Unfortunately after multiple attempts to connect with this book I have had to admit defeat and mark as dnf.

This book honestly gave me chills! It’s a fantastic mystery and will have you gripped from the first page until the last !
If you’re looking to completely get lost in a story then look no further!
Would highly recommend

This isn’t a retelling of Frankenstein so much as a feminist sequel, with Mary Frankenstein following in her great uncle’s footsteps in hoping to create life from death. Mary and her husband Henry are fascinated by science, in particular palaeontology, however they are overlooked and even shunned by the scientific community they so desperately want to be part of. With funds running low, and morale even lower, Mary finds the journal of her great uncle who went mysteriously missing and finds a way to possibly get the recognition so desperately sought – they could create their own creature. After much experimenting and trials, and with debts mounting, Mary and Henry set to build their own plesiosaurus.

Frankenstein itself is not a book about a monster made of death but a book about life – and this is the case here also. Mary feels a great distance and unease in her life, she feels alone, not just because she lost a baby, she can’t connect to her husband (who instead turns to gambling and wracking up debts) but because she still has yet to find her place. Through flashbacks you follow Mary discover her love of palaeontology and the acceptance that comes with it, discover that she may like girls through a friendship (although this is never truly made explicit) and her strained relationship with her husband who she thought would be her freedom.

Mary however is a woman in a man’s world and she is underestimated and silenced – she is a genius but she is not a man and therefore she is not enough. While many women in that time would submit to this, Mary does not, there is a quiet, unyielding power to her that makes her a fantastic character. Henry is bullish and closed off, he is reckless and causes problems that Mary must live with, her achievements are possessed by the men around her and you feel her frustration. But ‘the creature’ isn’t a monster, it’s hope for Mary, it’s something that Mary comes to care for as it nibbles on her pencils and rests it’s head on her lap. The creature becomes an anchor for Mary, a beacon of hope that in awakening, awakens something in her again. Likewise there’s Maisie, Henry’s sister, a sister he has made out to be terrible but is actually very unassuming, very sweet and quickly becomes a friend to Mary and possibly more. Maisie is incredibly likeable and it’s enraging how Henry treats her, as well as how he treats Mary – he is a spineless, emasculated character who silences the women around him. There is actually really only one likeable male character in this story, however that’s not a case of this being feminist, that’s a case of this being historical and history has never been kind to women.

I really enjoyed this book, not just for the story and the creature (who is delightful) but the empowerment of Mary and Maisie, both defiantly standing up for themselves in their own way and finding their voices.

Thank you NetGalley for the copy in exchange for an honest review

"Our Hideous Progeny" promises to be a gripping Gothic tale filled with themes of grief, ambition, passion, and intrigue. It explores the legacy of a literary classic while weaving a captivating narrative of discovery and danger. Readers can expect an artfully crafted debut novel that brings the Frankenstein legacy into a new and thrilling light.

This was a wonderful retelling of Frankenstein. It was fresh and gave an exciting twist on the classic story. The writing was stunning and the atmosphere created a sense of unease and mystery. I can’t wait to see what the author writes next.

Congratulations to this author on a truly fascinatingly inspired different take on Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein! So very clever and well researched! I loved the characters - Mary is a wonderfully strong woman married to Henry who shares her ambitions but lacks her strength of character. He has a weakness for gambling which causes them trouble in more ways than one! Henry’s sister Maisie is not a healthy being but a friendship between her and Mary evolves and is a delight. I loved the complexities of Mary’s emotions regarding ‘the creature’ and shared her utter contempt for Finlay Clarke! So very pleased with the outcome! Well worth the read and very much enjoyed!

A really interesting retelling of Frankenstein. Mary is the great-niece of Victor Frankenstein and is a great mind who has been brought up in the house of her stern Grandmother on the Isle of Wight. But as she tries to make her name in Victorian London's science community, she is only taken seriously for her drawing. And her geologist husband Henry is not doing much to help their cause. He has gambled away their money and has no connections. They also lost their child a year previously and Mary is still grieving. So when they travel to his family seat in Scotland and Mary starts to use Victor's notes, they create their very own creature with the help of Henry's friend who he owes money to. Far from bringing her and Henry together, it pushes them apart and Mary begins to fall in love with Henry's sister as well as become to attached to the monster. It is a brilliant look at people's rights to 'make' anything with science but also the difference between men and women's approaches. It ends in a bloody battle. I really enjoyed it as a great gothic historical novel.

