"Our Share of Night", by Mariana Enríquez, translated from Spanish by Megan McDowell, is a tome of a horror novel, set in Argentina. I was a fan of Enriquez's previously translated short story collections, "The Dangers of Smoking in Bed", and "Things We Lost in the Fire". Some of the themes present in her short story fiction are easily recognized here, like the horror inspired by Argentina's political past. For me, her prose was more impactful in short form, as I found "Our Share Of Night"'s almost 600 pages to be a little overwhelming and too long to deliver the same punch.

Plot-wise, the story follows a father and son, on the run from the boy's mother's side of the family. The mother's family is implicated in an old cult, and wants to use the boy as part of their rituals, due to his supernatural abilities. There is a lot of history behind the cult, as well as focus on the father-son relationship, and the love relationship between the father and the mother. Overall, the story was interesting and the writing atmospheric. However, I found my interest falter at times due to the length.

I would still recommend this to fans of Enriquez's short stories, as it's definitely been loved by many of her fans. Also, horror lovers who prefer longer books, this one may be for you. Thank you to NetGalley and Hogarth, Random House for the e-arc in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own. "Our Share of Night" has been out since February 2023.

I was hoping for something closer to the author's short stories, I think, and was disappointed by this title. I think the length was my main issue, as I felt the story could have been told in 50% of the page count.

I have read so many glowing reviews of this book and it is clearly so well loved, and I genuinely feel like I am missing something huge. I just read something around 700 pages that never actually went anywhere???? The writing and the characters were well done, but the extremely graphic torture of children was upsetting and then genuinely, I don't know what the point of the book is. plz feel free to mansplain

This was requested when I first found out about NetGalley and I had requested so many ARCs that I could not get to all of them before they were archived. I really wanted to get to this one, as it seemed interesting. If I can find this somewhere for a reasonable price, I will try to get it! I am giving this book three stars, as I don't want to give it a good or bad rating, since I did not get to it and we have to leave a star rating.

I will continue recommending this book to readers who might enjoy it, but it wasn't for me. I would have liked it if it were half the length. Much of it, some entire character perspectives, felt unnecessary.

Gaspar and his father Juan travel to the ancestral home of their late mother (/wife). She was part of the Order, a cult of people who worship the Darkness and seek immortality. Juan wants to protect his son from the Order, and there isn't much he won't do to this end.

This was gorgeous. Told in long sections throughout time, we learn about the family, grief, love, and loss.
The writing was lyrical while maintaining an intriguing plot. My one gripe is that the ending felt a bit rushed, but this is still well worth your time.

This book is both captivating and challenging to read. Its unconventional structure, lacking chapters and divided into uneven sections, may frustrate some readers. Just as you settle into the narrative, it abruptly shifts, introducing new perspectives, moods, and themes. Enríquez doesn't slow down; she demands your full attention to grasp the story. To truly understand the ending, you must read the entire book. While it falls under the horror genre, it deviates from traditional Western horror storytelling, embracing a dark magical realism approach. Don't expect flashy horror effects or a grand battle against evil. Identifying the true villain in this book is difficult; apart from Luis, every character has shades of awfulness. The supernatural and grotesque elements are deeply horrifying, surpassing the incomprehensible supernatural entity worshipped as a god. Despite its flaws and brokenness, I found this book satisfying in ways that few horror novels achieve. It is beautifully written, thematically dense, and the characters are intricate. The story is addictive yet repulsive, ending on an oddly hopeful note. Amidst the imperfections, the human capacity for love triumphs over the selfishness of those who reject it as illogical, leading to their downfall.

I really wanted to love this one - but it was too long and it lost me :(. Love her short stories and I'll continue to read whatever Enriquez puts out!

Like one big mystery that leaves you wondering what is going on, until you are hit with revelation after revelation. Our Share of Night was simply fantastic

Don’t let its length deter you, Our Share of Night is a fantastic literary horror experience about one Argentinian family…who happen to be members of a dark and evil death cult. I won’t use the word Satanic because it isn’t Satan they believe in but a much darker and older God, This book is not overly horrific but has some very tense and creepy moments throughout. You will eagerly await reading or listening as soon as you can to find out what is going to happen in Juan’s and Gaspar’s stories next, You will have moments of happiness, anger, sadness, and despair right along with them. Highly recommend it. I’m still thinking about them days after I finished reading.

I don’t usually include trigger warnings in horror novels but this one includes some a few twisted moments of child and even baby abuse and torture that could be hard for some to read/hear.

I received my copy from the publisher and NetGalley but I also bought the audiobook from Audible and both read and listened to it. The narrator did a great job plus hearing the accent and the correct Spanish pronunciation of places like Puerto Reyes added to my experience.

This book was really something. It was spooky, weird, atmospheric, descriptive, and creepy. The author's writing style and the way she wrote these characters were amazing. However, the pacing was off, not sure if it was because of the timeline going back and forth. There were moments where I got bored and felt it dragged. However, I was interested enough to keep reading it. All in all, it was a good read. I'd highly recommend.

