Monster: A Novel of FrankensteinDave Zeltserman
Overlook Press, August 2012
ISBN: 978-1590208601
Paranormal and gripping in the tradition of the best work of Stephen King and Justin Cronin, Monster is a gruesome parable of control and vengeance, and an ingenious tribute to one of literature's greatest.
Friedrich Hoffmann is framed and executed for the brutal murder of his fiancée, only to waken in captivity. His brain has been placed into a hulking patchwork of corpse parts, but Friedrich's mind and memories remain intact. He hides his intellect until he manages to escape, but a spell placed upon Friedrich by his creator compels him to return to Dr. Frankenstein’s sinister castle.
Now completely under Dr. Victor Frankenstein’s control, Friedrich desperately wants to break the spell and wreak vengeance on Victor. As the story moves toward the inevitable showdown between Friedrich and Victor, the action moves very quickly. Although the reader has a hint of what will happen when Friedrich and Victor head north, the ending goes well beyond Shelley's.
Dave Zeltserman’s Monster is an ingenious interpretation of Mary Shelley’s tale. The tone and atmosphere absolutely pay their respects to the original, but take Shelley's story in surprising, though fitting, directions. One of the great things about Frankenstein is that the monster's narration comes at the heart of the book. Here, Zeltserman writes a compelling rebuttal that incorporates period history, vampyres, and the Marquis de Sade into a seamless story. Monster is a wonderful companion to Shelley's original novel.
DAVE ZELTSERMAN was born in Boston and educated at the University of Colorado. A former software engineer, he is the author of nine horror and crime novels including The Caretaker of Lorne Field and a Killer's Essence, also published by Overlook. He and his wife live in the Boston area. Visit davezeltserman.com.
ISBN: 978-1590208601; ISBN10: 1590208609; Imprint: Overlook Press; On Sale: 8/2/2012; Format: Hardcover; Pages: 224; $23.95
