Mary Shelley (1797 - 1851) published Frankenstein at the tender age of 20 years old. The novel was born out of a bet between friends, at Lord Byron s residence by Lake Geneva in 1816, on who could write the best horror story. Mary, flaunting her fertile imagination and overpowering intellect, composed an immortal tale that won praise from her competitors and would eventually become her first novel, to the delight of readers all over the world for more than two hundred years. Frankenstein narrates the vicissitudes of a scientist named Victor Frankenstein and the monster he brought to life with his experiments. The novel is considered today as one of the forerunners of science fiction, and with its gothic aesthetics and undeniable influence of romanticism, it continues to captivate the imagination of readers around the world and inspires every day all kinds of artistic expressions in every conceivable medium.