Step into a world where rabbits wear jackets, children discover secret islands, detectives untangle impossible puzzles, murder lurks behind the most ordinary of doors and life is created but leads to tragedy. Over a series of five talks Lynda will celebrate five extraordinary women who shaped the way Britain - and indeed the world - reads stories. This week Lynda is looking at Mary Shelley. Her work explores the haunting consequences of human ambition, creation, and isolation - blending Gothic horror with philosophical depth and the birth of modern science fiction. She is best known for Frankenstein, but her output spans historical novels, apocalyptic fiction, short stories, plays, and travel writing.