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froggybooks's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Loveable characters? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, and Murder
Minor: Incest
ellius's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Ok. 1, Mary Shelley was depressed as fuck. 2, This is literally my favourite book of all time. It changed my fucking life and me as a person. I love it so much I could go on for hours, and I have. 3, The monster is perfect and everything is Victors fault all the time always. His name is Victor BITCH Frankenstein because he is a bitch.
100000000000000000/10. Genuinely so fucking incredible.
100000000000000000/10. Genuinely so fucking incredible.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death and Incest
Minor: Suicide
shadowykittenwizard's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Minor: Child death and Death
martyrbat's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, and Murder
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Violence, Grief, and Death of parent
Minor: Animal death, Body shaming, Incest, Racism, and Abandonment
lightningmc_logyn's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Frankenstein is compelling, dark, and wrought with devastation. I don’t usually read horror/dark stories, so my review is from the perspective of someone who is crossing genres. I was curious about this, as it’s one of the most prominent stories in pop-culture of all time. After reading, it is clear why. The philosophical themes of life, debt of creation, loneliness, and misery all uphold the horrific elements. It is a story that feels familiar and realistic in an eerie way. I found myself passionately invested, and parts of the novel had me turning pages as fast as I could, eager to see what happened next.
Contrary to that, I found much of the novel to be dense, hard to navigate, and incredibly slow. I required a dictionary at my side that I used nearly every page, as the meanings and popularity of words have changed drastically in the last 200 years. This, while challenging, is not what made the novel feel slow. The novel takes its time setting everything up, which in my opinion unfortunately dragged the rating down. I understand why this set up was required for the story-especially after reading the hauntingly coincidental story of Mary Shelley’s life-but I feel the first 1/3 of the novel dictating Victors life could have been shortened. I sympathized with the monster far more than Victor Frankenstein, and perhaps that’s why I feel this way.
The version I read included some fascinating insights into how the book was received and how it became a sensation. My favorite thing about classical literature is learning the stories around it, and this book, as well as Mary Shelley, have an intriguing history.
The most compelling and heart wrenching parts of the story for me were the monsters recount of his experiences, victors moments of passionate action-for better or worse-, and the finale of the novel. I was extremely pleased with the ending. I feel it suited the melancholy and complex nuance of the novel perfectly.
All in all, I am glad to have read this. And I’ve learned to steer clear from dark horror, as it doesn’t intrigue me as a genre.
Contrary to that, I found much of the novel to be dense, hard to navigate, and incredibly slow. I required a dictionary at my side that I used nearly every page, as the meanings and popularity of words have changed drastically in the last 200 years. This, while challenging, is not what made the novel feel slow. The novel takes its time setting everything up, which in my opinion unfortunately dragged the rating down. I understand why this set up was required for the story-especially after reading the hauntingly coincidental story of Mary Shelley’s life-but I feel the first 1/3 of the novel dictating Victors life could have been shortened. I sympathized with the monster far more than Victor Frankenstein, and perhaps that’s why I feel this way.
The version I read included some fascinating insights into how the book was received and how it became a sensation. My favorite thing about classical literature is learning the stories around it, and this book, as well as Mary Shelley, have an intriguing history.
The most compelling and heart wrenching parts of the story for me were the monsters recount of his experiences, victors moments of passionate action-for better or worse-, and the finale of the novel. I was extremely pleased with the ending. I feel it suited the melancholy and complex nuance of the novel perfectly.
All in all, I am glad to have read this. And I’ve learned to steer clear from dark horror, as it doesn’t intrigue me as a genre.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Death, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Medical content, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, and Abandonment
Minor: Incest, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
The book is very dark and heavy. The characters experience a lot of grief and horrific events. The incest is minor, as it was altered by the author to be betweenzoe_271's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Frankenstein was the epitome of horror. Psychologically challenging, the novel calls to mind questions of the morality of creation, the meaning of self, and human selfishness.
While familiar with the idea of their Monster, I was relatively limited in exposure to Frankenstein, so when he started talking that was a shock! But the Monster being able to elaborate his position made him a realised character, the empathy we feel for him fleshing out the message further.
Frankenstein himself was an intriguing character to see this world through. He seemed permanently melancholic to me, no doubt the effect being multiplied in my case by the narration of Dan Stevens. He feels entirely real - certainly no hero. As our primary example of humanity to contrast with the Monster he serves an important role in the story. His close relationships with his family, friends, and certainly Elizabeth, which he enjoys and profits from while the Monster has nothing, display this wonderfully.
I would sprint to recommend this book, so much more than the tropes that have survived through pop culture. I listened to the 1831 version, not having known about the original, and definitely will be checking 1818 out in the near future.
