Reviews with content warning for Classism - The Hacienda

Reviews tagging 'Classism'

The Hacienda by Isabel Cañas

105 reviews

bookbelle5_17's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional sad tense slow-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? Yes

4.0

Review of The Hacienda
By; Isabel Canas
After her father, a general, is killed for being a traitor, Beatriz and her mother are left penniless and forced to rely on the goodwill of relatives who don’t want them, but will take them in begrudgingly. When she is old enough, Beatriz, decides to get married to a wealthy man, Rodolpho, she doesn’t love and who goes against her mother’s political views so they can be financially secure and not have to live with these hateful relatives. Rodolpho’s large estate seems to be haunted by his previous wife, who died mysteriously and Beatriz’s new sister in-law doesn’t want to share the house either.
Canas creates a spooky and tense atmosphere as she builds the tension and discomfort of Beatriz’s situation. She starts out subtle describing the house as drafty, but the chill has a habit of seeping into your bones. Doors are slamming and whenever Beatriz sees something unnatural it disappears when she tries to show it again. We get the sense that that the servants and Juana know something that Beatriz doesn’t adding to the tension and discomfort for me as the reader. Both Juana and Rodolpho have hot and cold personalities and there is a lack of trust as well unspoken truths between the siblings. Rodolpho comes off as the type to sweep things under the rug as he dismisses Beatriz’s concerns. At the same time, he will scold her like a child if he doesn’t approve and has quite a temper. This temper is something Juana also has inherited. She is a character that I pitied, but I also hated her the same time giving her a complexity that made me want to understand her better. Our main perspectives, Beatriz and Andres are likable and relatable. I admired Beatriz for her bravery and willingness do what it took, but also admired her willing to admit vulnerability and acknowledging her mistakes. She went through a lot she didn’t ask for and still stood tall and strong. Same with Andres, and especially since is told he’s going to hell. He still becomes a priest and helps people, and his battle within himself between his darkness and light. I still find it hard to believe his pure soul will be burned by fire and brimstone. No Way! I was riveted to the story and I kept wanting to turn the pages to find out what was going to happen with the characters.

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dukeofkel's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

Content Warnings

aklovekorn's review against another edition

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dark tense 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

4.5

Content Warnings

suz_n_van's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious 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? It's complicated

5.0

Content Warnings

amandas_bookshelf's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective 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? Yes

4.5

Content Warnings

erandle's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.25

Content Warnings

aromarrie's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes

5.0

i rarely read haunted house stories and there was never a concrete reason for it, maybe just for the fact that i never came across one that brought alive a house with so much visual and pure feeling as this one did, and it wasn’t until isabel cañas put this book out to the world that i found the it factor that makes for a perfect haunted house story for me.

the energy in this book was absolutely electric and haunted the hell out of me as i was reading it in the daylight, so slow-moving in the way the darkness teased at beatriz and then suddenly knocked her off her feet until she was left reeling. the main characters beatriz & padre andrés had such compelling voices that each brought forth the reverence and darkness that Hacienda San Isidro evoked, and their dynamic only further ignited my interest in this story as we saw how their individual personal journeys connected in this gothic horror.

the author’s themes reflecting the horror that the aftermath of the Mexican War of Independence from Spain resulted in was very visceral as it struck on the classism that was at such dangerous levels, striking a wall between those of the lower class that were left with so much grief & little money after the war while the upper classes had their huge houses out on the country to lavish in with more money. the women, especially, being left to hold the forte as their men hovered around the capital or had been left for dead created this imbalance in power that ultimately shifted a large part of this story.

this is also what made beatriz’ role hit so hard because here she is in the beginning, entering herself into a loveless marriage simply for the sake of finding solid footing for herself & her mother after the loss of the patriarch. even though we didn’t see much of her mom in the present, the relationship beatriz shares with her was read with so much love and care as beatriz was so desperate to try and make things better for the both of them after this war took away any source of stability. seeing the way she took on San Isidro and relied on the guidance her father gave during his time as general added a strength to her character that near the end completely swept me away. even more so was seeing how even in all that power she collected for herself, she still was beaten down and left barely standing.

and padre andrés was left no good either, as his own powers as a witch leave him at an impasse as we see him struggle over what’s right and what’s not when handling his powers and the darkness he carried with it, when all he wants is to be able to protect his own family. the relationship he shared with his Titi was also something where her presence stuck firmly to the past and yet in the present, every bit of her guidance and nurture towards him followed andrés with each step he took forward.

seeing how he & beatriz navigated this darkness that faced them together made for a very tense but also thrilling reading journey because the stakes felt so high and yet there was no chaos that reigned but just simply silence—silence that was then suddenly interrupted by the furious knocking of doors and rushing footsteps that followed after the peering of bright red eyes glowing in the dark. the fear that both beatriz & andrés felt was as harrowing as it was personal, as it connected me even more to the story than i could’ve ever hoped for, and i loved every bit of it.

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