I don't know how to feel about this book but it certainly took me on a wild ass ride.
This story follows Noemi, a flighty, party-going 22 year old who is enlisted by her father to check in on an older cousin, Catalina, who has been whisked away by her mysterious husband and has sent very troubing letters that leave her family members questioning her safety and sanity.

The language and imagery in this was really evocative, Moreno-Garcia's writing style perfectly suited this gothic story. As much as the english major in me was loving the writng I did find myself incredibly bored during the first 100 or so pages of this story and I struggled immensely to feel connected to this story and our protagonist Noemi at first. It really seemed like we kept getting a repetitive collection of scenes and I was so bored with it.

Then things changed immensely after that first hundred pages and I honestly cannot even begin to discuss how swiftly this story changed from the tried and trite gothic tale with the misty, decrepit mansion full of kooky occupants and transitioned into someone so uniquely creepy, it made my skin crawl. From the point of the initial reveal onward I felt mysef frantically flipping the pages seeking answers to the millions of questions this story raises. I found myself feeling just as confused and tormented as our protagonist and it was quite the experience to say the least, and I won't spoil that adventure for you.

However, I did feel that the exceptionally slow start and also the romance that blossoms in this story did lessen my experience a bit. The romance just felt a bit unnecessary to me and there was no chemistry between these two characters, only shared trauma which sadly does not equal romance to me.

Also here's the content warnings which could be considered spoilers to some so avoid if you don't need them

cw: sexual assualt, incest, body horror, cannabalism, infanticide, murder

arc provided in exchange for an honest review, all thoughts are my own

Mexican Gothic was one of my most anticipated books of the year and I was not disappointed. This book follows Noemi as she goes to a remote village to check on her recently married cousin who has sent some disturbing letters. Noemi soon realizes that there is a lot more going on with the family and the house that threaten not only her cousin's safety, but also her own. This book was my favorite type of horror - Gothic that doesn't really feel too Gothic. The tone and setting are Gothic but it reads more current and fresh than many other Gothic horror books. Noemi is a very likable character as we get to know her better and who she really is underneath the facade she puts out for the world to see. Things quickly begin to deteriorate in the house and with the family as her cousin is ill. Noemi uncovers many horrible things in relation to the family and the house itself.

This book is a smart horror novel - it is a horror that makes you think and is not only meant to simply scare readers but make them aware of the greater societal or historical aspects that are represented. Without too many spoilers this book discusses gender and class disparities while also weaving in Eugenics and a town that is based on a real town in Mexico. This book is horror so there are some graphic and sometimes gross descriptions and situations that occur throughout the book that may not appeal to all readers but for horror readers or thriller readers who like a supernatural twist this book will be perfect. Noemi is a tough and smart character that readers will root for as she tries to figure a way out. I have already recommended this book to friends and look forward to hand selling it store.

I enjoy gothic fiction so I was looking forward to this story, but it fell flat to me. I almost put the book down several times. The story is slow-moving and I felt like the characters kept having the same conversations over and over again until I hit about 70% into the book. The book would have been better if told from multiple viewpoints OR I think I would have liked it more if it had a double time-line, with chapters about the Doyle family of the past intermixed with Noemi's chapters. Overall, this book was a let-down. I actually like this author's Gods of Jade and Shadow a lot better.

A woman uncovers terrifying secrets in a run-down mansion near a remote mining town in 1950s Mexico.

We meet 22-year-old Noemí Taboada, who at the request of her father, travels from Mexico City to check in on her cousin, Catalina who lives in High Place. Catalina recently married the enigmatic, blue-eyed Virgil Doyle—heir to a defunct mining operation in small-town El Triunfo. Catalina sends a disturbing letter, begging Noemí for help, claiming she is bound by an evil she cannot escape.

“This house is sick with rot, stinks of decay, brims with every single evil and cruel sentiment.”

