from The Guardian:

So much for openers. Waters's breakthrough into the mainstream came in 2002 with Fingersmith (more Victorian slang - for a pickpocket, and also a midwife - gravid with sexual innuendo), which was shortlisted for both Orange and Man Booker. Kate Mosse, bestselling author of Labyrinth and Sepulchre, says: "It's contemporary Gothic, something few writers - contemporary or classic - ever pull off." A year later, in another critical coup, she was nominated for Granta's fashionable top 20, the Best of Young British. Other critics have noticed that Waters also takes inspiration from Angela Carter, Philippa Gregory and AS Byatt. Mosse again: "Her research is lightly worn, but utterly trustworthy, and she has an authenticity of historical voice that never falters. She's never showy, yet her writing is rich and inventive, the stuff of treats."

Fidelis Morgan, who writes the Countess Ashby de la Zouche series (The Rival Queens, Fortune's Slave, etc) and also transforms racy historical research into ripping yarns, notes that "Fingersmith is an intoxicating novel with a twist so astonishing it made me gasp aloud. The clever part is that it makes you have to rewind the whole book and reassess each character." Another powerful advocate for Waters's writing, the novelist Philip Hensher says she has made "a great link between the secrecy of queer sexualities and the secrets and revelations of the Gothic tradition. I think she's a big feminine novelist in the large-scale English ensemble tradition of Rosamund Lehmann, Elizabeth Bowen and especially Elizabeth Taylor." http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2009/may/10/books-sarah-waters

Extremely suspenseful, twisty, really good novel about a band of thieves and a host of secrets. It will keep you guessing until the end. it's the kind of book you want to re-read immediately after you finish. ( )

Excellent plot and marvelous writing. The switched identities of the principal characters are cleverly done and the plot line is intricate. The allusion to a "Dickens" style of novel is an apt one. The book is a bit longer than it needed to be, but well worth the read. The BBC series, available on Youtube and "The Handmaiden" on Prime video, are based on the book. I had previously read 'The Night Watch" by Waters and found it excellent also. ( )

Review: Fingersmith by Sarah Waters. 4* 08/30/2023

This was a well-written book. I liked the character's developments and the organization of the story. As far as the content of LGBT romance, set in the Victorian era, a scam artist, prison, and a lot of twists and turns throughout the book. The author describes Victorian London with its dark moments and Gothic atmosphere. I thought the dialogue between characters was really good and convincing. The author also concentrates mainly on the plot which admittedly is very strong.
I also like some of the secondary characters such as "Gentleman" and Mrs. "Sucksby". Their roles in the story were so creative and enhanced the story delightfully. There were so many events happening page after page that I didn't want to put the book down. I read over some pages twice to make sure I didn't miss something. Sarah Waters is a great historian writer and a mastermind of creativity when writing her stories. ( )

Big "what the fuck did I just read" energy. I thought this was going to be dark, and it started that way before going for some soap opera twists which nevertheless worked for me. Wish the guy (Richard Rivers) didn't have such a prominent role; he pushes the leads so hard to betray each other that it ends up feeling like it's his fault entirely, when I'd like them to have both been a little worse people. But I was very happy with the ending. ( )