Parts were wonderful, but a lot fell flat.

I loved the amount of research that went into this. I loved the slow fall into obsession and possessiveness. I loved the sentient fungi. I loved the gentle creepiness of [redacted]. I loved how queer it was.

But overall many parts of it just fell super flat and I was left whelmed by several of the characterizations.

Not a favorite for me, but definitely going to be one that thrills other readers!

"Something deep inside them both erupted, and all they could see was beauty, and each other, and iridescent algal green."

[Review contains spoilers]

There are not nearly enough reimaginings of Frankenstein out there! Not to mention queer ones or even those that really play with the body/biological horror aspect 👀 Even though this debut didn't blow me away nearly as much as I was expecting, it was still a really creative little tale rooted in fungi and found families.

Gregor and Simon live a solitary existence away from the prying eyes of society in their greenhouse atop the hills. When Gregor obtains a mycelium that has the potential to transform the perception of sentience, both gentlemen dedicate themselves to the task of creating a botanical daughter. As their experiment comes to fruition, neither one of them can expect the toll this will take on their little world.

Touching on the characters, I liked Simon, but also tend to have a soft spot for his type of character anyway. It was interesting seeing how his skills as a taxidermist was utilized to create and maintain their plant daughter. This symbiotic work relationship with Gregor was also very well done. There was some attempt at growth for Simon too but it felt a bit forced. One moment he is a dark brooding doormat and the next he suddenly is the man in charge. It’s almost like a flip was just switched. Gregor is our resident mad scientist and pathetic man. Honestly don't have much else to say about him. I appreciate that the author did try to make them both a little morally questionable. Their romance, while being an important part of the book, was dry. Would have liked to see a relationship that was more on the unhinged side considering the topic or at least one fraught with more tension.

The first quarter of the story or so was excellent, to the point where I thought that A Botanical Daughter was going to be the DEFINITIVE queer gothic Frankenstein retelling. The writing was lush and filled with such rich and beautiful descriptions of botany. However, the story itself did begin to lose a lot of momentum the more it progressed. The book suffered from poor pacing. For a part horror novel, there was a surprising lack of tension. In fact, never once did I actually feel any semblance of dread. A Botanical Daughter actually felt a little too "slice of life" for my taste - we spend a LOT of time just on the day to day life of this found family. I have noticed that there's this newish trend in the sff genre with a focus on "feel good" emotions and the often mundane aka "cozy fantasy/sci fi etc." I would definitely describe A Botanical Daughter as a sort of (and I'm applying this term very loosely here) "cozy horror," which is not to my taste personally. Don't get me wrong, a lot of craziness happens it's just that those moments were a bit overshadowed by the rest of the book.

Overall, a pretty good debut that could have been brilliant but suffers a little from poor pacing and inorganic characterization.

Imagine two men living in a vast greenhouse, the only structure that survived after a fire took the adjoining manor house. Living walls separate the rooms. Humidity is taking a toll on everything, especially the grand piano. Gregor deals in exotic plants. Simon creates whimsical taxidermy in his basement retreat. Once Gregor realizes that his newly imported sample of fungus seems to be intelligent and capable of movement, he sets out to see how much it's capable of. Before he's done, he's created Chloe, a walking, talking, sometimes angry combination of plants. Something about old glass greenhouses has always intrigued and fascinated me and the setting of this book was incredibly vivid. The story itself is hauntingly beautiful and it left me wondering if the parts I found most horrifying were what the author intended. It wasn't the grisly deaths that got to me, it was the awful lack of consent. (And one particularly explicit scene near the end of the book.)

This book was a beautiful Frankenstein-style story, but queer. I found the prose stunning and loved the relationship dynamics in the story. At times, the story felt like it dragged on at times but overall the story was captivating.

Two eccentric bachelors, Gregor (a botanist) and Simon (a taxidermist), live together in unusual harmony.

However, when Gregor comes across a species of fungi who he believes might be sentient, he decides to test his theory further.

