unexpected twist

I just read Oliver Twist, by Charles Dickens, for the first time. I thought I knew the story well; I've seen the film (the musical version) many times. I know, I know, the movies are never like the books, they are never as good, read the book. Well I did, and it surprised me. It's much longer and far more involved, plot wise, than I knew, and with many more characters. Oliver, Fagin, The Artful Dodger, Bill Sikes, and Nancy, are some of Dickens' best known characters, and probably some of the best known in any fiction, and I enjoyed spending more time with them (if you can enjoy spending time with thieves, child abusers and murderers). In fact, this story will linger for a long time. Dickens evokes Victorian London and its people better than anyone.