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Out of the Shadows
A woman's unexpected connection to a nineteenth-century writer changes her life in the new novel from the author of Crossing Washington Square
Clara Fitzgerald's recent losses have set her adrift, personally and professionally. Remembering the stories her mother used to tell her, Clara decides to research her ancestry-only to uncover an extraordinary link to Frankenstein author Mary Shelley. With her sister in tow and the help of Kay, a retired Shelley scholar, Clara embarks on a search for the author's long lost journals and letters. As a bond among the three women grows, and as the profound connection between the past and present deepens, Clara comes closer to realizing where her heart truly belongs.
Clara Fitzgerald's recent losses have set her adrift, personally and professionally. Remembering the stories her mother used to tell her, Clara decides to research her ancestry-only to uncover an extraordinary link to Frankenstein author Mary Shelley. With her sister in tow and the help of Kay, a retired Shelley scholar, Clara embarks on a search for the author's long lost journals and letters. As a bond among the three women grows, and as the profound connection between the past and present deepens, Clara comes closer to realizing where her heart truly belongs.
336 pages, Paperback
First published July 29, 2010
About the author
Joanne Rendell
9 books181 followersJoanne Rendell was born and raised in the UK. After completing a PhD in English Literature (at the University of Sheffield), she moved to New York to be with her husband, a professor at NYU. Her debut novel "The Professors' Wives' Club" will be released this September ('08) by New American Library/Penguin. Her second novel comes out in 2009.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
June 28, 2012
Mostly this book made me want to reread Possession by A.S. Byatt, which is a much better literary historical fiction book that jumps between contemporary and historical periods. This one had science aspects that were really poorly executed, and for such a slim novel, the pacing was not great and the language was not economical. I really really wanted to like it because of how much I like Mary Shelley, but no dice.
June 23, 2015
This was boring. Clara thinks she may be related to the author Mary Shelley, who wrote Frankenstein. Cool, right? NOT. She spends the entire book just thinking about it. Bleh.
Did Not Finish
October 7, 2019The writing style felt like it was aimed at young teens, which is odd for an adult book. I could have put up with that if I loved the characters or got hooked by the plot, but this felt pretty meh all round.
September 1, 2010
Out of the Shadows by Joanne Rendell
Paranormal Romance- Sept 7, 2010
4 stars
Clara Fitzgerald life has plateaued out. Having to deal with an increasingly busy fiancé, her mother’s recent death, and her childish flighty sister, Clara is lost in life. When she discovers that she is distantly related to Mary Shelley, the author of Frankenstein, Clara becomes obsessed with uncovering as much as she can about Mary Shelley. With the help of Kay, a retired Shelley scholar and her difficult sister Maxie, Clara goes on a journey to search for more of Shelley’s letters - a window to her ancestor and as a homage to her mom’s love for Frankenstein. As her journey reveals more and more about her heart, Clara must decide on what she truly wants from life...
Rendell is a deceptive writer. The first few pages flow forth so easily and enticingly that it takes me a while to realize that this is not a fluffy popcorn read. This is poignant and, at times, difficult book to read. The writing and the pacing of the novel is so smooth that you don’t realized you have tread into deep waters with Clara. She has to deal with so much sorrow and loneliness that you feel for her. This book is not about the quest to discover Mary Shelley, it’s about Clara discovering who she is and how she has to face the monsters in her past and in her present relationships. In short, this book is about Clara’s epic journey into adulthood. And because Rendell is such a skilled writer, you can’t help but go along with Clara, even though this journey is bumpy and emotionally tough.
I would not describe this book as a romance novel. Well, there’s the guy that we know Clara will end up with, but it’s more of a literature novel written by a woman for women. Rendell uses the literary novel Frankenstein as a tool for her overlying theme - our willingness to create “monsters” in pursuit of transient fame and wealth. Along the way, she explores the theme of acceptance through Clara - acceptance of loss, acceptance of oneself, and just going with the flow. Like an onion, her book has so many layers to it, so many prisms and facets to plumb through.
At the end of it, Rendell’s book left me in deep thought about life in general. This is a recommended read if you enjoy exploring a character’s inner psyche and learning more about the resilience of the human’s heart. If you are expecting a brainless, fluffy novel, I suggest you read something else instead.
