Search This Blog








2022 Literary Escapes Challenge
- Alabama (1)
- Alaska (1)
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California (2)
- Colorado (1)
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Florida
- Georgia (1)
- Hawaii (1)
- Idaho
- Illinois (1)
- Indiana (1)
- Iowa (1)
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine (1)
- Maryland (2)
- Massachusetts (4)
- Michigan (2)
- Minnesota (1)
- Mississippi (1)
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York (5)
- North Carolina (2)
- North Dakota
- Ohio (1)
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania (2)
- Rhode Island (1)
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee (1)
- Texas (2)
- Utah (1)
- Vermont (2)
- Virginia (1)
- Washington (3)
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin (1)
- Wyoming
- Washington, D.C.* (1)
International:
Antarctica (1)
Australia (2)
Egypt (2)
England (11)
Italy (1)
Nepal (1)
Romania (1)
Scotland (3)
Sweden (1)








The 52 Book Club's Reading Challenge 2022

2022 Build Your Library Reading Challenge

Wednesday, January 07, 2015
Shivery Dr. Moreau Retelling As Creepy As the Original (Probably)
1:00 AM
(Image from Barnes & Noble)
Ever since the gruesome nature of her father's work was brought to light six years ago, Juliet Moreau has been careful to keep her head down. The 16-year-old spends her hours working as a maid at a research hospital in London, going to church every week, and trying to forget she ever knew a man named Henri Moreau. He's dead. He, as well as the terrible research he purportedly engaged in, is better left forgotten.
Juliet has (almost) succeeded in putting her father out of her mind when she discovers that the rumors of his demise have been exaggerated. According to Montgomery James, an old friend of Juliet's who is now her father's assistant, Henri is very much alive. Refusing to be abandoned by her father once again, Juliet insists on accompanying Montgomery to the remote island where he lives and works. What she finds there is a horror show of walking, talking experiments. Repulsed and fascinated in equal measure, Juliet knows she has to leave the awful place before she becomes her father's willing accomplice. But escaping the monsters on the island isn't so easy, especially when the most terrifying one of all might just be your own flesh and blood.
I've never read H.G. Wells' The Island of Dr. Moreau, but I know enough of the story to be creeped out by it. Not that that stopped me from picking up The Madman's Daughter, a spin-off of the sci fi classic. On the contrary—it made me even more eager to give the debut novel by Megan Shepherd a go. Shepherd's version is a shivery Gothic tale full of mystery, suspense and, of course, scary monsters. As Juliet discovers the truth behind her father's experiments, the reader can't help asking moral questions that are just as relevant today as they were in 1896, when Wells published The Island of Dr. Moreau. All these things made the story appealing to me. Not so palatable was the annoying love triangle between Juliet, Montgomery and a stowaway named Edward Prince. Our heroine's irritating fickleness drove me mad, making her a less likable character, even though it's probably the only time she acts like a typical 16-year-old girl. All in all, then, I found The Madman's Daughter engrossing and enjoyable. Not my absolute favorite, but not bad either.
(Readalikes: The Island of Dr. Moreau by H.G. Wells; also, The Madman's Daughter's sequels, Her Dark Curiosity and A Cold Legacy by Megan Shepherd)
Grade:
Juliet has (almost) succeeded in putting her father out of her mind when she discovers that the rumors of his demise have been exaggerated. According to Montgomery James, an old friend of Juliet's who is now her father's assistant, Henri is very much alive. Refusing to be abandoned by her father once again, Juliet insists on accompanying Montgomery to the remote island where he lives and works. What she finds there is a horror show of walking, talking experiments. Repulsed and fascinated in equal measure, Juliet knows she has to leave the awful place before she becomes her father's willing accomplice. But escaping the monsters on the island isn't so easy, especially when the most terrifying one of all might just be your own flesh and blood.
I've never read H.G. Wells' The Island of Dr. Moreau, but I know enough of the story to be creeped out by it. Not that that stopped me from picking up The Madman's Daughter, a spin-off of the sci fi classic. On the contrary—it made me even more eager to give the debut novel by Megan Shepherd a go. Shepherd's version is a shivery Gothic tale full of mystery, suspense and, of course, scary monsters. As Juliet discovers the truth behind her father's experiments, the reader can't help asking moral questions that are just as relevant today as they were in 1896, when Wells published The Island of Dr. Moreau. All these things made the story appealing to me. Not so palatable was the annoying love triangle between Juliet, Montgomery and a stowaway named Edward Prince. Our heroine's irritating fickleness drove me mad, making her a less likable character, even though it's probably the only time she acts like a typical 16-year-old girl. All in all, then, I found The Madman's Daughter engrossing and enjoyable. Not my absolute favorite, but not bad either.
(Readalikes: The Island of Dr. Moreau by H.G. Wells; also, The Madman's Daughter's sequels, Her Dark Curiosity and A Cold Legacy by Megan Shepherd)
Grade:
If this were a movie, it would be rated:
for language (no F-bombs), violence/gore, nudity, and sexual innuendo
To the FTC, with love: I bought a copy of The Madman's Daughter with a portion of the millions I make from my lucrative career as a book blogger. Ha ha.
1 comment:
Comments make me feel special, so go crazy! Just keep it clean and civil. Feel free to speak your mind (I always do), but be aware that I will delete any offensive comments.
P.S.: Don't panic if your comment doesn't show up right away. I have to approve each one before it posts to prevent spam. It's annoying, but it works!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments
(Atom)




Reading
Farm to Trouble by Amanda Flower

Listening
The Lost and Found Bookshop by Susan Wiggs



Followin' with Bloglovin'



-
-
-
Fun Foodie Holidays in June 20222 hours ago
-
-
-
-
Bangkok 8: John Burdett14 hours ago
-
65. The Belle of Belgrave Square17 hours ago
-
-
-
-
FO Friday: Wayfinder’s Rest21 hours ago
-
Sunday Post 45421 hours ago
-
Book Quotes of the Week1 day ago
-
-
Review: The Love Hypothesis1 day ago
-
-
-
-
-
Fugitive Telemetry2 days ago
-
-
-
I've been reading...3 days ago
-
-
-
-
Weekly Update for May 22, 20226 days ago
-
The Key to Deceit by Ashley Weaver1 week ago
-
-
-
An Honest Lie by Tarryn Fisher4 weeks ago
-
Chirp Audiobooks - A Review5 weeks ago
-
-
-
Left Neglected by Lisa Genova2 months ago
-
THE VALET'S SECRET by Josi S Kilpack2 months ago
-
-
-
Cybils Awards 2021: The End3 months ago
-
2022 Reading Log3 months ago
-
Back to the Classics 20224 months ago
-
-
-

Grab my Button!



Blog Archive
- ► 2021 (159)
- ► 2020 (205)
- ► 2019 (197)
- ► 2018 (223)
- ► 2017 (157)
- ► 2016 (157)
- ▼ 2015 (188)
- ► 2014 (133)
I really think this is a great series. Very creative, how she uses different gothic literature for each story. I think I may have liked the second even better. And I can't wait for the third! If you liked this one, I recommend continuing the series. Great review!
ReplyDelete