I loved it. The beginning was a slow burn, but once Carlota met Eduardo, I couldn't put it down. Exciting storytelling: an imaginative retelling of a Victorian classic with impressive detail.

3.5

Silvia Moreno-Garcia is such an interesting author. She has so much talent and her ability to cross genres is unmatched. Here we have a historical fiction novel with sci-fi elements and horror elements, and there is a slow burn romance and a great found family and complicated characters.

This novel takes the bones of H.G. Wells' The Island of Doctor Moreau and sets it in a similar time period but in the Yucatán peninsula, where we see the events of the story through the eyes of the doctor's daughter Carlota and the overseer Montgomery Laughton. The beginning is slow and the first several chapters seemed to just duplicate events but in the other POV which was a tad annoying. But by the 50% mark I was fully invested and anxiously turning pages to see how it would end and the ending did not disappoint!

What I love most about Moreno-Garcia's novels are the themes she tackles. In this, she invites the reader to think about what makes a monster and pushes back on the US-Euro centric view of Mexico. She is able to explore racism and colorism and the way indigenous people were treated. Her author's note in particular had really interesting information about the time period. Also as usual, Moren0-Garcia highlights misogyny and women's lack of agency.

I found it hard to connect with the story. It was beautifully written and an imaginative retelling - it was just missing something. I loved the feminist approach and the landscape/setting presented.

I didn’t love this one as much as Moreno-Garcia’s other books but it was still filled with a lovely and haunting atmosphere as well as interesting characters.

I want to start this review by saying that for people who are hesitant to read this book before having read HG Well's The Island of Doctor Moreau, don't worry! This is a loose retelling and reading or not reading the classic will not impact your ability to understand the novel and you should definitely give it a shot.

Silvia Moreno-Garcia has some of the most beautiful prose I have ever read and this means that I will pick up literally everything she writes. However, I feel like this book had a really rough start. The first 150 pages were incredibly slow and I found myself drifting off and struggling to pay attention. Carlota, our main character, had such a blind obedience toward her father that it was hard to root for her. As for our other main character, Montgomery, I was honestly pretty indifferent to him the whole time.

I think the first half of the book could have been shorter but the second half was full of intrigue. After about 150 pages, the book really picked up, and the last 50 pages especially were amazing. The plot became action packed and Carlota's growth and transformation were so rewarding to watch. I'm not someone who typically enjoys epilogues, but Silvia Moreno-Garcia always writes the most beautiful and bittersweet endings that put me on the verge of tears every time. If you're someone who doesn't mind sitting through a very long exposition, you might enjoy this one.

The beautiful descriptions of the Yucatan in this hybrid tale of historical and science fiction weaves together the dual narrative of Carlota Moreau and Montgomery Laughton. It reads like a tragedy from the onset. The alcoholism and self-loathing of Montgomery layered with the youthful but sheltered and naïve Carlota depict a path that is eerie and unsettling as they assist in the managing of a menagerie of part human and part animal hybrids.
The easy antagonist is the patron of Dr. Moreau, Hernando Lizalde along with his son Eduardo. However the true villain is slowly unwrapped as Carlota discovers the truth about herself and her father’s ambitions. As the true despicable nature of the antagonist is revealed I truly loved to hate him.
While I enjoyed the ending, the foreshadowing and romantic depictions between Montgomery and Carlota were squicky. Carlota is fourteen years old when she is introduced to the divorcee and very adult Montgomery. For me, the slovenly older man lusting after the naïve Carlota who he watched grow for seven years, made it hard to push past the 30% mark of the book.
Carlota’s character growth was painfully slow, and remained tragic at the end where she still retained a set of naive and unrealistic goals. I found myself rooting for the underdog and more attached to the skeevy Montgomery who I wanted to see sober up and find value in life.
I enjoyed the banter between the hybrids and the main characters. The mystery of Carlota and her true conception were a great hook that kept me guessing throughout the story. I found the most compelling moments were when Montgomery behaved more as a mentor to Carlota than a prospective suitor. The arguments and strife between them, where Montgomery directly challenges Carlota’s notions of truth were the best bits of conflict and tension in the narrative.
I received a copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you Random House, and look forward to reading future works by the talented Silvia Moreno-Garcia.

A great historical sci-fi novel!

Inspired by the novel of HG Wells, this book brought the mystery to reality in the landscape of Mexico.

The characters were engaging and well developed for me as a reader. I could feel the emotion that surrounded decisions made by the characters and felt invested in their story.

The Daughter of Doctor Moreau was a wonderful read. Loosely drawn from HG Wells science fiction novel The Island of Doctor Moreau, the story takes place in a remote village in the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico. Similar to the Wells novel, this story too involves the obsessions of Doctor Moreau, a scientist driven to experiment with the creation of human-animal hybrids-- but this time, burdened with substantial financial debts, ostensibly to create an army of cheap and obedient labor for the doctor's patron, a wealthy landowner funding his experiments.

Much of the story centers around the interaction between the hybrids and a handful of humans privy to knowledge of the hybrids' existence - Doctor Moreau, his daughter, the man hired to run the operation and Dr. Moreau's patron and his son and nephew. And at its core is the deep affection Dr. Moreau's daughter Carlota holds for the hybrids and the conflict this creates with her revered father who views his creations quite differently.

I enjoyed the book and recommend it highly.

A reimagining of the tale of Doctor Moreau, set in 19th century Mexico. This followings two POVs - Carlota, the dutiful daughter of Dr. Moreau, and Montgomery, the English mayordomo.

I enjoyed both of the povs, and found myself endeared to both Carlota and Montgomery. The story itself moved languidly, especially in Part Two of the story, which was more focused on the romance of the plot. However, I found myself unable to the book down after 60% until I finished it.

I have not read the original story of Doctor Moreau, but there was very little within The Daughter of Doctor Moreau that I was not able to anticipate. I had expected the story to have a bit more twists and turns, but it sort of just moved along in a straight line. That being said - expectations adjusted accordingly - I still really enjoyed reading this and haven't been able to stop thinking about it since I put it down.

This was a fun remake of H.G. Wells 1896 book, The Island of Doctor Moreau. I loved the location in Merida and the Yucatán in Mexico.

We follow Carlota, the daughter of either the mad or brilliant scientist doctor. He creates hybrids-part human part animal beings. Carlota cares for them and is basically the woman id the estate. Curious things happen amongst the hybrids and the Yucatán.

This was an entertaining, fantastical read and follows true to Moreno-Garcia’s book traits of reality meshing with the supernatural. If you like that, you’ll enjoy this read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing-Ballantine for the advance e-copy of this book.

Another magnificent book by Silvia Moreno Garcia! This one turned quickly into one of my new favorites from her, alongside Mexican Gothic and Gods of Jade and Shadow. As always, so many important topics are handled in this book, like colonialism, women’s autonomy, how humans engage with nature, among others. The only thing that I didn’t enjoy was the romance, surprisingly. I feel like it didn’t added a lot to the story, and the focus could have gone to the science behind the hybrids, for example. Nevertheless, it was a great novel and I will recommend it to everyone looking to read more SMG!

In this gothic science fiction novel, Silvia Moreno-Garcia reimagines the classic tale of “The Island of Doctor Moreau” by H.G. Wells. I love the culture and history that Moreno-Garcia brings to all of her stories while still creating her own world, and this one is no different. The story is set in the Yucatan Peninsula during the 19th century and follows Carlota, a headstrong and willful girl, raised on the luxurious estate where Moreau performs his experiments, and Montgomery, the melancholic overseer with a tragic past and a propensity for alcohol.

It was a little slow in the beginning, but after the halfway point, the action picked up a bit. It is still well written, very atmospheric, and more character driven than action packed. I was expecting it to be a little more in the horror category, based on the author’s previous works, but it was still a very interesting read, combining genres that aren’t usually combined. It made for a very unique experience.

Thank you to NetGalley, Silvia Moreno-Garcia, and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Del Rey, for the e-arc of The Daughter of Doctor Moreau in exchange for an honest review.

extremely well-written, deeply atmospheric, and an array of really intriguing characters. and yet, I was unable to put it down. Silvia Moreno-Garcia has a very specific writing style which I could see causing some dislike, but her ability to weave a story is unlike anyone else.

The Daughter of Doctor Moreau by Silvia Moreno-Garcia is a reimagining of HG Wells classic novel
This time Dr. Moreau is in Mexico with his daughter, Carlota. Working in his lab - taking care of the hybrids - writing some notes - raising some funds. There's not really much happening. It's the tortoise version of a slow burn. The last 20% has some action. There is a twist you will probably guess early on based on a couple of clues. The ending was interesting.
The imagery of old Mexico and the Yucatan is wonderful but it's hard to make up for the slow story.

Fans of Moreno-Garcia's previous books or fans of descriptive prose might like this one.

No surprise - I really enjoyed this one. SMG is one of my most favorite authors and I will read anything she writes, and it's a guarantee I'm going to gush about it. I loved the setting in this one so much. I've been to the area and I could picture the lush backdrop of the Yucatán peninsula as I was immersed in this story based on The Island of Doctor Moreau - which is twisted and crazy in it's own right - but I LOVED the spin SMG's tale took on it.

So many twists, and secrets and I just adored the hybrids the most - but I wish we could have spent more time with them. I almost feel like there could have been a more thorough character development of each of the main hybrids - I would have loved more on their emotions, and feelings, and inner thoughts ... of course it's just like SMG to make me fall in love with the most damaged of creatures.

I love where her imagination goes and pulls us in as readers no matter how gruesome the subject or twisted the story becomes. I fall in love with her books more and more with every one I read.

While the plot of this wasn't my favorite, that isn't Moreno-Garcia's fault as this is a retelling. What she does well here, like always, is building a eerie gothic world that gets truly under your skin. I won't forget this book because of it.

What would you do if your entire life was based on a lie told by your own father? Carlotta Moreau, the daughter of Doctor Moreau, is about to find out how to deal with a lifetime of secrets.

Review
The Daughter of Doctor Moreau by Silvia Moreno-Garcia is set at a remote estate on the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico. It is loosely based on The Island of Doctor Moreau by H.G. Wells. You don’t need to know too much about the original story to enjoy The Daughter of Doctor Moreau.

The book begins in 1871 and ends in approximately 1877. Montgomery Laughton has been hired to be a caretaker of the estate by the benefactor, Hernando Lizalde. From what everyone says, the area is beautiful. However, there is some weird stuff going on at the estate.

Montgomery has been sworn to keep the experiments of Doctor Moreau a closely guarded secret. Moreau has been given the task of making animal/human hybrids into a workforce for Lizalde. So far the hybrids haven’t been strong enough to send away.

Carlotta knows that her illness requires the use of jaguars in a serum to maintain her health. Part of Montgomery’s job is to hunt jaguars and bring them back to Doctor Moreau.

Carlotta tries to find the antidote in her father’s journals but cannot find it. She is very smart and had been trained to be a medical assistant. Carlotta could make a serum for herself and the hybrids if she had the directions.

Montgomery loves Carlotta. He knows that he too flawed for her to love. She falls in love with Lizalde’s son, Eduardo. Honestly, she would have been better off marrying Montgomery. Eduardo is a wretched human being.

Towards the end, Mr. Lizalde returns to take the hybrids and evict the Moreaus. It doesn’t go as anyone expects. Carlotta learns the secret to her existence. She wanted to know the truth. Did the truth set her free? Possibly. It wasn’t what she was expecting but she needed to know.