Reviewed by Pauline from the Bookaholics Romance Book Club
Paranormal Romance- Sept 7, 2010
4 stars
Clara Fitzgerald life has plateaued out. Having to deal with an increasingly busy fiancé, her mother’s recent death, and her childish flighty sister, Clara is lost in life. When she discovers that she is distantly related to Mary Shelley, the author of Frankenstein, Clara becomes obsessed with uncovering as much as she can about Mary Shelley. With the help of Kay, a retired Shelley scholar and her difficult sister Maxie, Clara goes on a journey to search for more of Shelley’s letters - a window to her ancestor and as a homage to her mom’s love for Frankenstein. As her journey reveals more and more about her heart, Clara must decide on what she truly wants from life...
Rendell is a deceptive writer. The first few pages flow forth so easily and enticingly that it takes me a while to realize that this is not a fluffy popcorn read. This is poignant and, at times, difficult book to read. The writing and the pacing of the novel is so smooth that you don’t realized you have tread into deep waters with Clara. She has to deal with so much sorrow and loneliness that you feel for her. This book is not about the quest to discover Mary Shelley, it’s about Clara discovering who she is and how she has to face the monsters in her past and in her present relationships. In short, this book is about Clara’s epic journey into adulthood. And because Rendell is such a skilled writer, you can’t help but go along with Clara, even though this journey is bumpy and emotionally tough.
I would not describe this book as a romance novel. Well, there’s the guy that we know Clara will end up with, but it’s more of a literature novel written by a woman for women. Rendell uses the literary novel Frankenstein as a tool for her overlying theme - our willingness to create “monsters” in pursuit of transient fame and wealth. Along the way, she explores the theme of acceptance through Clara - acceptance of loss, acceptance of oneself, and just going with the flow. Like an onion, her book has so many layers to it, so many prisms and facets to plumb through.
At the end of it, Rendell’s book left me in deep thought about life in general. This is a recommended read if you enjoy exploring a character’s inner psyche and learning more about the resilience of the human’s heart. If you are expecting a brainless, fluffy novel, I suggest you read something else instead.
Reviewed by Pauline from the Bookaholics Romance Book Club
April 5, 2011
A well written exploration of a woman's relationship to Mary Shelley and how it changes her life and the lives of others. In the literary fiction vein, the novel flashes back and forth between the past and the present, drawing parallels between Clara Fitzgerald's life and Mary Shelley's. This was good if you like literary fiction geared for women.
May 24, 2011
some interesting parts, enough to keep me going with it. I suppose because the main character was compelling. Hated the ending, though--not the postscript but the way the husband element ended. SO UNREALISTIC. Will say no more or risk spoiling it.
August 19, 2018
Unfortunately, this book is a disappointment. Fascinating concept but not very well written and reads more like amateur fanfiction. That’s not even a knock on fanfiction because I’ve read incredible, beautifully written fic, but this book doesn’t fit. None of the characters feels like an actual person but rather someone else’s idea of what a person should act and feel. None of the characters interested me, and the blast to the past bits didn’t seem to fit. Also, the ending wrapped everything up way too neatly. After all the ridiculous drama (the Anthony and Georgie side plot could’ve been omitted completely), it felt like a bad movie where everything ends the way it should. I don’t mind happy endings, but I like ones that make sense.
Overall, the novel is rushed, not a good read, and a concept that was amazing but poorly executed.
Overall, the novel is rushed, not a good read, and a concept that was amazing but poorly executed.
February 7, 2021
An interesting premise, dull and predictable execution.
July 4, 2011
I liked her other books, not this one. I didn’t feel anything (other than relief to be done).
STORY BRIEF:
Two stories are told at the same time, interspersed throughout the book – several pages about Mary Shelley, and then one or more chapters about Clare.
In 1803 Mary Godwin was 5 years old. Her father had a bookstore. Later the poet Percy Shelley helped Mary’s father financially. Percy was married to Harriet but love was not there. Percy and Mary fell in love and she ran off to live with him in Europe in 1814. This story is about Mary’s childhood and teenage years. Mary Shelley later wrote the book “Frankenstein.”
The second story takes place in current day New York City. Clare and Anthony are professors at Manhattan University and are engaged. Clare believes she is related to Mary Shelley and has been researching Mary’s life. This story is about Clare’s attempt to discover documents about Mary. In this process Clare meets Kay who has some papers that might help. Clare and Kay become good friends.
