Review: Man Made Boy by Jon Skovron

Title:  Man Made Boy
Author: Jon Skovron

Publisher:  Viking Penguin
Publishing Date: October 3rd 2013

Pages: 368
Genre:  YA Retelling/ Sci-Fi Coming of Age

Series:  Stand Alone
Source: Audio

  

Love can be a real monster.

Sixteen-year-old Boy’s never left home. When you’re the son of Frankenstein’s monster and the Bride, it’s tough to go out in public, unless you want to draw the attention of a torch-wielding mob. And since Boy and his family live in a secret enclave of monsters hidden under Times Square, it’s important they maintain a low profile.

Boy’s only interactions with the world are through the Internet, where he’s a hacker extraordinaire who can hide his hulking body and stitched-together face behind a layer of code. When conflict erupts at home, Boy runs away and embarks on a cross-country road trip with the granddaughters of Jekyll and Hyde, who introduce him to malls and diners, love and heartbreak. But no matter how far Boy runs, he can’t escape his demons—both literal and figurative—until he faces his family once more.

This hilarious, romantic, and wildly imaginative tale redefines what it means to be a monster—and a man.

It seems that classic retellings are everywhere, I do love a good retelling especially one that is loosely based or like this one..... carried on from the original. I admit I have never read Frankenstein but I am familiar with story and always felt that the poor monster got the short end of the stick. I was elated to see a book that carries on the monster's life and it was a fun read. I enjoyed the read and it was a good one for the month of October.

The Monster and his Bride decided to create a child. It is now modern times and they both are still ticking. They live in a community of monsters and have been for quite a while. This story follows Boy, their son as he grows, develops his own thoughts, and starts to desire freedom. Boy feels trapped and he wants to try to live a human life, when his parents decide to help him out by sending him off to live with the Frankenstein's he runs away. He runs away to live in New York, finds a roommate, a job, and that bills suck. Things get a bit crazy and he finds himself on the run from his own creation. Boy must decide what is morally right and his responsibility to his community, his family, his creation, and himself.

There were some pretty cool things about this book. The monsters and mythical creatures were just awesome. I loved the incorporation of both sci fi monsters with mythical creature monsters..... mermaids, sirens, werewolves, vampires, trolls, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde's grandchildren, invisible man, and so on. It was  the perfect mixture of fantasy and sci-fi.  I also enjoyed the communities they lived in and they friendship and commodity they had or one another.

I also loved the adventures int he book, the trip and attempt at living in the city and the road trip. It was quite entertaining to see  Boy figure so much out. I also liked the storyline and the villain of the story. The story of a creation making a creation and then once again... that creation going kind of nuts. The villain in the story, the creation VI, was pretty awesome too... Not the actual villain. she was pretty bat crazy, but the way the villain was created and sustain. Modern day Frankenstein's Monster at its best. 

The main character, Boy, was pretty cool. I did have my issues with  him at times. He seemed a little too naive and selfish. I guess this comes along with living in a very small community and being sheltered for so long. He does come along and their is some huge character growth by the end, which was really good.... I just had some issues with him at the beginning. He annoyed me pretty good. 

Claire and Sophie rocked as characters and so did Mozart. Mozart I didn't get to see enough of and if there is another book coming... more Mozart please. Mozart was a pretty cool werewolf in the book and he stole the show for the few moments he was in the story. Claire and Sophie were pretty awesome. I loved the story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde's grand-daughters. They were an amazing addition to the story. They were so entertaining. I think Sophie was my favorite. She was spunky and fun. Claire though was snarky and kick butt. So yes it's hard to choose between the two. 

The book was full of many little stories within the big scheme of it all and it does all come together pretty great in the end. At first I was a bit worried about the story... it seemed all over the place.... but it does make sense at the end and the end is pretty darn cool. 

Pretty fun read. I enjoyed it quite a bit.