Reviews with content warning for Murder - Monstrilio

In Monstrilio, Magos cuts out part of her deceased son Santiago's lung and begins to feed it, hoping it will grow but not knowing into what. Eventually, she gets Monstrilio - a carnivorous, playful monster who lives on the patio of her Mexico City home - who later develops into something more human, at least on the surface. Told over four sections in four different perspectives - Magos, her best friend Lena, her husband Joseph, and M himself - Monstrilio plays with horror, family, grief, and what it means to be human, as each of the characters react to the loss of Santiago and the development of his semi-replacement.

I enjoyed Monstrilio. It wasn't as horror-forward as I anticipated it might be, which for me was a pro, although it was definitely gory. The writing style was simple and thoughtful, what I would call an economy of language. Although I don't always love that style, especially since it's become so prevalent in a certain type of novel, in this case I thought it worked well. I also thought the author's use of different perspectives for each section, and the time gaps between the various sections, was very effective.

The interpersonal dynamics of Monstrilio were quite interesting - I liked watching what each of the characters were willing to do for another character, or for Monstrilio, based on their care for him or their past love for Santiago.

Most notably, in M's section, the way Magos, Joseph, and Lena immediately jump into crime scene clean-up mode after finding out that M ate Sam.

I think there is a lot to be said here about the ways we will bend morality or put up with despicable behavior from those we love, and/or the way those actions can poison our relationships whether we want them to or not. And of course, through each characters' interactions with Monstrilio/M, we can also see the different ways people choose to deal with grief - from Magos stubbornly ignoring it, to Uncle Luke accepting M just as he is.

While I thought this was an interesting book, and I'm glad I stepped out of my normal zone to read it, I wasn't amazed or bowled over. It kept my attention, and I liked the interpersonal drama and the mythos of Monstrilio's creation etc., but it's not a book I would plan to reread. If you like books that are horror-adjacent or magical realism, or if you want to read a book about grief, this is one you'll want to pick up.

Content Warnings

chasingpages1's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.75

Content Warnings

addythebookbat's review against another edition

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dark emotional inspiring sad

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

5.0

Content Warnings

r_o_s_e's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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tifftastic87's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad tense slow-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

4.25

Monstrilio is a tale of grief, told in four parts. The story starts with the death of a little boy and follows the family as they grieve. The first part follows Magos, who cuts a piece of her dead son away and uses it to grow a new boy. The next part follows Len, the best friend of the couple, then Joseph, the father, and lastly Monstrilio himself.

Each of these characters is so unique, all dealing with their own issues outside of grief. Magos has a strained relationship with her mother, Lena suffers from severe insomnia and was abused by her own mother, Joseph has some pretty bad depression and Monstrilio, well he's just hungry. Like really hungry.

Honestly, everyone in this book needed therapy.

Currently I'm listening to Pet Sematary and this is kind of like, if Lewis could have brought Gage back but it all worked out.

Content Warnings

podanotherjessi's review against another edition

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dark slow-paced

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

4.0

I will be the first to admit that I absolutely did not understand this book, but I had a great time reading it anyway. That's really all I can say about it. The characters were so messy, but I loved them anyway. The grief rolled off the pages of this book, but so did the care and love and desperation. Amazingly well written and beautifully tragic.

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