Anthony has been working on an anti-cancer/anti-aging drug. He’s having success and will soon go into clinical trials with a pharmaceutical company. He is working a lot and has no time for Clare.
REVIEWER’S OPINION:
It dragged. The writing was dry. I wished it would be over (my definition for 2 stars). If I make an outline of the Clare story – the plot, the characters, the events – it would sound interesting. It had potential. But it wasn’t developed in a way that engaged me or entertained me. It might have been better without the Mary story interrupting it. The author has a PhD in literature and she doesn’t use many adverbs in her writing. I wondered if it would be more emotionally engaging if she used more adverbs, for example on page 212 she wrote “they would share political views over the counter in the bookstore. Mary awaited his visits with the utmost impatience.” Using an adverb would be “she impatiently awaited his visits.” Whether the reason was adverbs (or not) her writing felt dry. I think she was weak in bringing her characters to life. I recently read two Richard Russo books which spoiled me on getting to know characters through dialogue and actions.
Clare developed a relationship with a man that was not shown enough. I wanted to see more interaction and how the feelings developed between them. Instead most of it was just told to us after the fact at the end.
The Mary story was ok but not fun. It was biographical about a girl from age 5 to age 16, with fictionalized dialogue. There wasn’t much plot or character development, but that was probably because the author wanted to be historically accurate. However my favorite scene was the one where Mary first saw Percy which came from the author’s imagination, page 178. Percy Shelley was eating dinner with Mary’s family but Mary wasn’t allowed to join them, so Mary stood in a shadow in the hallway watching them. “Shelley’s eyes had shifted from Christy and were now looking up and over toward the door. It was only when his head cocked to one side and a small smile tweaked the corners of his mouth that she realized he was looking at her – directly at her. She froze in panic, but then as Shelley continued to gaze up at her, saying nothing to the people around him, she began slowly to smile back. They remained like that for a few moments, the two of them simply staring, smiling, watching, searching each other’s eyes.” A few moments later Shelley is talking about love and says “Love is fleeting, like lightning or a dream, as Lysander says, or like a swift shadow – as he said these last words, Shelley’s eyes flicked to the door where Mary remained hidden in the gloom of the hallway.” (Hey, she used two adverbs here – that was nice.)
DATA:
Story length: 314 pages. Swearing language: none. Sexual language: none. Number of sex scenes: 2. One scene is passionate kissing. Another scene is vaguely referred to by saying “two lovers entwined their arms, their bodies, their legs, and their hearts.” Total number of sex scene pages: just over one. Setting: 1803 to 1814 England and Scotland and current day New York and California. Copyright: 2010. Genre: women’s relationship fiction.
OTHER BOOKS:
I’ve reviewed two other books by this author and gave 4 stars to both “The Professors’ Wives’ Club” and “Crossing Washington Square.”
STORY BRIEF:
Two stories are told at the same time, interspersed throughout the book – several pages about Mary Shelley, and then one or more chapters about Clare.
In 1803 Mary Godwin was 5 years old. Her father had a bookstore. Later the poet Percy Shelley helped Mary’s father financially. Percy was married to Harriet but love was not there. Percy and Mary fell in love and she ran off to live with him in Europe in 1814. This story is about Mary’s childhood and teenage years. Mary Shelley later wrote the book “Frankenstein.”
The second story takes place in current day New York City. Clare and Anthony are professors at Manhattan University and are engaged. Clare believes she is related to Mary Shelley and has been researching Mary’s life. This story is about Clare’s attempt to discover documents about Mary. In this process Clare meets Kay who has some papers that might help. Clare and Kay become good friends.
Anthony has been working on an anti-cancer/anti-aging drug. He’s having success and will soon go into clinical trials with a pharmaceutical company. He is working a lot and has no time for Clare.
