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Monster: The Story of a Young Mary Shelley
A fictionalized autobiography of the woman who wrote Frankenstein. Two centuries ago, a twenty-year-old woman invented science fiction. Her father gave her a better education than any woman of the age could hope for—and made her the victim of ongoing incest. At fifteen, she became involved with one of the greatest poets in England and made love to him on her mother’s grave. When she was sixteen, she escaped from home by running away for a six-week walking tour of Europe, and shared Percy Bysshe Shelley with her sister. And her mentor, Lord Byron, challenged her to prove she was as good a writer as the best poet-philosophers of the Enlightenment. Both men admired her mind, and both wanted more. She would publish a book that changed the world—and this historical novel imagines her inner life as a woman far ahead of her time.
307 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 3, 2017
125 people are currently reading
212 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
February 10, 2020
This was a bail...
This was the first book I've read in my Mary Shelley obsession and I'm sad to say it was a flop for me. Try as I might, I just couldn't do it.
The author has written a biography on Mary Shelley here and has obviously done some research into her life, but the fact that he decided to write the book from her point of view is extremely disorienting.
I just feel like there are things in the book that she would never say and things that are not true to the times of the era in which she lived.
I give the author full marks for bravery in his attempt to channel the great Mary Shelley, but unfortunately, I'll pass on this one.
This was the first book I've read in my Mary Shelley obsession and I'm sad to say it was a flop for me. Try as I might, I just couldn't do it.
The author has written a biography on Mary Shelley here and has obviously done some research into her life, but the fact that he decided to write the book from her point of view is extremely disorienting.
I just feel like there are things in the book that she would never say and things that are not true to the times of the era in which she lived.
I give the author full marks for bravery in his attempt to channel the great Mary Shelley, but unfortunately, I'll pass on this one.
August 8, 2019
This was quite a disappointment. Or maybe I've just read too many novels based on Mary Shelley's life and/or the creation of her novel. The author posits that Mary was sexually abused as a young girl, first by her stepbrother's "games" (that she inevitably lost and had to pay penalties of increasing sexual intimacy) and also by her overly affectionate father, who frequently comments on her resemblance to his dead wife. When her stepmother blames her for her "filthy" behavior, she is sent to live with a family in Scotland, the Baxters, where the widowed father will serve as her tutor and his two daughters as her friends and role models. The high point of Baxter's education is taking Mary to see the birth of a two-headed calf, born from the union of mother and son, as a warning to Mary that her relations with her own father could be disastrous, both biologically and socially. Ashamed, Mary returns home but repulses her father's kisses and offers to sit on his lap. It is as much this breech as her own passion that causes her to run off to the Continent with Percy Shelley. Her stepsister Claire and threatens to reveal her plans if she is not taken along. And thus begins the famous menage a trois.
This was all new info to me, and it's unclear whether this was based on fact or mere speculation by the author. But from this point out, I got even more bored than I already was. The travels through France, Italy, and Switzerland were old hat, and the tedious pages and pages of philosophical discussions (intended, I am sure, to show their brilliance) came off as silly and insignificant. The visit to Byron's villa was, again, old hat, and the story of how Mary came to write 'Frankenstein' was what you already know if you've read any introductions to the novel.
If you want to read a really good, original novel on this subject, I recommend 'Passion: A Novel of the Romantic Poets and the Women Who Loved Them' by Jude Morgan. Skip this one.
This was all new info to me, and it's unclear whether this was based on fact or mere speculation by the author. But from this point out, I got even more bored than I already was. The travels through France, Italy, and Switzerland were old hat, and the tedious pages and pages of philosophical discussions (intended, I am sure, to show their brilliance) came off as silly and insignificant. The visit to Byron's villa was, again, old hat, and the story of how Mary came to write 'Frankenstein' was what you already know if you've read any introductions to the novel.
If you want to read a really good, original novel on this subject, I recommend 'Passion: A Novel of the Romantic Poets and the Women Who Loved Them' by Jude Morgan. Skip this one.
March 9, 2023
Thought-provoking novel .
I enjoyed Arnold's approach to portraying Mary Shelley's story. The characters were brought to life with eloquent dialogue. There was humorous moments that had me giggling. I found myself entranced by the way Mary Shelley managed to find her way through life.
