Reviews with content warning for Death - The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina

This book was unexpected in the best yet most magical of ways. I loved the fact that the Montoya family is so casual throughout most of the book about their gifts. Because they were raised in a mysterious and unique environment. They just want answers like most other large family's when the pasts comes to haunt them because of their grandmother's life.

Marima and Rey along with the rest of their cousins, aunts and uncles are so very different. And they all don't get along but they all band together in the end despite everything. Which made for such a good ending despite the secerets that are slowly revealed.

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thenovelmaura's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious slow-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

3.0

I read this book back in September and I had high expectations because I've seen so many positive reviews of this one. It didn't end up being a favorite, mostly because I didn't care very much about the modern-day timeline. Orquídea's past was much more interesting to me than anything that was happening to the Montoya descendants. I did love all of the magic and mystery that were woven into the story but it was hard for me to get into the actual plot when the chapters were focused on the modern-day Montoyas; I kept putting it down and not really wanting to pick it up again.

After a similar middle-of-the-road experience with Incendiary, I think Córdova has become a "just not for me" author; I tend to like her characters more than I do her plots. But I don't regret giving either of those books a try, and there's never a bad time to support Latinx writers!

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itschelseaw's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

4.5

I love magical realism, and this one was great. Slowly introduced us to the magical element, had a good adventure, and a fitting resolution.
My heart broke for Orquídea and all that she endured from her family both before and during the circus. It also broke for her after, and how her guardedness ended up sowing the seeds of anger, pettiness and disconnect within her family.
I liked the structure of the story and learning about Orquídea bit by bit.
The end became a little too similar to

Anastasia the movie for me (I couldn’t stop picturing Bolivar as Rasputin during the fight scene, whoops!

Overall a good book that I thoroughly enjoyed!

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yliana's review against another edition

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emotional funny inspiring mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I loved this book. it felt like a warm hug. the way you can see how much love the author has for her birthplace of Guayaquil through her descriptions of it is one of the best things I've read all year.
I wasn't expecting the story to be told by jumping from past and present, character to character. the different perspectives we see don't have consistently throughout the whole story and some characters only have their pov one time, which I actually really loved.

when tatinelly passed away and we got to see her final thoughts was so impactful. her realization that she didn't need to be extraordinary to be loved and she didn't need to leave a mark on the world as long as she positively influenced the people she loves was just T-T. I also loved how we got to see thoughts from bolívar even though he's a stupid son of a bitch. I fucking hated him and even though I was so mad at orquídea for not leaving him, I still felt for her.

something that I love about latine stories is that they always center family. it feels so familiar, the way that there is just so much love and prioritization of family, despite me not really identifying with the love-hate relationships since my mom was the one who broke the cycle with us.
I'm really excited to look up the Pinterest board that the author made for this book haha. it's going to be so beautiful and vibrant. ugh I just loved everything about this book, except

the reveal about marimar's dad. I think it ties everything together perfectly, obviously, but I was just underwhelmed with their reunion. at the same time though, I understand it because at the end of the day he was a fucking star and she had already lived her life without him and the family that she was surrounded with was fulfilling enough. still, I thought she would've just had more emotion towards him in general, whether that be anger, sadness, or whatever. but again, I get it.

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miak2's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Damn the stars, and damn luck. Damn everyone and anything who thought her insignificant. Orquídea Montoya was going to rewrite her fate.

I tend to prefer plot-heavy books over character-heavy books, but this is a definite exception. I also fell in love with Frankie Corzo's audiobook narration, she really differentiated between the characters. If I'm being honest, her narration contributed a lot to my enjoyment of the book - it's definitely a magical story, but I don't know if I would have enjoyed it as much had I not listened to it.

I loved the magic in this book. Hard magic systems are great, but sometimes it's lovely to just sit back and immerse yourself in a story where anything and everything is magical. The characters were interesting, and I really enjoyed the 'slice of life' bits of their stories that we got early on in the book. I did get the sense that Córdova was hesitant to ascribe any negative qualities to her main characters. That did make for a very pleasant read, but it also kept the book from being as deep as it could have been. I also felt like there were some family dynamics that were brought up early on in the book and not really resolved, like a 'time heals all wounds' type of thing. I'd have preferred they be addressed in the story, but I suppose that isn't unrealistic.

The other thing that gave me pause is that this book was weirdly sexual? It's not the type of book I'd expect explicit sexual content to be in, and it was a bit of a jolt whenever Córdova would throw in a sex scene after a touching family moment. Or I'd be enjoying the ambiance of the circus and then suddenly be hearing about a man's erection. This isn't bad, per se, just...incredibly unexpected.

The plot was surprisingly grounded despite the magical realism. It wasn't fast-paced and action-packed, but it was satisfying nonetheless. The book switched between present day and Orquídea's story, and it was neat seeing how those threads came together for the final conflict. I loved what the journey represented for the Montoya family, and the message that "you could be born into a family, but you still had to choose them."

Overall, I'd recommend picking this one up if you enjoy magical realism and family-centered stories, but even more so recommend the audiobook version!

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levesc17's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

This was a marvelous read; I wish it had been longer and stretched out in some parts. The mystery and magic were beautifully intertwined with the narrative voice (which was clever and spunky). Anyone with generational trauma that they are actively unpacking should read this book, it is an excellent meditation on the inheritance our elders leave us… while they’re living, when they’re dead, and when we are ready to wrestle with it.

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