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rbash2391's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I found the MC's relationship to be weird because of an age gap with a minor. The substance of their relationship was one of power and control, and the typical gender roles being subverted as each struggled with who they were and who they wanted to be based on a fantasy. The plot was really slow in the first half, it didn't pick up until about 60% and afterwards I was able to finish the book in one sitting. There was a lot of lore that wasn't explained until a glossary at the end that was hardly mentioned at all in the story. SMG's writing seemed so rich and elegant in The Beautiful Ones that I was a little disappointed to not find that here. However, I'm not a noir fan so that may have something to do with it as the story didn't really call for that style. I liked the urban, fantastical elements. I would have liked some more character development but in the end they are each not too much better off than how they started.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Vomit, Violence, Body horror, Alcohol, Blood, Gore, Gun violence, Slavery, Bullying, Classism, Death, Misogyny, Sexual content, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, and Murder
Moderate: Dementia
Minor: Torture
jhbandcats's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-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
4.0
Each one of Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s books is unique from the others so they’re always a surprise. This one centers around vampires in a futuristic Mexico City.
Vampires are fairly well-known and definitely undesirable. Sanitation departments around the world keep track of what vampires are doing, and vampires are hunted by both police and each other as various species fight amongst themselves. Particularly deadly and violent vampires escaping from Europe, having been banned, are taking over the gangs and cartels, ignoring the traditions that have kept vampires safe from humans in the past. Internecine battles are destroying the Mexican vampires descended from pre-Columbian times.
As a take on colonialism and its destruction of natives and their culture, it offers easily recognizable parallels without being didactic. I found the first half of the novel slow and I wasn’t invested in the characters, but both plot and characterization picked up. By the satisfying ending, I’d come to love the two main characters. Worth a read for Moreno-Garcia fans.
Vampires are fairly well-known and definitely undesirable. Sanitation departments around the world keep track of what vampires are doing, and vampires are hunted by both police and each other as various species fight amongst themselves. Particularly deadly and violent vampires escaping from Europe, having been banned, are taking over the gangs and cartels, ignoring the traditions that have kept vampires safe from humans in the past. Internecine battles are destroying the Mexican vampires descended from pre-Columbian times.
As a take on colonialism and its destruction of natives and their culture, it offers easily recognizable parallels without being didactic. I found the first half of the novel slow and I wasn’t invested in the characters, but both plot and characterization picked up. By the satisfying ending, I’d come to love the two main characters. Worth a read for Moreno-Garcia fans.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Drug use, Genocide, Misogyny, Police brutality, Vomit, Alcohol, Blood, Classism, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Murder, Torture, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Colonisation, Death, and Addiction
aformeracceleratedreader's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.5
Multiple POVs and a great modern take on a classic spooky creature- vampires. So many different kinds of vampires from different places are mentioned throughout which was nice to see instead of the typical/well known european vampire images we see all the time. How some characters stories ended was a little unsatisfying though, but I need to stop thinking so many characters always need happy or fully fleshed out endings. This story also touches on colonialism when talking about the europeans and their continental vampires arriving in central and south america. very glad the dog doesn't die tragically in this book! I was nervous and a bit sad when Cualli was mentioned to probably be dead Also quick note, I felt a bit weird about how Atl and Domingo's relationship went considering it was mentioned she was about 20 (yeah I get she's a diff species but still) and he was 17. I know at first she was like "no way" and had set that boundary, but then they did the do and I was not okay with an adult/minor situation .
It seemed to drag a little bit in some parts, but overall, a great and surprisingly quick read. I've enjoyed so much from this author and it's a goal that I read everything she has done.
Def check out content warnings for this as it is a vampire tale so there is a lot of blood.
It seemed to drag a little bit in some parts, but overall, a great and surprisingly quick read. I've enjoyed so much from this author and it's a goal that I read everything she has done.
