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madamenovelist's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Blood, Death, Animal cruelty, Xenophobia, Gore, Murder, and Animal death
Moderate: Misogyny, Sexual harassment, Sexism, and Sexual content
rhi_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Violence, Body horror, Gaslighting, and Gun violence
Moderate: Toxic relationship
Minor: Blood, Chronic illness, Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, Death of parent, Colonisation, Death, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Animal cruelty, Murder, Child abuse, Racism, Religious bigotry, Sexual content, Classism, Medical content, Medical trauma, Alcohol, and Misogyny
persephonefoxx's review against another edition
- 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
3.75
Graphic: Gun violence, Racism, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Death of parent, Slavery, Colonisation, and Sexual harassment
subtleassiduities's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Like Mexican Gothic, the middle of this book was a slog, but even more so, with nothing particularly weird happening. A good chunk of the middle is the characters nervously waiting around. And while when the waiting ends, the book gets exciting fast, the middle was almost enough for me to put it down. However, I suspected that the ending would be great, so I hung in there (again based on my experience with Mexican Gothic). And it was pretty good. So it didn't feel like a waste of my time.
Nonetheless, I cannot help but feel that the premise was wasted, knowing how well Moreno-Gaecia can write body horror. The horror of the story rests far more with the colonist white men than it does with Dr. Moreau's creations. And while entitled white men will always be horrifying, I just think that the story could also have made better use of the doctor's experiments.
I will say that the characters are very well written. Each invokes strong emotion, and that really makes the ending feel earned and satisfying.
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Religious bigotry and Sexual content
Minor: Sexual assault
jgalla's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Confinement, Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Chronic illness, and Colonisation
Moderate: Classism, Death, Medical content, Medical trauma, Sexual assault, Violence, Racism, Sexism, Blood, Gun violence, Body horror, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Slavery
Minor: Pregnancy, Sexism, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Child death, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, and Rape
alicelalicon's review against another edition
- 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
3.5
Graphic: Colonisation, Death, Physical abuse, Animal cruelty, Alcoholism, Grief, Violence, Body horror, Blood, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Animal death, Misogyny, Gun violence, Racism, Xenophobia, Alcohol, and Sexism
Moderate: Slavery, Death of parent, Child death, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Classism, Chronic illness, Religious bigotry, and Sexual harassment
javafenn's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Medical trauma, Murder, Violence, Alcoholism, Medical content, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Death of parent, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Animal death, Body horror, Chronic illness, Blood, and Classism
Moderate: Racism, Misogyny, and Sexism
jessthanthree's review against another edition
- 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
2.5
Graphic: Murder, Colonisation, Blood, Toxic relationship, Body horror, Racism, Sexual content, Alcoholism, Violence, Gore, Religious bigotry, Death, Animal death, Animal cruelty, and Gun violence
Moderate: Sexual harassment, Panic attacks/disorders, Medical content, Misogyny, Terminal illness, Death of parent, and Cannibalism
Minor: Child death
phantasmaboo's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
I thought this book was another solid novel from Silvia Moreno-Garcia. The characters were diverse and represented and fit in well with the time period of the book. I thought both main characters were developed well, although Carlota seemed to receive more care and attention than Montgomery did. I also thought that Moreno-Garcia did a good job setting up the time period of the book and basing it in actual conflict in Mexico. Obviously, not all aspects are true, but there was just enough to make the story believable.
The Lovecraftian elements were similarly easy to follow and understand, even if you’re not a fan of the genre. I had very little experience with Lovecraftian plot lines, but I followed along easily enough.
Overall, I thought the book was good and if you’re a fan of Moreno-Garcia’s other works, you’ll probably like this one too.
Graphic: Racism, Racial slurs, Classism, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Medical trauma, Xenophobia, Death of parent, Colonisation, Violence, Slavery, Sexual content, and Death
hanz's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Death, Grief, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Murder, Physical abuse, and Violence
Moderate: Confinement, Alcoholism, Sexual assault, Alcohol, and Sexual content
Minor: Colonisation