An 1821 novel that is jam-packed with slang of that era is Life in London by Pierce Egan [1]. The book was popular in the 19th century, and two of the protagonists were the source, a century later, of the names of the cartoon characters Tom and Jerry [2]. It’s a cleverly written work and I enjoyed reading it a few years ago, but the density of the slang and topical references can make it difficult to parse today. An excerpt:

‘Tom’s box at the Opera caused many a languishing eye and palpitating heart to wander towards its elegant owner. His stroll through the Theatres caused a different sensation among another class of females, and no lures were neglected to decoy and entrap him. In the Parks, Tom was the GO among the “goes!” His peep into the Stews were merely en passant; and the knowing, enticing, Mother Dish-up’s something “new” was tried on in vain to “have the best” of our Hero only for a single darkey! Upon his descending into the Hells, if he did not prove himself as troublesome an inmate as the dramatic Don Giovanni, or possess the icy qualities of Signor Antonelli, the fire-eater and hornpipe-dancer upon red-hot iron bars, he nevertheless had found out the secret, —which, if it did not altogether prevent him from being scorched a little, yet saved him from being burnt to death! At Newmarket, Epsom, and Doncaster Races, Tom was viewed as the tulip of the turf. He not only took the shine out of the Prime Ones at Tattersal’s, but his nod for decision of judgement was the fiat of taste. In showing himself at the Fives-Court, all the peepers of the Fancy were on the stretch to ogle his beau-ideal form and appearance.’ [3]

[1] https://archive.org/search?query=title%3A%28Life%20in%20Lond...

[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_and_Jerry#History

[3] https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_505pL_b9D2IC/page/n111/mo...