Review 390: Her Lost Words

Her Lost Words: A Novel of Mary Wollstonecraft and Mary Shelley by Stephanie Marie Thornton
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

This was a fantastic historical fiction book detailing the lives of two extraordinary women, a mother and daughter both named Mary: Mary Wollstonecraft and her daughter Mary Godwin Shelley.

The book is told in dual narratives, we see how much their two lives were paralleled. Unfortunately, Wollstonecraft died shortly after giving birth to her daughter, so the younger Mary never knew her mother other than her writings and what very litter her father told her.

Both were accomplished writers at a very young age, and during a time when women were not known to do anything other than marry, have kids and keep house. It was shocking for a woman to have serious thoughts and opinions as it may “overtax their limited brains”.

The book follows the relationships and struggles to live as independent women, while also loving the men in their lives. They both lived scandalous lives as one did not have a child out of wedlock. Yes, times have changed!

These two did much to help change the view that women were capable of much more than previously accounted for.

The author did an excellent job in this biographical fictional novel, and the author’s note where she details what was changed or modified is not to be missed.

Thanks to Berkley Publishing Group and NetGalley for an uncorrected electronic advance review copy of this book.

However, I listened to an audiobook copy, thanks to Penguin Random House for an advanced access to the audiobook. With two narrators, one for each Mary, was very well done and a great way to read this book.