"This Dark Endeavour by Kenneth Oppel (David Fickling Books, £12.99) is a brilliantly layered exploration of what made Victor Frankenstein the man he became. When Konrad, Victor’s “better” twin, falls mortally ill, Victor turns to the secret Dark Library in Chateau Frankenstein and the forbidden arts of alchemy to find a cure. Victor’s struggle to pit fraternal love against his baser emotions, particularly his animal attraction to their cousin Elizabeth, who loves Konrad, gives a compelling psychological edge to this richly imagined Gothic thriller."