He decides to plant the fungi into a freshly dead human corpse to grow in and control. Simon reluctantly agrees to help him, but, as their experiment grows, so, too, does the rift between them.

A Botanical Daughter by Noah Medlock is a wonderfully bizarre gothic novel teeming with mad science, body horror, and creeping dread.

This book takes after its Frankensteinian roots well—exploring the philosophy of selfhood and personhood (albeit through botany). For instance, at what point is a plant or fungi merely reacting to stimuli and at what point is it considered to have a consciousness? Is their experiment their creation, their daughter, or something more?

All in all, it’s a beautifully grotesque, captivating read that I think will delight fans of eco horror and Pygmalion-esque creation stories.

This book is stellar and gruesome, in the most beautiful kind of way. It encompasses beautiful familial bonds, and the inseparable bond of love. While having so much science and facts behind the story, there is still so much picturesque whimsy that encapsulates the whole book.

There are certain stories that have resonated so well with readers that they're guaranteed to stick around forever, being retold, or re-imagined in so many ways that people can be deeply familiar with the story without ever having read the original. Frankenstein is one of these stories. The birth of science fiction, the original story was written hundreds of years ago, and whilst most people have never read it, will know the name, and will instantly conjure images in their minds of the patchwork 'monster' the titular doctor created. And Frankenstein serves as the inspiration point for the new novel A Botanical Daughter, but doesn't hold the story slave to the original text, with author Noah Medlock having created something truly unique and magical.

The story centres on taxidermist Simon Rievaulx and botanist Gregor Sandys, two Victorian gentleman husbands who live together in a botanical garden on the edge of town, caring for the plants within and keeping away from the bigoted and judgemental eyes of those around them. They're free to explore their love for each other in their own little garden of Eden. However, there's something missing from their lives. They want another person with them, a child of sorts. Coming together, the two of them use their talents for gardening and experimentation to craft a living being made of body parts, plants, and fungus.

There have been a lot of stories that have drawn upon the central theme of Frankenstein, of the creation of a new being from pieces of bodies. Some of these will even use some form of technology in the process too, and there have been more than a fair few versions of the creature that have been cybernetic in nature; but I don't think I've ever seen a version done like this, one that incorporated flora and fungi in order to bind the various parts used and to breathe life into the creature. It adds a unique and creepy flavour to A Botanical Daughter that makes the book stand out immediately. It also creates a character, Chloe, who I'd love to see depicted in a visual medium. The descriptions for the character created a vivid image in my mind, but I'd love to see her brought to life in another form, where I could see her moving and interacting with the world with her unique biology.

As with most stories like this, however, things are not always easy when creating new life, and there are a number of troubles that the characters go through over the course of the book; mainly interpersonal ones. It was nice to see Medlock explore the shifting relationships between the characters as the story progressed, focusing on how people change over the course of the book. However, there were times where I was hoping for more of this, and wanted the book to go into greater detail. But, the fact that the book did spend some time on this where other stories would not makes it even better than I was hoping for.

A Botanical Daughter manages to intertwine together beauty and horror in its narrative, much in the same way Chloe's fathers manage to do so when creating her. The prose has some wonderfully descriptive, beautiful moments, and some parts that get under you skin and chill you. If you were to ask me what I'd want to see in a Frankenstein inspired story I'd never have thought about queer love stories, plant human hybrids, or the Victorian era, but it turns out that these were all things I really wanted, and for A Botanical Daughter showed me what I'd been missing out on.

I really enjoyed this book. It definitely has a gothic feel to it, even though it’s set in a greenhouse instead of a creaky old mansion. The characters are very well rounded, with a lot of depth. Mostly horrifying, it’s also strangely heartwarming at times.

There is some gore, but it’s minor. And of course quite a bit of body horror!

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I'm a sucker for a Frankenstein inspired story and this one really blew my socks off. I also really appreciated the Mexican Gothic inspiration. Overall, this book was everything I could have wanted it to be.

