Reviews

Fingersmith by Sarah Waters

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cpoole's review

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adventurous dark emotional tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

hypnoticreport's review against another edition

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2.0

definitely an interesting read; waters has a distinct voice. having read this after watching the handmaiden (2016) i think i prefer that film's take on the plot as maud is given a more active role in the story instead of just being a passive victim to everyone? the pacing really suffers in part three imo. but yeah decent read

kaira101's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

spencesational's review against another edition

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5.0

A fantastic read although after the end of Part One and with such a heart-stopping twist I expected more. To say I was disappointed would be grossly unfair but I did expect the rest of the book to have similar twists and turns, and even though there were some unexpected turns they weren't quite as shocking for me.

I would say the book in general was medium-paced. There were heart-racing chapters in parts and very slow-paced chapters in others but as a whole it rolled along quite nicely.

Not quite one of my favourites but definitely a five-star novel and one that I'll think about for a while to come.

nao_'s review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

ma75's review against another edition

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4.0

I really wish this scale was 1-10 or even 1-100. I'd give this book a 6.5 out of 10. It's an unusual story with vivid descriptions that transport you to the place & time. I found this book through a Reddit reader group and someone suggested it was "spicy." I enjoy some spice on occasion so that is why I read it to begin with, but this did NOT have spice. I think if I knew that ahead of time, I would have relished the well-weaved tale with greater enjoyment, instead of waiting for "the scene" that the Redditor described. I think the Redditor was very sheltered, because the very mild description of the "spicy" scene was just ok.
Anyway - my expectations were a diversion and I wish I would have known that from the beginning.
In sum - a unique and colorful historical fiction well worth the time. Enjoy the story and don't look for spice. :)