While familiar with the idea of their Monster, I was relatively limited in exposure to Frankenstein, so when he started talking that was a shock! But the Monster being able to elaborate his position made him a realised character, the empathy we feel for him fleshing out the message further.
Frankenstein himself was an intriguing character to see this world through. He seemed permanently melancholic to me, no doubt the effect being multiplied in my case by the narration of Dan Stevens. He feels entirely real - certainly no hero. As our primary example of humanity to contrast with the Monster he serves an important role in the story. His close relationships with his family, friends, and certainly Elizabeth, which he enjoys and profits from while the Monster has nothing, display this wonderfully.
I would sprint to recommend this book, so much more than the tropes that have survived through pop culture. I listened to the 1831 version, not having known about the original, and definitely will be checking 1818 out in the near future.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death and Murder
whynotreadwithalex's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I've had Frankenstein on my TBR forever and I figured it was high time to give the first science-fiction novel ever written a go!
Here are my thoughts:
THE STORY --
- Haunting (obviously)
- Lots of twists + turns
- Clever, with growing tension underlaid by an impending sense of doom
- It's obvious that so much of modern science-fiction and horror find their roots in this work of fiction (it's a classic for a reason, that's for sure)
THE CHARACTERS --
- The story primarily follows the relationship (if you can call it that) between Frankenstein and his Creation/Monster
- While there are secondary characters, they serve primarily as sources of grief for Frankenstein and instruments of torment for the Monster to use against his creator
THE WRITING --
- This was a bit of a struggle for me: most of the story is conveyed through long discourses (internal monologues as well as multi-chaptered monologues), which wasn't my favorite thing at times
Overall, this is an engaging book and it's obvious to me why this story has captivated audiences and inspired retellings since its publication!
Here are my thoughts:
THE STORY --
- Haunting (obviously)
- Lots of twists + turns
- Clever, with growing tension underlaid by an impending sense of doom
- It's obvious that so much of modern science-fiction and horror find their roots in this work of fiction (it's a classic for a reason, that's for sure)
THE CHARACTERS --
- The story primarily follows the relationship (if you can call it that) between Frankenstein and his Creation/Monster
- While there are secondary characters, they serve primarily as sources of grief for Frankenstein and instruments of torment for the Monster to use against his creator
THE WRITING --
- This was a bit of a struggle for me: most of the story is conveyed through long discourses (internal monologues as well as multi-chaptered monologues), which wasn't my favorite thing at times
Overall, this is an engaging book and it's obvious to me why this story has captivated audiences and inspired retellings since its publication!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
stratospheric's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Death, and Murder
Moderate: Stalking and Abandonment
Minor: Incest
clovetra's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
for a book with such a place in the cultural zeitgeist….. this was mid NDKMDKFKG
like especially considering a lot of ppl regard this as one of their favourite classics, i was expecting something…. more.
one major let down of the book for me i think was the book’s focus on viktor and neglect of the monster. yeah that could be a metacommentary on viktor’s neglect of his creation but.. im sorry i didn’t care for viktor. bro was having pity parties because he created something ugly, abandoned it, and then was shocked his creation was pissed! bro why are you getting on the bad side of a mf who essentially can’t be killed? bro can survive siberia and guns and you’re deciding to get on your high horse and then be upset ur monster said what he was gonna do (kill ur family). viktor isn’t unlikeable in a way you’re rooting for his failure so the book is interesting; he’s unlikeable because he’s a dumb bitch who whines for 280 pages yet there is supposed to be ambiguity whether the monster or viktor is in the right…. there was no ambiguity for me #Team Monster.
what else is there to say…. i found the chapters with the monster’s perspective the most interesting by far. i would’ve loved if he was the protagonist instead.
also this book pisses me off because all of this anguish could’ve been avoided if viktor wasn’t a cunt to his creation. bro YOU MADE HIM BE THAT UGLY. WHY ARE YOU SURPRISED HES GROSS? and then he straight up abandons the monster and pretends he doesn’t exist. yeah i’d kill viktor and his entire family if i was the monster too.
the plot most of the time was incredibly boring, but i did enjoy the prologue about mary shelley, as without it i fear i would’ve given this a lower rating. the allegory for childbirth and the maternal relationships coming through viktor, as well as the general themes of children and motherhood relating to mary’s life made this book somewhat enjoyable, as it gave the story some depth. without those explanations into mary’s life and how it relates to plot points, this would’ve been a major flop.
um anyways i think this book is extremely overhyped but hey at least i know the true story of frankenstein and i can be insufferable and go “erm actually the monster isn’t called frankenstein its the dude who creates the monster whose name is frankenstein 👆🤓”
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Incest, Stalking, Murder, and Abandonment
Moderate: Confinement, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, and Pregnancy
buttermellow's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Child death, Misogyny, Stalking, and Murder
Minor: Gun violence and Fire/Fire injury