I enjoyed Arnold's approach to portraying Mary Shelley's story. The characters were brought to life with eloquent dialogue. There was humorous moments that had me giggling. I found myself entranced by the way Mary Shelley managed to find her way through life.
May 17, 2019
Das Buch war ein bisschen konfus um ehrlich zu sein. Ich hätte wohl zuerst eine richtige Biographie von ihr lesen sollen.
July 2, 2019
I picked up this book because I have read (and loved) the original story of Frankenstein and have a long standing interest in its author, Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (1797-1851), who is a fascinating woman of her time or any time. Unfortunately, this book didn’t turn out to be all I had hoped. Awarded three stars on Goodreads.
M.R. (Mark) Arnold has crafted a well-researched novel about Mary Shelley’s life and the experiences she drew from in writing Frankenstein. Beginning with her childhood — dominated by a beloved father, cruel stepmother and their blended children. At 16, she meets the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley and the two soon take off together, accompanied by Mary’s step-sister, Claire Clairmont.
Sharing a philosophical belief in free love, the three flaunt many of the rules of 19th century society and face a good deal of criticism and ostracism. Arnold does a good job capturing the feel of that society — particularly the evening salons where intellectuals gathered to talk over big conceptual ideas (like the definition of life), quote from Shakespeare, reference early Greek myths, and read poetry to one another. The language and voice of the book feel true to this era as well.
But as I made my way through, I came to feel the author became side-tracked with his own interest in the battling egos of Percy Shelley and friend Lord Byron. And, as a result, much of what I longed to read about Mary Shelley was simply not there.
I wanted to read more about the difficulties of a woman at this time trying to write, get published, and be taken seriously in a world dominated by men. Let's explore her resentment, for example, when both Percy and Byron suggest substantial edits to her manuscript, often simply changing HER narrative to reflect their style?
Or more about the struggle balancing her desire to write, her relationship with Percy, and her parenting responsibilities (i.e. the timeless questions all women face, especially when trying to break out of gender norms). There are a few references to Mary nursing her babies but, since much of the time the couple is quite poor, it’s not clear who was actually minding their children?
By the end, I had to conclude the book suffered from having been written by a man who was unable to actually put himself in the mind of the book’s female protagonist and consider that her everyday concerns would have had a much larger scope than simply writing a book.
M.R. (Mark) Arnold has crafted a well-researched novel about Mary Shelley’s life and the experiences she drew from in writing Frankenstein. Beginning with her childhood — dominated by a beloved father, cruel stepmother and their blended children. At 16, she meets the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley and the two soon take off together, accompanied by Mary’s step-sister, Claire Clairmont.
Sharing a philosophical belief in free love, the three flaunt many of the rules of 19th century society and face a good deal of criticism and ostracism. Arnold does a good job capturing the feel of that society — particularly the evening salons where intellectuals gathered to talk over big conceptual ideas (like the definition of life), quote from Shakespeare, reference early Greek myths, and read poetry to one another. The language and voice of the book feel true to this era as well.
But as I made my way through, I came to feel the author became side-tracked with his own interest in the battling egos of Percy Shelley and friend Lord Byron. And, as a result, much of what I longed to read about Mary Shelley was simply not there.
I wanted to read more about the difficulties of a woman at this time trying to write, get published, and be taken seriously in a world dominated by men. Let's explore her resentment, for example, when both Percy and Byron suggest substantial edits to her manuscript, often simply changing HER narrative to reflect their style?
Or more about the struggle balancing her desire to write, her relationship with Percy, and her parenting responsibilities (i.e. the timeless questions all women face, especially when trying to break out of gender norms). There are a few references to Mary nursing her babies but, since much of the time the couple is quite poor, it’s not clear who was actually minding their children?
By the end, I had to conclude the book suffered from having been written by a man who was unable to actually put himself in the mind of the book’s female protagonist and consider that her everyday concerns would have had a much larger scope than simply writing a book.
October 16, 2018
The author's note mentions that he considered writing a biography and you very much see that in the telling of this story. I oftened wondered what was fact and what was fiction (beyond the obvious of dialogue, weather, etc.). An interesting supplement to Frankenstein by Mary Shelley.
August 5, 2018
Yeah I’m not so sure about this writing at all.
February 5, 2024
Mary Wollstoncraft Godwin Shelley.
