Synopses & Reviews
Previously titled Father of Frankenstein, this acclaimed novel was the basis for the 1998 film starring Sir Ian McKellen, Lynn Redgrave, and Brendan Fraser. It journeys back to 1957 Los Angeles, where James Whale, the once-famous director of such classics as Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein, is living in retirement, haunted by his past. Rescuing him from his too-vivid imagination is his gardener, a handsome ex-marine. The friendship between these two very different men is sometimes tentative, sometimes touching, often dangerous and always captivating.
Review
"[I]ngeniously imagined....With amusing cameos by Elsa Lanchester, Greta Garbo and George Cukor, Bram cleverly mines his material's potential from nostalgia and comedy to the grimmer secrets of carnal and charnel knowledge." Publishers Weekly
Review
"Whale's tiny fandom and those who keep track of Bram as one of the best gay novelists constitute this minor performance's natural readership." Booklist
About the Author
Christopher Bram is the author of eight novels, including Father of Frankenstein, which became the Academy Awardwinning movie Gods and Monsters, and The Notorious Dr. August: His Real Life and Crimes. He also writes book reviews, movie reviews, and screenplays. He was a 2001 Guggenheim Fellow and received the 2003 Bill Whitehead Lifetime Achievement Award. He lives in New York City.