[1] Set in 19th century London, Jack Maggs is a reworking of the Charles Dickens novel Great Expectations.

He eventually cuts a deal with the young and broke up-and-coming novelist Tobias Oates (a thinly disguised Charles Dickens) that he hopes will lead him to Phipps.

[4] What she found most convincing about the plot is "the depiction of how Maggs has been brain-washed by centuries of upper-class English propaganda.

"[4] Publishers Weekly also had a strongly positive review of this novel, remarking that "Carey's memorable characters can stand proudly in the pantheon beside those of Dickens.

"[5] The story begins with the return of Maggs to London in 1837; though successful in Australia, he is a dead man if identified.