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blcksheep's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
readingfourme's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
What a book. V. Castro gives a big middle finger to all the things we’re supposed to be ashamed of and all the ways we’re supposed to be. These stories celebrated the average, hard-working person, the destitute and broken, the angry and those seeking vengeance. They were gruesome, visceral, terrifying, and triumphant. Loved it!
berryplusbears's review
4.0
Incredible collection of short stories ranging from folk horror, literary fiction, and speculative fiction all from the Chicana perspective as advertised. Every single one is full to the brim with observations only one living on the outside can conjure up, and does so without losing flavor or a rich use of prose.
thriftstorebooks's review
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
camilleisreading24's review
4.0
Last year I really liked GODDESS OF FILTH by V Castro. MESTIZA BLOOD has all of the elements I loved from that story:
-vivid imagery
-Mexican mythology
-sardonic and badass women
I just devoured the stories in this collection like Cheetos, unable to put the bag down until it was empty and my fingers were coated in orange dust. If you like horror and you haven’t read V Castro yet, please pick up this book asap. You won’t be disappointed.
I mean, how can you resist a book where a main character says: “I’ve always hated people in horror films who felt the need to investigate instead of run. Now I was one of those idiots.”
My ONLY complaint is that several stories ended before I was ready and left me wanting more! Here’s hoping that Castro expands some of these ideas into novellas or novels.
Thank you to NetGalley, Flame Tree Press and the author for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
-vivid imagery
-Mexican mythology
-sardonic and badass women
I just devoured the stories in this collection like Cheetos, unable to put the bag down until it was empty and my fingers were coated in orange dust. If you like horror and you haven’t read V Castro yet, please pick up this book asap. You won’t be disappointed.
I mean, how can you resist a book where a main character says: “I’ve always hated people in horror films who felt the need to investigate instead of run. Now I was one of those idiots.”
My ONLY complaint is that several stories ended before I was ready and left me wanting more! Here’s hoping that Castro expands some of these ideas into novellas or novels.
Thank you to NetGalley, Flame Tree Press and the author for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
philsbookcorner's review
4.0
4.5 Stars
Personally, short story collections can be very hit or miss for me - more often than not, I find that I don't vibe with at least a handful of them, throwing off the collection as a whole. As a big fan of V. Castro's work, however, I decided to give Mestiza Blood a go, & I'm so happy I did - this is easily one of the best short story collections I've come across, not a single story in here was a miss!
V. Castro is an expert at weaving together horror, mythology, & social commentary, & every story featured within Mestiza Blood, no matter how big or small, had something to say. Her writing is truly hypnotic, & the stories are incredibly diverse & unique. The standouts for me were "Cam Girl Sally", "Dancehall Devil", "Street Fighter", "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year", "Truck Stop", & "The Final Pornstar" (slasher fans, you need this collection purely for that story alone), but my favorite was easily "The Cold Season" - what an incredible story! Probably the most sci-fi out of the collection, it revolved around the idea of being able to extract your consciousness/soul out of your old & dying body & planting it into a clone of yourself to be reborn, living a fresh, new life but with all the knowledge you've gained in your previous life. I thought it was incredibly fascinating & well done, very Black Mirror-esque, & really made me take a second to think.
I highly recommend picking this up, along with all of V. Castro's other work - you definitely want to keep an eye on her! Thank you so much V. Castro, NetGalley, & Flame Tree Press for providing an ARC in exchange for a honest review!
Personally, short story collections can be very hit or miss for me - more often than not, I find that I don't vibe with at least a handful of them, throwing off the collection as a whole. As a big fan of V. Castro's work, however, I decided to give Mestiza Blood a go, & I'm so happy I did - this is easily one of the best short story collections I've come across, not a single story in here was a miss!
V. Castro is an expert at weaving together horror, mythology, & social commentary, & every story featured within Mestiza Blood, no matter how big or small, had something to say. Her writing is truly hypnotic, & the stories are incredibly diverse & unique. The standouts for me were "Cam Girl Sally", "Dancehall Devil", "Street Fighter", "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year", "Truck Stop", & "The Final Pornstar" (slasher fans, you need this collection purely for that story alone), but my favorite was easily "The Cold Season" - what an incredible story! Probably the most sci-fi out of the collection, it revolved around the idea of being able to extract your consciousness/soul out of your old & dying body & planting it into a clone of yourself to be reborn, living a fresh, new life but with all the knowledge you've gained in your previous life. I thought it was incredibly fascinating & well done, very Black Mirror-esque, & really made me take a second to think.
I highly recommend picking this up, along with all of V. Castro's other work - you definitely want to keep an eye on her! Thank you so much V. Castro, NetGalley, & Flame Tree Press for providing an ARC in exchange for a honest review!
meaghanelizabook's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Miscarriage, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Animal death, Gore, Cursing, Violence, Body horror, Excrement, Infertility, Vomit, Sexual content, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Alcohol, Hate crime, Confinement, and Deportation
wdianasheppard's review
4.0
3.5 stars rounded up to 4.
"Mestiza Blood" by V. Castro is a compilation of weird-as-hell stories that run the gamut between science fiction, fantasy, erotica and horror, with a specific focus on tales of wronged women seeking vengeance. I'd read and enjoyed "Queen of the Cicadas" earlier this year so I was very excited to see more of Castro's work, and indeed "Cicadas" prepares one pretty well for the general themes found in "Mestiza Blood". As with all short story collections, there are some stories that are stronger than others - several of these here felt like set-up for novels that had not been written as they had very detailed worldbuilding that didn't quite translate into successful short stories. My favorite story was "Donkey Lady Bridge", because I will always (always!!) love a good cryptid story, and this one was bizarre. I kind of wish that there was greater variation in subject matter - save a few stories, all were about wronged women somehow getting back at the world and being victorious - but Castro writes this set up well that the sameness wasn't a detriment.
For anyone interested in horror with an erotic bend (or erotica with a horror bend), "Mestiza Blood" is satisfying and very unique.
"Mestiza Blood" by V. Castro is a compilation of weird-as-hell stories that run the gamut between science fiction, fantasy, erotica and horror, with a specific focus on tales of wronged women seeking vengeance. I'd read and enjoyed "Queen of the Cicadas" earlier this year so I was very excited to see more of Castro's work, and indeed "Cicadas" prepares one pretty well for the general themes found in "Mestiza Blood". As with all short story collections, there are some stories that are stronger than others - several of these here felt like set-up for novels that had not been written as they had very detailed worldbuilding that didn't quite translate into successful short stories. My favorite story was "Donkey Lady Bridge", because I will always (always!!) love a good cryptid story, and this one was bizarre. I kind of wish that there was greater variation in subject matter - save a few stories, all were about wronged women somehow getting back at the world and being victorious - but Castro writes this set up well that the sameness wasn't a detriment.
For anyone interested in horror with an erotic bend (or erotica with a horror bend), "Mestiza Blood" is satisfying and very unique.