When she arrives, Noemí is met with a chilly reception from the inscrutable Virgil and his sneering father, Howard. Catalina languishes by the fever which plagues her—nothing like the vibrant cousin she grew up with. And worse yet, she begins to experience horrific hallucinations and nightmares, visions of terrifying things alive and lurking in the wallpapered walls of this crumbling home. Before too long, Noemí knows she must get herself and Catalina out from the evil clutches of High Place, but once she uncovers the sinister secrets generations have hidden, she may be too late.

Moreno-Garcia pens a fascinating, absorbing narrative woven with elements of Mexican folklore to deliver a fresh and frightening take on classic horror. I loved that this was set in 1950s Mexico, I could clearly envision High Place, once luxurious but now decrepit and crumbling under the weight of its secrets. I could viscerally feel the pull of the house, the leering, the scheming, the danger that was biding its time.

The novel is beautifully written and incredibly atmospheric with clear notes of Lovecraftian horror. Moreno-Garcia brilliantly ratchets tension throughout as we dared to imagine the evil at play, inching towards a heart-pounding finale that left me breathless.

I can’t recommend this book enough. It’s the gothic haunted-house thriller you didn’t know you needed, and that I promise will stay with you long after you’re done.

“The world might indeed be a cursed circle; the snake swallowed its tail and there could be no end, only an eternal ruination and endless devouring.”

I'm a huge fan of gothic literature and horror stories, so when I heard an author combined both, set it in 1950s Mexico, and had it starring a creepy ass house, I was all over it. And let me tell you. It did NOT disappoint.

TW: domestic abuse and violence, attempted sexual assault and harassment, suicide, homicide, and lots of gorey bits and pieces.

The story follows Noemi, a young socialite who's days are filled with a pursuit for a degree in anthropology while her nights are filled with champagne and lavish parties and men fawning over her. When she hears her cousin, Catalina, is sick, she decides to take a trip to High Place, the home where Catalina lives with her husband and his family.

However, when Noemi arrives at High Place, things aren't as they seemed. First off, the town is not like where Noemi came from. It was much smaller than the lights of Mexico City. The house itself is falling apart with mold covering the walls. There's not enough light coming into the home giving off an ominous feel. Noemi isn't allowed to leave on her own. She can't smoke. She can't speak with her cousin because Catalina is sleeping all the time. In Noemi's boredom, she starts to figure out what's happening to her cousin and why this opulent home has fallen into such disarray. When Noemi finally uncovers the secrets of High Place, it becomes more than just a creepy ghost story.

I'm a huge fan of horror stories like this where you think you see something from the corner of your eye, but then you ignore it because it's probably just your brain. But then that thing starts moving and all of a sudden, you're not in Kansas anymore. That's what this book felt like; a scary roller-coaster that once you get down the first hill, you're basically just along for the ride. Also, gothic is most definitely the right word to explain High Place. The foggy scenes in the graveyard gave me so much Bronte sisters vibes that I was eating it up.

I was really intrigued by Noemi. She's such a complex character and I loved her dimensions. She was a socialite in many ways, but her studies in anthropology and her inquisitive nature both play major roles in the story as she uncovers the secrets of High Place. I love how her intelligence is always thwarted by someone; some dude coming at her trying to trip her up with eugenics or anthropological theories. With a background like hers and then having her explore High Place looking for answers really made me love Noemi so much more. Having the story centered on her experience brings the readers into the story learning alongside her. It was a good vehicle to keep secrets close to the chest and share SMG's hand slowly while pacing the novel.

The other characters of this novel also play a huge role in the overall story. You've got the ambitious grandson who is waiting for his moment to take over the family business. You've got the dying grandfather who doesn't want to die, but coming to terms with it. You've got the big old questions about their family and the house, which makes it so much more intriguing. And then on top of all that, you've got Noemi and her cousin Catalina and their role in this entire endeavor. The complexity of their family life was probably the big driver of this story because it was COMPLEX. I don't know if I would ever want to spend a holiday with these folks. lol.

