What is Allison Epstein reading?

Featured at Writers Read: Allison Epstein, author of Fagin the Thief: A Novel.

Her entry begins:

I’ve had Rita Chang-Eppig’s Deep as the Sky, Red as the Sea on my nightstand for a while now, but I was saving it for a rainy day because I knew I’d absolutely love it. Reader, I wasn't wrong—this book is stellar. It’s a historical novel about the famous 19th century Chinese pirate Shek Yeung (also known as Zheng Yi Sao or Ching Shih), and it’s immersive and exciting and full of morally complicated characters doing the best they can for themselves in an unfair world. Also, to reiterate: 19th century Chinese lady pirate....[read on]

About Fagin the Thief, from the publisher:

A thrilling reimagining of the world of Charles Dickens, as seen through the eyes of the infamous Jacob Fagin, London’s most gifted pickpocket, liar, and rogue.

Long before Oliver Twist stumbled onto the scene, Jacob Fagin was scratching out a life for himself in the dark alleys of nineteenth-century London. Born in the Jewish enclave of Stepney shortly after his father was executed as a thief, Jacob's whole world is his open-minded mother, Leah. But Jacob’s prospects are forever altered when a light-fingered pickpocket takes Jacob under his wing and teaches him a trade that pays far better than the neighborhood boys could possibly dream.

Striking out on his own, Jacob familiarizes himself with London's highest value neighborhoods while forging his own path in the shadows. But everything changes when he adopts an aspiring teenage thief named Bill Sikes, whose mercurial temper poses a danger to himself and anyone foolish enough to cross him. Along the way, Jacob’s found family expands to include his closest friend, Nancy, and his greatest protégé, the Artful Dodger. But as Bill’s ambition soars and a major robbery goes awry, Jacob is forced to decide what he really stands for—and what a life is worth.

Colorfully written and wickedly funny, Allison Epstein breathes fresh life into the teeming streets of Dickensian London--reclaiming one of Victorian literature’s most notorious villains in an unforgettable new adventure.

Visit Allison Epstein's website.

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Writers Read: Allison Epstein (October 2023).

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--Marshal Zeringue