What If Frankenstein Was a Moody Young Adult?

 

TITLE: Helga

AUTHOR: Catherine Yu

PUBLISHER: Page Street YA

PUBLISHING DATE: August 20, 2024

PAGES: 354   

SOURCE: Library

FROM GOODREADS: Helga is not the obedient science experiment her father intended. And though she has only just awoken, he leaves her in the care of his lab assistant Penny to go on a business trip. 

Bursting with curiosity, Helga quickly escapes from the well-meaning Penny and heads into Amaris City. There Helga finds she is as untamable as the invasive blackberry vines overtaking the island. And because of the misdeeds of her father’s scientific community, the natural world grows more volatile.

Helga soon discovers the night market, rowdy clubs, delicious food, and cute boys. Enamored with city life, she’ll do anything to find love—but she has only two weeks until her father gets back, and besides there are ominous rumblings from the volcanic island that could put her dating schemes, and even her own life, in grave peril.

MY THOUGHTS: I picked this up because one I was curious about it when I first saw it and two, I need a book that starts with "H" for an October Reading Challenge.  I wasn't sure exactly what I was getting into, but it ended up being a solid read.

As the book opens, Helga awakens in a lab and is met by her "father" and his lab assistant Penny.  Helga is part of an experimental program on the Asian Island, Amaris City.  She quickly becomes acclimated to everything around her due to her "cog" programming which is whole reason her birth was such as a success.  Amaris City is divided into two communities, the elite one and the poorer but more exciting one.  Helgas wants to experience all the island has to offer but her father wants her to become his proper lab assistant and has some pretty intense rules she needs to follow - including the fact that he has named her Marietta and refuses to call her Helga.  Obviously, Helga starts to rebel.  She meets a boy named Clyde who is a loser from day one but has a typical "bad boy" quality.  Even though things don't work out with Clyde, their "relationship" leads her to find her ultimate soulmate, even if she has to create him herself.

Helga shares a lot of social commentary on classism and societal expectations.  Amaris Island is very quirky and its evident that the whole island has been negatively affected by the lab's experiments.  I enjoyed seeing Helga experience the world and really loved the relationship she builds with Penny, who is also trying to find her way in life.  And I dare to say the ending is perfect and sends a perfect message about classism, love and friendship.  

At its core, Helga is also about found family, so if you enjoy that trope, you might want to check this one out.  It really doesn't contain as much horror as I was hoping, but it still hit the mark and is one I would recommend if someone wants to experience a new take on an old classic.

MY RATING: 4 Paws