Conclusion
If you are a fan of science fiction or historical fiction, then you might enjoy this book. Also, if you are a fan of Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s other novels, then you won’t be disappointed in The Daughter of Doctor Moreau.

If you want the Doctor to win by keeping his secret experiments under his control, then you won’t like the ending. The hybrids had more humanity than most of the humans in this novel. Let me know what you think of the book.

I received the ebook from NetGalley. This is my honest review. All opinions are my own. Obviously.

I had high expectations for this book especially since it is a reimagining of an old classic. However, it fell a little flat for me. I liked reading it, but now that two weeks have passed since I am writing this review, I can't even remember the ending. There was suspense and a buildup of bad things to happen in the story and then the ending was just blah...

Carlotta is Dr. Moreau's daughter. She has been isolated from most people her whole life and has grown up around her father's experimental animal/human hybrids. One day a young man named Eduardo arrives and becomes infatuated by her. Montgomery is the Dr.'s assistant. Although is a misfit who has drunk away any future, he would do anything to protect the hybrids and Carlotta. Unfortunately, Dr. Moreau is consumed by perfecting his hybrids and has lost focus.

The book is intriguing but was not anything fantastic. I received a complimentary e-book from Netgalley.com

Carlotta is the daughter of Doctor Moreau, living on an secluded estate in Mexico. Dr. Moreau is deeply preoccupied with his work for his patron: the twisting of nature to create field hands. And while he pursues his grandiose dreams, Charlotte enjoys a privileged life amongst the unique workers at the estate. When her illusions begin to shatter and she falls for the wrong man, the future of her family, all those at her estate, is put at risk.

The setting and lives of the characters are so well described and the setting feels deeply atmospheric. The plot is interesting, but the story definitely drags in the middle. I thought it was an interesting choice to have two points of view, Carlotta and the deeply grumpy and alcoholic majordomo of the estate. They contrast sharply, as Carlotta is incredibly naive and childish. I definitely appreciated the two vastly different characters' points of view but to be honest, I didn't really like either of them. And while the story was interesting, I'm not sure that I really enjoyed it. But as always the writing is expansive and the story will stay with me.

When I first heard about The Daughter of Doctor Moreau, this was my exact response:

What in the heck is this!?!? OMG, I'm so exicteddddddddd!!! I hear THE ISLAND OF DOCTOR MOREAU and I'm sold. We all know Moreno-Garcia can bring that toe-curling body horror to the page and we love to see it!!

That's quite a reaction, I'll admit. I can be dramatic. Unfortunately, I struggled with this story from the very start. I was kindly gifted an e-ARC and started it at least a week prior to its publication date. Two weeks later I was stil at 25% with zero desire to continue.

I made the decision to put it back on the shelf and wait for an audio copy through my local library. I finally received the audiobook on August 16th and read it in three days.

It made all the difference for me. The narration by Gisela Chipe was fantastic. They brought this story to life for me and actually succeeded in keeping me engaged. With this being said, the story still wasn't anything I was crazy about. This is a good book, with solid character work and a wonderfully-developed historical setting, however, I was here for the SFF-Horror and I just didn't get it.

Maybe I set myself up for disaster thinking this was going to be something that it wasn't, but regardless, that's the experience I had with it. I was bored and underwhelmed.

This doesn't detract from the fact that Silvia Moreno-Garcia is an incredibly-gifted storyteller whose work I will continue to pick up from now til forevermore. This just wasn't my favorite of her work. I am happy that I gave this one a second chance though and that I was able to get through to the end. It is a sweet story, sad and dramatic. I think a lot of people will really love this one. Particularly people who enjoy Historical Fiction with complicated familial relationships.

Thank you to the publisher, Ballantine, for providing me with a copy to read and review. It's always a pleasure to see what Moreno-Garcia has developed and this was no exception. I'm looking forward to her next release!