REVIEWER’S OPINION:
It dragged. The writing was dry. I wished it would be over (my definition for 2 stars). If I make an outline of the Clare story – the plot, the characters, the events – it would sound interesting. It had potential. But it wasn’t developed in a way that engaged me or entertained me. It might have been better without the Mary story interrupting it. The author has a PhD in literature and she doesn’t use many adverbs in her writing. I wondered if it would be more emotionally engaging if she used more adverbs, for example on page 212 she wrote “they would share political views over the counter in the bookstore. Mary awaited his visits with the utmost impatience.” Using an adverb would be “she impatiently awaited his visits.” Whether the reason was adverbs (or not) her writing felt dry. I think she was weak in bringing her characters to life. I recently read two Richard Russo books which spoiled me on getting to know characters through dialogue and actions.
Clare developed a relationship with a man that was not shown enough. I wanted to see more interaction and how the feelings developed between them. Instead most of it was just told to us after the fact at the end.
The Mary story was ok but not fun. It was biographical about a girl from age 5 to age 16, with fictionalized dialogue. There wasn’t much plot or character development, but that was probably because the author wanted to be historically accurate. However my favorite scene was the one where Mary first saw Percy which came from the author’s imagination, page 178. Percy Shelley was eating dinner with Mary’s family but Mary wasn’t allowed to join them, so Mary stood in a shadow in the hallway watching them. “Shelley’s eyes had shifted from Christy and were now looking up and over toward the door. It was only when his head cocked to one side and a small smile tweaked the corners of his mouth that she realized he was looking at her – directly at her. She froze in panic, but then as Shelley continued to gaze up at her, saying nothing to the people around him, she began slowly to smile back. They remained like that for a few moments, the two of them simply staring, smiling, watching, searching each other’s eyes.” A few moments later Shelley is talking about love and says “Love is fleeting, like lightning or a dream, as Lysander says, or like a swift shadow – as he said these last words, Shelley’s eyes flicked to the door where Mary remained hidden in the gloom of the hallway.” (Hey, she used two adverbs here – that was nice.)
DATA:
Story length: 314 pages. Swearing language: none. Sexual language: none. Number of sex scenes: 2. One scene is passionate kissing. Another scene is vaguely referred to by saying “two lovers entwined their arms, their bodies, their legs, and their hearts.” Total number of sex scene pages: just over one. Setting: 1803 to 1814 England and Scotland and current day New York and California. Copyright: 2010. Genre: women’s relationship fiction.
OTHER BOOKS:
I’ve reviewed two other books by this author and gave 4 stars to both “The Professors’ Wives’ Club” and “Crossing Washington Square.”
September 20, 2010
CONTAINS SPOILERS>
Liked it, but now that I'm several weeks past the read, I've forgotten details. Guess that means it's fairly light fare.
Heroine Clara is a science historian who's subjugating her own career to the career of her high-power DNA scientist fiance, without even realizing she's doing so.
She comes into contact w. an elderly, sickly female scholar who specialized in Mary Shelley -- the Frankenstein author, who it turns out is an ancestor of Clara's.
She undergoes DNA testing to confirm the link. In the process of pursuing her ancestry, Clara and the elderly scholar, Kaye, become friends. They are in many ways closer than Clara is w. her own flesh-and-blood sister (an aspiring actress) and w. her brilliant fiance, Anthony.
Anthony gets consumed by his research, and even turns to the dark "commercial" side of science, lured by the promise of fame and his own research lab at Harvard if his drug turns out to prolong life.
Like the author writes, Anthony basically becomes a Frankenstein-ish monster in his hunger to get the drug to market. He preys on homeless people to take his test drug without informed consent. He too takes the drug, unaware that a side effect is paranoia and violent acting on anger impulses.
Anthony dies fr. his hubris.
Kaye dies, too, of her progressing cancer, leaving Clara almost inconsolable.
But not entirely. Clara in the end takes up romantically with the whole-earth, healing-hands young male massage therapist named Daniel who has also been a friend to Kaye during her illness. Better a man who's emotionally perceptive and receptive than one who's brilliant but one-track and self-centered.
In the Q&A at end of book, author Joanne Rendell admits that she, like Mary Shelley, is concerned w. the ethical implications to advances in science. Shelly was dealing w. industrialization in "Frankenstein," Clara is dealing w. the risk-taking in Anthony's genetic science.
Same difference. Pride goes before the fall, no matter what era.
Liked it, but now that I'm several weeks past the read, I've forgotten details. Guess that means it's fairly light fare.
Heroine Clara is a science historian who's subjugating her own career to the career of her high-power DNA scientist fiance, without even realizing she's doing so.