Frankenstein take two. Not my usual choice of reading but fascinating, a good story and a good read. I recommend.

When you read the synopsis for this book, you will likely think “Oh, this sounds interesting! Let's do it.” And I’m here to tell you right now: be careful!
Don't let my five-star rating fool you. I tore through Our Hideous Progeny, but I feel like it tore through me. I loved this book so much, but I hate the mess it made of me. How am I supposed to cope now?

I found the premise intriguing and was excited to see McGill’s take on a classic. Shelley’s Frankenstein is one of my favourite books and I thoroughly enjoyed McGill’s expansion of the Frankenstein story in Our Hideous Progeny.

McGill’s exploration of the ethics of science was a really interesting and you can feel their love for women of science shines through. As an art historian in a former life, I adored the way the author delved into the world of Victorian pleoart- the way McGill details Mary’s work was fascinating. The misogyny of Victorian society was another theme discussed by McGill and I found this to be another interesting element of the story.

Mary is a fierce and stubborn protagonist whose ambitions to be a renowned scientist in her own right was beautifully developed by the author and she is the standout character for me. The queer angle within this story was beautifully written and gave a whole new dimension to the story, particularly Mary’s struggle to deal with her feelings for Maisie and what society expected of her. Henry is an infuriating character; dim witted and determined to annoy everyone in the scientific world, he drove me demented on many an occasion while reading this book!

As the mother of a dinosaur fanatic, the “monster” - the reanimated plesiosaur- was a tragic figure within the story and Mary’s bond with the creature was another element that stood out for me. Mary’s tragic history and its connection to the monster was heartbreaking and handled perfectly by the author. Who would have thought that I would love a story of a Victorian Jurassic Park?!

I really am excited to see what McGill writes next. Our Hideous Progeny is a Gothic story that will make you question who is the true monster like Shelley’s book before it. If you enjoy refreshing takes on classics, make sure to check it out!

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK for the arc. Our Hideous Progeny is out now. 4 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

What a wonderful, dark take on the Frankenstein story this is!

Mary and her husband Henry are trying desperately hard to make a name for themselves in the world of Victorian science. However, in a world where they lack everything necessary in order to succeed, (money, connections and in Mary's case, gender) they become increasingly frustrated at every step. Mary stumbles across some letters from her Great- Uncle Victor Frankenstein, which sets off a chain of events as Mary and Henry strive to make the greatest scientific discovery ever.

I really enjoyed this new take on the gothic horror. Mary was a wonderful and strong character who is painfully aware of how her sex affects every aspect of her personal and professional life. The narrative flowed easily and had the genuine sound of a woman from the 1850's. The plot had many layers which all came together seamlessly (unlike the creature!) and made for a rather interesting and imaginative novel.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and the publishers for providing an arc in return for a review.

I was not sure what to expect from this, but found the premise intriguing - the original Frankenstein's Monster is such a cult classic I was interested to see where this would go. I had seen a review which described this as 'Victorian Jurassic Park' so immediately I wanted to read it!

The themes of ethics in science and grief were well handled I thought and also misogyny which for the time period of Victorian England is more or less a given when there is an intelligent female character with curiosity and questions.

I like the character of Mary, I thought she was well defined and when the hidden notebooks of Victor Frankenstein are discovered she sees an opportunity to make her reputation and earn a fortune with her husband Henry.

I struggled when the fantasy element was introduced and found this part of the story a lot harder to stick with. This was my issue as a reader and no fault on the part of the author, they have clearly done a huge amount of research and are a talented story-teller. For me, I found it hard to stay engaged with the story. I did read to the end and would still say this is worth picking up - plenty of people have absolutely loved this and I think it will appeal to lots more. Overall it just wasn't for me.

