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chilivanilli28's review against another edition
dark
informative
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gore, Child death, and Death
klbreyfogle's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This was a wonderful read! Pretty dark, at times (both content-wise and thematically) but it was fun to read a queer woman in STEM Frankenstein spin-off and I appreciated the writing style. Lots of of-the-time misogyny and homophobia that can be rough, but I liked the ending (a happy ending imo) and personally choose to believe that the monster made its way back to Scotland and lives on as the Loch Ness Monster
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Murder, Toxic relationship, and Medical content
Moderate: Child death, Death of parent, Death, Classism, Sexual assault, Blood, and Homophobia
caseythecanadianlesbrarian's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Beautifully crafted story that is a kind of sequel to Frankenstein, set in the mid-Victorian period featuring an angry woman scientist stifled by her husband and society's patriarchal notions about women's intelligence. Wonderful characters (including a villain very worthy of your hate!) as well as queer representation. I wished the character's queerness was a little more explicit at the end, and explored in a particular way that I was disappointed not to see. There is also content about grief here that was superbly done. In any case, a novel very much worth reading, especially the majestic audiobook format. (CW: infant death)
Content Warnings
Moderate: Pregnancy, Death, and Grief
milesjmoran's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Medical content, Animal death, Medical trauma, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Racism, Colonisation, Death, Death of parent, Murder, Sexual assault, Sexism, and Pregnancy
n0elle's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I have mixed feelings about this one. For one, I absolutely love classic retellings, especially if they’re sapphic and this one was a very interesting take on the original story of Frankenstein.
Now, while I do know the author tried hard to make it appear historically correct, I found it absolutely exhausting to read hundreds of pages of men dictating the protagonist’s life, telling her what she can and can’t do, how she should behave, what (little) she’s worth.
I’m all for women in STEM, driven by ambition and scientific ideas that lead through breakthroughs. BUT if her ideas and success are always overshadowed by a man or even taken by a man, while she just sits idly by.. that’s infuriating, historically correct but still infuriating. And while the main character did get mad about these things, she always stayed quiet. In the rare moments she didn’t, she was belittled and reprimanded so much, I felt the shame of being a woman bleed through the pages.
Maybe the writing was just too good and too real and it made me feel so many emotions, some of which I could have gone without.
Now, while I do know the author tried hard to make it appear historically correct, I found it absolutely exhausting to read hundreds of pages of men dictating the protagonist’s life, telling her what she can and can’t do, how she should behave, what (little) she’s worth.
I’m all for women in STEM, driven by ambition and scientific ideas that lead through breakthroughs. BUT if her ideas and success are always overshadowed by a man or even taken by a man, while she just sits idly by.. that’s infuriating, historically correct but still infuriating. And while the main character did get mad about these things, she always stayed quiet. In the rare moments she didn’t, she was belittled and reprimanded so much, I felt the shame of being a woman bleed through the pages.
Maybe the writing was just too good and too real and it made me feel so many emotions, some of which I could have gone without.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Sexual harassment, Child death, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Murder, Violence, Gore, Gun violence, Miscarriage, Death, Grief, Animal cruelty, Blood, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Body horror, Bullying, Chronic illness, Sexism, Classism, Death of parent, Misogyny, Racism, and Terminal illness
lily_marigold's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
fast-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? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gore, Misogyny, Child death, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Death, Blood, Animal death, and Terminal illness
Minor: Alcohol and Violence
rhensie's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Simply, wow.
I, like the author, too disliked Frankenstein when I first read it at a similar age. As I grew older, I began to appreciate Shelley for who she was and what her art did for us, and eventually I grew to love that book too, flaws and all. And this book is all I could ever have wanted and more from a spin-off. It is gothic, feminist, queer, and angry. And honestly, I think that Shelley would enjoy this very much if she were here to read it, which I think is the greatest praise for a work like this.
This book explores many of the same themes as Frankenstein does, such as the ethics (or lack thereof) of this type of resurrection. But where it really shines are of course the feminist elements - Mary grappling with the reality of the fact that she will never be looked upon the same as her male colleagues, no matter her discoveries, and if she wishes to be taken even an inch seriously, she must conform to gender roles that simply don't describe her. The endingis a neat wrapping of Mary's revenge against these roles - she does something that no one could believe of her as a woman, and for that she keeps her innocence in the public eye. The final paragraph of the author's note sums this book up well for me:
I, like the author, too disliked Frankenstein when I first read it at a similar age. As I grew older, I began to appreciate Shelley for who she was and what her art did for us, and eventually I grew to love that book too, flaws and all. And this book is all I could ever have wanted and more from a spin-off. It is gothic, feminist, queer, and angry. And honestly, I think that Shelley would enjoy this very much if she were here to read it, which I think is the greatest praise for a work like this.
