Frankenstein is the classic gothic horror novel which has thrilled and engrossed readers for two centuries‎.‎ Written by Mary Shelley‎,‎ it is a story which she intended would ‎'‎curdle the blood and quicken the beatings of the heart‎.‎‎'‎ The tale is a superb blend of science fiction‎,‎ mystery and thriller‎.‎ Victor Frankenstein driven by the mad dream of creating his own creature‎,‎ experiments with alchemy and science to build a monster stitched together from dead remains‎.‎ Once the creature becomes a living breathing articulate entity‎,‎ it turns on its maker and the novel darkens into tragedy‎.‎ The reader is very quickly swept along by the force of the elegant prose‎,‎ the grotesque‎,‎ surreal imagery‎,‎ and the multi‎-layered themes in the novel‎.‎ Although first published in 1818‎,‎ Shelley‎'‎s masterpiece still maintains a strong grip on the imagination and has been the inspiration for numerous horror movies‎,‎ television and stage adaptations‎.‎