Mary Shelley (1797–1851) was a pioneering English author best known for her groundbreaking novel Frankenstein (1818), often credited as the first work of science fiction. The daughter of political philosopher William Godwin and feminist writer Mary Wollstonecraft, Shelley was immersed in intellectual and literary traditions. Frankenstein, written when she was just 18, delves into themes of ambition, creation, revenge, and isolation, all set against the backdrop of gothic literature. This timeless classic explores the tragic tale of Victor Frankenstein and his sentient monster. Shelley also penned The Last Man (1826), a dystopian novel, and other works that cemented her as a key figure in Romanticism and gothic horror.