This book explores many of the same themes as Frankenstein does, such as the ethics (or lack thereof) of this type of resurrection. But where it really shines are of course the feminist elements - Mary grappling with the reality of the fact that she will never be looked upon the same as her male colleagues, no matter her discoveries, and if she wishes to be taken even an inch seriously, she must conform to gender roles that simply don't describe her. The ending
So if you like her, if she strikes a chord, this one goes out to you: the angry women, the threatening women, the solitary and the abhorred; women with cold hearts and sharp tongues, who play with fire and fall in love with monsters; women who love women, women who didn't know they were women at first but know better now, those who thought they were women at first but know better now. We shall be monsters, you and I.
One other thing I simply love in this book, and didn't expect to get, is the chronic illness representation. Though done within the confides of what was realistic in this time period, the depiction is heartbreakingly believable and still relevant to those of us with chronic illness today. Though less overt, I also strongly suspect that Mary herself is autistic, considering her rejection of gender roles and her discussion of how conversation had never come easily to her, among other elements of her character. As a young autistic child who was obsessed with Mary Anning for a period, I totally felt that in Mary.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Gun violence, and Gore
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury and Child death
lunarmagi42's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Our Hideous Progeny tells the tale of a woman who is, quite frankly, trapped in a society that thinks she is "less than" simply due to the fact that she was born a woman. Worth less than a man, less intelligent than a man, less worthy of scientific acclaim than a man. Less monstrous than a man. Less angry than a man. None of these things are true and she disproves them one by one.
While the story takes some time getting into the whole "Frankenstein" aspect of the book, that time is well spent setting the stage for the fascinating tale to follow. We see how, despite being the mind more or less behind her husband Henry's scientific discoveries, Mary is only ever credited with "And many thanks to M Sutherland for the illustrations." We see how the people who should be her scientific peers look down on her for her gender. We also slowly learn of Mary's discovery of her great uncle, Victor Frankenstein, the Creature he created, and the story of that creation left behind in letters.
Mary's journey to creating her own Creature is fascinating and deeply frustrating, both for Mary herself and for the reader. Over and over she runs into the hurdle of needing a man for something, usually simply due to the fact that women are not allowed in many of the circles she needs to be in to continue her work. Due to the society she lives in, this is not simply a hurdle she can overcome, she must work with Henry and the loathsome Mr. Clarke to bring her discovery to life.
I thought the story was very well written and engaging as well as surprisingly touching at points, especially for a story with as much gore as this one has. Mary's relationship with Maisie is sweet and very natural feeling and her moments of introspection over the loss of her child a year prior are deeply touching. C.E. McGill uses very poignant and eloquent language in a way that feels smooth and nicely poetic to describe a rather gruesome thing: the creation of a Creature, stitched together from the sum of the parts of others.
Our Hideous Progeny is definitely worth a read if you like gothic horror about angry women fighting for their place in society and finding love and solace in an unexpected place. 4.5/5 Stars
While the story takes some time getting into the whole "Frankenstein" aspect of the book, that time is well spent setting the stage for the fascinating tale to follow. We see how, despite being the mind more or less behind her husband Henry's scientific discoveries, Mary is only ever credited with "And many thanks to M Sutherland for the illustrations." We see how the people who should be her scientific peers look down on her for her gender. We also slowly learn of Mary's discovery of her great uncle, Victor Frankenstein, the Creature he created, and the story of that creation left behind in letters.
Mary's journey to creating her own Creature is fascinating and deeply frustrating, both for Mary herself and for the reader. Over and over she runs into the hurdle of needing a man for something, usually simply due to the fact that women are not allowed in many of the circles she needs to be in to continue her work. Due to the society she lives in, this is not simply a hurdle she can overcome, she must work with Henry and the loathsome Mr. Clarke to bring her discovery to life.
I thought the story was very well written and engaging as well as surprisingly touching at points, especially for a story with as much gore as this one has. Mary's relationship with Maisie is sweet and very natural feeling and her moments of introspection over the loss of her child a year prior are deeply touching. C.E. McGill uses very poignant and eloquent language in a way that feels smooth and nicely poetic to describe a rather gruesome thing: the creation of a Creature, stitched together from the sum of the parts of others.
Our Hideous Progeny is definitely worth a read if you like gothic horror about angry women fighting for their place in society and finding love and solace in an unexpected place. 4.5/5 Stars
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Gore, Blood, Animal death, Death of parent, and Grief
Moderate: Body horror, Child death, Alcohol, Death, and Homophobia
Minor: Infertility, Gun violence, Sexual harassment, Pregnancy, and Miscarriage
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