Reviews tagging 'Toxic relationship'

Mexická gotika by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, Silvia Moreno-Garcia

185 reviews

jedore's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

“...just because there are no ghosts it doesn’t mean you can’t be haunted. Nor that you shouldn’t fear the haunting.”

It's tough to write a horror book and not be cliché. But, I always hold out hope that the author will somehow find a way to do it differently. Unfortunately, that didn't happen with Mexican Gothic. The clichés start on the first page and don't stop until until you close the book. 

Although reasonably well written, this one just didn't do much for me. 

I found it distracting and mildly annoying that the author would throw in the occasional high-brow vocab word. There aren't many words that I've never heard or read before...yet somehow there were a small handful in this story. What is the purpose of using a word that no one ever uses...one that would never enter the brain or come out of the mouth of 99% of humans and definitely not a young woman in her 20s living in the 1950s whose first language was Spanish?

Although set in the 1950s, not much felt authentic to this time other than the occasional descriptions of the main character's wardrobe. 

Throughout the entire book, I felt like I was reading a book meant for the younger crowd—and that the author was writing with the explicit intent of being the next book-to-Netflix sensation.

I know others who really enjoyed this book, so if you're looking for a gothic horror story and don't mind clichés, just ignore me and give it a shot! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Colonisation, Emotional abuse, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Classism, Misogyny, Racism, Sexual assault, Incest, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Suicide

eve81's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Gore, Sexual assault, Cannibalism, Chronic illness, Racism, Domestic abuse, Blood, Body horror, Toxic relationship, Rape, Sexual violence, Physical abuse, and Colonisation

Moderate: Incest

emtur007's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Rape, Classism, Colonisation, Gaslighting, Body horror, Violence, Toxic relationship, and Incest

Moderate: Sexism, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Cannibalism, and Physical abuse

Minor: Blood and Adult/minor relationship

aribook's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Infidelity, and Murder

Moderate: Drug use, Infertility, Incest, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Death of parent, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Religious bigotry, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, and Gun violence

janjabooks's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Confinement, Cursing, Toxic relationship, Terminal illness, Sexual content, Body horror, Death, and Vomit

scarwilde's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

The feeling of suffocation is effective. Suffocation under the giant pillow of patriarchy, post-colonial prejudice, and more literally the suffocation of being trapped in this crumbling, mouldering mansion.  And I admit I only saw half of the big reveal coming. Still, there was something about the way the boom wrapped up that I found wanting and I can't put my finger on it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism, Suicide, Gun violence, Incest, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Violence and Sexual violence

Minor: Rape

kaneebli's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Incest, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, and Confinement

Moderate: Sexual assault and Body horror

Minor: Miscarriage and Cannibalism

ztifhael's review against another edition

dark sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Xenophobia, Toxic relationship, Murder, and Medical trauma

Moderate: Child death, Incest, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Cannibalism, Rape, Racism, Mental illness, Medical content, Misogyny, and Gaslighting

sakisreads's review against another edition

challenging dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This was very very intense; I couldn’t read it at night because of its imagery! It definitely was not a story I would have picked up of my own volition, but I was recommended it by a friend. The underlying theme of eugenics was engrossing; I wish there was more discussion into why Howard was so invested in it (eugenics is  inexcusable obviously, but would’ve been a very interesting perspective to read more into). I wouldn’t read this again but am grateful to have given it a go. Read in daylight! 🫠

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Blood, Death, Gore, Incest, Misogyny, Racism, Sexual assault, Suicide, and Toxic relationship

adelza's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional medium-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

5.0

This book starts off a little spooky and then BAM full on terror and loathing and also the relationships are fantastic! Noemí is a blast!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy, Body horror, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Violence, Suicide, Sexual violence, Sexism, Rape, Gore, Child death, Cannibalism, Blood, and Adult/minor relationship