Simon and Gregor, a Taxidermist and a Botanist, live in a strange greenhouse on a secluded estate... which is ideal for their own peace but also for their work

One day, Gregor receives a strange fungus which gives him inspiration to create life using plant matter.... but to facilitate this, they may need a host that is no longer of the living

Jennifer is thrown into the mix as the two gentlemens housekeeper, deep in grief from the loss of her closest confidant and friend

The 3, well 4 if you count the mycelium, happen across a strange kind of family unit but where is the line between family and experiment when one of you is not quite human

An interesting take on the Frankestein story, the boys made me laugh at the eccentricities and smile at their connections. The found family was sweet and also disturbing at times with the descriptions, but all in a good way as made you feel engrossed in the story

Little Shop of Horror vibes for sure and a great story of ambition, family and love.... and greenery...

Thank you to Titan Books and NetGalley for the review copy... out now for all to enjoy! Can't wait to see what Noah does next!

This is a fascinating, meticulously crafted story, but the characters didn't draw me in the way I'd hoped they would. I do think fans of queer Victorian speculative fiction will absolutely eat all of this up, tough.

Firstly, the plant and mushroom descriptions in this book were so incredibly interesting. Seeing the way that the main character built a body with plants that react in different ways to touch was very cool. I love fungal horror books, and I think the premise of this story was very creative and interesting. Although I understand why this book is compared to Mexican Gothic, I think that their similarities end with them both including fungal horror due to some weird racialized comments that I mention later in my review. Mexican Gothic engages with race, eugenics, and colonialism in such a deep and interesting way, whereas this book…does not.
I did have a lot of issues with this book, mainly with the characters’ actions not making sense to me, or their characters just being inconsistent with how they thought and acted. There were many times when Simon or Gregor would just take a complete 180 in how they view Chloe, and it never made sense to me why their minds had changed so suddenly. The characters also felt pretty flat to me unfortunately, so I felt a disconnect between myself and the story while I was reading, which definitely tamped down my enjoyment. I got the impression while reading that the author wasn’t taking the story that seriously while writing it because it felt so jokey most of the time while I was reading it, even in scenes where that didn’t seem appropriate for the moment. He was also noticeably overusing the word “queer” in a derogatory way, probably as a nod to the queerness in the story, but he did it too much to the point where I got annoyed. The scenes between Chloe and Jennifer were pretty great, and I liked their tension and chemistry, especially in that final scene with them! On the other hand, I sensed no chemistry between Simon and Gregor and their relationship didn’t make much sense to me (which was maybe the point?)
There were also some Orientalist undertones throughout this story with Gregor, a white guy, going to Sumatra to “discover” the magical/sentient fungus that he takes home by tricking a sultan into thinking it’s hallucinogenic (and implying that the sultan may have consumed it and died so that Gregor could steal it)?? He then goes on to exoticize the fungus and Chloe for the remainder of the story, referring to it as the “oriental fungus” and “grotesque arabesque.” There was also a scene where Chloe was trying to sing, and he said “her notes were a long way away from Gregor’s Western diatonic major scale. Her warble was heavily ornamented with chromatic grace notes and weird resonances, more at home in an exotic call-to-prayer than in a bel canto singing lesson.” Like…huh? I couldn’t tell if this Orientalism and exoticization was intentional because Gregor is an unlikeable main character, or if the author was just unconsciously including weird colonialist attitudes. Either way, it felt gross to read these types of phrases as the story didn’t seem critical of their use.

Simon does his work in the basement. His “cadaverous creations” range from social commentary to the whimsical.

“It wasn’t his fault he was good at stuffing God’s creatures and posing them to lampoon the social mores of the day.”

Gregor works in the light, cultivating floral and fungal wonders from near and far, guided by his imagination and innovative spirit.

“He had better things to do - there was botany afoot.”

