Reviews with content warning for Body horror - Mexická gotika

After seeing mixed reviews I wasn't sure how this book would go. I am very glad that it exceeded my expectations. This is legitimately one of the best books I've read, at least in the horror genre. I enjoyed it immensely- while being appropriately disturbed at points. There were familiar tropes but with twists that made it still interesting. The characters were complex. Super impressed with this book.

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ahmay's review against another edition

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dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

3.0

Interesting concept, however, the execution was lacking. I get that it’s supposed to be mysterious and weird but a lot of things are just told and not shown or explained—the irony being that I find a lot of details to be over explained.

It’s just the way it is.

Boring. At times, awkward. It feels like the narrator is trying to be deeper than they actually are.

The book is set in the 50s, but the dialogue isn’t very characteristic of this time period, ruining the immersion for me.

Now, I’m a sucker for romance, so Francis and Noemí was mostly the only thing that kept me turning the page.

Also lots of grossness, very much horror ! But as I said, the over-explaining annoys me to no end.

I don’t get how Great Uncle Howard had so much influence on everyone else? I suppose they were deeply infected by the spores and whatnot, but the portrayal of him as a godly figure is lacking. To me, he’s just some creepy old guy. And I get that I’m an “outsider,” so I can’t completely understand. But I’m sure there was a much better way of showing his power and control.

I’m sure I have more to say (and a better way of wording my review) because I cannot shut up for the life of me, but that’s all for now. :)

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katemarie99's review against another edition

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dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

4.0

It's giving Saltburn. It's giving Wuthering Heights. It's giving Beloved. It's giving The Yellow Wallpaper. It's giving Get Out. It's giving Alice in Wonderland.

I'm spooked down to my very bones, but this is a good book. Do yourself a favor and check out TWs first, tho.

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clairebartholomew549's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
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

3.0

I do not know how to feel about this book lmao. Moreno-Garcia does a good job of creating this sort of creeping sense of horror and realizations, and Noémi is a compelling character with a ton of backbone. But somehow, despite this book not being very long, it feels like it really dragged on: there are a ton of reveals around 2/3 of the way through the book, and I felt like the next 100 pages both moved very slowly, and went a million different places that made no sense. I appreciated the author's critique of colonialism and cultural sexism, but this one just didn't work for me.

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bookishchaos's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

This definitely took a different turn than I was expecting, but I was hooked! Gothic Horror is one of my favorite genres and this did not disappoint. It has a slow start and lots of build-up but that just made the suspense and unsettledness better in my opinion.

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emzinator's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective tense 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? No

4.75

This book has a sleepy lull in the first half - but don't worry, it picks up SO much. I think this book reads almost like a screenplay, and I hope the Hulu limited series gets back on track!

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asims723's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious tense 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

4.75

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melanishka's review against another edition

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dark mysterious 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? It's complicated

4.5

4.5, rounded up

This was.... not at all what I was expecting. Beautiful writing, absolutely terrifying setting and premise, and progressively spookier with every chapter. I loved the ending leaving a bit of uneasiness with you. I'd love to see this adapted into a film or Netflix series!

(.5 stars removed for the unnecessary baby cannibalism thing?)

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