Fagin the Thief: A Novel

ISBN: 0385550707

Author: Epstein, Allison

Condition: New

A thrilling reimagining of the world of Charles Dickens, as seen through the eyes of the infamous Jacob Fagin, Londons 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 Jacobs 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, Jacobs found family expands to include his closest friend, Nancy, and his greatest protégé, the Artful Dodger. But as Bills 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 literatures most notorious villains in an unforgettable new adventure.