First of all, what a brilliant idea for a book. As a huge fan of Frankenstein, I could not wait to read Our Hideous Progeny. The writing style flowed perfectly and I adored our MC. Her childhood of difficulty leading to a marriage where her genius came second to her husband is an interesting story in itself but I really enjoyed how the story developed and, eventually, the relationship with ‘the creature’, who I felt such sympathy for. The ending was perfect and very satisfying!

I’ll be recommending this to all Historical Fiction lovers, as well as classic literature lovers.

Our Hideous Progeny by C E McGill picks up the history of the Frankenstein’s where Mary Shelleys novel left off, give or take a generation. Except Mary in this story doesn’t know anything about her Great Uncle Victor. She does know that he went missing in the Artic in mysterious circumstances, but it’s not until she finds some letters that she learns the extent of his work.

Mary is a keen scientist, helping her husband Henry in his geological work. Without wealth and connections though, there is little they can do to really make their names in the field. So when she discovers Victor’s papers, she and her husband decide that there is only one thing to do. So they take themselves off to Henry’s old family home in Scotland to try and create a monster of their own.

Henry is a bit of an idiot though, and has managed to make himself some enemies, and one such turns up on the doorstep demanding money. When they explain to him what they’re doing, he demands to take part - and then things start to go wrong.

I really liked the female characters in this: Mary, and Henry’s reclusive and sickly sister, Maisie. They are determined (even in Maisie’s illness she isn’t a walkover) and intelligent. It was quite frustrating to see Mary treated so badly, whilst at the same time the men relied on her to do a lot of the work. It is her moral compass that grounds the endeavour, but to be fair, they don’t seem to listen to her much (of course, they know better!).

There’s a real sense of time and place in this - from the attitudes of the men towards the women, to the attitudes of the upper classes towards the lower. Horse and carriages, steam trains and bathing houses all entrenched the novel firmly in the Victorian age.

This really is a phenomenal read, and I loved it. There’s nothing like a strong female character or two having a go at the patriarchy to make my day!!

I really enjoyed this debut novel, having downloaded it from NetGalley because its premise was an intriguing extension of the Frankenstein story - using the world set up by Mary Shelley as the backdrop to an exploration of the role of women, class, access to education, and queerness.

As I type that out it sounds like a LOT, and in the best possible way it was.

I particularly loved this, in the author's note:

"Mary herself is named for three real-life Marys: Mary Shelley ...; Mary Anning ...; and ... Mary Somerville ... Although Somerville expressed plenty of frustration in her own writings about her place in society, I couldn't help but notice that in all her contemporary biographies, her friends and peers constantly stressed how *nice* she was - how humble, how pleasant and softspoken she was to her children and husband. In other words, she was (apart from her interest in science) the ideal Victorian woman. It occurred to me that one of the reasons why she attained the recognition she did in her own time was that she managed to walk that perilous tightrope, to be both brilliant and, crucially, *nonthreatening*; or, at least, as non-threatening as a woman with her talents could be."

And so, in this book, C.E. McGill gives us Mary Elizabeth Frankenstein, a woman who rails against the constraints placed upon her as a woman, and therefore unqualified for the old boys' network that she sees ruling science.

She also gives us a Frankenstein who loves her creature. One of the most noticeable things about Shelley's novel is that Victor Frankenstein inculcates hatred in his creation by rejecting and abandoning it. Mary Frankenstein risks everything to prevent harm from coming to her creation.

And she gives us dinosaurs. The dinosaurs at Crystal Palace, and the dinosaurs that inspire Mary in her work. Ultimately, this is a book in which a dinosaur comes to life in the nineteenth century ...

Three Word review: Victorian Jurassic Park?

Thank you Random House and Netgalley for the ARC of this book which was so different from anything I have red for a long time.

This was a really interested tale of Frankenstein's Monster, exploring themes of grief and scientific ethics in a really well done way.

The storyline really portrays what it may have been like to be an curious and very intelligent woman in Victorian England.

