My Dear Henry is a retelling of the story of Jekyll and Hyde in the classics remixed series. I was really looking forward to this story and I had a great time. We follow Gabriel as a young black man trying to navigate a very racist society while also trying to follow the career path his father wants for him. Along the way, he meets a boy named Henry and they fall in love. But society does not want to see two boys in love and they are pulled apart. But the next time Gabriel runs into Henry, something is different about his friend, he doesn't seem like himself. It is fun to watch Gabriel try to piece together the mystery although the reader will likely already know what is happening before the main character just by knowing the bare basics of the story of Jekyll and Hyde. The topics of racism and homophobia are handled really well and I loved those parts of the story because it does not shy away from the horrible treatment that people in minority groups regularly face and how dangerous it makes life.

CONTENT WARNING: racism and queerphobia in the context of the late nineteenth century, instances of sexual harassment, assault, attempted sexual assault, fictional elements reminiscent of conversion therapy, gore

I’m not one for reading classics, but it’s pretty hard not to know the bones of this story. Since I’ve read some of the other remixed classics, I was already going into this knowing that there was going to be a unique spin on this, combining diversity and associated timeless themes with more modern language that make it easier to engage with the story. My hopes were high because I’ve read a few of Bayron’s other books and loved them, and I wasn’t let down at all.

Since I hadn’t read the original story, I didn’t know what the relationship between the original Gabriel and Henry was like, but these two are explicitly queer in a society where that is not only frowned upon, but illegal. There are severe consequences associated with having queer relationships, and when they are too overt about their relationship, the course of both of their lives are derailed. Gabriel is kicked out of medical school and sent back home to the country, but eventually manages to secure a job as a law clerk. However, there are some issues here as well, since the man that he works for is not a good person. His boss is a cruel man, lording his power over people in the courts, as well as using it to manipulate his employees, including Gabriel.

The relationship between Gabriel and Henry was fascinating, both as it develops and the dramatic turn that it takes in the wake of the scandal. While Gabriel’s sexual identity was frowned upon by his own father, it’s complicated by racism. His father is already concerned about how he’s going to be perceived as a Black man in society, and doesn’t want his being gay to be used as a further reason to disparage him. He pushes Gabriel to strive for an illustrious career track in school, reinforcing that if he does well and remains hardworking and polite, he can be successful, ignoring the fact that medical positions such as doctor or surgeon were closed to Black men. Even with medical training, the best that Gabriel could have hoped for was an orderly. And although his father’s motives had Gabriel’s best outcome in mind, it didn’t take into account the fact that having to hide who he really is, a queer Black man, isn’t what is really healthy or best for him.

On the other hand, the dynamic between Henry and his father is dramatically different. Henry constantly strives to gain his father’s acceptance, but his father has unrealistically high standards for his son. And Henry’s queerness isn’t acceptable to him, and rather than being something that needs to be hidden, is something that needs to be changed. Much like the original theme of the novel, that of the dichotomy between good and evil in one individual, Henry’s queerness is seen as a bad trait that his father wants to separate out from the positive qualities. But the experiment doesn’t exactly go as planned, creating two distinct personalities—Jekyll and Hyde, in something reminiscent of a chemical form of conversion therapy, which didn’t work any more effectively than modern forms.

Another thing that stood out to me is as Hyde appears more frequently, Henry’s appearance declines more alarmingly. I couldn’t help but think of an addiction. He starts to become more disheveled, disregarding his appearance, losing significant amounts of weight, and struggling to hold coherent conversations or even recognize people that he socialized with in the past. He was relying on a substance to maintain his functioning, even as that functioning declined, and it was far too reminiscent of addiction for me not to notice.

The overall tone of the story began as atmospherically creepy, and while this isn’t exactly horror, it’s gothic enough to make me want to classify this as horror. The themes of queerphobia and racism add to that feeling of horror, and I loved the twist on this story that Bayron added. It’s especially important to see Black representation in historical settings, since reading only classics would have us believe that there weren’t any Black people in society, despite historical evidence that Black people were present. The author noted that she made every effort to ensure that she incorporated historical accuracy, and I appreciated that greatly in this story, as well as allowing people of color and queer people to see themselves in historical settings. I personally thought that not having read the original made this even more enjoyable, since I never quite knew what was going to happen, and it was all a new story to me.

Part of The Remixed Classics Series, this young adult novel is a retelling of Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde with Black and gay main characters set in Victorian London. A bit predictable if you’ve read the original novella with the twist of the Jekyll/Hyde being the son of Dr. Jekyll who is conducting what is basically conversion therapy, albeit chemical. Racial bigotry and homophobia. Good writing and character development at the YA level. Sure to make the banned books circuit in 2023.

Read other reviewer's reviews. Kalynn Bayron is a great author and I highly recommend Bayron's books, and I will return to this one at some point in the future.

