3.8/5 stars.

This was a cute read! I enjoyed the story and the artwork, it was both cute and creepy at the same time. As someone who was once a teen not knowing what to do with my life, I really related to Mary (other than the whole able to heal monsters thing) and it was nice to see her come into her own and embrace what she wanted to do, regardless of her family legacy. I wish there had been more background about her abilities, and the romance felt quite rushed, but still a good read!

I really enjoyed this graphic novel although I did think it was a bit short. I loved the concept and the artwork. Having recently read about Mary Shelley, reading about her (fictions) descendants was a great way to continue with the story. The story and narration was brilliant but it could’ve been a bit longer. I want to know what happens between Mary and Adam so will definitely be picking up the next volume!

Oh, I loved this so much! As a fan of Mary Shelley, I was so curious as to what a graphic novel about a direct descendant would entail, and I wasn't let down whatsoever! I really enjoyed the art style and the writing, and it really drew me in almost straight away and left me wanting SO much more.

Mary was an interesting character to read about. She is funny and somewhat relatable. She is a strong independent girl who doesn’t allow anyone to dictate her life and I was quite frankly living for it. She’s her own person who grows to be confident in her cool ability. It was lovely to see a badass protagonist.

The concept for this graphic novel is something I adore. I love fictional books, movies and tv shows following the descendants of real and fictional famous people. This was a quick entertaining read filled with good characters that I enjoyed reading about. The art style was absolutely positively beautiful – I couldn’t get enough. Additionally, I liked that this graphic novel showed the pressures of figuring out who you are as well as deciding who you want to be not who everyone else wants you to be.

Ultimately, I decided on a three-star rating due to the fact that certain parts of the plot and dialogue felt rushed as well as underdeveloped. This was a pretty short graphic novel so there wasn’t much room to develop Mary’s reaction to finding out about the monster world – this scene was pretty unclimactic. I hope this is the start of a new graphic novel series as there is so much more to explore with this story. If that is the case this is a promising start and I look forward to picking up future volumes.

This was quite the gem to read; I think what makes it fantastic is its ability to channel both adolescents and young adults. I didn't mind that this was tailored toward more adolescents because the narrative was quite good. I wish I had a book like this when I was in high school or even middle school. I thought the art was fantastic, it worked with the story and narrative, and this works all around. What a great read!

The Beginning is always today...

This is the book that I needed in High School and even early college. The pressure to know exactly where you are heading and what you are going to do for the rest of your life is tremendous at this stage and it Is also the time where we have the most pressure around what those around us expect us to be.

While I think this book definitely addresses the pressure from outside forces to pick the path that is right based on their expectations. Instead of showing someone choosing their own path and succeeding they show (world-altering) repercussions for choosing a path different than what is expected.

But overall this book is a cute read, with a happy ending, with heartwarming characters.

Imagine not only being named after the gothic inventor of modern science fiction, Mary Shelley, but also being the youngest in a family of award-winning authors directly descended from her - only without any idea what to do with your life. The protagonist of this comic thought that the pressure of her family name was more than enough already, when increasingly creepy monsters and spirits enter her teenage life, demanding her to become their personal, supernatural doctor.

I mean, this was fun! Mary's face and gothic attire in particular are a delight! I only wished that both the plot (like that of a 90s Saturday-morning cartoon) and the rest of the artwork lived up to the flashy gothic nature of the main character. The backgrounds were drab, earth-toned squares, all supporting characters outshone by Mary. More extravaganza please!

Prose (Story): Mary Shelley is a typical modern-day teen, if maybe a bit on the dark side. If she is dark, though, she had a reason: the overbearing legacy of being the great-times-5 granddaughter of none other than the Mary Shelley, the woman who became a legend by shocking society when she penned the iconic horror novel Frankenstein. Teen Mary is feeling the pressure of her lineage - for generations the female descendants of Mary Shelley have all proven themselves ambitious, successful novelists or writers - but somehow that bloodline seems to have run out in Mary, who doesn't want to be anything as much as she just wants to be. But when out late one night on the streets of her hometown in the rain, Mary come across a handsome young man limping her way. And when she finds out he's limping because he's holding his own severed foot in his hand - and has come to Mary asking her to re-attach it - the former goth-girl who spent so much time rejecting her heritage discovers that maybe she does have her own special talent, after all. Not to mention an affinity for attracting monsters.

Don's (Review): An interesting premise that, after a slightly slow start in building its world, blooms nicely into an original graphic novel about a young girl who believes she's pretty much coasting through life - not to mention trying to keep her pushy mother, aunt, and grandmother from driving her crazy by telling her she must be wonderful, somehow - who learns, with the help of a cute and possibly-dead boy, a Harpy, and a stuff bunny possessed by the spirit of Shirley Jackson, that her special gifts, indeed, might be the most important of all - not to mention save the monser community from extinction. The premise is great and mostly works, artwork suitably dark with shades of black and blue and purple, the writing especially strong in letting readers feel Mary's angst as a teen. If anything, I just wished for things to go on after the generally fulfilling Big Finale ... so much so that, if anything, I'm hoping at some point for a sequel. Oh yeah, and I seriously want my own Shirley Jackson-possessed bunny! Some toy manufacturer should seriously jump on this! 4/5 stars

NOTE: I received a free ARC of this title from NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.