Simon and Gregor have never had the opportunity to have a child. Until now. Their relationship is unconventional for the time and, as a result, secret. The same could be said of their daughter.

I’ve been obsessed with this cover since I first saw it. I also may have been a tad obsessed with the blurb.

Sometimes the reality of a book doesn’t line up with your expectations but that’s not the book’s fault and it’s not always the worst thing that could happen.

The writing was more poetic than I thought I’d find and that was a pleasant surprise. There was a formality to some of the writing, which I also didn’t expect, but that fit well with the time period in which the book takes place.

I was awed by the amount of research that must have gone into the potential repurposing of each plant. As someone who has successfully managed to kill an air fern, I’m clearly not the most horticulturally minded person. As a result, I sometimes glazed over when I encountered details that were beyond me.

“I swear I will see the day when humans fully understand the botanical kingdom, and the botanical kingdom fully understands us.”

I never really connected with Simon or Gregor but I had a soft spot for Jennifer. I wanted to spend more time with Rosalinda.

I spent the entire book waiting for hell to break loose and probably hyped it up too much in my mind. There was the body horror I’d hoped for but not as much as I’d wanted.

To be fair, I’m not sure there’d ever be enough body horror for me. At this point, I may be somewhat immune. I’ve just binged all of the Saw movies and wasn’t squeamish once. If you’re not as bloodthirsty as me, you’ll probably find the right amount of body horror here.

And, you never know, you may be invited to very-high tea.

“Now all we can do is hope, pray, and water.”

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Titan Books for the opportunity to read this book. I’m rounding up from 3.5 stars.

The story centers around Gregor’s great experiment: a holobiont, e.g. a collection of plants that combine into a single sentient entity. The project begins when Gregor acquires a mycelium that has a sort of symbiotic relationship with an orchid, caring for it to some degree by controlling light and moisture around it. Gregor immediately, in classic mad scientist fashion, decides that he can nurture this into sentience and artificial life. As he becomes obsessed with this project, he ropes Simon and Jennifer into his plots and events unfold from there. This is a story with some horrific and dark turns, but the characters have humor and hope and kindness. I found it a fast and engaging read, with great writing and characters.

A queer horror with fungus, botanicals and elements of the classic Frankenstein? We all knew I would need to read this! I can honestly say I was not disappointed by Medlock’s beautiful, cozy horror. I have honestly never fallen in love with a book and the protagnoists so quickly and admit I was surprised since one is a taxidermist (Simon) which is something that makes me uncomfortable yet with Medlock at the helm it was not as bad as I though it would be. With Simon we have Gregor who is the botanist and both live together in a green house in England. Of course the main reason for this is to hide their relationship.

Now some may say well it sounds a bit farfetched that someone would find a way to grow a daughter out of flora and fungus let me say that Medlock makes it seem like it is entirely logical and possible. The prose is beautiful with so much information that you feel like you along side the characters as they work. Medlock excels at the prose but also at the character building. The pace is generally mid-level. There is not a lot of risk/worry which is why I say this is more of a cozy horror about family and what you make (pun intended) from what you have.

Now I don’t like spoilers but there is also a sapphic subplot and a lot of questions you can ask while reading about family and if it needs to be by blood or what your choose. If you love gothic horror with a cozy feel, flora and fungus and beautiful stories of familial love this is the one for you.

Look, in my foundations of who I am as a reader is one Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. I am a gothic girlie. This book was my gothic horror dream. It was so deliciously dark and the juxtaposition of this reanimated corpse made of flowers and fungus was so gorgeous.

It was creepy and intriguing. Funny at parts, horrifying at others.

Also, Gregor and Simon were such interesting characters. The way they operate with one another. The quiet love they have for another. The way that manifests in other ways.

