Scan barcode
A review by melchior
Frankenstein: The 1818 Text by Mary Shelley
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
Interesting idea, sadly bogged down to a grinding halt towards the end, made unbearable to read with the on-the-nose foreshadowing that basically spoils what will happen ahead of time.
Regrettably, a five-star premise with a one-star execution. Frankenstein was devised as a brilliant novelty when it was first published, and it is a deservedly respected piece of literature given its context, so I was quite excited to finally give it a read. However, despite its far-reaching impact on western pop culture, the book hasn't aged well at all, making it a laborious read in spite of its brevity. My main complaint is with the way it was written, as especially the foreshadowing happens too explicitly and too often. The forewarning sentences are repeated verbatim and ad nauseam so often that I couldn't help but shake the feeling that the book thought I was a bit slow, and I really don't need that kind of sass from a two-hundred-years-old book. Scenes in the book are often little described, giving essentially no leeway to taste the atmosphere in any the wonderful locations across Europe that the story takes place in without visiting Lonely Planet. However, my biggest complaint lies with the characters. Each character is so irredeemably bland that it's hard to tell them apart. They have no depth to their personalities, and mostly indeed no personality at all. Having all the main characters be a ragtag band of Mary Sue's does little to connect you with them, so when tragedy befalls any of them and they start incessantly moping about it I simply couldn't bring myself to care and wanted the book to get on with the good bits already. Sadly, just like the first time I got three-quarters of a handjob in high school, those good bits I hoped for never came, leaving me sorely dissatisfied.
Regrettably, a five-star premise with a one-star execution. Frankenstein was devised as a brilliant novelty when it was first published, and it is a deservedly respected piece of literature given its context, so I was quite excited to finally give it a read. However, despite its far-reaching impact on western pop culture, the book hasn't aged well at all, making it a laborious read in spite of its brevity. My main complaint is with the way it was written, as especially the foreshadowing happens too explicitly and too often. The forewarning sentences are repeated verbatim and ad nauseam so often that I couldn't help but shake the feeling that the book thought I was a bit slow, and I really don't need that kind of sass from a two-hundred-years-old book. Scenes in the book are often little described, giving essentially no leeway to taste the atmosphere in any the wonderful locations across Europe that the story takes place in without visiting Lonely Planet. However, my biggest complaint lies with the characters. Each character is so irredeemably bland that it's hard to tell them apart. They have no depth to their personalities, and mostly indeed no personality at all. Having all the main characters be a ragtag band of Mary Sue's does little to connect you with them, so when tragedy befalls any of them and they start incessantly moping about it I simply couldn't bring myself to care and wanted the book to get on with the good bits already. Sadly, just like the first time I got three-quarters of a handjob in high school, those good bits I hoped for never came, leaving me sorely dissatisfied.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror
Moderate: Incest and Xenophobia