From the rubble-strewn streets of U.S.-occupied Baghdad, Hadi -- a scavenger and an oddball fixture at a local café --collects human body parts and stitches them together to create a corpse. His goal, he claims, is for the government to recognize the parts as people and to give them proper burial. But when the corpse goes missing, a wave of eerie murders sweeps the city, and reports stream in of a horrendous-looking criminal who, though shot, cannot be killed. 

Perdido Street Station
China Mieville

In a bleak, post-industrial future city called New Crobuzon, a scientist's drive to study flying things leads to the release of a strange grub that threatens to destroy the city. When his lover disappears, Isaac, the scientist, finds himself pursued not only by the monster he released, but by a variety of factions. The sprawling fantasy setting gives this novel a distinctly Victorian feel, and its themes will resonate with Frankenstein fans. 
 

The Casebook of Victor Frankenstein
Peter Ackroyd

When budding scientist Victor Frankenstein meets radical poet Percy Bysshe Shelley at Oxford, the two become fast friends, united by their interest in the origins of life. With Percy's encouragement, Victor begins his research into electricity -- which in turn leads to the creation of his legendary monster. This inventive reinterpretation of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, written in the language of the early 19th century, incorporates both historical figures (such as Mary Shelley and Lord Byron) and fictional characters. 
 

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
Robert Louis Stevenson

Stevenson's mad scientist turns his investigations on himself, seeking to separate his virtues from his vices. Dr. Jekyll, a respected young physician, hopes to protect his reputation by slipping out to enjoy his less acceptable pleasures in another guise. The result is Mr. Hyde, a being of brutal, uncontrolled cruelty who soon escapes his creator's control (sound familiar?).

Source: NoveList Book Discussion Guide