Reviews with content warning for Xenophobia - Mexican Gothic

Very well written.... A mystery with all the Gothic tropes, plus some. I appreciated Moreno's skill in painting images with her words, building tension and foreshadowing, and playing with character relationships. The horror element using colonialism was an intriguing twist. The book seemed well researched as well, using (without spoilers) clever scientific facts in a magical-realism sort of way.
I found the ending disturbing. I know, it's a thriller, and it was well done... I think just not my personal taste in books.

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romie_chat's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious tense fast-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? No

5.0

October 2023

yeah, still adored it. and I still think the last paragraph is one of the best I've ever read, and I'll keep o rereading it every once in a while when I need a bit of hope.

October 2020

I know this book isn't for everybody, because it's slow and very descriptive, but to me, these things added to the uncomfortable atmosphere and made me love this book even more. it's an incredible book that talks about eugenics and, in a way, white supremacy as well as colonialism. it's brutal, it's horrific, but it's also hopeful. I simply adored it.

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mari1532's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad 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

5.0

I have had the copy of this book for way longer than I care to admit and the fact that I did not read this book sooner frankly makes me want to ask my past self what I was even thinking for not reading this book immediately. Although I have this book on my Kindle I decided to check the audiobook out of my local library and did not want to stop listening.

Marino-Garcia paints a vivid and dark world full of intrigue. Noemí leaves her life of studying anthropology by day and attending high society parties by night when a strange letter from her cousin arrives. Having recently married an Englishman, Catalina now lives in an isolated mansion and appears very ill when Noemí arrives. However, as Noemí attempts to figure out what exactly may be the cause of her always-healthy cousin's illness, Noemí begins to experience strange things in the house. Little does she know it is only a matter of time before she will have the answers she's looking for, but they might lead to even bigger problems.

This book will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very end. Marino-Garcia's writing was fantastic! Not only is her writing beautiful it is vivid and you almost feel as if you are watching a movie rather than reading/hearing words from the page. There were so many instances throughout the book when I felt exactly as Noemí must have at that moment.

Highly recommend this book! It's one of my new favourite books.

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churrocaitie's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious sad tense 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? No

4.75

I’ve only ever read one horror book in my life, and I’m really glad that this one was my next one to read. It was such a fun, dark, creepy, mysterious read to get me in the spooky mood. It had its predictable moments, but the twist/reveal at the end was still a shock to me! I had fun with this book, and can’t wait to continue to dive if into this genre slowly but surely.

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funcabbage's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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eliscout's review against another edition

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dark mysterious fast-paced

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

5.0

I read the back half of this book in one sitting. Beautifully written, excellent foreshadowing throughout, stunning imagery. The last chapter could have been a little more drawn out, but that's my only complaint

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bugaboobear's review against another edition

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dark mysterious medium-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

3.75

For a book called Mexican Gothic it certainly is very European. I was pretty disappointed with that; I was really looking forward to the Mexican setting and characters.

The plot itself was good and the pacing picked up around the half way mark and kept me reading until it was finished.

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denlia's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense fast-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

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