In Brexit Britain, a young transgender doctor called Ry is falling in love – against their better judgement – with Victor Stein, a celebrated professor leading the public debate around AI.
Meanwhile, Ron Lord, just divorced and living with Mum again, is set to make his fortune launching a new generation of sex dolls for lonely men everywhere.
Across the Atlantic, in Phoenix, Arizona, a cryonics facility houses dozens of bodies of men and women who are medically and legally dead… but waiting to return to life.
But the scene is set in 1816, when nineteen-year-old Mary Shelley writes a story about creating a non-biological life-form. ‘Beware, for I am fearless and therefore powerful.’
This week is the week that myself and the wonderful CWIP Shadow Panel judges talk books, and what one out of the seven shortlisted reads would we love to win the published CWIP Prize that is due to be announced on the 14th of this month. We have had fun, we have kept each other up to date on our reading and I have made book friends with some incredible women!
Today’s review is of Jeanette Winterson’s Frankisstein, a modernised take on Mark Shelley’s classic, Frankenstein. This CWIP prize shortlist read is available now in hardback, ebook and audio book, with the paperback becoming available in October. You can purchase / pre-order a copy here.
Frankisstein takes place in contemporary Brexit wriggled Britain, where transgender doctor Ry comes across Victor Stein, with parallel flashbacks to the life of Mary Shelley this shortlisted reads was one of my most anticipated. The essence of the novel revolves around the theme of loving people for their mind, their personality and the individual that they are. Mary Shelley, during the flashback chapters believes this, a hopeless romantic and the hope that her husband loves her on a more meaningful level than that of the skin she is in. The book echoes the question, what makes us human? With a mad scientist creating female sex robots that are to bow down to all men’s sexual need (especially after I recently read a non-fiction about sex robots) really resonated with me in terms of how far science is going to go until bodies are replaced by machinery to create the ‘perfect’ ideal human being – human body.
Frankisstein is a well written novel, one that incorporates layers of personality within the characters and also a plotline that will arise questions that suggest us as a society should educate ourselves upon, topics that are knitted into the plotline that makes you think from a multitude of angles. I enjoyed the modern retelling of a well known classic, I think parts of it was created really well, especially with the inclusion of the classical feel – really getting into the mind of Shelley and her non-biological creation concept.
So, there you have it, my last review as a CWIP Shadow Panel judge. It has been a blast, I have found authors whose books I love and will add their future books to my TBR pile. I’ve ranked my shortlist and I am excited to see who wins the overall title!
Who are you championing?
Until next time,
Happy reading!
The Reading Closet 