Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC!

This story follows Domingo who upon chance meets Atl, a vampire with Aztec lineage. Atl is on the run from another group of vampires and Domingo agrees to help her flee.

I absolutely love books with vampires and this one did not disappoint. I loved how the book took place in Mexico City! I also enjoyed the twist she put on vampires by sub-categorizing them into different groups. The main characters were also interesting and had depth. It also deals with serious topics such as gangs, drugs, etc.

I highly recommend for fans of vampire stories!

I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect when I started this. I don’t think I have read anything classified as neo-noir, or what to think of something claiming to reimagine vampire lore. But I was a bit surprised how much I ended up liking the book in some ways and yet being a bit bored by it too.

The thing I really liked about the book and what kept me going, was all of the different types of vampires and the lore surrounding them. I also liked how different countries were treating them, once they were discovered in the 60’s. There was a lot of complex world building that was neatly woven into the story so it never felt like info dumping. Also the dark and gritty streets of Mexico city were easy to imagine in this slightly futuristic world. It was easy to imagine this story as a movie with the amount of detail that went into the world.

I did find it very hard to connect to any of the characters, mostly because they were a little on the one dimensional side. I just never felt like I knew any of them well enough to care about them. Atl was the most interesting vampire that we met, in that I felt she at least had some morals and that she felt some guilt with the situations she got Domingo into. But I never was able to totally root for her.

I did like Domingo a lot, and felt some connection to him. He was just a street kid struggling to survive in a harsh world when he becomes ensnared by Atl and her world. He was already obsessed with vampires and it was amusing how his fantasies were being canceled out by the reality. I do think that Domingo came to care for Atl, and she came to care about him to, but I am not sure I would classify it as a romance between them.

There are a lot of other characters involved in the story. Nick, the vampire who is trying to kill Atl, was perhaps the most despicable of them. He is the worst kind of vampire with no control over his blood lust. There is also the human cop Ana, who had just as many issues as everyone else, but I kind of liked her. She was fighting for survival to in a world that didn’t want her to succeed.

The story itself was also something that kept my interest, although there were times when the plot slowed down a bit too much. I liked how the gang wars between the vampires were something akin to the drug cartels we have today. Everyone killing each other for territory or for revenge. It is all a nasty business and there didn’t seem to be anyone who cared that much as long as it was vampires killing each other.

If you are looking for something different than the typical vampire story that you see in YA, this is a book you should think about reading. The different vampires and their lore and how they are a totally different species from humans makes for interesting reading. The plot of the story is also good, although it was a bit slow moving for me at times.

Cool plot, cool world. The writing kind of dragged for me in a few places, but I loved reading about the different kinds of vampires.

For fans of vampire novels, this dark urban fantasy is set in an alternate Mexico City. Alt is on the run when she ropes in Domingo to help her escape.

This is the vampire book that I wanted when I was younger. I wanted morally grey vampires from diverse backgrounds with unique abilities. I didn't want sparkles. I wanted grit and darkness with a touch of romance and a cool dog. However, as I get older I get harder to please. On paper this was everything that I should have loved from the combination of characters, the vibrant setting, and the amazing world lore, but I found it to be a little too slow paced to keep me captivated for longer than two or three chapters at a time.

For me, the pacing didn't really kick off until about seven chapters towards then end and by that point there really was saving it for me. I have seen other reviewers say that it was fast paced, but they must have had something that kept them glued to the pages that I lacked. However, I think that fans of vampires, but are looking for something a little outside of the box will really enjoy this. Readers who like noir novels, cop novels, grey characters and gritty underworlds will probably also find something to like in this. If everything else fails you can always root for the really awesome dog.

Thank you to Netgalley and Tor Nightfire for providing me with an e-ARC of this novel, however all thoughts and opinions are my own.

This is a really interesting take on vampires. The author creates an entirely new world where there are multiple clans/species of vampire, each with their own appearance, powers and foibles. She places them in a modern world and lets the story run from there.

I really really wanted to love this book. It's not 'just another vampire novel' and in an alternate present discovering vampires led to a completely reshaped 21st century - México city closed itself off, with the rest of the country at the mercy of vamp gangs fighting for territory (and food). I love the different type of vampires (Mexican vampres existing since the Aztecs vs the Necros who are more traditional European mythology) . I love bringing together so many myths around vampires, and honestly is a breath of fresh air in the whole vampire neo-noir. It's fun, it's clever, and I would absolutely recommend it. Did I love it? Not quite - the ending kind of knocked me back, but this as a whole is the first one in a while that does vampire myths justice, and even better it has culture and diversity with a brilliant complexity. Fingers crossed for the next one!

"From Silvia Moreno-Garcia, the New York Times bestselling author of Mexican Gothic, comes Certain Dark Things, a pulse-pounding neo-noir that reimagines vampire lore.

Welcome to Mexico City, an oasis in a sea of vampires. Domingo, a lonely garbage-collecting street kid, is just trying to survive its heavily policed streets when a jaded vampire on the run swoops into his life. Atl, the descendant of Aztec blood drinkers, is smart, beautiful, and dangerous. Domingo is mesmerized.

Atl needs to quickly escape the city, far from the rival narco-vampire clan relentlessly pursuing her. Her plan doesn’t include Domingo, but little by little, Atl finds herself warming up to the scrappy young man and his undeniable charm. As the trail of corpses stretches behind her, local cops and crime bosses both start closing in.

Vampires, humans, cops, and criminals collide in the dark streets of Mexico City. Do Atl and Domingo even stand a chance of making it out alive? Or will the city devour them all?"

Silvia Moreno-Garcia, AKA the author of the moment.

Another vampire novel, you'd say? Don't we have enough of that?

Well, not in this refreshing, utterly unique spin that only Silvia Moreno-Garcia can do! I don't want to go too much into details as I think this is a book that is better served reading without any assumptions, especially as the subject matter already leads to the usual beliefs and stereotypes. 4 stars for the writing, 5 for originality!

I had absolutely no idea that was was missing in my life was a Latinx vampire neo-noir horror novel. I was missing out! This book has me wanting to get my hands on every single neo-noir book I can find and also on every book Moreno-Garcia has ever written that I have not yet read.

This was my second book by this author, and once again Moreno-Garcia's writing was incredible. I could picture every single scene in this book. Most often through a rainy black and white lens.

This is not your typical vampire novel. You will not find sparkly love triangles here. Instead, you will find horror, grit, and beautiful downfalls. I cannot recommend this book highly enough. This book combines different vampire myths from multiple cultures and the end result is a book I couldn't put down. Amazing.

Silvia Moreno-Garcia awes again and this time with a magnificent, expansive tale of alternative universes and the coolest vampires you’ve ever met.

Certain Dark Things is a departure from typical vampire tales. Set in Mexico City, a place where vampires supposedly do not tread, Domingo meets Atl on the subway. Part of an ancient and legendary subspecies of vampire, Atl is on the run, hiding from the savage vampires who killed her family. She recruits Domingo to be her assistant and her food source. But as more parties converge on Atl's hideout, she and Domingo will have to make a run for it if they want to make it out of the city alive.
This book plays with multiple versions of vampires, setting them up as subspecies with different cultures and traditions. It's a fresh take on a genre full of traditional vampire stories. It was well-written, and I think the story wrapped up in the only way it could have.

Silvia Moreno-Garcia does world-building like no other. The author’s ability to infuse textual layers to breathe life into a setting is mesmerizing. Her neo-noir paints a vivid picture of urban Mexico City, lending a rich, authentic atmosphere for her unique spin on vampires. Nestled in this depiction of Mexico City is a dark tale of lust and corruption, and of action and consequences. The complex, flawed characters are icing on the cake of this compulsory, genre-bending read. It’s riveting urban fantasy at its finest.

First off let me start by saying once again Silvia has exceeded my expectations. She provides her amazing storytelling set in Mexico City but this time the paranormal element isn't a gothic haunting supernatural element, no she has vampires. This is a very cool and fast pace read that will leave you wanting more. I know I am a huge fan of hers and will buy everything she writes because so far she hasn't disappointed me yet. Every story she creates is unique in its own way but still has her own style and spin on it. This was another amazing read from her!