Def check out content warnings for this as it is a vampire tale so there is a lot of blood.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Vomit, Body horror, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Murder, Violence, Blood, and Misogyny
Moderate: Alcohol, Drug use, Kidnapping, Police brutality, Sexual content, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Colonisation, Gun violence, and War
Minor: Sexual assault, Terminal illness, Torture, Trafficking, Classism, Cursing, and Kidnapping
theomancy's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
I was just so not sold on the central romance of this book and the conclusion of it left me really dissatisfied. There were a lot of world building concepts at the beginning I found really interesting that I didn't feel like really went anywhere either, unfortunately.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death of parent, Classism, and Colonisation
Moderate: Xenophobia, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Sexual harassment, Stalking, and Police brutality
peachani's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Classism and Gun violence
Minor: Ableism, Animal death, Colonisation, Drug abuse, and Sexual content
phoebemurtagh's review
3.5
3.5: a good, well-written, atmospheric read. The only reason I don't rate it higher is that it didn't really... hook me? I liked it, wanted to keep reading it the whole time, looked forward to seeing what happened, and now I have finished it and find myself pretty content. Not amazed, not pining, not disappointed. The book was good and now is read. Would recommend.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Gore, Murder, and Colonisation
Moderate: Confinement
emmdashed's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
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
Sylvia Moreno-Garcia paints a realized and captivating world in Certain Dark Things. All of the lore she created, this whole sprawling world of different vampires with all their physical and cultural differences were fascinating. However, this does create the issue of the book feeling a little too exposition heavy especially in the beginning. Kind of a Catch-22 she created: we need to know this world, but given that the book is so short creating the individual characters and story may have taken a bit of a back burner to explaining all the lore. At least it was well thought out, interesting lore that kept me reading.
The main POV characters themselves were fine. I didn't dislike them, but I didn't really fall in love with them either. Least favorite was Nick because he feels like a character we've seen too many times before: brutish and hot-headed, horny, rich boy. Atl and Domingo were alright, I liked them well enough, though I wasn't always sure I bought Domingo's blithe nature and immediate, absolute loyalty when there seemed little reason other than attraction. Ana and Rodrigo were interesting to me. Rodrigo really hit that banality of evil, 'I'm so tired I'll do awful things just to get out a little faster' vibe. Ana also had that scrappy cleverness that made me root for her even when she started doing some some morally gray stuff.(Honestly she got done dirty by this book. Justice for Ana) Favorite character by a long shot was Bernadino. Love that Old Honor Bound by Tradition Vampire shit, and he was just fun to read about ?? Also I just was really intrigued by Revenant vampire ideas.
The plot was also just Fine, not bad, but not incredible. Writing was very good, solid description of scenes and action without going too overboard. I could visualize everything, and enjoyed the words.
I really hope Moreno-Garcia revisits this world in the future. A lot of concepts were touched on that I would love to see more explored. More different vampires, more about the seedy underworld in and out of Mexico City, and more of those near future aspects like the weird illnesses, and the genetically modified animals. Maybe a story in the past too, Bernardino and Atl's mother's lives before this story would be super interesting.
Overall a solid book if you're okay with a lot of exposition and worldbuilding. I didn't connect with all of it the story but that's probably more personal preference than any real fault with the writing. Like I said hopefully she comes back to this world again!!!
The main POV characters themselves were fine. I didn't dislike them, but I didn't really fall in love with them either. Least favorite was Nick because he feels like a character we've seen too many times before: brutish and hot-headed, horny, rich boy. Atl and Domingo were alright, I liked them well enough, though I wasn't always sure I bought Domingo's blithe nature and immediate, absolute loyalty when there seemed little reason other than attraction. Ana and Rodrigo were interesting to me. Rodrigo really hit that banality of evil, 'I'm so tired I'll do awful things just to get out a little faster' vibe. Ana also had that scrappy cleverness that made me root for her even when she started doing some some morally gray stuff.
The plot was also just Fine, not bad, but not incredible. Writing was very good, solid description of scenes and action without going too overboard. I could visualize everything, and enjoyed the words.
