Fingersmith

Sarah Waters

Oct 2002 · Sold by Penguin

About this ebook

The Handmaiden, a film adaptation of Fingersmith, directed by Park Chan-wook and starring Kim Tae-Ri, is now available.

Sue Trinder is an orphan, left as an infant in the care of Mrs. Sucksby, a "baby farmer," who raised her with unusual tenderness, as if Sue were her own. Mrs. Sucksby’s household, with its fussy babies calmed with doses of gin, also hosts a transient family of petty thieves—fingersmiths—for whom this house in the heart of a mean London slum is home.

One day, the most beloved thief of all arrives—Gentleman, an elegant con man, who carries with him an enticing proposition for Sue: If she wins a position as the maid to Maud Lilly, a naïve gentlewoman, and aids Gentleman in her seduction, then they will all share in Maud’s vast inheritance. Once the inheritance is secured, Maud will be disposed of—passed off as mad, and made to live out the rest of her days in a lunatic asylum.

With dreams of paying back the kindness of her adopted family, Sue agrees to the plan. Once in, however, Sue begins to pity her helpless mark and care for Maud Lilly in unexpected ways...But no one and nothing is as it seems in this Dickensian novel of thrills and reversals.

Ratings and reviews

I loved the story line and the twist, but every page or scene seemed too long and too descriptive. I wished it would just cut to the chase already.

All in all, fantastic story. The twist at the end of part one had me shocked for days, and made complete sense in hindsight. Though, while I loved the story, there were a few minor things that made the experience a bit less than it could have been. The pacing was my personal biggest issue with it. Many of the scenes seemed to drag on, as characters continue only to repeat themselves over and over. Another issue I had, and this is far more minor a thing, is that the author didn't tend to take to time to properly build tension between romantic leads. The only scene we get with any sexual tension is the one where the leads finally do something about their feelings, but that is short lived. The author takes a creative approach by describing a majority of the scene through details noticed the following morning, but is completely undercut by everything else going on with Sue.

Thrilling, shocking, leaves you breathless. Masterful. A wild and unexpected story. A journey into a London and England you've never known, and will never find anywhere else. This is the 2nd Sarah Waters book I've read this month. Can't put her down, and can't wait for Fingersmith the movie!

About the author

Sarah Waters is the New York Times–bestselling author of The Paying Guests, The Little Stranger,The Night Watch, Fingersmith, Affinity, and Tipping the Velvet. She has three times been short-listed for the Man Booker Prize, has twice been a finalist for the Orange Prize, and was named one of Granta’s best young British novelists, among other distinctions. Waters lives in London.