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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
worth it?, 4 Mar 2001
By A Customer
Okay, I know this book has been around for some time now, but I think it warrent a review in light of the following circumstances: First, it's was made into "a major motion picture", directed by Roger Corman. Second, Aldiss has also written the sequel Dracula Unbound. Third, I really enjoyed it.I've read quite a few of Brian Aldiss' books over the years, and - with the exception of Helliconia Spring - this is by far the most enjoyable. In my opinion, Aldiss tends to overwrite to an amazing degree, but this is actually a boon as far as Frankenstein Unbound is concerned. The book is very much in the style of Mary Shelley's original, and really captures the imagination by giving such detailed and poetic prose that it's hard to believe that Shelley herself didn't have anything to do with it. The plot concerns one Joe Bodenland, who finds himself a victim of some major timeslips. He's transported from his own time of 2020 to the early 1800's, where he encounters a guilt-wracked Victor Frankenstein. Vic has created a sort of composite zombie from bits of dead bodies, and animates it using his knowledge of electricity. Like all zombies, the sum is greater than the parts, and the monster victimises Victor by framing his maid for a murder. Vic knows that the girl is innocent, but can't say anything as he'll be is trouble for creating the monster in the first place. This is where our man from the future comes in. He does his best to convince Victor to help free the girl, but another timeslip places Joe three months in the future, where the only thing he can do is seek out the help of Mary Godwin, Lord Byron and Percy Shelley. Al in all, the book is a great read, and a surprisingly worth sequel to the original. It raises Aldiss a couple of notches on my list of worthwhile authors.
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