This was such a good Jekyll and Hyde retelling. If you liked that book you will love this one. Thank you so much NetGalley, Macmillan, and Kalynn Bayron for this ARC.

Big fan. Bayron is a shining star of YA and particularly of the retelling or remix (as this series is a part of). This one had an easy flow to the story and likeable characters. I was immersed in the European setting which demonstrated both the prejudice against Black people but also gay people.

This one uncovers the mystery of Gabriel in London 1885 who is in love with Henry. But Henry has a mysterious sidekick after abandoning Gabriel and this gentleman Hyde is beyond curious. It's with handwriting analysis, some good old fashioned detective work, and getting close to others in Henry's family that Gabriel starts putting pieces together. The missing piece is one last letter from an already-dead man who gives Gabriel the ammunition to believe what he suspected all along.

The pacing is wonderfully mysterious and the setting pitch perfect.

It read like her others, Mackenzi Lee's Montague series, and the newer Dana Schwartz with the dark science overtones and characters pushing back against society.

I was very excited for this because I've loved Bayron's other books and I love retellings, but it just didn't work for me. The relationships were very underdeveloped and it made it difficult to really care about Gabriel saving Henry or ending up with him.

“My Dear Henry” is an interesting remix of Jekyll and Hyde that struggles to find it’s footing, but builds to a satisfying conclusion. I went back and forth between 3.5 and 4 stars. I really enjoyed “Cinderella is Dead” so I was excited to get this ARC from Netgalley. I loved how Bayron addressed issues of racism and homophobia during this period and took the Jekyll and Hyde narrative and used it to create a twist that is quite heartbreaking. I also really loved that this was a story about two black male gay teens fighting for love and fighting to break free of the societal prejudices and hatred’s that tried to break them and hold them back. A very underrepresented group in young adult fiction and gay fiction. The writing here isn’t quite as solid and sure of itself as Cinderella. There’s an awkwardness to a lot of the dialogue and must say as a gay man, it’s always interesting to read women writing gay male characters. Gabriel, our narrator, on this journey through love, longing, identity, and human monsters was at times yearning a little too much for me. I felt that their “love” story moved a little too quickly. It just felt like everything was happening so fast and sometimes didn’t feel totally believable. Still overall I had a good time with this. It’s incredibly important that more books like this get written so young people can pick up a book and see themselves or see and understand experiences that aren’t their own. Thanks to Netgalley for this ARC.

I don't totally have a lot to say about this book, but I really loved it. It was intriguing, chilling, raw, and much, much more. I loved the suspense and dramatic irony of knowing that this was a Jekyll and Hyde retelling but also that Gabriel had no idea... I would read a million books like this, and I've really been loving Kalynn Bayron's more death-y releases lately between this and her story in Eternally Yours! I'd totally recommend, and my own critique would be that there wasn't more of it.

Kalynn has become one of my favorite authors and this retelling of Jekyll & Hyde solidified why.

She does a beautiful job of making the story so vivid and placing you in the book. This story was deep, dark, and gothic. Everything that the time period needed it to be.

At times, I had to pace myself because the racism and homophobia was overwhelming but very necessary to the time period and story.

Wonderful book!

The way I loved this was unmatched. What an absolutely fun and incredibly clever take on Jekyll & Hyde. This Remix series is one of the best things to come out of literature, but this was hands down my favorite story. I loved the implications and the horror and the uneasy feeling throughout. It was brilliant. Everyone read this!

I've never read the original Jekyll and Hyde, so I can't directly compare this remix to its source material..
My Dear Henry takes place in London in the 1800's. It highlights the racism in the medical community, but centers around Henry and Gabriel being gay.
This is a quick read because it is very fast paced, so you may find it hard to have emotional buy in. Nonetheless, I felt like it was a page turner. I found it to be more intriguing than creepy or horror.
Bayron was able to make this story her own, while still keeping the original theme exploring the dual nature of man. Overall, I enjoyed this retelling.

Thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan for an early copy for review.

I'd read and enjoyed Kalynn Bayron's works before, and this one was no different, although I did have some issues with it. This "remix" of the Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde story is creepy, fast-paced and fun, dealing with the spectre of racism within the medical community during the 1800s London. My main quibbles was that occasionally, the pacing is too fast - we're introduced to the main characters and their love story SO quickly (ah, instalove). It's a common complaint of mine with YA works, and it was incredibly rushed in this one, making it hard to root for that aspect of the story. I'd recommend this to anyone who wants a thoughtful, zippy take on the titular story.

