3.5 AVERAGE

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alexandra_92's review

5.0

The classics meet the Young Adult genre on this story of mystery, deception and love.

Juliet has lost her Mother and her father has disappeared after the horrible accusations oh him abusing his talents as a surgeon. When she meets again with Montgomery, a boy she used to know and even love, she gets the chance to find her father and return to him.
When Edward, a castaway, also joins them on the mysterious island where her father lives, secrets will be revealed and death will haunt them.

I found the idea of using the classic tale of Dr. Moreu's island as a base quite interesting and at the same time I was drawn to the stuggle of Juliet. She is trying to live with the strict rules of 19th century London and at the same time she is strong and willing to defend herself.

There was a part when I thought that a love triangle would appear but this was cleared close to the end of the book. The ending was a cliffhanger for me and I loved it. It makes you even more willing to hunt down for the next book and I hope to get the chance to read it! :)

Until then for me this book is a solid 5 star!
adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I really enjoyed this and it's not my typical genre. I will be continuing on with this series in October. Juliet was an interesting character to follow throughout this mystery/horror. I really loved sweet Alice and Balthazar (personal fav). The plot twist at times were predictable, but not all.

I enjoyed this book because I like gothic storytelling, and I think I would have enjoyed it more if I were familiar with the original Dr. Moreau story. Satisfyingly gruesome and creepy but the love story angle left me cold. Full review up at Slatebreakers: http://slatebreakers.com/2013/04/01/review-the-madmans-daughter-by-megan-shepherd/

This book was freaky as hell. No really on multiple occasions I had shivers running up and down my spine. When everything was revealed I was generally surprised, but toward the middle-end of the book I got extremely impatient and I'm guilty of skipping a few pages every now and then. Overall, not bad but I HATED the ending.

If you ignore the love triangle (why do all YA authors of genre pieces feel forced to do this?!) the rest of the story builds interestingly, with some good twists and turns along the way. I like that this is based on Island of Dr. Moreau and that the 2 sequels will be based on Jekyll & Hyde and Frankenstein. These are fun retellings/new plays on old classic tales. Feeling like I might skim through 2 & 3 to see who comes back from the first book.

I have a lot of conflicting feelings about this book, but ultimately I stayed up until 1AM to finish it.

YA CW: rape, sexual assault, abuse, animal cruelty, alcohol use. All of these happen early on and continue. Definitely a very A type of YA.

This is a book about Dr. Moreau's daughter, so it includes all the disturbing bits about vivisection - surgery on awake animals and sometimes humans, usually with no anesthesia. Creating sort of Frankenstein's monsters with various combinations of creatures.

I skipped over some parts because I'm the kind of person who stops reading a book if, for example, the character's animal dies, and obviously this book is that multiplied by a lot. I enjoy fantasy horror, but this was just a lot. Because puppies and stuff, ya know? (Also, why is it always rabbits who are the first to get the shaft?) Also the entire part on the boat just dragged and didn't really add anything to the book other than pages. Same with the whole "lost in the jungle" section. Skip skip skippity doo.

All that said - the least interesting characters in this are Moreaus. The other characters - from minor to major - are dynamic and I like how everything played out with them all. Gosh, I'd like a book from Caesar's POV. And Edward's. Like - why'd he go back, seriously??! It was well-written and actions of all the characters matched their character development, but still managed to throw in some surprises.

Because this was a rough read for me, I will not be reading the rest of the series. But I applaud the author and this was a well-imagined book. I'll likely look up summaries of the rest of the series because I am curious the trajectory.

It's been many years since I've read the Isle of Dr Moreau, but I thought this book was an entertaining, more modern take on a classic story. Is the premise still ridiculous? Yes. BUT a fun, quick read.

I didn't expect to read this book. I sampled it because the ebook was on sale. But in 20 pages, the vivid prose and unsettling sense of creeping dread convinced me to buy what's otherwise far outside of my reading tastes.

Madman's Daughter is an alternative tale of The Island of Doctor Moreau, with all the building horror and monstrous experiments you would expect, and the addition of a new narrator - Moreau's sixteen year old daughter, Juliet. Adding a long lost teen daughter to the classic story changes it in some ways you would expect (romantic subplot, a YA slant) and some you would not (additional layers of meaning to the book's themes).

First, the love story. In making Moreau YA, a love story (triangle even) seems almost a given. I was resistant, as I usually dislike YA love stories and especially triangles. By halfway, Madman's Daughter had earned my grudging respect for managing a triangle where both options seem equally viable. Both love interests inspire both attraction and repulsion, and have an inexplicable connection at their core. Soon, I was enjoying the character relationships and trying to choose my favorite. Plus, the romantic subplot is entirely new, so it's an unknown outcome in an otherwise familiar story.

Next, theme. As Moreau's daughter, left behind in London after his experiments were exposed, Juliet has a driving need to reunite with her father. She doesn't want the accusations to be true, but she wants, desperately, to find a place where she belongs. Her conflicted desires make her experiences on the island compelling. Her fascination with Moreau has a deep, personal motivation and her horror comes at a personal cost. Likewise, the romance plot contributed thematic depth I wasn't expecting. Her conflicted desires parallel the fascination and repulsion she feels for Moreau and his discoveries. Even though this is a remix of a classic, there were still a few new plot wrinkles to discover, and some of them tied into the love triangle and father-daughter relationship in ways that made them integral to the plot, not just plot cliches tacked on to make the book YA.

Given my overall positive review, my 3 star rating needs explanation. The ending was abrupt, with a sudden close that felt like it was missing a chapter. The unsatisfying ending made me round down instead of up. However, there's a book 2. The story doesn't feel like it needs another book (just an ending). But Madman's Daughter surprised me, so I'll reserve judgement here too. The abrupt ending here might be forgiven if the sequel justifies it.

This book was okay. I'm not really a Dr. Moreau fan, so that might tarnish my thoughts here. I felt like I was on a rollercoaster with this book. Some moments were genuinely good and held my interest, other times it just dragged on. Perhaps the other two will improve.