That about says it all, right? But what led her to write her horror novel, Frankenstein? How does her relationship with her philosopher father affect her decisions as a teen? How does her biological mother’s writing about feminism affect her moral compass? Education. Incest. Free love. Jealousy. Authorship. Family. Grief. Challenges.
As teenagers we pick and choose what it is we like about our parents' ideas about life. We morph them into our own ideas. We base our future lives on their teachings. Then we look to others who share our ideas. We plan a future. An identity. We work towards achieving that goal.
Then…a dare sets your course.
Mary Shelley was many things. Complicated. Loving. Stubborn. Smart. Persistent. Jealous. Accommodating. Patient. Brilliant.
More thoughts on books and stuff at mytossiecup.blogspot.com
That about says it all, right? But what led her to write her horror novel, Frankenstein? How does her relationship with her philosopher father affect her decisions as a teen? How does her biological mother’s writing about feminism affect her moral compass? Education. Incest. Free love. Jealousy. Authorship. Family. Grief. Challenges.
As teenagers we pick and choose what it is we like about our parents' ideas about life. We morph them into our own ideas. We base our future lives on their teachings. Then we look to others who share our ideas. We plan a future. An identity. We work towards achieving that goal.
Then…a dare sets your course.
Mary Shelley was many things. Complicated. Loving. Stubborn. Smart. Persistent. Jealous. Accommodating. Patient. Brilliant.
More thoughts on books and stuff at mytossiecup.blogspot.com
February 15, 2021
Enchanting at times and thoroughly researched, yet I had two chief complaints. First, I could not find research conclusively supporting incest between Mary and her father, thus casting a shade of disingenuousness upon the author’s thesis of Mary’s life and work. Secondly, I had really hoped for a deeper portrait of Mary’s personal relationships beyond the surface ways in which they broke her heart. This take on her life gave me almost nothing I hadn’t already known.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 16, 2018
A fictionalized account of the early life of Mary Shelley. Very well written, especially in the use of period language. Mary Shelley had a very interesting life, to say the least. Incest between Mary and her father, a proponent and practitioner of free love, inventor of science fiction, and, of course, the author of Frankenstein. Wow!
February 7, 2025
An enjoyable read. A book woven together from facts known about Mary Shelley and her life, much like the monster she created.
I didn't know much about Mary's life and later her lifestyle so this was an informative read. I've not read Frankenstein for a long time and this made me want to read it anew with a different slant on the maker and the monster.
I didn't know much about Mary's life and later her lifestyle so this was an informative read. I've not read Frankenstein for a long time and this made me want to read it anew with a different slant on the maker and the monster.
June 27, 2019
Monster is well researched and a good read
Monster is an engrossing tale about the author of Frankenstein. Surrounded by brilliant men, Mary Godwin writes her “little book.” A rereading of Frankenstein will take on an entirely new meaning after reading Monster.
Monster is an engrossing tale about the author of Frankenstein. Surrounded by brilliant men, Mary Godwin writes her “little book.” A rereading of Frankenstein will take on an entirely new meaning after reading Monster.
July 28, 2019
Well done
It is very rewarding to read about a feminist in the 19th Century. Mary Shelley was a wild and inspirational woman ahead of her times. Her love for knowledge have inspiration to a unforgettable story.
It is very rewarding to read about a feminist in the 19th Century. Mary Shelley was a wild and inspirational woman ahead of her times. Her love for knowledge have inspiration to a unforgettable story.
April 25, 2018
So interesting on so many levels! Once I got started, I couldn’t put it down. I knew nothing of Mary Shelley and now I feel as if I spent time with her and her passions.
May 8, 2018
Loved the showing of the real life and the tenacity of the author. Great book!
January 6, 2023
Tedious
I couldn't wait for this book to end. Filled with philosophical discourse and financial woes, it was an excellent sleep aid.
I couldn't wait for this book to end. Filled with philosophical discourse and financial woes, it was an excellent sleep aid.
April 6, 2023
Fascinating
I'd never encountered anything about the young Mary Shelley's life before reading this novel. It blew my mind. Highly recommended.
I'd never encountered anything about the young Mary Shelley's life before reading this novel. It blew my mind. Highly recommended.
January 7, 2018
A remarkable work, I thoroughly enjoyed this.
April 14, 2019
This is a good read. Now I will have to read Frankenstein.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews