744 Love, Sex, and Frankenstein (with Caroline Lea) | #10 Greatest Book of All Time | My Last Book with Geoffrey Turnovsky | A Letter from a Middle School Teacher and Mom

The History of Literature

Jacke Wilson

Arts, History, Books

4.6 • 1.3K Ratings

🗓️ 27 October 2025

⏱️ 88 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

The year is 1816, and 18-year-old Mary Shelley has fled London with her lover, Percy Shelley, and her sister, Claire. They're on their way to visit Lord Byron's villa in Lake Geneva, Switzerland - and to change the course of literary history. In this episode, Jacke talks to Caroline Lea about her novel Love, Sex, and Frankenstein, which tells the haunting, evocative story of the summer that should have broken Mary Shelley, but instead inspired her to write her Gothic masterpiece. PLUS we hear from a listener who's been reading with her children and has a recommendation for Jacke, we cover #10 on our list of Greatest Books of All Time, and Geoffrey Turnovsky (Reading Typographically: Immersed in Print in Early Modern France) stops by to discuss his choice for the last book he will ever read. Join Jacke on a trip through literary England (signup closing soon)! The History of Literature Podcast Tour is happening in May 2026! Act now to join Jacke and fellow literature fans on an eight-day journey through literary England in partnership with ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠John Shors Travel⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Scheduled stops include The Charles Dickens Museum, Dr. Johnson's house, Jane Austen's Bath, Tolkien's Oxford, Shakespeare's Globe Theater, and more. Find out more by emailing jackewilsonauthor@gmail.com or masahiko@johnshorstravel.com, or by contacting us through our website ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠historyofliterature.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Or visit the ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠History of Literature Podcast Tour itinerary⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠John Shors Travel⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. The music in this episode is by Gabriel Ruiz-Bernal. Learn more at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠gabrielruizbernal.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Help support the show at ⁠⁠⁠⁠patreon.com/literature ⁠⁠⁠⁠or ⁠⁠⁠⁠historyofliterature.com/donate ⁠⁠⁠⁠. The History of Literature Podcast is a member of Lit Hub Radio and the Podglomerate Network. Learn more at ⁠⁠⁠⁠thepodglomerate.com/historyofliterature⁠⁠⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	The History of Literature Podcast is a member of the Podglomerate Network and Lit Hub Radio.
0:12.0	Hello, everyone, is Jack Wilson telling you that the History of Literature podcast tour through literary England is still accepting deposits, and we'd love to have you join us.
0:23.2	We will be visiting some of the greatest literary sites in history, including walks, tours,
0:28.2	pub visits, and leisure time activities, and with visits from scholars and other special guests
0:34.3	as we experience the amazing cities of London, Oxford, and Bath, in a small group
0:41.1	accompanied by yours truly. If you love literature and if you love life, you are not going to want to
0:47.2	miss this. It's next year in May of 26, but we need you to put down a deposit now so we can
0:53.8	finalize the itinerary.
0:56.1	2026 is around the corner, people.
0:58.5	Give yourself something to look forward to next spring.
1:02.5	You can find out more at John Shores Travel, John S-H-O-R-S,
1:07.1	or you can find the links to the itinerary and sign-up page at history of literature.com.
1:13.3	Hope to see you soon.
1:15.4	This episode is brought to you by Battlefield 6, the ultimate all-out warfare experience,
1:20.7	rip through the skies and aerial dog fights, demolish your surroundings for a strategic advantage,
1:25.5	and harness complete control over every action and movement
1:27.9	with the kinesthetic combat system or fight furiously as a member of Dagger 1-3 in a gritty
1:33.1	adrenaline-fueled single-player campaign where you'll defend the world on the edge of collapse
1:37.2	battlefield 6 is the ultimate all-out warfare experience available on playstation 5 Xbox series
1:42.7	X and PC.
1:51.7	Hello, quote,
1:58.0	I saw the pale student of unhallowed arts kneeling beside the thing he had put together. I saw the hideous phantasm of a man stretched out, and then,
	...

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