"[3][11] Writing for The Guardian, British novelist Sam Byers gave the novel a rave review, praising Winterson's ability "to leaven the hyperinvention of rogue science with deeply evocative historical realism.

"[12] Sarah Lotz, writing for The New York Times Book Review, praised Winterson's scenes of Mary Shelley as "visceral and seeped with Gothic gloom" and called the novel "both deeply thought-provoking and provocative yet also unabashedly entertaining.

"[13] Ron Charles of The Washington Post gave the novel a rave review, praising its dialogue and calling it "an unholy amalgamation of scholarship and comedy.

"[14] Holly Williams of The Independent gave the novel a positive review, calling it "enjoyably audacious" but also felt it to be "overstuffed" with Winterson's research and its satiric dialogue "too crude to be convincing.

"[15] Sam Sacks of The Wall Street Journal gave the novel a favourable review, writing, "This is a book whose mismatched parts—subtle historical drama and philosophical allegory; bawdy humor and profound moral inquiries—somehow combine to form a powerful, living whole.