The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein

By: Kiersten White

Narrated by: Katharine Lee McEwan

Don't miss this monster of a New York Times best-seller, a stunning and dark reimagining of Frankenstein that internationally best-selling author Stephanie Garber raves is "exquisitely disturbing".

Elizabeth Lavenza hasn't had a proper meal in weeks. Her thin arms are covered with bruises from her "caregiver," and she is on the verge of being thrown into the streets...until she is brought to the home of Victor Frankenstein, an unsmiling, solitary boy who has everything - except a friend.

Victor is her escape from misery. Elizabeth does everything she can to make herself indispensable - and it works. She is taken in by the Frankenstein family and rewarded with a warm bed, delicious food, and dresses of the finest silk. Soon she and Victor are inseparable.

But her new life comes at a price. As the years pass, Elizabeth's survival depends on managing Victor's dangerous temper and entertaining his every whim, no matter how depraved. Behind her blue eyes and sweet smile lies the calculating heart of a girl determined to stay alive no matter the cost...as the world she knows is consumed by darkness.

An NPR best book of the year. A Chicago Public Library best book of the year.

"A masterful and monstrous retelling." (Stephanie Garber, number one New York Times and internationally best-selling author of Caraval and Legendary)

"Inescapably compelling." (Victorial Schwab, number one New York Times best-selling author of This Savage Song)

"An inventive, grotesque, and completely unexpected reimagining of Frankenstein. Mary Shelley would be proud." (Mackenzi Lee, New York Times best-selling author of The Gentlemen's Guide to Vice and Virtue)

©2018 Kiersten White (P)2018 Listening Library

Critic reviews

“If you read Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and thought the ladies in that were getting a bad deal, then this is the book you've been waiting for.... White is unafraid to dig in the graveyard and piece together a creature of her own design out of old parts, and the resulting tale is dark and chilling.” (NPR)

"This novel indeed descends to “dark and hellish” depths, but captivated readers will avidly plumb them in the company of the complicated and compelling Eliza­beth Frankenstein." (Horn Book)

“In this clever retelling of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, White neatly undercuts the original by making Victor’s narrative wildly unreliable...this character-driven novel with a healthy amount of gore should appeal to horror fans, too.” (Booklist)

A Shockingly Great Book!

This book came out of nowhere for me. It was a instinct but, and I’m so glad it paid off! It was everything I wanted it to be. It was sad, gory, creepy, and mysterious. I thought Elizabeth was a very complex and real character. She was unlikeable at some points, but that was the point. However, it was very slow during most of the book. It also had a lot of mysterious which were really simple to guess ahead of the time. Lastly, the ending was.. I don’t know. It wasn’t my favorite. Despite all of this, I really enjoyed the time I spent on this book!

What an ending!

This is silly but I didn't realize that this was a retelling of Frankenstein from Elizabeth's perspective when I purchased it. It's been more than thirty years since I read Frankenstein and didn't even remember Elizabeth in the book until after I started listening to this story. I bought it when it was on sale and didn't really look into what it was. I appreciate Mary Shelley's amazing creation but loved this retelling even more. I think that Mary Shelley would have loved this book and it's fantastic ending.

I love this book

Holy crap, this was amazing. I caught myself yelling at Elizabeth at certain sections, rooting for her in others. This is wonderful.

A pleasant surprise

I went into this book thinking it would just be a retelling with a slight twist. It was so much more. I devoured this book. Katharine McEwans narration truly brought the characters to life. Anyone who wants to know more about the Frankenstein family, and a different perspective on Victor should definitely give this a read

loved it!

Really enjoyed this. As an English teacher, I thought I knew how it was going to go, but I was wrong. It'll keep you hooked and guessing until the end!

i wish i could give it more stars!

Love everything about this book! I didn't want it to end! The narrator was great too!

Perfect for dark nights & Frankenstein fans

Fantastic, satisfying and a perfect read for dark fall and winter days and night. It got stronger as it went along. Great ending. Well done! A must for fans of Mary Shelley and her Frankenstein. Wonderful narrator! #FemaleProtagonist #Dark #Monsters #tagsgiving #sweepstakes,

200 Years and Still The Tale Grabs Your Attention.

Have always been a fan of the original and yet this book took the characters to another level of complexity. Bravo!

great book

what an amazing retelling of a story... the narrator was perfect , great job

Great retelling!

great retelling but there were some lingering questions that i wanted answers for. What exactly happened to one of the characters? What was one of the main characters doing when they couldn't find him? Why was Robert killed? The ending was a little anti climactic but felt right for the story so I wasn't too upset about that but I wished those few loose ends would have been explained. It was a fantastic retelling though and I appreciate that she made the main character calculating and showed her constant state of survival and the changes she began to make. I wish we could have seen those changes a bit more but that's ok! The Narrator was fantastic! she really set the tone and did different characters quite well. I really enjoyed listening to her read. overall a good book