“My Dear Henry” by Kalynn Bayron

During the Victorian era it was illegal to be gay. To be gay was to be a degenerate. It was not much better to be a person of color.
Gabriel Utterson is a reticent medical student. Henry Jekyll is another medical student who lives in the same boarding house as Gabriel. Love in a time where it was considered shameful. And then Henry disappears. Gabriel must solve the mystery of what happened to Henry before it’s too late.
I love the way Bayron approaches the Jekyll and Hyde story. I love how she weaves in racism (which was, unfortunately, rampant), bigotry, and how she approaches sa. (So yes, while nothing major happens, sa could be a trigger warning.) Every book of Bayron’s that I have read has been amazing and, “My Dear Henry”, is no exception. I highly recommend it. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This retellling remix series has been hit or miss for me. Not because of how they have chosen to retell. I'm actually enjoying that part. It's the classics they tried to retell doesn't always work for the way they want to retell it. But this one of Dr. Jekyll and Mr.Hyde called My Dear Henry works. And I quite enjoyed it more than the source material.

Actual rating 3.5 stars.

This is the third remix I read, and even though I liked it, it’s my least favorite.

First of all, Kalynn’s writing is stunning. She wrapped me around her finger with her descriptiveness and vividness and immediately pulled me into the story. I flew through the pages, and before I knew it, I had read half of the book.

There’s quite a lot of racism and homophobia in the book, and it felt like my heart was sometimes being speared in halves. But I also understand why Kalynn Bayron did not back away from this part because this was the reality at that time (and in some ways still is today). She pictured gothic Victorian London perfectly with its atmospheric darkness. The cover fits that atmosphere so well too.

There was one thing keeping me from a four-star rating. Somehow I didn’t connect to Gabriel and Henry as much as I wanted to. I think I needed a longer story in which their growing feelings for each other would have been explored more. But overall another great retelling!

It's been awhile since I've read one of these classics retellings books and I was pleasantly surprised by this one. I basically read the whole thing in a day and I really liked how the author actually wove the characters' race and sexuality into the themes and plot of the original story because to me a lot of these retelling books seem like the author just threw a random dart at a board to decide how they're going to update it. Would definitely recommend if you're looking for a quick read in the retelling or M/M romance genres.

Despite never reading the original Jekyll and Hyde, I'm pretty familiar with the general story. It's been rehashed and retold enough in popular culture that it's lost a bit of it's allure. However, Bryon's remix is a refreshing take on the story. What made it most interesting was how Jekyll and Hyde weren't forced to fit into a standard narrative of good versus evil. It's hard to find a true villain in most of the characters despite their misdeeds. (Although there's at least one exception.) Instead, the narrow-minded views of what's considered polite society are highlighted as the villainous force that drives the story.
While the plot has plenty of suspense and action, the characters are really what kept me engaged and returning to find out what would happen next. What really hooked me was Gabriel. I sympathized a lot with him and felt invested in learning more about of him and particularly his strained relationship with his father. Especially in comparison to the Jekyll's father and son dynamic. Overall, the characters are all pretty well developed and engaging. I really enjoyed reading it and would highly recommend it to others.

In this re-telling of “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,” Gabriel Utterson enters the London School for Medical Studies at his father’s insistence. There isn’t much hope of securing a position upon graduation, but Gabriel is a dutiful son. Soon after arriving in London, Gabriel meets Henry Jekyll, another dutiful son. The two become friends, and then something more. Rumors about their relationship lead to Henry’s expulsion and Gabriel’s forced resignation. The two correspond, but then Henry becomes distant and, for a time, he seems to disappear. Gabriel wants to know the truth and will do anything in his power to find Henry.

“My Dear Henry” is a quick read filled with late Victorian London/steampunk atmosphere (think dark nights, dark alleys, and plenty of fog). Racism and homophobia are discussed thoughtfully, but make clear the untenable situations the characters (and real people of the time) found themselves in. Gabriel, Henry, and their friends are earnest and likable, even when they encounter monsters.

The publisher suggests content warnings, particularly around “racism and homophobia in the context of the late nineteenth century, sexual assault, and suggested conversion therapy.” I would agree that these elements may be of concern to sensitive individuals.

“My Dear Henry” is one in a series of remixed classics for the YA market. I would recommend this book for teens who like atmospheric stories and those who enjoy tales of Victorian London. It would be interesting to pair this re-telling of “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” with the original in the classroom.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #Feiwel&Friends (Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group) for a copy for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

Most of us don't think of the word "charming" when reading a horror novel but I found My Dear Henry: A Jekyll & Hyde Remix to be that. The romance novel term "sweet" applies to this as sex is limited to handholding and a little kiss. There are monsters. How could it be a horror book without them.? The monsters here, though, were a couple of vile humans.

I liked all the nice characters and booed the nasty characters. What I really liked was that the nice characters got along. No insults, no snarking, no cursing that you usually find in YA. Friends were friends and didn't feel the need for put-down humor. There was a lot of eyeball rolling but that seems par for the course in YA anymore. Did Victorians roll their eyes like 21st century people?

The author supplies historical information at the end. As a history buff, I enjoy reading those.

Thank you to Feiwel and Friends and Netgalley for allowing me to read and review My Dear Henry.