And I will admit, the pace is definitely a slow burn. However, I never felt bored. The story hints at a lot of different things and felt more like a giant puzzle where the pieces eventually all come together. I love an author that drops hints all throughout the story, but doesn't make it so obvious so that it becomes a big surprise! I found myself going "omg that thing from before! YES! I GET IT!" which is a very fun feeling for me.

In terms of its spookiness, it's up there. I will admit that I've read scarier in my life, but that doesn't take away from the atmospheric and suspenseful nature of the story. SMG keeps you guessing all the way to the end and even then I feel like she leaves you questioning whether or not what happened actually happened. I love a good book that questions whether what you read was truth.

Thank you to Del Rey books for gifting a copy of MEXICAN GOTHIC by Silvia Moreno-Garcia.

First, let me say that this book was completely out of my comfort zone. I love thrillers and books with suspenseful elements; but to me, this book also had touches of the horror genre. I was anxious going in and while it took me a few chapters to become fully immersed in the writing style of Moreno-Garcia, once that happened I was sucked into the world of the High Place.

I would also like to point out that I don’t normally read with my phone near me, it is often more of a distraction and I will sometimes pick it up instead of allowing myself to be fully committed to reading. But, with the case of MEXICAN GOTHIC, I encourage you to have your phone near you and to look up anything that you have questions about. I did this on numerous occasions as I was unfamiliar with some of the plants, locations, and names that were referenced. By looking up this information, I feel that I had a firm grasp on where the author was leading her readers and could fully appreciate the work and research that she put into creating this book.

Also, if you are at all squeamish, there may be pieces of this story that you will be tempted to skip but just stick with it. It will all make sense in the end.

I applaud the author for writing such a mesmerizing storyline that kept me guessing and held my attention but also for educating me on all of the oddities found within the walls of the High Place.

MEXICAN GOTHIC was released on June 30, 2020, and is available to order now!

8/10 Review on Fantasy Cafe:
http://www.fantasybookcafe.com/2020/07/review-of-mexican-gothic-by-silvia-moreno-garcia/

Loved how it went from quietly disconcerting to loudly disturbing, and the more I read, the more I could not put it down.

This book was very fascinating.It kept me guessing with every chapter. I was on pins and needled the entire book. I love it!

This book is absolutely fantastic! I've never been one to read gothic horror before, but clearly this is a genre I need to explore more often (I should also note that it reads very much like "literary horror" -- a perfect blend of lyrical writing and supernatural elements). And the setting is SO vivid! Set primarily in the Mexican countryside during the 1950s, High Place and its culture simply come to life; I was wholly immersed in this from the first page till the last.

Although I am not of Mexican descent, I am Latinx, so there were several cultural elements that I could relate to. We need more books like MEXICAN GOTHIC, and more Latinx voices across a wide range of genres (not that they don't already exist, because they certainly do, but the publishing industry needs to create more space -- at editorial and marketing levels -- for books and authors like Silvia Moreno-Garcia). MEXICAN GOTHIC currently stands as my #1 book of 2020. If there's any recommendation you take from me this year, please let it be this one!

So….are you looking for a chilly, creepy book? Maybe a bit of psychological horror in the vein of Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House or perhaps some Gothic horror a la Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca? Have I got a book for you!

Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s new novel Mexican Gothic follows a young woman from Mexico City, Noemí, who is sent by her father to visit her cousin Catalina. Catalina is newly married to an Englishman and living on his estate near a former silver mine deep in the countryside but she has sent every more disturbing, erratic letters. So Noemí takes herself and her city-girl sophistication off to the very remote estate of High Place.

And it is a dreary, chilling, crumbling estate perpetually shrouded in dense fog. The Doyle family built the English mansion – and basically imported as much of Britain as they could – over the silver mine they took over in the 19th century. The mine is no longer operating and the family and house have decayed over the decades since the Revolution. And that’s just the beginning. Catalina’s husband Virgil is handsome yet strangely menacing. Florence, the sister-in-law, is distant, cold, and lays out the rules: no smoking, no hot water for bathing, no electric light, and no disturbing Catalina (who has been diagnosed with tuberculosis, which doesn’t track with her symptoms). Her son Francis is a mild-mannered young man who might be Noemí’s friend, but he’s under his mother’s thumb. And the family patriarch, Howard….well, Howard is the source of almost all content warnings for this book. (CW for discussion of suicide, body horror, eugenics, sexual assault, and those are the ones I can remember off the top of my head.)

After a few days of making herself a nuisance – and having ever-more disturbing dreams – Noemí has enough information to determine that she has to get herself and Catalina away from High Place and this dangerous family. But will the house let them go? (Yeah, you read that right!)

There are so many excellent, weird, creepy parts to Mexican Gothic. The isolated, creepy house, the chilling housekeeper, the magnetic yet menacing husband (all the best parts of Rebecca) mixed up with Guillermo del Toro’s Crimson Peak in the vividly decaying house and the uniquely British obsession with family history but set in 1950s Mexico. Noemí’s interactions with the Doyle family get stranger and scarier and more complex. Then a little “weird nature” like in Jeff VanderMeer’s Annihilation gets into the mix and the story goes WILD (I don’t eat mushrooms and thank God for that). Mexican Gothic is solid Gothic horror. I LOVED IT (it also gave me major book hangover). Another contender for best book of the year.

I have no idea why this month seems to be filled with super creepy themed books, but add this one to that list as well. The story includes a crazy (maybe??) cousin, a haunted house, and ghosts from a long time past. On the surface, the scare factor is high, but the true genius of this story is in it's many, many layers.

I personally felt like there was a lot to the story that probably flew over my head. (I also think my overthinking brain decided to overanalyze this book, trying to find some deeper meaning to the whole story.) The symbolism and the history of Mexico's fascination with eugenics after the Revolution were things I had to research to gain a better understanding. Having said that, I'm sure there's still a lot behind it that I may have missed, and because of those concerns, this book has proven hard for me to fairly rate.

Bottom line: this is a totally engrossing and atmospheric read. This is the first book I've read by Moreno-Garcia (though Gods of Jade and Shadow has been on my shelf for quite some time now), and I'm interested to see how a second book by her goes for me. I believe I can appreciate some of the nuance she was trying to layer into the story, but I also believe my obsession for finding a deeper meaning probably distracted me from the overall enjoyment.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4

Absolutely stunning.

“Mexican Gothic” is the perfect thriller for individuals desiring a new take on horror. Moreno- Garcia stays true to her heritage as she combines classic horror with Mexican cultural elements. Readers will find themselves guessing till the very end what will happen to the protagonist. This novel is stunning, creepy, and informative. With a strong, female lead that you will want to root for till the last page, I cannot stress enough how much this book had me hooked. Highly recommend.

Absolutely incredible! An intense psychological gothic thriller set in 1950s Mexico. After receiving a worrying letter, Noemí is sent to an old mining town to investigate the health of her cousin who is being cared for by her English husband and his family. The decaying walls of High Place are full of secrets and lies--and maybe, according to Noemí's cousin, ghosts. But what is the true source of her cousin's strange illness? And why is the family so determined to hide it? Whether hauntings, mental illness, or something altogether more sinister is at play remains to be seen. And Noemí's only ally is the family's youngest son, a shy young man reluctant to step outside his strict family's shadow.

What can I say about this book other than that it is a masterpiece? A tour de force of writing and character work that chilled me to my core. I had to spend the entire day reading, because I simply couldn't put it down and by the end was literally sitting at the edge of my seat. Silvia Moreno-Garcia has written a book I won't soon forget.

I'm a bit late to the game here as the book was published last month -- and somehow I'm always late to the game with Moreno-Garcia's novels -- but I could not recommend Mexican Gothic highly enough. As was the case with Gods of Jade and Shadow, Morena-Garcia is able to paint a lush and lurid image of Mexico and her characters going about their story within the world of the novel. I was hooked from the get-go, and would highly recommend reading this book in the right atmosphere: after dark, with a little fan blowing a breeze on you, and a cup of cocoa or sleepy tea at your bedside. It's a novel that deserves to be wined and dined. This review is blunt: if you liked Moreno-Garcia's work, you'll love this huge step forward in her writing style. She was good before, but this is spectacular.

Two new novels that deliver ghastly, weird, and visceral thrills have dropped this June. Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s Mexican Gothic (Del Rey) and Max Brooks’s Devolution: A Firsthand Account of the Rainier Sasquatch Massacre (Del Rey) provide deeply different reading experiences. Yet, they explore some shared territories and make for a dynamic, if somewhat counterintuitive, pairing.


Mexican Gothic hews closer to literary horror with its nuanced character development, ambient conjuration of setting, and engagement with the genre conventions and tradition of the gothic novel. Over the course of the story, this novel implicitly shows readers how and why gothic horror is ideal for registering how haunted the present is by the past. When the protagonist, Noemí, a wealthy urban socialite, journeys out of Mexico City to take up temporary residence in a remote mansion with her cousin, who’s sent a letter desperately asking for help, she must face a convergence of hauntings. Past waves of colonization introduced structures of racist hierarchies, exploitative extractivism of materials like silver, and a patriarchy fueled by power and sexual conquest. Moreno-Garcia calls up the generic ghost of the gothic novel in order to investigate and exorcise spectres whose dead hands still touch the living today.

Book cover for Mexican Gothic with baroque style portrait of young woman in crimson dress holding flowers with face visible from nose down.
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Devolution concentrates its energies on a zeitgeist vibe that pulls together insights into disparate bleeding-edge trends and zones of research. The premise that a Silicon Valley wunderkind has designed and built a hyper-wired eco-living community on previously public wild land he bought from Washington State critiques the delusions of bright green techno-capitalism and its proponents as well as the privatization of the commons. Brooks adeptly uses cryptozoology to reframe, and at times revise, conventional understandings of evolutionary biology and the deep histories of migration. Akin to Mexican Gothic, there are intense sequences of horror, ranging from the eerie to the gory, that provoke critical thinking about the crises we’re facing now and into the future due to actions of the past.

Bouncing back to Mexican Gothic, the novel opens with Noemí’s father directing her to travel to visit her cousin Catalina in the remote mansion, called High Place, where she lives with several generations of her in-laws. Noemí draws us into the characters, the plot, and one of the greatest haunted houses in literature by reflecting on Catalina’s love of English gothic novels with their moody landscapes and romanticized women in peril. But when Noemí arrives, after a train journey and a harrowing car ride up the mountain, she discovers that Catalina’s fantasy is steeped more in the more horrifying elements of the gothic: suggestions of cannibalism, incest, murder, and occult botany. The novel is filled with disturbing dreams and hallucinations, chilling suspense, and brutally beautiful splatter as Noemí must solve the mystery of what is happening in this house and then try to save Catalina and herself.

The horror and violence of Mexican Gothic feel attuned to Moreno-Garcia’s connection of the genre with the history. The family Catalina married into is from Europe. They built a fortune in Mexico before the Revolution by owning and operating a lucrative silver mine. Not only did this family draw wealth from the veins of the land, to borrow a metaphor from Eduardo Galeano, but they ruthlessly exploited local laborers, sending them into the dangers of the mine and circulating the lie that masses of them died from an epidemic. The only epidemic was the supernatural avarice of these colonial speculators, but I need to leave this a bit vague here.

Photograph of smiling author sitting in a park with plastic birds in foreground and cityscape in background.
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Silvia Moreno-Garcia, author of Mexican Gothic. Image by Martin Dee, 2017.
The occult botany comes into play through fungi. The molds and mushrooms in this novel achieve a brilliant level of uncanniness on par with the fruiting bodies that spell words on the tower/tunnel’s walls in Jeff VanderMeer’s novel, Annihilation. But Moren-Garcia’s mycology is anything but derivative. The plotline of the fungi is carefully crafted to build and swerve and scare the pants off of readers and the inhabitants of High Place alike.

Somewhat like those fungi, the sasquatches of Devolution provide a narrative arc as well as acute events of pure terror that spark philosophical questions and hypotheses when the protagonist reflects on them when the immediate threat has passed. The subtitle of the novel, A Firsthand Account of the Rainier Sasquatch Massacre, refers to Kate (Katie to some) Holland. Her therapist instructed Kate to write daily accounts and reflections, and it is through her writings collected in a journal that was later discovered in the remains of Greenloop that readers get access to life in this eco-living community and their war with the sasquatches when all living beings in the area confronted chaos when Mt. Rainier erupted.

Book cover for Devolution depicting small white footprint enclosed within much larger red footprint.
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Part of the novel’s charm is its fragmentary style. Chapters are short since they are supposed to be journal entries, plus the curator of Kate’s journal includes excerpts from interviews with Kate’s brother, who passed along his place in Greenloop to her, and Senior Ranger Josephine Schell, an expert who works in the area and witnessed the Greenloop remains. This range of voices, which is multiplied by the various voices Kate records in her journals, brings different perceptions and interpretations to bear on what unfolded at Greenloop.


Something to love about Devolution is the way it bundles sophisticated questions about ecological ethics and aesthetics with the magnetism of bigfoot. It’s like the novel’s core page-turning, sorta-schlocky qualities are both content and form that engross you while prompting you at the same time to contemplate what ideas and instincts drive the enjoyment in devouring the story. You’ll never think about Beringia, the Bering land bridge, and what it might mean for homo sapiens and ecosystems the same way again.

Something to love about Mexican Gothic is the myriad interconnected layers of haunting. From the ghosts of families, nations, and globalization to architecture, extractivist mining, and dream logics, Moreno-Garcia designs this story like a lenticular portrait. Depths within depths, representations within representations. And some serious geeking out on the chemistry of Victorian wallpaper.

Each novel makes a stellar summer read, though I’m going to recommend getting your hands on both and reading sections of each in alternating bursts. I did so by a happy little accident; now I dispatch the ghost of that experience to stalk your bookshelves and any hopes of sleeping until both tales are told.

I deviated a bit from my usual book genres to read this one and I’m so glad I did. It’s always good to get out of your comfort zone from time to time. This book was excellent. I couldn’t put it down - I just needed to know what was going on with this house and the crazy family who resided there. The scenery was so well-described that it makes the reader feel as if they are standing right there along with the characters. Warning: if you’re not into gore/horror, some of these scenes may not be for you. I was definitely grossed out from time to time but it really added to the creepiness and horror of the novel. I also really loved the main character Noemí. She was strong, bold, resilient, and independent. Even though the book is set in the 1950s, I felt like I was reading about a character set in present time - she just never backed down in an effort to help her cousin and figure what sinister forces were at play. Highly recommend.

I was lucky enough to not only get an eARC of Mexican Gothic, but also the audiobook. It might be the first book of this year that I could fully say this is a new favorite of mine. I held off with reading this because of the horror part of this. I’m not much of a horror reader, but this book was high on my list of most anticipated books of the year that I happily ignored all reservations when I got the audiobook and plunged into this wonderful book. I wasn’t sure how I felt about the narrator of the audiobook at first, mostly because of her cadence in speaking. However, with this story it easily becomes part of the story itself, making it very much part of these characters, with a slow creepiness as the horrible details come to light. Frankie honestly did amazing and I want to see what other audiobooks she’s done. I think I might have found one of my first audiobook narrators that’s a draw to a story as well as a story itself. She was very much Noemi and I can’t imagine anyone else fitting her as perfectly. I wonder if I would have loved this story as much if I hadn’t listened to it, mostly because there isn’t the same amount of depth I normally look for in books. But because of the way this story is told, I honestly didn’t care. I loved how Noemi went from a bit of a party girl who was flippant to someone more serious, who became brave and tough in the face of adversity. I wish we had gotten to know Catalina more, but I did cheer when she seemed to snap out of her funk and was able to land huge blows on the men that had kept her prisoner for so long. I hadn’t known if I could trust Francis throughout the book, knowing that he was part of a horrible family that was horrible to both Noemi and Catalina. But I was honestly so happy with what this story gave him, a man who had suffered greatly at the hands of his family, finally getting a happy ending. I hadn’t gone into this thinking I liked Noemi and Francis together, but her fierceness and his softness honestly made a perfect combo and would have probably been a little upset if the two hadn’t ended up together.

So I move on to the plot. The plot for this book was interesting. It did follow a familiar theme of gothic tales, reminding me of Crimson Peak and Haunting of Hill House (the book). I had a feeling that mushrooms would end up playing a part in it, with the detail of it and the mold in the house that kept popping up. Noemi is sent to check on Catalina who had sent a very worrying letter to her father, making them believe she might be going insane. But only as Noemi gets to know the house and the family in it does she realize there’s more to the story. I did see a few things coming. That Francis would be used be used by Howard, that him and Noemi would be forced to ‘wed’. However, I wasn’t expecting something close to a cult. This book does some wild things and somehow leaves you believing maybe this is possible. Of course, this book also speaks heavily of colonialism, as a white rich family comes to Mexico and kills its people for their own benefit, from the mines to the men that Howard killed to get the mushrooms in the first place to the treatment of Noemi and Catalina, seen as prizes simply because they’re beautiful, but still seen as ‘other’ by the family. For more on that I recommended reviews by anyone in the Latinx community who could tell you far better than I could.

All in all I can see why this book was so hyped. It was an amazing ride and I highly recommend it and the audiobook to anyone looking for an interesting story that’ll keep you on the edge of your seat.

The following review appeared on Dear Author on July 10th.

Trigger warning: sexual assault

Dear Silvia Moreno-Garcia,

Gods of Jade and Shadow, your 2019 fantasy novel, was terrific, and Untamed Shore, your noir thriller from earlier this year was also good. I don’t usually care for horror novels but I have enjoyed gothics, so when I learned about Mexican Gothic, your new gothic horror novel, I requested it.

Mexican Gothic introduces us to Noemi Taboada. Living in Mexico City in the 1950s, Noemi is a young socialite who likes to flirt with handsome boys. She’s a bit bored of her latest suitor when her father telephones in the midst of a costume party and insists that she come home immediately.

Noemi’s father presents her with a letter from her cousin Catalina, who married the mysterious Virgil Doyle almost a year earlier and moved to High Place, his family’s remote house in the province of Hidalgo. Catalina has not been seen or heard from since, but now Noemi’s father has received a letter from her.

The letter details what sound like the fantasies of a mentally-ill woman. Catalina writes of ghosts, of voices, of a snake eating its tail, and of something lurking in the walls of a foul, decaying house. She longs for Noemi and pleads for Noemi to come and save her.

Noemi’s father worries that Catalina, imaginative and a touch emotional as a child, has suffered a nervous breakdown. He asks Noemi to take the next day’s train to High Place and assess the situation. Noemi has been asking him to finance her graduate school education; thus far he’s been resistant, but if she goes to High Place, he will.

Noemi travels to High Place. The house is strange and indeed there are signs of decay; everything inside it is old and mold creeps over the walls. High Place sits atop a steep mountain and is often surrounded by fog. Noemi begins to dream of mushrooms, ghosts, and putrefying flesh. She hears creepy moaning sounds at night.

Just as strange are the Doyles, High Place’s inhabitants. Catalina’s husband Virgil thrives while Catalina weakens. Florence, Virgil’s sister, is cold, disapproving and strict. She does not allow conversation at the dinner table. Florence’s son Francis is wan and pallid. Howard, the patriarch, looks ancient and pale, and he’s obsessed with eugenics and bloodlines. Like the soil on which High Place was built, Howard is a transplant from England. The Doyles are blond and have intermarried. They are as remote from the world as their house.

Virgil and Florence tell Noemi Catalina has tuberculosis. Virgil refuses to take Catalina to a psychiatrist and resists getting a second opinion. But Noemi is strong-willed enough to get the nearby village’s physician, Dr. Camarillo, to examine Catalina. Camarillo doesn’t believe tuberculosis is the cause of Catalina’s symptoms but he can’t figure out what is.

Catalina begs Noemi to buy her a tincture from the village healer; she’s been taking it in secret to keep bad dreams at bay. In the village, Marta Duval, the healer, tells Noemi that the Doyles are cursed. Decades ago, their silver mines made them rich, but an epidemic swept through twice and many miners died. Ruth, Howard’s late daughter. was expected to marry her cousin, but she fell in love with one of the miners. She shot her groom, her aunt, her uncle, her parents and then herself. Howard was the only survivor.

Marta reveals that Florence’s husband committed suicide too. Marta warned him to get on the next train and go as far away as possible. He stayed and paid for it with his life.

Noemi’s dreams worsen after that. She dreams of Howard Doyle seducing her, calling forth a sickening desire. But Noemi is determined not to abandon Catalina.

Noemi has one ally in the house. Francis is sidelined within the family, but he drives her to the village more than once, to the displeasure of his relatives. At first Noemi thinks the faded Francis underwhelming, but he has a core of gentle care. He doesn’t tell her everything about his family, but he offers some aid. Noemi begins to reciprocate his attraction and to want the best for him.

Will Noemi escape High Place? Will she save Catalina? What kind of threat does the house pose to them, and what’s wrong with the Doyles? Can the curse, if that’s what it is, be defeated?

There are things I liked about Mexican Gothic, but also things that disappointed me.

Noemi is a vibrant character — a little flighty at first, as well as privileged. It takes her a while to realize that she’s in a more vulnerable position than she’s used to. She is strong-willed and persistent in trying to make headway though she’s stymied by the Doyles. Even hemmed in, she digs deep inside her for the strength to fight for Catalina.

Of the three heroines in the Silvia Moreno-Garcia novels I’ve read—Casiopea (Gods of Jade and Shadow), Viridiana (Untamed Shore), and now Noemi, Noemi is the most well-developed. I got a strong sense of what mattered her: freedom, self-expression, agency. Rebellion is part of her personality, not just her answer to the Doyles.

This is a partial review. You can find the complete review here: https://dearauthor.com/book-reviews/overall-c-reviews/c-plus-reviews/review-mexian-gothic-by-silvia-moreno-garcia/

Wow. Wow. Wow. Not a genre I usually read, however, I was blown away by Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s writing. She built suspense and horror in this book like no other!

The main character, Noemi, receives a panicked letter from her newlywed cousin, Catalina. She heads to the Mexican countryside and finds herself in this huge, eerie mansion where Catalina now resides with her husband and his family. The mansion used to be the center for a silver mine the family ran before many of their workers passed away from an unknown illness.

From the start, Noemi gets a sense that all is not well in this home, hence Catalina’s letter. Catalina won’t say much, and Noemi starts to push the wrong people for answers. It’s difficult to say much more without spoiling, however, I got Rebecca and Jane Eyre vibes from this book and I. Was. Here. For. It!

From start to finish, the depiction of the house, the setting, the land were all incredibly vivid! All the horror, all the gore, all the atmospheric eeriness!

I have to admit that going into this book I was expecting a modernized version of a classic gothic romance. I was not expecting for this to be borderline horror, especially with horror being a genre that I do not incline towards ever.

I am pleasantly surprised that I did enjoy this. I think what the author did really really well is create the perfect atmosphere. I saw book as a movie playing in my head and I loved every ounce of its moodiness and the dreary, crumbling mansion, with the eerily silent hallways and barely-working electricity.

This seems like it would be the unpopular opinion but: where I think the story could have been improved was with the big reveal. The author did a great job of a careful and slow buildup, asking us to keep turning the pages to find answers and then suddenly dropped it all on us at once in a weird montage that was a little too cloudy in its detail of events. I feel this could have been written a little more clearly but its not make or break.

The editing in many places could've have been better as well and I'm hoping the errors were fixed before it went to print.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced review copy in exchange for my unbiased review!