Reviews

This book is absolutely astonishing! At least, that's what I initially thought. From the very beginning, I was captivated by the story, even though I didn't know much about it. The opening chapters were written in such an incredible way. It continued like that until the end of part one, which left me completely shocked! However, part two came along and diminished much of the amazement I had felt. I started to feel uneasy with the overly descriptive words that filled the chapters. Finally, part three arrived with its heaviness. I couldn't bear to continue reading any longer. In fact, I found myself skipping pages without missing the main storyline, as it became overloaded with unnecessary words and sentences. Eventually, I gave up before even starting the last chapter, chapter 17. I ended up reading a summary of it online... which made me wonder, isn't this book overrated?

tiredtansy's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes

4.5

katykat_reads's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

lady_wallflower_reads's review against another edition

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dark tense slow-paced

3.0

daja57's review against another edition

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3.0

Sue, brought up among thieves, is sent as a maid to a posh house as part of a plan to steal the fortune of an heiress. Set in mid to late Victorian times and with settings of a thieves' kitchen, a stately home and a lunatic asylum, there is a very Dickensian feel to this novel. It is big and slow-moving, taking time to build the characters, all of whom and beautifully drawn (in contrast to Dickens whose eccentrics are more picturesque but less convincing). The thoroughness of the story-telling meant that, for me, the story dragged a little in the second part (when the events of the first part are more or less repeated from the perspective of a different protagonist and so there is little 'new' stuff). But the ending of the first part had a brilliant twist I completely failed to see coming.

There are moments of pin-point-perfect description: "The moon struck the rushes of the further bank, and made spears of them, with wicked points ... I saw the oars dip and rise, and scatter coins of moonlight." and there are moments straight out of Dickens: "You think you've torments ... Have these knuckles for an hour - have these thumbs. Here's torments, with mustard on. Here's torments, with whips."

A large and slow-moving book with a very Dickensian feeling for the period.

Shortlisted for the Booker Prize.

madelaide's review against another edition

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3.0

I decided to read this book when I learned that it had been the inspiration for one of my favorite movies, The Handmaiden.
Honestly, I didn't enjoy this book nearly as much as I enjoy the film, but the story was just as intriguing. However, it was written almost comically over-detailed. It doubles back more than once to retell parts of the story from a different point of view, which I found incredibly unnecessary. The biggest plot twist was worded so strangely that I had to draw a diagram to understand which characters were being referred to, which really took away from its shock value. The parts of the story that could have made it more shocking or given it more depth were only barely described, while 'filler' parts of the story went on for upwards of 50 pages. The ending was equally as anticlimactic. The story itself is unlike anything you'll ever read, but the writing style took so much away from it I found it hard to enjoy it for what it was. It felt overwhelmingly empty for such a well thought out and compelling plot.
I really enjoyed how Waters portrayed Sue and Maud's relationship, but it too felt empty and unfinished. For what happened to both of them, you would think there would be more emotion, whether it be positive or negative.
If you enjoyed the story, but not the way it was written, I would highly recommend watching The Handmaiden. It admittedly may have skewed my opinion of the book because of how well the story was told in the film. Overall, I was slightly disappointed in Fingersmith, but as always, grateful for the representation that Waters includes in her stories.

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