After reading Mexican Gothic earlier this year, I was eager for more fiction by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, so of course I had to pick this one up! I was really excited for this idea of a "neon noir" setting, and overall I was pretty satisfied. It was a really interesting exploration, to imagine a world where everyone knows vampires are real -- and there are over a dozen different vampire species -- but they are still rather marginalized in society. My favorite part was definitely getting to know some of the different vampire species, and especially experiencing what it was like from a deeper perspective with Atl. I really enjoyed the deep history of her culture and family, but I honestly would have loved to nerd out with even more details in that regard. This was overall a pretty entertaining story, and I personally really enjoyed the darkness of the atmosphere (although I could have gone for much more *dark*). I think I would have enjoyed this even more if there had been a bit more exploration of the relationship between Atl and both her dog Cualli, and of course between Atl and Domingo. In the end, I was left satisfied with the story I read, but also I would eagerly read a sequel!

DNF at 55%. The real action starts around this point, but I still didn't feel invested enough. I tried to finish this one, I really did. It ultimately felt like a chore.

The good:
- The general idea. I was interested in this gritty, dark world that Moreno-Garcia has presented to us. A walled-off Mexico City that definitely has no vampires in it is intriguing and sets up an interesting premise.
- The writing. I found the writing to be straightforward and easy to consume, albeit a bit dry. It's definitely well-edited.

The bad:
- The characters. I had a hard time connecting to or becoming invested in any of the characters introduced, and I think ultimately this is the book's downfall. Some of the actions the characters took felt fake or unreasonable, or their internal monologue didn't really make sense with the world around them.
- The plot/pacing. The premise of the book, as noted above, is interesting, and what kept me reading initially. But for about the first half of the book, we meet a lot of characters in a very surface-level manner, and we're introduced to some very basic conflicts, but nothing truly happens until about the 55% mark. When it does, it's very disappointing. None of the characters ever really experience repercussions for their actions, and the way things happen don't feel realistic, within the world the story takes place in.

There will most certainly be people enjoy this book, and I'm sad I can't count myself among them.

Dark and suspenseful (without being too gruesome), with a fascinating internal mythology/world-building.

I received an ARC of this reissue through NetGalley for free in exchange for an honest review.

I had fun and I'm not mad I spent my time on this. I loved the themes! We can definitely have some conversations about the impact of colonialism and also talk about government responses to global diseases. I also loved the playing with of vampire folklore and vampire tropes.

I think the writing style is very much intentional in it being reminiscent of a noir film, but I didn't super love the experience of reading it. At times it felt very silly and I kept having to remind myself of the style/vibes it was intentionally creating.

Hence the 3/5 star rating. It's not a new all time favorite for me personally. But I can definitely see this being a new favorite for folx who love their genre fiction, love horror, or love a good vampire story.

Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan-Tor/Forge for letting me read the ARC in exchange for a review!

I've actually attempted to read this book twice. The first time, I read the word "vampire" and really went in with the wrong expectations. I didn't even make it through the whole book the first time because of those expectations. So, when I saw this new edition pop up on Netgalley, I thought "I like vampires. I like Silvia Moreno-Garcia. Why don't we try this again?" Moreno-Garcia's own comments on Goodreads about this book and what to expect helped a lot. I finally understood that this was less of a vampire romance but more of a noir/gritty/thriller where Atl and Domingo's lives are at stake. The book is dark and- I'll emphasize- gritty. Every character in the story has something messed up going on in their lives, but they're trying to scrape by and survive as best as they can.

I loved watching Atl and Domingo. I loved watching them slowly (and kind of awkwardly) become friends and begin to care about each other. I'm glad I gave this story a second chance because it is good. Just realize this is not a vampire romance. Yes there is love and sex and lots of blood, but Moreno-Garcia uses real vampire lore from around the world in this book. A lot of these vampires aren't exactly pretty, but they feel so much more real.

OH MY GOSH. certain dark things is stunning. i felt as if this book was written for me. it has everything i love and i cant wait to recommend to everyone