I would highly recommend reading this book - it took my out of my comfort zone of crime which was a really good thing. .

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

This was a really interesting take on the story of Frankenstein's Monster, exploring themes of misogyny, grief and scientific ethics in a very accomplished manner. Although the main conceit of the plot is fantastical, the rest of the story is thoroughly realistic and portrays exactly what it must have been like to be an intelligent and curious woman in Victorian England. The ending is satisfying and the characters are very identifiable throughout.

The premise of this novel alone had me a little apprehensive - it’s a very difficult thing to take a much-loved and highly-respected classic and write an accompanying novel that even does the original justice, let alone stands out on its own merit. There are flashes of brilliance here, and I must give credit to McGill for their attempt alone, but unfortunately overall I felt it was an overly sentimental and laboured pseudo-sequel. Despite some initial enjoyment, I didn’t connect with any of the characters, and there was an unnecessarily long build-up to a rather unexciting conclusion and a hasty and convenient happy-ever-after.

England and Scotland in the in the 1850s. Mary Elizabeth Sutherland is an ambitious and feisty natural history illustrator married to Henry, a rather combative but feckless scientist who struggles to make his name within the maelstrom of British scientific endeavour. Their marriage is a tempestuous arrangement. Mary’s grandfather was brother to a certain Victor Frankenstein, and when his hidden notebooks are discovered, Mary has a idea about a project that will make both their reputation and fortune within the deeply conservative British intellectual community - the secret and creation of life itself.
The author has deployed excellent research with the account of the state of mid 19th century European scientific endeavour, and the jealousies and rivalries that permeated the ambitious community of (nearly all) men. The book is narrated with consummate skill and McGill is a highly talented story-teller. But because the book is so well written and plotted when the fantasy element enters the narrative it does come as a bit of shock to the reader, a wrenching departure from the hitherto plausible storyline. What the Sutherlands achieve is simply impossible from a scientific perspective, hence the reader has to cease incredulity and carry on. Occasionally Mary comes across as being just too 21st century in her enlightened, progressive outlook and views. While it is such an easy target to attack the antediluvian and wincingly awful customs and conventions of previous ages. This McGill’s first novel and shows extraordinary talent and promise.

This was one of my favourite reads of the year so far!

I love Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, and because of that, weirdly, I was doubtful that I would like a 'retelling' of it, but this is a different kettle of sea monsters all together. The author clearly knows her stuff! I connected with many aspects of the plot and characters, from the dismissive way Mary is spoken to, to the use of the crystal palace dinosaurs as inspiration, and the emerging field of paleontology as a back-drop, each of these things have featured to some extent in my own life, and I do love a gothic, academic style.

I like that Mary's struggles to rise above the perception of her gender feel real, and not one-dimensional, her frustrations echo those I have had in the past, and will probably have again, but not all of the male characters are misogynistic, and not all those who are are maliciously so, there are interesting dimensions to the male characters, while still staying true to the period. Mary herself, in articulating her frustration is shown to be a flawed character, not merely a cardboard cut-out 'strong female lead', she has strengths and she has vulnerabilities, naivety, and character traits that are detrimental to her goals, so she has to grow as a character as well, she is not just better than the men around her because she is female, it is through her work, her friendships and the lessons she learns about herself and those around her that ultimately define her.

The pace is slow as Mary and her husband work towards accomplishing their goal. For me, the pacing suits the theme of lengthy study, scientific research, and trial and error, though some readers may want a faster race to the finish.

I love that Mary and Henry did not just repeat the experiments of Victor Frankenstein, they saw it's application in their own field and took it further. The relationships and how they unfolded also felt convincing and natural. I can't really think of anything I disliked, I hadn't read any reviews or really any plot summaries before I went into the book either, so all of the above was a pleasant surprise. It also made me want to read more about the Mary's that C.E.Gill named her central character after, and I immediately looked up the "Dinner in the Iguanodon" story, which is just one of the best things I've ever seen: an eight-course meal "in the interior of the Iguanodon!" Who thought my review would end on that sentence?!