She comes into contact w. an elderly, sickly female scholar who specialized in Mary Shelley -- the Frankenstein author, who it turns out is an ancestor of Clara's.
She undergoes DNA testing to confirm the link. In the process of pursuing her ancestry, Clara and the elderly scholar, Kaye, become friends. They are in many ways closer than Clara is w. her own flesh-and-blood sister (an aspiring actress) and w. her brilliant fiance, Anthony.
Anthony gets consumed by his research, and even turns to the dark "commercial" side of science, lured by the promise of fame and his own research lab at Harvard if his drug turns out to prolong life.
Like the author writes, Anthony basically becomes a Frankenstein-ish monster in his hunger to get the drug to market. He preys on homeless people to take his test drug without informed consent. He too takes the drug, unaware that a side effect is paranoia and violent acting on anger impulses.
Anthony dies fr. his hubris.
Kaye dies, too, of her progressing cancer, leaving Clara almost inconsolable.
But not entirely. Clara in the end takes up romantically with the whole-earth, healing-hands young male massage therapist named Daniel who has also been a friend to Kaye during her illness. Better a man who's emotionally perceptive and receptive than one who's brilliant but one-track and self-centered.
In the Q&A at end of book, author Joanne Rendell admits that she, like Mary Shelley, is concerned w. the ethical implications to advances in science. Shelly was dealing w. industrialization in "Frankenstein," Clara is dealing w. the risk-taking in Anthony's genetic science.
Same difference. Pride goes before the fall, no matter what era.
April 23, 2011
In the quiet, well-mannered world of the academic professor, Clara keeps the company of books and hides from reality, even when the monster may be the one she keeps closest to her. The characters were well developed and the setting clear, but the story was slow to move to any action, the hook unclear until nearly a quarter of the way through the story. Told in velvety tones that will wrap the reader in the beauty of the written word, perhaps other readers will not be thrown off by the lack of plot movement that was less than appealing to this reader.
Virginia
Reviewer for Coffee Time Romance and More
Full Review: http://www.coffeetimeromance.com/Book...
Virginia
Reviewer for Coffee Time Romance and More
Full Review: http://www.coffeetimeromance.com/Book...
July 17, 2013
It actually has a pretty good plot, with genetics and drugs and cancer and stuff. But what I didn't quite get was Mary Shelley. The author's right, not many people know that a nineteen-year-old woman named Mary Shelley wrote the original Frankenstein, because I certainly didn't know about that information. Anyway, it was the first time I heard her name and it didn't ring a bell. I liked the plot, with Anthony making a new drug that might fight cancer and stop aging - which backfired because of his greed. It actually makes you think about our society nowadays. And Daniel was an added bonus. I recommend this book to people who love literature and and those who are blanketed by the achievements of other people, and wants to get out of the shadows.
June 18, 2011
I actually ended up really enjoying this book. It is at times somewhat unnecessarily long or descriptive, but in general the character development throughout the novel is quite impressive. I did find myself getting annoyed with the main character, Clara, quite a few times as her relationship with Anthony is quite frustrating - moments where she should have been furious with him were made to look like she was a doormat and in that sense hard to relate to - but that's probably just a personal thing.
Overall, this was a good read. Nice and quick!
Overall, this was a good read. Nice and quick!
February 9, 2013
A decent pleasant read. Well, better than that, textured and that nice conceit of present day characters melding to the past via journals , research, or ancestry. Picked this up at a library booksale- but have since found a lot of essays, new books on Mary Shelley, Frankenstein, Resurrectionists - so I am predicting a pop-culture trend here or literary anniversary about to arrive.
October 12, 2020
3.5
Going through the reviews I really feel people were to hard on this book. I loved the whole Mary Shelly vibe. I enjoyed the story very much. I did not care much for the romance aspect I did feel that the author wrote it as a 15 year old girl. Other then that I did like this book.
Going through the reviews I really feel people were to hard on this book. I loved the whole Mary Shelly vibe. I enjoyed the story very much. I did not care much for the romance aspect I did feel that the author wrote it as a 15 year old girl. Other then that I did like this book.
December 15, 2010
honestly I ended up skimming it.
October 14, 2013
Interesting plot idea; however the ending was predictable. I think it would be fascinating to be related to a famous author.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews