The Last Man

First published in 1826, this post-apocalyptic science fiction novel by Mary Shelley tells of a future world that has been ravaged by a plague. This novel was harshly reviewed at the time, and was virtually unknown until a scholarly revival beginning in the 1960s. It is notable in part for its semi-biographical portraits of Romantic figures in Shelley's circle, particularly Shelley's late husband Percy Bysshe Shelley and Lord Byron.