Cleopatra and Frankenstein is a examination of the marriage between 24-year-old Cleo and Frank, a wealthy man 20 years her senior. The story begins with their meeting at a New Years party and marriage six months later in order to extend British Cleo’s stay in America. We are brought into the lives of their family and friends as the ripple effects of their marriage extend out. Cleo and Frank are well written but I had a hard time connecting with the characters in this one.

I'm blown away by this novel! I can't believe this a debut. Coco Mellors is a beautiful storyteller. I was hooked from the first chapter. Normally I don't gravitate to love stories, but this one is different. This is about a toxic relationship between Frank and Cleo. There's 20-year age gap, Frank is an American, and Cleo is British. They meet during New Year's Eve and fall for each other very quickly. They marry 6 months later, and the relationship is pretty much doomed from the beginning. This novel deals with some heavy topics such as: alcoholism, depression, self-harm, traumatic childhoods, infidelity, race, gender, class, and drug dependency.

I've read a lot of of novels surrounding mental illness, and I must say this one does an accurate job. We also get to read other point-of-views besides of Cleo and Frank. Each character storylines came full circle at the end. This book is dark but gorgeously told. The ending is somber but satisfying. I felt deeply connected to Frank and Cleo. Their unhealthy relationship - the good, the bad, and the ugly felt very realistic and relatable. There's nothing I didn't like about this book. The dialogue was fantastic! I'll be thinking about this one for a long time. Absolutely stunning. The cover art is stunning as well.

Thank you, Netgalley and Bloomsbury for the digital ARC.