The Sad Life of Mary Shelley
A Glimpse into the Life of the Frankenstein Creator
The spring of 1815 was a tumultuous time in the life of Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin (who was soon to be the renowned Mary Shelley of Frankenstein fame). She wasn’t married yet and suspected her lover, Percy Shelley, was having an affair with her stepsister. Even worse, she’d recently lost her baby girl, who was born prematurely. The thought that she was in some way responsible for the death haunted her, and she spiraled into depression.
In an effort to raise her spirits, Percy Shelley suggested they leave London for the country. It was during this jaunt that she conceived her next (and only surviving) child. But her happiness was short-lived. Percy settled her into a home in Clifton, a suburb of Bristol, then left her to her own devices. She was alone, newly pregnant, still not married, and feared he’d gone back to her stepsister. Throughout her life, Mary kept detailed journals, but the one during this period is lost, rumored to have been destroyed by her own hand years later, such was the anguish of this dark time in her life.
And what better time or frame of mind in which to imagine a monster? For shortly thereafter, Mary Godwin Shelley began writing of what was to become one of the most famous fiends ever created. I merely took the liberty of giving her a little inspiration in my next release, Lost in Darkness.
Here’s a blurb:
Enchanting Regency-Era Gothic Romance Intertwined with Inspiration from Mary Shelley's Frankenstein
Travel writer Amelia Balfour’s dream of touring Egypt is halted when she receives news of a revolutionary new surgery for her grotesquely disfigured brother. This could change everything, and it does. . .in the worst possible way.
Surgeon Graham Lambert has suspicions about the doctor he’s gone into practice with, but he can’t stop him from operating on Amelia’s brother. Will he be too late to prevent the man’s death? Or to reveal his true feelings for Amelia before she sails to Cairo?
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