The Daughter of Doctor Moreau
Books | Fiction / Historical / General
3.6
(127)
Silvia Moreno-Garcia
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the bestselling author of Mexican Gothic and Velvet Was the Night comes a lavish historical drama reimagining of The Island of Doctor Moreau set against the backdrop of nineteenth-century Mexico.“This is historical science fiction at its best: a dreamy reimagining of a classic story with vivid descriptions of lush jungles and feminist themes. Some light romance threads through the heavier ethical questions concerning humanity.”—Library Journal (starred review)“The imagination of Silvia Moreno-Garcia is a thing of wonder, restless and romantic, fearless in the face of genre, embracing the polarities of storytelling—the sleek and the bizarre, wild passions and deep hatreds—with cool equanimity.”—The New York Times (Editors’ Choice)FINALIST FOR THE HUGO AWARD • ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: The New York Times Book Review, Time, NPR, Polygon, Tordotcom, Paste, CrimeReads, BooklistCarlota Moreau: A young woman growing up on a distant and luxuriant estate, safe from the conflict and strife of the Yucatán peninsula. The only daughter of a researcher who is either a genius or a madman.Montgomery Laughton: A melancholic overseer with a tragic past and a propensity for alcohol. An outcast who assists Dr. Moreau with his experiments, which are financed by the Lizaldes, owners of magnificent haciendas and plentiful coffers.The hybrids: The fruits of the doctor’s labor, destined to blindly obey their creator and remain in the shadows. A motley group of part human, part animal monstrosities.All of them live in a perfectly balanced and static world, which is jolted by the abrupt arrival of Eduardo Lizalde, the charming and careless son of Dr. Moreau’s patron, who will unwittingly begin a dangerous chain reaction.For Moreau keeps secrets, Carlota has questions, and, in the sweltering heat of the jungle, passions may ignite.The Daughter of Doctor Moreau is both a dazzling historical novel and a daring science fiction journey.
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More Details:
Author
Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Pages
352
Publisher
Random House Worlds
Published Date
2022-07-19
ISBN
0593355342 9780593355343
Ratings
Google: 4
Community ReviewsSee all
"If you’ve seen the Island of Dr Moreau, you’ll have a sense of this story: a hermit-like doctor spends decades doing live experiments to create hybrid beings — part animal, part human being — in the Yucatán jungle. Star of the show is Carlota, the natural daughter of the doctor, who must have sera drawn from jaguars to overcome her blood disease — or so her father tells her. The doctor’s sponsor, a meanie ranch owner, wants the hybrids as drudge workers who can work the fields without complaint."
"I loved the mix of genres, historical, sci-fi and a splash of romance. It was written beautifully. I am off to read more from this amazing author. "
J C
Jasmine C
"I was really excited for this book, but I struggled to finish it. Of the two POV characters, one was so passive that she barely did anything and the other was the most boring man in the world. When something finally happened it was summarized in three pages. Every romance was deeply stupid and the familial relationship with the hybrids didn't feel earned at all. The writing was nice on a basic technical level but I couldn't recommend this."
a
awesome_user_984860
"This was another excellent read by one of my new favorite authors! This story was perfect for me: a pseudo retelling of boring classic made new by a citrusy perspective and historical setting. It’s genius that only Silvia Moreno-Garcia could pull off.<br/><br/>Now that that you’ve read me waxing poetically about this, you are probably wondering about the 3 star review, which usually for me means I didn’t enjoy it as much as I could have. In this case, 3 means I really did like it, but due to the fact that I rated Mexican Gothic as a 4 (when it was really a 4.5…damn you Goodreads for not having half-stars!), and I liked this less than that, I felt like I had to give this a 3, even though it was a 3.5 that I normally would round up to a 4. <br/><br/>All this to say, it’s a great book, but also maybe not the right book for every reader. I would say Mexican Gothic has more mass appeal, and I think the lower rating here means a lot of others feel the same. Still, for anyone who likes sci-fi and historical fiction, I would highly recommend! It’s a bit niche, which is why I loved it."
A P
Allie Peduto
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