What exactly influences a character to manipulate pieces of dead bodies and bring a monster to life? Kenneth Oppel investigates Victor Frankenstein’s childhood history and its possible influences on his later experiments in This Dark Endeavor.

As a prequel to Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Oppel fills 298 pages with suspense and gruesome details as Victor, Elizabeth and Henry venture through caves, climb trees and even sail a fishing boat while being attacked by a wild animal. The teenagers put their own health at risk in these life-threatening circumstances in order to obtain three unusual ingredients for the Elixir of Life. Victor secretly studies alchemy, hoping to cure his twin, Konrad’s, mysterious illness. But Victor not only hopes to defeat death itself, but he also attempts to impress Elizabeth with his bravery.

As a middle school student, I read Oppel’s Airborn and Skybreaker in only a few short days, incapable of setting these adventure stories down. This Dark Endeavor may be keyed toward middle school students, but the Frankenstein concept definitely appealed to me. When reading this novel, it is important to accept the odd creatures, like a domesticated lynx, and complicated concoctions, like a night-vision potion, as fact rather than fiction. After all, a man who stitches the dead back to life must have had a fascinating childhood, right? Dive into This Dark Endeavor to experience Victor Frankenstein’s dark adventures as he strives to save Konrad and win Elizabeth’s heart.