I’ve been trying to get around to this book for almost 7 years now, and I’ve finally done it! This, surprisingly, is also my first Kiersten White book. I was thrilled by just how much her writing felt like it belonged in the same time period as Mary Shelley’s original novel, and yet also managed to be in conversation with it at the same time. In this book, White affirms something astute readers of Frankenstein have known for years: Victor Frankenstein was always the monster. And in these pages, White leaves no room for doubt.

This book explores overtly feminist themes without reducing its female lead to stereotypes. In fact, for most of the first half of the book, Elizabeth is nearly unlikable, so deep is her devotion to the monster that she—at least in this telling—helped create. I enjoyed that White found a way to connect the two narratives in universe, explaining some of the deviations in this novel from the original in a compelling, satisfying way.

Mary Shelley’s questions endure in this work, which takes advantage of the death of a society where woman were not afforded the credit they deserve. Shelley invented science fiction several years before Jules Verne would get the credit for doing so. At least in this retelling, and in modern scholarship, it feels Shelley is finally getting her laurels.

I will make a special note not only about the beautiful prose of this novel, but about the vivid settings and richly drawn locales. The way White describes these places makes the setting come to life in such a way that it’s a character unto itself.

RATING RUNDOWN:
Character (4/5)
Plot & Pacing (3.5/5)
Setting & Surroundings (5/5)
Dialogue & Diction (4/5)
Craft & Voice (5/5)
Reading Experience (4/5)

Final Rating:
4.25/5