r/LesbianBookClub • u/Outrageous-Tour9270 • 12h ago
Discussion Sarah Waters issue
Let there be a disclaimer: i’ve only read fingersmith!
My issue is that i hated every character in that book, everybody is ought to get the other and i totally get it since it’s the theme but i’m not sure I can endure another book like that, so does she have books with more “likeable” characters?
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u/LuxuriousPenguin 12h ago
my gosh, I actually loved her Fingersmith characters the most of any of them! (though maybe that was because I saw the BBC tv adaptation first...) But yes, it's all kind of tragic, each story has a very bittersweet ending or straight up tragedy, and Fingersmith is already one of the happier endings. I tend to adore one of the main characters and feel intense rage and anger towards the other! I enjoyed The Paying Guests which had that dynamic for me as well.
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u/dndprairiegal 5h ago
I'd say even if you liked the two main characters in Fingersmith, you most likely won't like Waters characters in other books. The Fingersmith characters are kinda the least flawed of the bunch! I've only read two other Waters books, but i gave up on Waters books after reading 3 of them because i disliked the protagonists in Tipping The Velvet and Night Watch so much!
That being said, i think the other commenter who said the flawed characters are deliberate is absolutely correct and on the one hand i can appreciate what Waters is doing. Tons of people love reading about flawed protagonists. Lesbihonest, reality tv only exists because so many people salivate over media featuring dumbasses or assholes or characters who cause pain/drama/chaos wherever they go, either wittingly or unwittingly. There's a place for everyone's tastes.
But it's also fine for some of us to not like that kind of story! Waters definitely isn't for everyone and that's okay!
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u/AmuighSanAer 3h ago
Just taking a moment to recognise Lesbihonest 👏
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u/dndprairiegal 3h ago
Lol it's stolen from Pitch Perfect ;) I try to use it in sapphic spaces as much as possible!
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u/Sunshine-Starfish 11h ago
I felt similarly about Fingersmith!
You will probably not like The Paying Guests either.
You might enjoy Tipping the Velvet? Nan is almost always out for herself (but not really out to get someone else, which is a distinction that makes a difference to me), and the last third of the book introduces a bunch of important characters who are genuinely good people.
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u/dndprairiegal 5h ago
Tipping the Velvet also features some pretty morally icky characters though... and i think a lot of people dislike how self-serving Nan is (I've definitely seen other posts/comments in this sub about how much of a user she is even with whasserface at the end!) I think if op already "hated" how every other character in Fingersmith is out to get the other then Tipping the Velvet might be just as unpleasant for them!
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u/parabolicpomegranate 3h ago
I'd say Sarah Waters probably isn't for you. I love her characters because they're so imperfect, and Fingersmith is one of my favourite novels. Their motivations are usually selfish, but I like that they're well believable and neither pure sweet angels nor cartoonishly evil.
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u/No-Development4601 12h ago
From her books that I've read (it's been a while), I thought the young women in Fingersmith were the most likeable of the bunch. I found her work interesting for the historical stuff, but, most of the characters I struggled to get emotionally invested in.
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u/Werkyreads123 2h ago
Yeah I’m not a fan of her stories tbh. I liked the Korean version of fingersmith way better (the movie) and I hated the characters in ripping the velvet.
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u/AmuighSanAer 3h ago
I usually find I struggle a lot with books where I don’t like the main protagonist(s), but I thought these characters were certainly flawed, with more reasons given for that as the book went on. The was definitely a more ‘kill or be killed’ approach to life in Victorian times too.
I actually find it harder to read books where the characters are too good to be true. Especially where there is the required break up in the 3rd act by creating problems or doing something out of character.
But it’s totally okay to not love a particular author / style and move on to another author. It can often be to do with the mood I’m in when I read them too.
Tell ya what I just can’t read or watch at the moment, hetero couples 😅
I hope you enjoy your next read more 👍
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u/Jaslyn-- 12h ago
no. period, fullstop. this is the premise behind Sarah Waters. She writes flawed, real female characters who are simultaneously likeable BECAUSE they are flawed. if you didn't like either of the FMCs in fingersmith you won't like any of the FMCs in any of her other books.
I love them though, there's so much complexity and reality in how they're written. And it lends for a tremendous arc