Reviews tagging 'Slavery'

Gótico by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

40 reviews

ravenpuff's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

I was really looking forward to an immersive gothic atmosphere but I never really got that. The main character was so smart throughout the book but made some frustrating choices towards the end. 

There wasn't a ton of character development but I understand why. Most of the characters feel empty, but I feel like they're supposed to given the plot development in the second half of the book.

The book did a good job of reflecting the time period, especially the racism, sexism, misogyny, and the really gross way Howard views "purity". 

The mushrooms themselves felt like a metaphor for colonization and toxic family hierarchy. To support the patriarchal figure of the family, women, children, and indigenous people are literally sacrificed so an old man from the UK can preserve himself and his gross views that only benefit him. Historic events have shown that colonization is a selfish and horrific thing, Mexican Gothic depicts it as such.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Racism, Sexism, Misogyny, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Colonisation, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Gore, Gun violence, Incest, Murder, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Slavery, and Violence

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury and Suicide

aparker89's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

3.25

Read this for book club not knowing what to expect. 
There is definitely a great atmosphere to this book. I had dreams specifically about the dread and mystery in this book while reading it. Overall, it's got a decent plot. Is Noemi's cousin insane? Is the house really haunted? Is there more to the story of High Place?
We get all the answers. I personally didn't like the answer to the great mystery but it isn't my book lol. I had two theories as to what it was straight away and one of them was relatively close to the author's chosen path. This is a medium paced book with a SLOW BURN! This book is primarily atmosphere with just a tiny bit of action. The action is ALL at the end. The main character is VERY shallow and not loveable at all but she does want to help her cousin and at least she has a relatable desire to help someone she loves. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Domestic abuse, Chronic illness, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Colonisation, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Bullying, Sexism, and Incest

Moderate: Child death, Classism, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Kidnapping, Alcohol, Ableism, Incest, Racism, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicide attempt, Cannibalism, Death, Miscarriage, and Misogyny

plumdustsuns's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Body horror, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Cannibalism, Incest, Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Misogyny, Racism, Rape, Kidnapping, Blood, Murder, Physical abuse, Gore, and Slavery

paperknotbooks's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

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

2.5

It’s great for gritty scene lovers, and made me compare to books like Annihilation and maybe even Severance or The Raven King. But those books have excellent dialogue, characters, and narrative flow. This book fell flat in all those areas.

I kept having to put this down because the story stiffly shifts from one room, then another, then town, then something trippy happens. The plot was constantly interrupted with stories of past figures and happenings, which would have been something better discovered organically, or detail revealed to the reader through alternate chapters. So what I’m saying is that the book could use some more editing.

By the end, I think it was trying to draw parallels of the Grant Wood painting American Gothic,

if the knowledge of the figures are father and daughter, there’s a light conspiracy twist of incestuous relationship… idk!

The book was certainly unsettling, and full of ‘shrooms. I’m guessing with how often the word “putrefaction” came up, they would be particularly smelly ones! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Terminal illness, Forced institutionalization, Sexual violence, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Blood, Gore, and Slavery

Minor: Incest

alice_clawford's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, and Violence

Moderate: Cannibalism, Racism, Child death, Sexual assault, Sexism, and Addiction

Minor: Suicide and Slavery

vaguely_pink's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense medium-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? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Classism, Gaslighting, Murder, Misogyny, Sexual violence, Racism, Rape, Sexism, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Cannibalism, Blood, Colonisation, Gore, Incest, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Body horror

Minor: Miscarriage, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Suicide, Suicide attempt, War, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Domestic abuse, Alcohol, Animal death, Vomit, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Infertility, Infidelity, Medical content, and Mental illness

thestarsaligned's review against another edition

dark 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexism, Murder, Slavery, Death, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Incest, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Body horror, Child abuse, Gaslighting, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Racism, Suicide, Xenophobia, Infidelity, Racial slurs, Violence, Child death, Drug use, Rape, Cannibalism, Classism, Fire/Fire injury, and Domestic abuse

hiddeninfantasy's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Genocide, Death of parent, Gore, Slavery, Kidnapping, Murder, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, Cannibalism, Alcohol, Body horror, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Blood, Cursing, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Death, Incest, Torture, Toxic relationship, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Vomit

susannah_knox's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense fast-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? No

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Racism, Sexism, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Suicide, Sexual violence, Violence, Slavery, and Death

kcbookshelf's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.75

Firstly, the mention of Sor Juana took me by surprise and nearly made me cry. So good to see her being talked about even if it’s only two lines. The book was incredibly atmospheric, interesting and clever. It had me gripped and pulling cringed faces all the way through. It’s a clever idea that givens science to haunting and the concept behind it was truly intriguing. Glad I have finally read a SMG book, especially since I have her whole collection! On to the next!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Cannibalism, Sexual harassment, and Child death

Moderate: Incest, Rape, Xenophobia, Violence, Racism, Suicide, Colonisation, Death of parent, and Death

Minor: Miscarriage, Murder, Slavery, and Racial slurs

Incest

The family at the house survive on incest and having children together to carry on the bloodline

Sexual harassment etc.

Virgil in particular is a very uncomfortable character. Tried to force himself on Noemi multiple times and suggests others should too. There is also a scene with her being forced to kiss the old man.

Racism, colonialism, xenophobia, general mentions along these topics - I believe the topic of the book works well to highlight these issues by using a fictional 1950s Mexico. Particular comments made around inferior and superior races, certain looks, and inbreeding, comes from an incredibly horrible character.