Absolute belter of a book. Plot twists send you reeling and it keeps you glued to it til the very last page. I hadn't heard of Sarah Waters and I just picked this up on a whim from The Works. I'm very glad I did!

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

On its way to Germany....

thanks for the trade,(1001 books You Must Read before Die)

update:
Great read, thanks for sharing with me.

About the book:
Divided into three parts, the tale is narrated by two orphaned girls whose lives are inextricably linked. It begins in a grimy thieves kitchen in Borough, South London with 17-year-old orphan Susan Trinder. She has been raised by Mrs Sucksby, a cockney Ma Baker, in a household of fingersmiths (pickpockets), coiners and burglars. One evening Richard "Gentleman" Rivers, a handsome confidence man, arrives. He has an elaborate scheme to defraud Maud Lilly, a wealthy heiress. If Sue will help him she'll get a share of the "shine". Duly installed in the Lillys' country house as Maud's maid, Sue finds that her mistress is virtually a prisoner. Maud's eccentric Uncle Christopher, an obsessive collector of erotica (loosely modelled on Henry Spenser Ashbee) controls every aspect of her life. Slowly a curious intimacy develops between the two girls and as Gentleman's plans take shape, Sue begins to have doubts. The scheme is finally hatched but as Maud commences her narrative it suddenly becomes more than a tad difficult to tell quite who has double-crossed who. Waters' penchant for Byzantine plotting can get a bit exhausting but even at its densest moments--and remember this is smoggy London circa 1862--it remains mesmerising. A damning critique of Victorian moral and sexual hypocrisy, a gripping melodrama and a love story to boot, this book ingeniously reworks some truly classic themes.--Travis Elborough

Thanks so much for your donation nikel27!

This book is now part of the 1001-library. If you want to take this book from the library but don't know how to proceed, please refer to the 1001-library bookshelf.

Reserved for anathema-device/Austria

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

1001 Library Book

Yay - the book has arrived! Thanks nikel27!
It's a bit thicker that I'd expected, but I don't believe that's an obstacle. I have wanted to read this for a very long time.

Wow, that was a great read! And several of the best and most thrilling plot twists I have encountered in a long time. (Odd punctuation, though. But probably goes hand in hand with the "historical" aspect.)

There is a point in the story, when Maud first compares herself to a book (on page 124)...
"[...] He has made me like a book. I am not meant to be taken, and touched, and liked. I am meant to keep here, in a dim light, forever!"
... This just made me think of BookCrossing - of the books that are meant to be touched, and taken, and liked - and to be re-released in the sunlight, and taken and liked (and journalled) again... And I was glad that BookCrossing existed, and that I'm a part of it.

AVL again - and I hope its next reader/s will like it as much as I did!
Thanks nikel27, and thanks 1001-library! :)

This book is now back on the 1001 library bookshelf and can be borrowed by PMing anathema-device:)

If you want to take this book from the library but don't know how to proceed, please refer to the library bookshelf.

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

The book is on its way back to the UK for a change, to visit Caroley in Birmingham.
Hope you'll enjoy this as much as I did!!
(And thanks again for "helping me move" - one book less to carry upstairs!) ;)

Received today, thanks!

I've just read this over the weekend. I'd planned to read it over the whole week but once I'd started reading it, I just couldn't seem to put it down. It was absolutely mesmerising. Twists and turns in the plot, wonderful characters and a storyline that kept you interested and drew you right in. A superbly detailed setting too.

Loved it! Must get hold of the other Sarah Waters that's on the 1001 list now.

This book is now back on the 1001 library bookshelf and can be borrowed by PMing Caroley:)

If you want to take this book from the library but don't know how to proceed, please refer to the library bookshelf.

Requested by ArwenG in Portugal, and is now on its way. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Arrived today in sunny Lisbon, just as I was running out of stuff to read! I've started reading it, and am already hooked! Thanks so much for sharing, Caroley! Will let you know my review when I finish.

What a wonderful book! I really enjoyed it. A great plot, keeps you glued to the last page. I really liked the atmosphere, the characters and the descriptions of the time and place (Victorian London). I´m really glad I discovered this great author! Thanks for sharing, Caroley and Beve-snailey.