Detective Edward Freame is hired to investigate the strange circumstances surrounding the murder of Henry Clerval, only to be tormented by the writings of the man who was originally tried for the crime: Dr. Victor Frankenstein. Following the trail left by the late Frankenstein, Freame scours the European countryside, trying to find the clues that will lead him to the truth behind the murder of Clerval, along the way, discovering Frankenstein's connection to the deaths of William Frankenstein, Elizabeth Lavenza, and the disputed existence of a monster birthed by Frankenstein himself. With the doctor's dictated journals as the only account of the murder, Edward explores the undocumented life of Victor Frankenstein, collecting interviews and observations from a revolving door of Victorian aristocracy and caddish ne'er-do-wells that knew Victor during his lifetime, revealing inner triumphs, deepest fears, and the nature of his horrific experiments. Throughout his investigations, Freame becomes attuned to the mind of Frankenstein, finding he has more in common with the scientist than he would like to admit. Renowned for his rational mind, Freame is torn between believing in an inhuman monster, brought to life from dead flesh, or in an elaborate cover-up to hide something even more sinister. In a stunning homage to Mary Shelley's original horror story, Kathlyn Bradshaw combines Victorian gaslight detective novels and smog drenched ghost stories to explore the psychological underpinnings of characters first rendered almost two-hundred years ago.