Ahoy there me mateys! I received this gothic horror eARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. So here be me honest musings . . .
mexican gothic (Silvia Moreno-Garcia)
Title: mexican gothic
Author: Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine Del Ray
Publication Date: TODAY!!! (hardcover/e-book)
ISBN: 978-0525620785
Source: NetGalley
This be fifth book I have read by the author and me fifth five star read. I have said before that what I find amazing about all of the author’s books is that they feel so different from each other. The first was a vampire story with stunning vampire culture and history. The second was a Mayan fairy-tale set during the Jazz age in Mexico. The third was a romance with a hint of fantasy set in the Belle Époque era. The fourth was a coming-of-age thriller set in Baja California in 1979. This was a gothic horror set in 1950s Mexico. I adored this book!
The story follows Noemí, a 20-something socialite whose night out partying is cut short when her father receives a strange message from a newly married cousin. Noemí is sent on a mission, to find out what is going on with her cousin, not only because her father cares about family, but also to avoid a scandal.
To quote Matey Imyril’s excellent teaser:
Moreno-Garcia wears her inspirations proudly: cousin Catalina is an orphan, who grew up telling Noemí fairytales and reading the Brontës. Catalina is a hopeless romantic: of course she fell for the handsome Englishman with the tragic family history and a remote estate decaying in the mountains. Why yes, it does look an awful lot like he married her for her money. And now she thinks Virgil Doyle is trying to poison her, and Noemí’s father can’t decide if Catalina’s got psychological problems or a bad case of melodrama.
Sounds excellently gothic right? Well of course strong-willed and independent Noemí is going to go and save the day. Of course everything goes wrong and Noemí is in over her head from the moment she arrives at High Place estate. And of course, Silvia Moreno-Garcia makes me love every delicious second and every shiver that runs up me spine.
The atmosphere of this novel is brilliant and wonderful. The modern city girl goes to an estate where there is no electricity, no conversation allowed at dinner, and old-fashioned rules about proper decorum. The house is falling apart and seems almost sinister. The gothic elements are so nicely swirled with the more modern viewpoints that I kept second guessing many of the mysteries of the house and its inhabitants. I didn’t really love Noemí but she still didn’t deserve the High Place. And of course the ending was bittersweet but also kinda perfect.
I absolutely love Silvia Moreno-Garcia and can’t wait for whatever she writes next. Arrr!
Goodreads has this to say about the novel (blurb shortened by me):
An isolated mansion. A chillingly charismatic artistocrat. And a brave socialite drawn to expose their treacherous secrets. . . .
From the author of Gods of Jade and Shadow comes “a terrifying twist on classic gothic horror” (Kirkus Reviews) set in glamorous 1950s Mexico—“fans of classic novels like Jane Eyre and Rebecca are in for a suspenseful treat” (PopSugar).
After receiving a frantic letter from her newly-wed cousin begging for someone to save her from a mysterious doom, Noemí Taboada heads to High Place, a distant house in the Mexican countryside. She’s not sure what she will find—her cousin’s husband, a handsome Englishman, is a stranger, and Noemí knows little about the region . . .
The family’s once colossal wealth and faded mining empire kept them from prying eyes, but as Noemí digs deeper she unearths stories of violence and madness.
And Noemí, mesmerized by the terrifying yet seductive world of High Place, may soon find it impossible to ever leave this enigmatic house behind
To visit the author’s website go to:
To buy the novel please visit:
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Previous Log Entries for this Author
certain dark things (Captain’s Log – Sci-Fi)
gods of jade and shadow (On the Horizon – Fantasy eArc)
the beautiful ones (Captain’s Log – Fantasy)
untamed shore (Off the Charts and On the Horizon – Murder Mystery eArc)
Reading it now!
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Crossing me fingers that ye love it like I did.
x The Captain
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So far loving it. It is werird, but I do enjoy the gothic genre.
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This is COMPLETELY unrelated to this particular post, but I wanted to be sure you saw that there is another opportunity to get the Murderbot short story “Home: habitat, range, niche, territory” coming up. Details are here: https://www.shortstory.club/events/martha-wells/ I didn’t look into it too deeply myself since I already have the story and am not particularly interested in a group Zoom discussion, but I thought you might like to know.
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I love Murderbot!!!! Thank ye kindly for thinking of me. I have been awful at reading me comments lately and am glad I caught this one. I am not into Zoom things either but I will sign up for this. I hope they release a transcript because I would rather read a cleaned up copy then listen. Off to check it out.
x The Captain
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You’re welcome! I hope it turns out to be a good event!
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Great review! I preordered this one and am planning to read it soon. It’ll be my first read from this author but I suspect I’ll love most (or all!) of her work and am looking forward to diving in. I’m so excited to see that this was another 5-star for you!
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Hope ye love this one and looking forward to reading yer review. Arrr!
x The Captain
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I’m so glad you loved this so much! It’s a great read, and now I want to get my hands on Certain Dark Things 😁
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I have my hands on my pre-order of this book, and I’m looking forward to reading it! I’m also super excited that Certain Dark Things is getting reprinted, because I’ve wanted to read that since I read your review of it but it is nowhere to be found.
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I can’t wait to hear what ye think of this one and I am so glad certain dark things is going to be republished because that book deserves more attention and a wider audience. I am going to buy me a copy. Arrr!
x The Captain
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I’m excited to read them both! 😀
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I really want to read this one, just need to find the time. Glad you loved it so much!
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Hope ye find the time (or right mood) soon. Dark themes and atmosphere but I haven’t stopped thinking about it.
x The Captain
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Ahoy, Cap’n! I have been seeing this book ALL OVER THE INTERNET but yours is the first review I decided to read and I AM SO FUCKING GLAD THAT I DID – because IT WAS AWESOME! 😍 Made me wanna read this one and THE OTHER FOUR BOOKS BY THE AUTHOR AS WELL! LOVED IT! 😍😇
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ARRRRR!!!! So glad that ye read me glowing review first. Cause this author is so very talented and all of her books are worth reading. I hope ye get to read her books soon and that ye find them as awesome as I do.
x The Captain
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So glad you loved this one, too, Cap:)). I love the way Moreno-Garcia has hit all the genre tropes for gothic reads without it feeling remotely cliched or predictable… Such a talented author!
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I am always fascinated by what she weaves together. I am not very good at literary criticism so I am sure I miss things. But what I do get is awesome.
x The Captain
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I always enjoy reading your reviews – where your opinions are always clear and fair-minded and reasonably argued. That’s what counts! And yes – she is fab!
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I loved this too. The atmosphere was my favorite part. And I just heard yesterday that Certain Dark Things is going to be rerelased in paperback next year, I’m so excited!!
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ARRRRRR!!! Who told ye that excellent news? I am certainly going to buy me own copy. It is so good. Thanks for adding joy to me day.
x The Captain
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I requested this book as an ARC. I’m not going to read your review until I read the novel. Then we can compare thoughts. I’m excited.
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Something we both read! Arrrr!!! I am looking forward to hearing what ye think about this one. Is this the first book ye have read by the author? Soooo excited.
x The Captain
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Yes, but I haven’t read it yet. I’m hoping to snag it as an ARC.
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