Our Hideous Progeny: A thrilling Gothic Adventure

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It was also a terrific portrait of a terrible, ordinary marriage that somehow seemed both quintessentially Victorian and universal. Absolutely fantastic news today: my debut novel, the Frankenstein-inspired paleontological gothic OUR HIDEOUS PROGENY, has been acquired by Kirsty Dunseath at Doubleday! I've met many a Henry and at no point did I question why Mary had been drawn to him in the first place, or why she's pulling away from him now. However, their luck could be about to change, when Mary discovers old family papers pertaining to great uncle Victor Frankenstein’s disappearance, together with an earth shattering secret - a secret so profound that it could change not only the future of the world, but their own future too, with unimaginable wealth and great renown.

She was a woman so fleshed out, that I felt like I truly knew her, and she was a person I’d like to have in my life. For readers of Circe or Ariadne, a brilliant literary revisiting of Mary Shelley's classic Frankenstein with a fresh, queer, provocative twist.

Mary, with a sharp mind and a sharper tongue, is keen to make her name in this world of science, alongside her geologist husband Henry, but without wealth and connections, their options are limited.

The year is 1853, and it's not easy getting work for a 'too-outspoken' young scientist (Henry) and the skilled young illustrator (Mary) so they just sort of coast along. But after uncovering clues to her great uncle’s disappearance, Mary devises a plan to realize her ambitions. It’s such an electrifyingly creative and wholly original take on Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and I genuinely couldn’t put it down.Through Mary’s fight for acclaim and acceptance in the scientific world, McGill does an excellent job of showing the trials of women in the 19th century, particularly for women as intelligent and outspoken as Mary. Their quest takes them to the wilds of Scotland, to Henry's intriguing but reclusive sister Maisie, and to a deadly chase with a rival who is out to steal their secret. Mary is a fabulously nuanced protagonist on a journey of grief, reflection, ambition and awakening, and the way McGill wrote her inner world had me scrambling for a highlighter. Mary is a would-be palaeontologist, but the fact that she’s a woman coupled with a lack of formal education means her work’s been overshadowed by her talented but feckless husband Henry.

Despite all of this, McGill has shown that they hold great potential and I will eagerly pick up any future novels they put out. Our main character Mary was Victor Frankenstein's great niece who decided to "recreate" his work (with a turtle, not a human - at least she was smart enough to learn a lesson). As Henry’s desire for fame grows, Mary must decide how far she is willing to go to protect the Creature she has grown to love.Mary is smart, andfeisty, but she is desperate to escape the shackles of her low-birth and makes rather unwise choices, and lands up with ahusband whose talents lie inmediocrity, spite, and making even more foolish choices.