 Popsugar Reading Challenge category: A book centering queer characters that isn't about coming out.
Fingersmith, by Sarah Waters. I have a weakness for unreliable-narrator books, and this one pulls the rug out from under the reader with multiple well-timed twists. The author pulls off a difficult feat: she gives us the same events twice, from different points of view, and it's not repetitious because we have far more information the second time. It's 19th-century England, and Sue has been raised in a den of thieves ("fingersmiths"). An associate offers her a job: work as a maid for Maud, an heiress that he's romancing, and help convince her to marry him. With Sue's help, he plans to cheat Maud out of her money and lock her in a mental hospital. Things go awry quickly: Sue starts developing feelings for Maud, and one night they make love. We then get Maud's version of what happened. Maud, her home, and her book-loving uncle are not at all what they appeared to Sue, and Maud has her own reasons for this ill-fated marriage. But like Sue, Maud doesn't know as much as she thinks she does, and the situation quickly spirals out of control. By the end, we're clear on who did what to whom and why. The only question left is whether the passion between Sue and Maud can withstand the many betrayals on either side. A suspenseful and devious book.
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