I really hope Moreno-Garcia revisits this world in the future. A lot of concepts were touched on that I would love to see more explored. More different vampires, more about the seedy underworld in and out of Mexico City, and more of those near future aspects like the weird illnesses, and the genetically modified animals. Maybe a story in the past too, Bernardino and Atl's mother's lives before this story would be super interesting.
Overall a solid book if you're okay with a lot of exposition and worldbuilding. I didn't connect with all of it the story but that's probably more personal preference than any real fault with the writing. Like I said hopefully she comes back to this world again!!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Violence, Blood, and Colonisation
Moderate: Confinement, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Animal cruelty, Torture, Rape, Alcohol, and Adult/minor relationship
Minor: Sexual content
Expanding on the Adult-Minor relationship Atl is 23 (I think? Early-mid 20s) and Domingo is 17, which is the age of consent in Mexico, but not everywhere, so be aware if this is something that may upset you.tajosima's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
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
4.0
This reads to me like an action movie. One of the good ones that has cool fight scenes, great atmosphere but also a very strong plot. i love the many different kinds of vampires. And how the author used colonialism in the story was clever. Domingo’s heart left me in awe so many times. sadly it is common to see a kind person being criticised and perceived as naive, and people called Domingo that in the book, but Domingo proved so many times that he knew what could happen, but he still chooses to be kind and hopeful. The end left me a bit disappointed cause I felt that it needed a stronger ending, but it might be a personal preference. Still loved the ride!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Colonisation, Violence, Gore, Body horror, and Racism
meggs1005's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Gore, and Violence
Moderate: Colonisation, Cultural appropriation, Drug use, Grief, Medical content, Murder, and Sexual content
stormywolf's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This month's pick for Maven's Vampire Book Club is a recent reprint following the author's wildly successful Mexican Gothic, which I admittedly haven't read yet. So, other than knowing that this author has gotten a lot of praise for her suspenseful and beautiful writing, I had absolutely no idea what I was getting into. I'm not one who usually enjoys gritty stories (I'm a bit put off by the mention of "narco-vampires"), but a kick-ass vampire on the run with a charming human sounds like it could be fun, right? Right?
Read my full review at The Wolf's Den
Overall, it took a while, but like the puppy that is Domingo, this story grew on me. It's definitely not for everyone, with dark and adult themes very much overwhelming the 'vampire romance' vibes, but so long as you're prepared for a somewhat gritty vampire noir, I think you'll enjoy it as much as I did. The fast-paced writing and unique world made it easy to fly through, though you may, like me, need more time added to the end to fully digest everything, but luckily the newer version offers just that with its Encyclopaedia Vampirica, author interview, discussion questions, and more. So if you're in the mood for a stand-alone vampire book with unique lore, strong female characters, a bit of sci-fi punk, and a lot lurking beneath the surface, then try sinking your teeth into this one.
Read my full review at The Wolf's Den
Overall, it took a while, but like the puppy that is Domingo, this story grew on me. It's definitely not for everyone, with dark and adult themes very much overwhelming the 'vampire romance' vibes, but so long as you're prepared for a somewhat gritty vampire noir, I think you'll enjoy it as much as I did. The fast-paced writing and unique world made it easy to fly through, though you may, like me, need more time added to the end to fully digest everything, but luckily the newer version offers just that with its Encyclopaedia Vampirica, author interview, discussion questions, and more. So if you're in the mood for a stand-alone vampire book with unique lore, strong female characters, a bit of sci-fi punk, and a lot lurking beneath the surface, then try sinking your teeth into this one.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, Medical content, Murder, Violence, Animal cruelty, Blood, and Death
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Hate crime, Gun violence, Grief, Mental illness, Torture, and Xenophobia
Minor: Animal death, Sexual harassment, Addiction, Colonisation, Drug use, Sexual content, Police brutality, and Sexual assault
Adult is 23, Minor is 17. Hate crime & Xenophobia is against vampires as a race. Dogs are injured