“Our Share of Night” is a novel by Mariana Enriquez, an Argentinian writer. The book is set in the decades during and after Argentina’s military dictatorship and is an occult treatment of the ‘dirty war’. The novel fuses political allegory and gleeful gore, and it follows Gaspar, a child in 1981, into early adulthood in 1997. Gaspar’s mother died in suspicious circumstances, and he grows up in the care of his dying father, Juan. Juan is a medium; his son has inherited his powers. Gaspar’s abilities make him useful to malign and politically powerful groups, but Juan is determined to protect him.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Penguin Random House, Hogarth for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Full disclosure, I had to DNF this book at 26%. The reasons that I didn't enjoy this reading experience likely has more to do with my own personal reading tastes than any true fault of the book. My only actual critique is that this book is very long and very slow paced.

What I enjoyed: This book is beautifully translated and very well-written so I would definitely give this author and translator another attempt in the future. I can also tell that this author did a lot of medical research to make Juan's (potentially demon-induced/exacerbated) cardiac issues seem very authentic. The scenes in the story where Juan is really suffering with his condition felt so incredibly visceral.

What I didn't like: This book features a lot of child abuse/neglect/emotional manipulation. I never thought I was necessarily overly sensitive to reading this kind of thing, but what I read in this story felt really sad and a bit gratuitous. Other reviewers have said that the graphic abuse of children in this story is mostly off-page, but I tend to disagree, so be aware of this going into this story because everyone's sensitivities vary greatly. Given the length of this book, the pacing, and the fact that the main plot-point of this book surrounds the emotional manipulation of a grieving six year old with the intention of protecting him from demons and becoming a sacrifice to the Darkness, I quickly realized that 600+ pages of this would not end up being a fun experience for me.

Thanks again to NetGalley and Hogarth! While this reading experience wasn't for me, I'm glad I gave it a chance!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book.

I was excited get a copy of this book since I had seen so many positive reviews and promotions. I really liked the writing style, characters, and family dynamics, but this was way too long....especially for a horror novel. Since I was reading an ebook, I didn't realize the length until I noticed I was only about half the way through after reading forever.. It kept my attention enough to finish, but guessed the ending pretty soon into the last part of the book. Definitely a slow burn. 3.5 stars rounded down.

Wow! What a truly incredible achievement. This is a masterpiece and not something many authors could achieve. While this wasn't quite for me, there's no denying this is a work of art.

This is a book that will absolutely stay with you.

On the surface it's about how one family suffers under the weight of a terrible cult built on torture and darkness in the name of a dark God they think offers them immortality in exchange, beneath this it's about trauma and loss- the sort that devours generations- even nations. If you have a hard time with the first book (I certainly did because of my personal triggers), maybe the third too, keep going, there's more than enough reason to finish. Enriquez has built a unique world here, one with edges of atmospheric weight, true and carefully written grief, and an improbably powerful purpose.

It has been a long day today but it seems fitting to post this #bookreview during dusk. This is my first time diving into @mayaxenriquez 's work and I emphasize DIVE because the character development, the society development, the atmosphere - this shit is DEEP. Thank you to the author, @netgalley, and the publisher @randomhouse for the e-ARC of OUR SHARE OF NIGHT.

Enriquez has created a whole underground universe that intertwines the stories in this collection about a black magic cult that enslaves its mediums under the guise of protection and the multi-generational fight of a family trying to break the curse/gift/enslavement of being a medium for this collective. The stories mostly take place in Argentina and switch between past and present to form the whole of the characters therein.

I enjoyed this connected collection immensely, especially the queerness that radiated through the stories: Juan's bi/pan/poly lifestyle, the discussion of androgynous magic, etc. The shadowy society, attempts to outsmart them, etc were a lovely accompaniment.

I will certainly pick up my copy of THE DANGERS OF SMOKING IN BED by the same author soon! Yes, I bought a book by an author I have never read and then promptly grabbed a copy of said author's new, completely different book on netgalley. Is that weird? Can you relate?

Stay hydrated out there friends!

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#bibliophile #booknerd #booksta #bookworm #bookdragon #bookreview #ourshareofnight #marianaenriquez #shortstorycollection #bookish #booklover #books

Some days, and then days and days following, you just need to read an absolutely sprawling and brutal cult story, and that’s Our Share of Night.

Following multiple timelines and narrators we see the implosion of a family as they attempt to escape their fate. While woven deftly around that thread is psychedelic portals, ghostly visions, grotesque demonic rituals and the violence of The Dirty War. Serious, this book is dense.

What makes this book easy is the rhythm of Enriquez prose, and what I’m assuming is an excellent translation by Megan McDowell. It’s horrifying and also incredibly pleasurable to read. I was already recommending it to people when I was only halfway through.

This very well may be my favourite book of the year.

Love a book about a cult, can't keep me away from them. This was no exception. Thank you for giving me the opportunity!

As usual, her writing is great. Lush, dark, creepy, and intense. The story is interesting and slowly unwinds. I realized the storyline may be a bit too dark for me at this time. I've never been big on horror but wanted to try this one since I read her short stories and love her writing style.