Reviews - My Mother Cursed My Name: A Novel

99 reviews for:

My Mother Cursed My Name: A Novel

Anamely Salgado Reyes

3.89 AVERAGE

impowers's review

4.0

lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

gmolinar's review against another edition

4.5

emotional funny inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

thenightowlnook's review against another edition

4.0

Thank you @atriabooks #AtriaPartner for the free copy💖.

🗓️Out now!

✨What it is about:

Two sisters are found at the scene of their father’s murder, each claiming the other did it. Only one is telling the truth.✨

💭My thoughts:

This story totally hooked me from the start! I was on the edge of my seat the whole time, constantly second-guessing what I thought I knew. Two sisters, total opposites, are both found at the scene of their dad’s murder, and they each call 911 blaming the other. How do you even begin to trust either one???

The story unfolds with all kinds of twists, secrets, and shifting loyalties. It really keeps you guessing. Just when I thought I had it figured out, something else would throw me off. Both lawyers are determined to go all in to prove their client’s innocence. I really enjoyed seeing both sides of the case play out.

It’s not just a mystery, it’s a huge psychological game, and it messes with your head in the best way. If you’re into twisty thrillers that keep you guessing until the end, you’ll get through this one pretty quickly. I really enjoyed it.

4⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Read if you like:

🔪Fast paced psychological thrillers

🔪Sister relationships

🔪Unreliable narrators

🔪Twists and turns

🔪Legal dramas

⚠️CW: Murder, violence, death, self harm, sexual harassment, sexual assault, drug abuse.

omgitsofg's review against another edition

3.75

emotional sad medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I love the magical realism and the family story, but I didn’t love the short chapters and the different narrators made it repetitive and slow at times. Not much of a mystery, the secret was fairly straightforward

ktino's review against another edition

4.75

emotional reflective medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

awestruckaf's review against another edition

5.0

emotional funny lighthearted reflective relaxing 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: N/A

lesmursregardent's review against another edition

4.75

emotional funny inspiring reflective medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I really loved this book and related deeply to the characters. I think if you've experienced this sort of family dynamic, it will speak to your soul. There is a deep understanding here and a fairly realistic portrayal of how intergenerational trauma impacts our lives. I laughed, I cried, and laughed some more. I'm quite sad to be finished with this story but so happy to have picked this book up. Thank you for this, Anamely.

Content Warnings

themoonphoenix's review against another edition

5.0

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

My Mother Cursed My Name is a magical realism contemporary and multigenerational story that explores the themes of identity, family, and grief, but in a witty and light-hearted way, with a slightly heartwarming tone. In the Olivares family, the women have power, the power to name their daughters and with them to predetermine their lives, but the name works as an antonym and instead of attracting what they expected, it is just the opposite.

It’s multiple POV: Olvido, Angustias and Felicitas. Olvido is the grandmother and has just passed to another life, or not, because her spirit is still here and Felicitas, her granddaughter, is the only one who can see her, she will try to help her to pass to the other side. Angustias (Olvido's daughter) has a tense relationship with her, she was a teen mom, and shortly after the birth of Felicitas, she left home; her only communication with Olvido is weekly phone calls. The relationship between Angustias and Felicitas is lighter, almost like friends. The story is not similar, but the relationship between the 3 reminds me of Gilmore Girls, strict grandmother, an extroverted mother, and a serious granddaughter.

Angustias and Felicitas arrive in a town where Olvido lived his last years, the neighbors are a bit quirky and they met a different Olvido, they knew a friendlier old lady, not the strict woman of Angustias's childhood. Angustias wants to leave soon, but they cannot while the spirit of Olvido is still there, when the original plan does not work, Olvido comes up with the idea to “fix” the life of Angustias: give stability, a job, and a boyfriend and bring it closer to God. All the people will interfere and try to help, nosy but with good intentions.

The three are strong and very different. They each have their flaws, and their personalities can clash. Olvido is strict, Angustias is more carefree, and Felicitas wants roots. It's a story about personal growth and how complicated family life can be. It's about filial love and having the best intentions for your daughter, although the way you convey it isn't always the best, and instead of getting closer, they drift apart.

It's set in the USA, and it's a story that feels very Mexican, not only because Olvido wants to be buried there, Angustias and Felicitas weren't born in Mexico, but they are Mexican; there's something in their character that makes them feel very Mexican.

Despite the drama, it's an easy-to-read and fun story. It's a great debut. The characters, the Olivera girls, are very human and end up forgiving and healing.

Read it if you like: