A story about female resilience and making the most of bad situations based on real life experiences of La Malinche (aka Malinalli). I appreciate its unique perspective on La Malinche and its vivid descriptions of indigenous Mexican culture. However, I think the book suffered from pacing issues, sacrificing an understanding of the titular character and side characters in order to hit plot points in quick succession. As a consequence, I had little to keep me engaged and felt pretty numb to objectively grave scenes that deserved more impact. Someone who is more spiritual and has a greater appreciation for nature imagery would probably enjoy this more than I did.

Actual Rating: 1.75/5

I went into Malinalli really excited to read about Malintzin/La Malinche, a historical figure I knew little about but was eager to learn more. Her story—one of betrayal, survival, and vengeance—has so much potential for a gripping historical fiction novel. Unfortunately, this book just didn’t deliver.

Let’s start with the positives: the setting and cultural details are beautifully described. The world of pre-conquest Mesoamerica feels rich and alive, and I appreciated the effort to bring this history to life. But that’s where my enjoyment ended. The story itself was rushed, disjointed, and frustratingly shallow in places where it should have had the most emotional depth.

The supernatural elements felt unnecessary, like a crutch the book didn’t need. Malinalxochitl (as she is called in the book) has a real story that is compelling enough—why add vague, ineffectual magic that ultimately doesn’t change anything? The motivations for her revenge felt flimsy, and the time jumps were so abrupt that I struggled to connect with her journey. One moment she’s a betrayed child, the next she’s a vengeance-seeking priestess, and then suddenly, she’s enslaved with barely a paragraph to transition between these life-altering moments.

That was my biggest frustration: important events—her enslavement, her suffering, even the Spanish invasion—were skimmed over as if they were footnotes. There’s a moment where three years of her life as a sex slave are brushed aside in just a few paragraphs. I’m not asking for gratuitous detail, but without exploring her struggles, how are we supposed to feel the weight of her rage and resilience? Instead, she mostly feels passive, floating from one event to the next with brief outbursts of anger that don’t seem to change anything.

By 47%, I was losing patience. By 65%, I gave up and just skimmed to the end. I hate not finishing books, especially ARCs, but this one just wasn’t worth the effort. The best thing I got from Malinalli was the inspiration to research the real Malintzin myself—because this book certainly didn’t do her justice.

I am deeply grateful to NetGalley and Atria Books for this opportunity to read a digital ARC and provide my honest review.

I was hooked from the beginning!!
I devoured this book! .
It was amazing, addictive, and engaging.
I was instantly sucked in by the atmosphere and writing style.
The writing is exceptional and I was hooked after the first sentence.

Thank you so much for this ARC! A great debut and definitely worth reading if you're into more of the historical side!

Malinalli is a a speculative first person narrative of a controversial historical figure - the woman who helped translate for the conquistador Cortez. Historically discussed as a witch, a goddess, a victim, or a traitor, this book shows us a world brimming with mythology and native Mexican symbolism where the heroine is all of the above and more. Malinalli's character remains mostly unchanged from the time of her young childhood to adulthood, but each stage of her life is told with reverent details. In this world of magic, enemies, and tragedy, she will do whatever it takes to protect her family and claim her birthright destiny.

DNF because the characters fell increasingly flat and did not feel real to me. I especially felt distant from the main character herself, which I felt was counterintuitive to a first person narrative that had the main focus of trying to understand a woman who did not get to tell her own story in history. However, people who enjoy plot-driven stories and already have background knowledge of the mythology and symbolism can probably overlook this to appreciate the surreal and tense world-building.

I love the weaving of history with a dreamlike magical atmosphere. I'm a big fan of Circe and this felt similar in that sometimes the protaganist is unlikeable but you find yourself hoping it works out for her.

At their very best, books are able to transport people to new places and experiences. Malinalli is one of those books that completely did that for me. I had studied some Mexican folklore and history, but this book made so many places and people come to life in a gritty but still firmly in the fantasy realm way. I was invested in this book so much and that made me very angry at a number of the characters in this book (mostly the male ones) and I was rooting for Malinalli from the opening pages.

In this retelling we follow Malinalxochitl aka Malinalli aka La Malinche, a young girl who has been told since she was little that she was destined to be essentially bad luck. Her twin brother is sent to a school called the House of Magical Studies to learn how to use his magical powers, while Malinalli is left behind with her mother. Malinalli learns of her brother and father's passing and she suspects who did it and wants revenge. She is sent away by her mother to a temple, the Temple of the Eighteen Moons. There she meets priestesses that help her learn to see past her rage against her brother's murderer. She encounters all types of characters along the way. Without giving too much away, I'll just say that this book had me hooked and it's an epic tale. I really enjoyed the different aspects of found family, magic powers, gods and goddesses, prophecy foretold, and the main character becoming someone who doesn't let her past rage and want of revenge define her.




Thank you to NetGalley and Primero Sueño Press for the eARC in return for an honest review!

This story was very powerful and a super interesting read!

I enjoyed the main character and her determination through all her struggles. I thought she was very relatable even though we are in this magical world.

The world building was also fantastic for this book. I felt completely immersed in the time period and culture of the world.

I very much enjoyed the second 2/3rds of this book. I sped through it and didn’t want to put it down! But unfortunately, the first 1/3rd was more difficult to get through, which is why I’m giving it 3 stars instead of 4.

I felt a lot of was left out of the story in the first 30% and the writing style made me feel somewhat disconnected from the character and story.

I received a a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and statements are my own.

I thought this had such an intriguing premise: a retelling of Malinalli, the real-life Nahua interpreter who translated for the Spanish conquistadors of Mexico, thus playing a complex and damning role in the colonization of Mexico.

Unfortunately, the writing made me feel very distant from Malinalli. Although the first part of the book covers moments from Mali's childhood, she didn't speak like a child at all. The result was an extremely detached sort of adult narrator looking back on critical moments in a very measured way. Strange, because the events she writes about--such as the death/potential murders of her brother and father--are so fraught.

The story is lush with details that immersed me into that time period, but a lot of information about the politics of the time were, strangely, doled out in heavy-handed dialogue. I didn't appreciate the info-dumping, which was at odds with the book's attempt to immerse me in Mali's story.

MALINALLI is ambitious, and fans of Madeline Miller, V.V. Ganeshananthan, and Tracy Chevalier may be less put off by the distant narration and be swept away by this immense tale about a not-very-well-known historical figure.

Thanks to Atria/Primero Sueno Press for the gifted copy!

A slower-paced historical fantasy, Veronica Chapa explores the entirety of Malinalli's life, starting when she's a young girl with her brother going away to learn magic when really, that's all she wants for herself. She then moves through her life and sisterhood with the priestesses, coming into her power, and dealing with the invaders. I love that Veronica chose to retell Malinalli's story (most commonly known as La Malinche), as I didn't know anything about her before reading. Her history is really fascinating -- seen as a traitor, victim, AND a mother of her people, there are so many facets to explore. This was the perfect setting to add in magic -- it was a great way to add to this retelling!

Malinalli: A Novel by Veronica Chapa dares us to reimagine the story of Malinalli, a woman her served as a translator to the Spanish Conquerors as they attempted to colonize Mexico.

While her story is initially told as that of a traitor, this retelling allow the reader to image an alternate interpretation of the events , where a girl who was sold into slavery, forced to work against the interest of her people, who gains her own agency and finds the strength to avenge the wrongs against her family.

The fantastic world building reveals the rich culture of this early culture of the indigenous people of Nahua, daring the reading to reimagine the circumstances of Malinalli’s life and choices.

If you enjoyed the reimagining’s of the lives of Medea by Elish Quin or Boudicca by PC Cast, this is the story for you.

Thank you, Atria Books | Atria/Primero Sueno Press, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this eARC. All opinions are my own.

