etc.

A big, yummy novel about Victorian London and the thieving villains that populate its seamy streets. Fingersmith is narrated by Sue and Maud, two orphaned girls whose histories and fortunes are tied to Mrs. Sucksby, a lying, cheating, scoundrel who seizes her chance at riches through an elaborate ruse that ends up ruining her own life, but not before putting Sue and Maud through all manner of peril and pain. Waters’ narrative is replete with salty sub-plots, charming characters, and piquant commentary on the social mores of urban life during the nineteenth century — a sort of Dickens meets bawdy romance/mystery novel circa 1950 with a generous helping of homoerotica thrown in. You can’t help but enjoy all that.