Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus is a novel written by English author Mary Shelley (1797-1851) that tells the story of Victor Frankenstein, a young scientist who creates a hideous sapient creature in an unorthodox scientific experiment. It is one of the great works of modern literature. Shelley started writing the story when she was 18, and the first edition was published anonymously in London on 1 January 1818, when she was 20. 2] Her name first appeared on the second edition, published in 1823.