The Madman’s Daughter (The Madman’s Daughter #1) – Megan Shepherd

Title: The Madman's Daughter (The Madman's Daughter #1) by Megan Shepherd
Publishing Info: January 29, 2013 by HarperCollins
Source: Won
Genres: Historical Fiction, Horror, Science Fiction, Young Adult
Find it on the web: Buy from Amazon // GoodreadsDate Completed: January 10, 2013
Related Posts: Her Dark Curiosity (The Madman's Daughter #2)

    Sixteen-year-old Juliet Moreau has built a life for herself in London—working as a maid, attending church on Sundays, and trying not to think about the scandal that ruined her life. After all, no one ever proved the rumors about her father's gruesome experiments. But when she learns he is alive and continuing his work on a remote tropical island, she is determined to find out if the accusations are true.
Accompanied by her father's handsome young assistant, Montgomery, and an enigmatic castaway, Edward—both of whom she is deeply drawn to—Juliet travels to the island, only to discover the depths of her father's madness: He has experimented on animals so that they resemble, speak, and behave as humans. And worse, one of the creatures has turned violent and is killing the island's inhabitants. Torn between horror and scientific curiosity, Juliet knows she must end her father's dangerous experiments and escape her jungle prison before it's too late. Yet as the island falls into chaos, she discovers the extent of her father's genius—and madness—in her own blood.
Inspired by H. G. Wells's classic The Island of Dr. Moreau, The Madman's Daughter is a dark and breathless Gothic thriller about the secrets we'll do anything to know and the truths we'll go to any lengths to protect.  

Hrrmmmmm. *looks up The Island of Dr. Moreau* OHHHHH. Okay. So I knew this was a re-telling of The Island of Dr. Moreau BUT I was a silly girl and had no idea what it was about. Well. Same story, but substitute teenage girl as the protagonist.

Okay, now that I know what the story is actually about (since I’m stubborn and also refuse to read summaries before I pick up books), “gothic thriller” was an entirely accurate description in every way. I was definitely thrilled and totally sucked in for the main action sequences and almost the entire novel. Want to hear something stupid? I had no idea this book was about Dr. Moreau turning animals into humans because I DON’T READ SUMMARIES!! Ahhh. But that’s also a good thing because otherwise I might not have picked the book up (although I won it in a giveaway so that’s irrelevant, but you get the point).

NOW. Vivisection? Not entirely convinced of the procedures to make this happen. Tell me more science behind this so I understand. How exactly DO you take a dog and a bear, combine them, and come out with something that resembles a human? What kinds of drugs keeps them in a humanlike form? That’s where I lost a little on the rating system. Maybe it was just a bit too gruesome to describe all that in a YA novel, but I need a bit more convincing of the science behind it because I was still doubting the possibility instead of simply being fascinated.

ALSO. Enough with the love triangle! It was okay at first but then Juliet got annoying and she (Juliet) was practically making it a love square in her own mind. Take it easy, woman! Let the two boys fight over you and then decide which one you want. And don’t jump back and forth between them.

Okay, I know that’s a lot of complaining, but I did enjoy it a lot! I just had to air out my complaints before finally settling on my overall opinion. It was really quite exciting, dark, and thrilling! I’d definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a thriller/horror story of the unusual sort. I was honestly racing through the book, flipping through the pages, biting my nails – it was a breath-taking story that had me so anxious to see how it ended!

BUT. How excited am I that it’s a trilogy? Not very. This would have been a great stand alone. Will I still read the other books in the trilogy? You bet!

Juliet Moreau: I liked Juliet well enough, but towards the end when she was caught up in her love triangle, I got a but frustrated. She was such a strong character, fighting for herself, standing up against society, and then when it came to boys, she turned all hot and bothered and flustered. I just thought it conflicted a little and it was a little disappointing to see.
Dr. Henri Moreau: Oooh definitely creepy. Hands down has my vote for one of the creepiest villains of 2013 novels – And yes, I feel confident saying that in January.
Montgomery AND Edward: So I kind of feel the same about both of the romantic interests. I kept going back and forth, hot and cold, and couldn’t decide which one I liked better, never really committing to either one (probably because Juliet didn’t either!) until we finally come to the end and Juliet finds herself in a situation which pushes her to decide. Hmm. I just wish I had stronger feelings about either one!  

Try it

I wasn’t totally crazy for this one and clearly there were a few things that bothered me a lot… but I also did still enjoy it. It was an interesting retelling (you know… once I know the premise of the original) and I really enjoyed the gothic horror feel!

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