This was such a fun graphic novel! I loved the friendship featured and the budding potential romance is adorable! The side characters both human and monster alike had so much personality and charm! I think Ghost Bun Bun was my favorite of all but I enjoyed the harpy too!

And I LOVED the art style! Always an important part of a graphic novel and this artist nailed the vibe of the story so well!

Angsty teenager Mary Shelley is not interested in carrying on her family’s celebrated legacy of being a great writer, but she soon discovers that she has the not-so-celebrated (and super-secret) Shelley power to heal monsters, just like her famous ancestor, and those monsters are not going to let her ignore her true calling anytime soon.

The Shelley family history is filled with great writers: the original Mary Shelley, author of Frankenstein, the acclaimed mystery writer Tawny Shelley, cookbook maven Phyllis Shelley…the list goes on and on. But this Mary Shelley, named after her great-great-great-great-great grandmother, doesn’t want anything to do with that legacy. Th2020en a strangely pale (and really cute) boy named Adam shows up and asks her to heal a wound he got under mysterious circumstances, and Mary learns something new about her family: the first Mary Shelley had the power to heal monsters, and Mary has it, too. Now the monsters won’t stop showing up, Mary can’t get her mother Tawny to leave her alone about writing something (anything!), she can’t tell her best friend Rhonda any of this, and all Mary wants is to pass biology.- Goodreads

I love Mary Shelley more than her book. Her life story, although not so entertaining to her, is the perfect story that captures you and makes you fall in love.  With that being said, I read almost anything related to her including retellings. 

This graphic novel was okay. I didn't really care for the characters or Mary's angst. I did like the fact that the author plays upon the fact that all the women following the original Shelley were successful in their given fields and not just regular successful but exceptional. I understand the pressure and I know it sucks but that dragged on throughout the book even as she found her way. 

I know this is an introduction but I wanted to be captivated and invested. I really wasn't. 

Overall, 2 Pickles

Nice reading but with a somewhat "rough draft" pace. The graphic style is dark and the story seemed perfect for Halloween: indeed, the story is spooky and in the theme!
I liked my reading, but I had a problem with the rhythm: the plot takes a long time to settle, and after all the action follows too quickly for my taste.
I also found Mary to be quite stoic: she didn't seem so impacted by seeing wounded monsters show up to her ...

In short, it was a nice read but which will have, I hope, a second volume to develop a little more the adventures of Mary!

I loved Mary! The story perfectly fits the time period it's set. The art style is gorgeous and I love the use of different tones to fit the theme of the scene. Funny, quirky, loved it!

A really nice graphic novel with dark colors.
The drawings are well done and gloomy a bit like the story.
I found the beginning a bit 'confusing, but once the gear is in gear, the story runs smoothly and in no time you are already at the end of the booklet.
Nice, I hope in other volumes to come.

The premise is great but the story had such a slow start. And nothing was every fully laid out, you had to do a lot of reading between the lines to understand what was going on.

I love this concept but unfotrtunately had problems with the filed could not read the graphic novel itself. I will keep an eye out for physical copies.

First thing you need to know is that I am weak for stories about writers, so of course I had to read this.
Second thing you need to know is that if you are history-purist this is not the graphic novel for you.
Third thing you need to know is that this was nice.
As I was saying, I like writers-stories, so when the protagonist had the chance to be a writer but didn't want to take it I thought I would hate her. It did not happen, Mary's thoughts were fun to read.
All the characters were interesting and the plot was cute. However, it felt "mutilated". I believe at least a second volume is needed to conclude the story, because this was a good beginning and it would be a pity if it just ended like that.

***I received an uncorrected proof of this ebook from netgalley in exchange for an honest review***

This was just okay. I loved the artwork, and I loved the cynicism of the titular character. However, this more-or-less read like a very long prologue. There weren't really any climactic scenes... Well, there were, but the characters reacted so calmly to outlandish situations that it was hard to feel any intensity.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I enjoyed this graphic novel. The art was beautiful, and I loved the plot and characters. I loved how Mary was a character that knew herself, and I loved how she isn't afraid to speak her mind. I also enjoyed how Adam wasn't a monster love interest that isn't super angsty and how he isn't participating in toxic masculinity, and I loved how that set this apart from some of the other novels with similar storylines that I've read like this.
The only thing that annoyed me was how the story got a bit monotonous to read at parts, and it seemed a bit like a backstory for a character instead of the book. I would pick up the sequel to this if I had the chance!

I wish things could be developed more though. Things felt rushed and I didn't really connect with any of the characters. I can sympathize with Mary's feelings of not knowing what to do. It was an easy read and I'd pick up a continuation. 

Also I dont buy the whole Mary being goth thing. This is a Nitpick that does not influence my enjoyment but until I see her listening to the Sisters of Mercy, or she have a poster of some Goth band in her bedroom, she a poser.

Thank you Netgalley for the arc.  3 stars.  Definitely not what I was expecting but in a good way!  Mary Shelley's descendant can heal monsters!?!?  Definitely a fun and easy ready.