"), the dichotomy will seem clear and apparent.

Miss Waters is the author of plot driven novels, she is not a post-modern contemporary author driven by allegory and oxymoron similes. She follows hard on the footsteps of Dickens (although far more compelling) and inherits the voice of an Elizabeth Gaskell modernised for the 21st century. Don't allow this relative simplicity of style to put you off, the effect if by no means shallow or transparent. I promise you a truly gripping read if you perservere - the kind you remember from childhood when books were about turning the page and staying up all night to reach the end, not churning over the existentialist questions of existence.

Rating:
Summary: Beautiful book with a plot, one of the best of the Year
Review: Sarah Waters' Fingersmith is one of the finest books of the year. She has a remarkable art of combining Victorian era which is thought to be dull and boring with great modern drama. Unlike other era based novels this is plot driven and she recreates the times beautifully. The novel is about a hovel of thieves and Dickensian in invention. Fingersmith is a slang for a specialized manual worker,a thief in this case. It is divided into 3 stages, the first one describes the petty thieves in London and the life of one person Sue Trinder. It describes London and a play there which could be reminescent of Oliver Twist. She is employed by a "gentleman" who is one in all mannerisms but is anything but one inside. One is transported back to those times when one reads about Sue and gentleman and how the whole plot is concocted. She is part of an elaborate plot to rob another woman, Maud Lilly.

The second part describes Maud who is from a lunatic asylum brought up by a bookish but tyrannical uncle and who helps him with his literary work. This is in Briar, where things are dark. The work done has traces of Marquis de Sade. While Maud does her work, she does not know much about life, whereas Sue cannot read or write. So, both are partial people. Innocence and Corruption linger side by side in this place. Sue finds that she is part of an elaborate plot where she is hoodwinked.

The third part is where it all comes together. The plot is very well created with the readers left guessing till the end about what will happen. The book is one of desire, betrayal and lesbo-Victorian-romps. Importantly, everything seems to happen in the underworld. There is no repetition of material or grim stuff. Sarah Waters is one of the finest writers of the younger generation and it is sad that this novel competed against "Life of Pi" for the Booker. If it had appeared the next year, it would have won hands down. She has amazing literary style and is plot driven similar to Daphne Du Maurier. This book is a page turner.

Rating:
Summary: Beautiful book with a plot, one of the best of the Year
Review: Sarah Waters' Fingersmith is a wonderfully crafted novel. She shows the world about how the Victorian world was not the boring place that it was thought to be, but full of life. She has an amazing sense of the past in the way she recreates it that one can almost picture the scenes. The novel is divided into 3 parts, the first part being one where there is a hovel of thieves. She has a "gentleman" here who is one in the outside, but everything but one in the inside. It includes plays similar to Oliver Twist in it. Sue Trinder is a woman living in Borough brought up to be a petty thief. She is sent to the country for an elaborate plot which well get her 3000 pounds. The entire environment is Dickensian as are all the characters. Sue finds that she is the person cheated.

The second part of the novel is about the person whom she is supposed to cheat, Maud, and about sexually lurid literature (hardly Victorian). It takes a completely different turn which the reader hardly expects and is wonderful in its suspense. The place, Briar is a dark establishment with hints of Marquis de Sade. There are no morals to be found and Sue and Maud are very different from one another. While Sue cannot read, Maud does not know how to dress herself. Both are partial people in that sense.

The third part of the novel is different in the way it brings the whole thing together. The plot is difficult to guess and one is always holding his/her breath. The densest part of the plot comes in the end. The novel is one of desire, betrayal and lesbo-victorian romps. It is a shame that this novel came in the same year as the "Life of Pi". If it had come the next year, it would have won the Booker. The writer has a great sense of time and weaving the characters in the novel. To date she is one of the finest young novelists. This book is highly recommended to anyone who loves novels that are plot oriented, which are rare nowadays with good literature. It reminds one of Daphne De Maurier.