This book was everything that I wanted it to be and more. I loved it so much and if you want to be a little creeped out while you read I cannot recommend it enough (also this has made me more scared of fungus which I wasn’t aware was possible after The Last of Us, but here we are)

Thank you to NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A Botanical Daughter by Noah Medlock is a verdant story about love, obsession, and what you’re willing to do with either. After getting his hands on a mysterious and unstudied species of mycelium, botanist Gregor Sandys decides to test the limits of the mycelium’s abilities and answer the question: What is consciousness?

There’s a lot to love about this novel. I personally love the themes of found family for queer people. Gregor and his taxidermist partner, Simon are the best kind of gay dads for their gay daughters CHLOE (the titular Botanical Daughter) and Jennifer. Though chaotic and fraught with murder, watching the relationship blossom (ha) amongst this group of people was a treat to read.

However, despite my love for queer relationships, there are a few issues I had while reading. Without going into spoilers, it felt as though the resolution of side plots were thrown to the wayside in an effort to focus more on the conclusion of the main plot. Additionally, I wasn’t incredibly satisfied with the way Gregor and Simon’s character arcs ended. Yes, they are different people by the novel’s end, but I’m not exactly sure I liked the people they became by the end.

Overall, I loved the way Medlock described his world and his characters. I would recommend to anyone that loves a creature feature, queer found families, and has particular love for Frankenstein’s Monster.

A Botanical Daughter was a fantastic read and queer and horrific re-telling of Frankenstein fully grabbed my attention from the beginning. I appreciated the multiple points of view switching between Gregor, Simon, and Jenny’s point of view. I loved that the romance was already set in stone and this was more of a test and exploration of a romantic relationship amidst the fungal fears growing in Gregor’s botanical garden. I loved the concept of living in a botanical garden, the social isolation from society out of necessity in this relationship as well as in connection to the secrecy of floral and fungal experiments taking place. I had a great time reading this debut horror novel and absolutely recommend fans of Frankenstein and queer re-tellings take some time to read this novel!

This is like little shop of horrors meets frankenstein.

I loved the book, it was dark, and yet told a powerful love story. Could I have done without the scene between Jennifer and CHLOE? Absolutely, but I understood why it needed to happen. I could have just done without the imagery, especially knowing what CHLOE was made up of.

Simon and Gregor were polar opposites, and I liked Simon a great deal more. Gregor was quite selfish in that he seemed to only care about his experiments than how everyone else in the house was feeling. Everytime he kissed or showed affection to Simon it was because Simon would acknowledge his support of Gregor's experiments. He never showed him affection just to show it and yet Simon stuck by him regardless.

A cozy queer horror that will either inspire you to grow a flower garden or delete your neighbour.

Simon and Gregor live together in a greenhouse in the 1800s England and are forced to hide their relationship from the world. Simon is a taxidermist and Gregor is a botanist of rare plants. After discovering a possibly-sentient fungus, the two men work together to create their botanical daughter. There is also a sapphic love story, but I don't want to give too much away - trust me, you'll love it!

I love the concept of creating a Frankenstein's-monster out of flowers and fungus. If you do too, this book will not let you down. The story is rich with description, making me think I was standing right beside our main characters throughout the story.

This is an insular story, which rides on the strength and authenticity of the character building, which Noah Medlock does really well. While the pace of the story is pretty solid, the stakes always seem pretty low, which is what makes this a cozy horror. I love that the backdrop of this story is a lush and blooming greenhouse, while in the foreground, the story does not shy away from the most gruesome parts of horror.

There is a subplot that reminds me a lot of Edward Albee's The American Dream, which demonstrates how the 'perfect family' creates 'the perfect child'. I like the questions that rise from making your own family, in this version it's a botanical daughter. What do we do for the family we choose? What happens when the someone isn't living up to our expectations/dreams? And how do we find balance again?

No spoilers - I loved the ending. I won't say more, but I didn't guess it, so that's a bonus.

Thank you to NetGalley and Titan for this advanced reader copy.

This book is best read under a twisted hazel tree with your partner, after hastily filling a shallow grave. If anyone asks, you were in London.