A Cold Legacy

Gr 9 Up—The final volume of the "Madman's Daughter" series (HarperCollins) accomplishes something too often lacking in trilogies—a third volume that is as compelling and well-written as the first installment. In this entry inspired by Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, Juliet, Lucy, Montgomery, Balthazar, and Edward have escaped from their pursuers to the Scottish estate of Juliet's friend and benefactor, Elizabeth von Stein. They find the isolated estate inhabited by a number of young women and girls, "wards" of Elizabeth, and one very strange male child named Hensley, Elizabeth's son. Juliet also discovers that the secrets of the rich woman's ancestor Victor Frankenstein have been preserved by the family, and with no legitimate heirs, Juliet has been chosen to receive the knowledge of "Perpetual Anatomy." The heroine wonders if she can use this knowledge to save Edward, but the complicated process is fraught with danger. Intrigue, the growing fear of discovery by their pursuers, romances between Elizabeth and Edward as well as Juliet and Montgomery, danger from within the house and its inhabitants, and secrets abound. In addition to the outer turmoil, Juliet continues to worry whether or not as her father's daughter she, too, has the "madness" gene. The skillfully drawn and well-developed characters face their emotional upheavals and outside dangers with aplomb. Shepherd's adroit weaving of the Frankenstein story line into the already complex world of Dr. Moreau's daughter, brings an exciting new twist and a satisfactory ending to the trilogy. Fast-paced and romantic, this page-turning volume results in mixed emotions—contentment with the ending, but still a desire for more.—Janet Hilbun, University of North Texas