Tag: frankenstein

Book Review: My Imaginary Mary (Mary #2) by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: YA Fantasy Historical Romance
Length: 496 pages
Author: Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton & Jodi Meadows
Publisher: HarperTeen
Release Date: August 2nd 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

It’s aliiiiiiiive! The bestselling authors of My Lady Jane are back with the electric, poetic, and (almost) historical tale of the one and only Mary Shelley.

Mary may have inherited the brilliant mind of her late mother, Mary Wollstonecraft, but she lives a drab life above her father’s bookstore, waiting for an extraordinary idea that’ll inspire a work worthy of her parentage—and impress her rakishly handsome (and super-secret) beau, Percy Shelley.

Ada Lovelace knows a thing or two about superstar parents, what with her dad being Lord Byron, the most famous poet on Earth. But her passions lie far beyond the arts—in mechanical engineering, to be exact. Alas, no matter how precise Ada’s calculations, there’s always a man willing to claim her ingenious ideas as his own.

Pan, a.k.a. Practical Automaton Number One, is Ada’s greatest idea yet: a machine that will change the world, if only she can figure out how to make him truly autonomous . . . or how to make him work at all.

When fate connects our two masterminds, Mary and Ada learn that they are fae—magical people with the ability to make whatever they imagine become real. But when their dream team results in a living, breathing, thinking PAN, Mary and Ada find themselves hunted by a mad scientist who won’t stop until he finds out how they made a real boy out of spare parts.

With comic genius and a truly electrifying sense of adventure, Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows continue their campaign to turn history on its head in this YA fantasy that’s perfect for fans of The Princess Bride and A Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue.

IT’S [MOSTLY] ALIVE.

I have an up and down relationship with these books. In the previous set, I loved the first and then things started going downhill from there.

This felt like a turn back to the original My Lady Jane. HALLELUJAH.

What a fun book. It’s very quirkny and had interesting twists and turn of phrases that absolutely made me laugh more than once. I love the vibe of these reads and the unique take on historical and fantastical combinations.

Frankenstein turned automaton was cool!! I really liked this switch and it made the plot feel different with all of the hints of the original. Who knew I’d be into Frankenstein based books so much? I enjoyed the characters and nods to different figures and not to mention a lot of well placed pop culture references.

Towards the end things do start to feel a bit stretched and lengthy. Luckily I was able to kick my audio speed up a few notches. Otherwise, a good read that makes me hopeful to continue the other books (and go back to the first) in this series.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Historical Fantasy
  • Language: a little
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: medium
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: kidnapping, physical altercations

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Book Review: Angelika Frankenstein Makes Her Match by Sally Thorne

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Rating: ★★★☆
Audience: Historical Fantasy Romance
Length: 384 pages
Author: Sally Thorne
Publisher: Avon Books
Release Date: September 6th, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

From USA Today bestselling author of The Hating Game Sally Thorne comes something a little unexpected… a historical rom-com that imagines Victor Frankenstein’s sheltered younger sister, and her attempts to create the perfect man.

For generations, every Frankenstein has found their true love and equal, unlocking lifetimes of blissful wedded adventure. Clever, pretty (and odd) Angelika Frankenstein has run out of suitors and fears she may become the exception to this family rule. When assisting in her brother Victor’s ground-breaking experiment to bring a reassembled man back to life, she realizes that having an agreeable gentleman convalescing in the guest suite might be a chance to let a man get to know the real her. For the first time, Angelika embarks upon a project that is all her own.

When her handsome scientific miracle sits up on the lab table, her hopes for an instant romantic connection are thrown into disarray. Her resurrected beau (named Will for the moment) has total amnesia and is solely focused on uncovering his true identity. Trying to ignore their heart-pounding chemistry, Angelika reluctantly joins the investigation into his past, hoping it will bring them closer. But when a second suitor emerges to aid their quest, Angelika wonders if she was too hasty inventing a solution. Perhaps fate is not something that can be influenced in a laboratory? Or is Will (or whatever his name is!) her dream man, tailored for her in every way? And can he survive what was done to him in the name of science, and love?

Filled with carriages, candlesticks, and corpses, Angelika Frankenstein Makes Her Match is the spooky-season reimagining of the well-known classic that reminds us to never judge a man by his cadaver!

THIS GREW ON ME.

I did NOT know what to do with the first 30-35% of this one y’all. It was weird, and oddly focused on things I just didn’t think mattered. Not to mention there’s insta-love here (which does make sense in context, but you’ve been warned!).

THEN, towards the second half I realized I kind of actually liked the relationship between Angelika and Will. When some of the physicality was left on the side they did have some good conversations about life, love, and beyond. And I found the ending to be beautiful.

The surrounding plot was full of all things Frankenstein-esque that you’ve heard, read, or watched. I love that it fell in line with a lot of the original story and still took on it’s own bearing. It’s definitely super quirky (for fans of India Holton I’d say give it a go).

I had a good time reading something off the beaten path of my usual go-to genres and it’s the second book I’ve at last ready of Thorne’s (THG owns me). I’m curious if she’ll continue with these types of reads, I think I’d give another one a try!

Overall audience notes:

  • Historical Fantasy Romance
  • Language: some strong
  • Romance: multiple open door; med-high explicit + high innuendo
  • Violence: medium
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: pregnancy & infertility, deaths of parents recounted, sexual assault

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