Rating: 4 Stars
Print Pub Date: Mar 11 2025

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Oh I so wanted to love this, but unfortunately I think that the genre of retellings is just not for me. I think the biggest issue I have is that the synopsis made this sound like it was going to lean towards fantasy. Unfortunately, it's more historic/litfic.

The writing is still strong and will appeal to those that love mythical retellings. It starts strong and I loved the bond Malinalli has with her brother, Eagle and the connection to their land. It starts to wane a bit though, as the story progresses.

Thanks to Atria Books | Atria/Primero Sueno Press and Netgalley.

Based on a real life figure of many names, Malinalli is a historical fantasy about the Nahua woman who ended up as the interpreter who assisted the Spanish colonizers communicate with the native people of what is now known as Mexico. We follow her from her birth, to her growing up and discovering her powers, to coming into her namesake. She is known as a traitor, the girl who turned her back on her people, but the reality of her story is tragic, she was not a willing participant, and ultimately she was a girl out of her depth, sold into slavery, and just trying to survive and get revenge for her family.

This book was beautiful, the themes of sisterhood, magic, survival, and the showcasing of the rich history of the natives of Mexico. I was and still am very uneducated on the history of Mexico, and this book spark and curiosity and it is a topic I will look into further in the future. The author did such a wonderful job with the rich description of the land, of the magic, of the people. This was a voice that was truly needed in publishing and I am so grateful to have been able to read it. I did feel like the story just ended very abruptly and I was left wanting more.

This was a fascinating read, the story itself tells the reader exactly how it will end (or anyone who's familiar with Cortez). It reads much like a diary entry rather than a narrative story, which, works well for this particular novel given the context of it being the perspective of a controversial historical figure. As such it starts with her birth and childhood with her twin brother, focusing both on worldbuilding for the fantastical magical elements and the customs of the various tribes and nations within the land at this point in history.

It's a bit of a slow read to start but once it picks up it's pace the story speeds through the ending. At times it's almost like the story forgets there's magical and mystical elements and becomes strictly a historical fiction novel. Which, for me was fine I enjoyed the process and exploration through different lands and peoples. I enjoyed learning customs and religious practices. For others who are looking for high octane action and high levels of magic consistently this may not be the novel for them. I do encourage readers to check out the language guide at the end of the book before diving in otherwise this will be an exceptionally challenging read for those unfamiliar with Spanish or the Nahaul language.

Chapa put hours of research and a lot of time into the novel and it shows. The world comes to life and expands a readers view against the popular narrative of 'simplistic and barbaric' beliefs for the Mayan and Aztec people during their contact with Spaniards. I heavily enjoyed the realistic portrayal for how brutish, uncivilized, and outright grotesque the Spanish invaders were especially in comparison to the extreme cleanliness of the Mexica and Mayan people. I really enjoyed the further challenging of common narratives surrounding sacrifices and rule of the Aztec empire. This novel definitely makes it know that empires, patriarchal control, greed, and warfare are tools of colonialism and violence.

The characters and cities were incredibly human and complex; I really loved the way magic was almost mundane and unnoticed at times, woven into daily routines and practices. This story is alive and vibrant, if at times a bit slow and almost meanders through the plot. I kinda wish there hard been more time for the fight against Cortez as it felt sort of rushed in the last 35 pages. But I suppose that's to sort of make Cortez a footnote in a way. I enjoyed this story a lot.

Im glad I got it as an ARC from Netgalley. And I hope to see more from Veronica Chapa.

Malinalli is a historical fiction with magical embellishments. I really liked the magical aspects and the Native cultural and ritual elements-- it's very clear that the author knows her stuff. The pre-colonized setting was vibrant and descriptive, and I felt quite immersed in the world. I didn't love the love interest, and at times this felt more like a fictionalized biography so it was difficult to see where Malinalli had agency in the story. Overall, it was a quick read and a huge thank you to Atria publishing and Netgalley for this eARC in exchange for my honest thoughts!

This was an unfortunate case of me not fully reading the synopsis of the story before requesting it. I just saw pre-colonial Mexico and for fans of Silvia Moreno-Garcia and clicked request. This was both an interesting way to go about it and also one that was a bit of a letdown? Hear me out! It was interesting to have the world building and get to experience the magic and society that Malinalli dealt with as a child without the looming knowledge. However, once I realized what the timeline was doing, I was like "oh." The world building and magic was so interesting and then suddenly, BAM, a bunch of stinky (literally) white men. That was when I went back and read the full synopsis. Once we hit about the 50% mark, I was not as engaged with the story and the events that happened felt like bullet points. There didn't really seem to be any in-depth descriptions or effects that were described like the beginning half of the book. We had to speed things up rather dramatically to get through certain historical events that happened. This was an interesting fictionalized biographical type story. It didn't end up working for me as Malinalli never really ended up hitting most of her targeted goals, which I understand is true to the history, but as a story felt a little disappointing.
That being said, I think the author excelled in taking the time to impart the society and the integration of their religion and the magic. I would actually love to see the author explore the world she built outside of this historical storyline. For example. a middle grade or YA story centered on either the temple or the magic school would be soooo cool.

I’m a bit confused with this book because while the start was slow, I was having a great time with this until the 70% mark. . . And then it took such a nosedive for me that I just feel jinxed. 🙁

The story is a fantasy historical retelling of Mexico’s infamous La Malinche who was the interpreter for Hernán Cortés. I was really liking the fresh take on this woman as she grows from a scorned girl into a warrior priestess and then falls to slave and concubine before becoming an interpreter. Her growth for the first 69% was slow, but gradually progressed as she tries to adjust to each new stage in her life. While she does regress here and there, I thought it rather natural since real life deals us with progress and step backs over time. ⏳

The last 30% of the book just left me baffled. Malinalli’s 180 from being a sorceress ready to rain fury down on her enemy to peacekeeper just felt so abrupt that I thought I was reading a completely different POV/book. That and her passive attempts to get Cortés to leave on his own terms just felt so off from a woman who was happy to use the Spaniard for her own gains. I just feel like I missed a huge moment in the plot where the tone switched. 🤯

The other thing that just really confused me endlessly was what Malinalli’s spirit animal was. Is it a snake or an eagle?? I’m just so lost with it all. 😫

A thank you goes out to Atria Books and NetGalley for accepting my request to read this in exchange for an honest review. I REALLY wanted to understand the ending, but it just left me so confused. 😢

Publication date: March 11

Overall: 2.5/5 ⭐️

Actual rating 4.25 stars

Malinalli's journey from a young girl with mystic powers to a pivotal figure in Mexican history is both captivating and heartbreaking.

I loved how Chapa blended magical realism with historical accuracy, making the fantastical elements feel like an integral part of Malinalli’s world. The writing is vivid and immersive, though sometimes it felt a bit confusing, especially during the more magical moments. Despite this, I found myself completely invested in Malinalli’s story, cheering her on through all her trials and tribulations.

What really stood out to me was how Chapa humanized Malinalli, giving her a voice that’s both relatable and powerful. It’s a beautiful retelling that challenges the traditional narrative of La Malinche as a traitor, instead portraying her as a complex, multidimensional character. If you’re a fan of historical fiction with a touch of magic, this is definitely a must-read!

I know what everyone else knows about La Malinche, but this fantasy retelling of her story was sprawling and incredible. Chapa built a magic system and community of sisterhood that draws the reader in and sweeps you into the politics and power-plays of the Spanish invasion of what becomes Mexico. Malinalli, the fictional version that is, is spurred to support the Spanish invaders out of revenge. While blessed with real magic and favored by goddesses, she is every bit as flawed and complex as her historical namesake had to have been. Hindsight is 20/20 and trauma is a powerful motivator. This novel brings new facets to the long maligned La Malinche.