OFFICIAL BOOK BLURB: Mary is the great-niece of Victor Frankenstein. She knows her great uncle disappeared in mysterious circumstances in the Arctic but she doesn't know why or how... A gripping Gothic tale of grief and ambition, passion and intrigue.”—Jess Kidd, author of The Night Ship Our Hideous Progeny is a sumptuous tale of ambition and obsession, of forbidden love and sabotage; a novel that blends classic, immersive storytelling with contemporary themes. This book is filled with science - which may sound boring, at first mention, but proves itself to be anything but. Long words and terms may sometimes go over my head, but the passion and intelligence of Mary, a woman who yearns for far more than she is able to have as a woman in Victorian society, is infectious. Since she was a child, she found herself fascinated with geology, paleontology and fossils. Professors and scholars and scientific societies are abound in this tale, with the discovery and vast interest in dinosaurs at the centre of it all. I love this type of story, where a woman is battling against society’s norms & expectations of her. Mary is a fierce character. I love the contrast between Henry & herself, with Mary clearly being the stronger in the partnership. Henry typically allows himself to be steered by wealth & notoriety, whereas Mary keeps them grounded by her sense of what is right.

Mary is the great-niece of Victor Frankenstein. She knows her uncle disappeared in mysterious circumstances in the Arctic but she doesn't know why or how. She and her husband are trying to make a name for themselves as paleontologists but, in 1850s' London, scientific success requires wealth and connections - neither of which they possess. But then Mary discovers some old family papers that allude to the truth behind her great-uncle's past, of his attempts to create a living being and the creature that ultimately killed him. Perhaps this idea will prove to be their salvation... Witty, dark and sharp as a scalpel...brilliantly captures what it's like to be a woman in a man's world' LIZZIE POOK, author of MOONLIGHT AND THE PEARLER'S DAUGHTER Darkly brilliant and sumptuously gothic, this atmospheric debut left me reeling C.J. COOKE, author of THE LIGHTHOUSE WITCHES What a book this is. It's grand; it's sumptuous. It's horror and mystery, a literary thriller. Impeccably researched and elegantly written. I LOVED IT! One of my two fav. books so far this year... Fans of Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia and historical horror with a queer feminist twist will not be disappointed. VERDICT In this immersive, richly detailed novel, Mary is an enthralling heroine with whom readers will empathize, and owing to assured, luscious prose, whose plight they will champion." — Library Journal(starred review)I adored Mary, who’s character takes inspiration from not one but three impressive women of the 19th C: Mary Shelley, Mary Anning (the self-taught palaeontologist who found the first Ichthyosaur fossil) and Mary Somerville (one of the first women admitted into the Royal Astronomical Society), and really enjoyed discovering just how much of their stories connected to our refreshingly bold and sharp-tongued protagonist—especially Mary Anning, who seemed to have to the most in common with our plesio

This is an eARC that I was able to read in exchange for my honest thoughts and review, with thanks to Random House Transworld Publishing and NetGalley. Nevertheless, the book is a superb debut. McGill sure has a sunny career ahead of them. I’m jealous of their talent. Historical fiction with a dark twist in the spirit of Circe, Ariadne, and Mexican Gothic, Our Hideous Progeny is a brilliant revisiting of Mary Shelley’s classic Frankenstein that unfolds with a fresh, provocative, queer twist. But Mary, declared illegitimate by her family, and Henry, sort of disinherited from his, are in a continual struggle just to make ends meet. They're part of a great scientific circle of inventors and scientists - and yet they are not. However, things start to change when Mary learns who her distant great-uncle, Victor Frankenstein, was and what he accomplished. So at this point the story delves from real history (and real science) into the world of horror and science fiction. But it's a beautiful evolution - or de-evolution - in the hands of CE McGill, the writer. There is SO MUCH going on in this book. Mary's fascination with what she learns about Great Uncle Victor. Her relationship with her husband and her husband's sister. (Gorgeously written.) There's a villain - of course there is! And the whole atmosphere and landscape of rural England in the mid-1800's, along with the poverty and squalor in the great cities. And through it all marches Mary...Witty, dark and sharp as a scalpel, it's a dazzling exploration of the macabre ambitions of Victorian science and a moving meditation on grief. C.E. McGill brilliantly captures what it's like to be a woman in a man's world. LIZZIE POOK, author of MOONLIGHT AND THE PEARLER'S DAUGHTER