Closer to a 4.5 because of a very rushed ending, but nevertheless I truly enjoyed reading this. "The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein" is visceral and doesn't shy away from the ugly parts of human nature and madness. This story does a marvelous job of bringing the OG Frankenstein story back to life (lol) but in a fresh way- I think Mary Shelley herself would love this book! ( )

Easy five stars. I loved this the whole way through, and better yet is that it made me want to pick up a classic tale I've never read and learn it anew! And EVEN BETTER, is that once I finished this one, that classic tale was already in the book right after ready for me to read!!

See the full review and more at baileysbooks.home.blog!

Darkness, cleverness, twists and growth and I LOVED IT.

Recommended: YES YES YES!!!
For fans of shamelessly dark plots and characters, for those who can appreciate difficult moments (think Game of Thrones), for a fascinating new perspective on the story of Frankenstein and his monster

Thoughts:
Well clearly I loved it. This was a fantastic spontaneous October find, as it fit the "spooky" theme for the month perfectly. I've been really enjoying tales with darker tones lately (like [b:Foul Is Fair|42595554|Foul Is Fair|Hannah Capin|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1558541437l/42595554._SY75_.jpg|66290359]), and this really hit the spot perfectly. The mysteries within the book twist and churn like a living things, reflecting the shadows that plague Elizabeth and Victor along the way.

Don't come into this looking for a romance, because you won't find one. That's not to say there isn't love, as we see that in a few other forms, but in a non-sexual way. Honestly, if you know anything about the original story of Frankenstein, you probably shouldn't be coming into this expecting romance anyway!

Ending: deeply satisfying. 100% support. And that's all I'll say about that. ☺ ( )

Katharine Lee McEwan (Narrator)
Excellent retelling of Frankenstein's story. Really a great rea and thoroughly enjoyable. ( )

Leido immediatamente despues de Frankenstein para apreciarlo mejor.

Lo mejor es los lugares donde conecta con la novela original, hay un momento donde se repite uno de los dialogos de la novela original, me hubiera gustado que hubiera mas de eso.

Tambien estan muy bien las sorpresas que hay aqui y alla en el libro.

Lo peor para mi es la repeticion de la motivacion de Elizabeth, ella quiere seguridad, vale, no hace falta decirlo 80 veces en el libro, igual con otras cosas sobre su caracter, no me tiene que repetir cada frase lo que significa para ella y su caracter. ( )

”I am going to ask anyway. What is Victor to you that you searched so hard for him and went to such lengths to protect him?“
“He is my entire life,” I said. “And my only hope of a future.”

The book follows the events of Frankenstein, plus lots of flashbacks to how Elizabeth came to be in her situation, and I loved the flashbacks more than the main story.

They showed Elizabeth living with the Frankensteins as companion for Victor, and her entire livelihood depends on being useful to them and making Victor happy. She made herself fit into Victor’s life, choosing the right things to say and going along with all his disturbing interests, at the cost of herself.
Victor grows from a quiet, studious boy to the mad scientist creating life, and Elizabeth is both his enabler and the only person able to temper him. It made for an terrible, twisted friendship and it was fantastic to read.

The main story was alright, though not as suspenseful as I hoped.
Elizabeth manipulates the world around her to keep her life, struggling to accept that her attachment for Victor is unhealthy, all while Victor grows more and more disturbed. At some point she realises: They had saved me from poverty and, in the same stroke, doomed me to utter dependence.
The main suspense was in the writing. I loved the sentences and word choices of the author, everything was laced with toxicity, emphasizing how Elizabeth only exists as the person she has made herself to be next to Victor.

The ending felt a bit… simple. I felt as if Victor turned into a cartoon evil person, instead of the macabre childhood companion from the first half.
I really hoped he would be another side of the same coin. They were two children who are unhealthily attached to each other, but he grew up into an insane adult who thinks he owns Elizabeth for some 19th century mysogynistic reason. ( )