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janey_bones's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Isabel Cañas' 'Vampires of El Norte' pleasantly surprised me with its captivating blend of romance, historical fiction, and socio-political commentary. While initially expecting a horror narrative akin to 'The Hacienda,' I found myself immersed in a richly detailed world where the metaphorical 'blood-sucking colonizers' take center stage. Cañas' exquisite prose effortlessly transports readers to a vividly depicted time and place, evoking a sense of nostalgia and intrigue. While not a conventional horror tale, 'Vampires of El Norte' excels in its unique exploration of themes and its ability to keep readers engaged until the very end.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Xenophobia, Sexism, Violence, Gun violence, War, and Racism
Minor: Classism, Colonisation, Grief, Blood, Animal death, Alcohol, and Death
beccaand's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
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? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Blood, Violence, War, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Classism, Abandonment, Animal death, Colonisation, and Sexism
Minor: Sexual content
tea_at_mole_end's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Loveable characters? No
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Sexism, and Classism
Moderate: War
emilywemily6's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-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? It's complicated
4.25
This was more a historical romance than a horror novel. The descriptions of the vampires was really creepy though, so I wish there was a lot more horror! Nena and Nestor have an interesting relationship, though it takes an exceedingly long time for the tension to ease after their falling out. It was also frustrating to see Nena try to hard to be obstinate about both her feelings and her understanding of Nestor’s experience. And she spent way too much time stringing him along while planning on returning to her duties back home, only to have it blow up in her face on both fronts. These characters felt more immature than their age as far as their relationship went, like they regressed once they saw each other again. I really liked the historical aspect of this book and the horror elements, but the romance was such a large part of the plot and yet not my favorite because it was so dramatic. I could get behind the relationship though, I could definitely see the chemistry.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Bullying, Gaslighting, Grief, Racism, War, Abandonment, Cursing, Alcohol, Animal death, Classism, Blood, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Infidelity, and Medical content
Moderate: Slavery and Sexual content
shubka's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Murder, Blood, War, and Violence
abby_can_read's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
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? Yes
4.0
🎧
This was amazing. I loved it. I totally get why this book is popular. I think Canada is an incredibly talented writer.
This was amazing. I loved it. I totally get why this book is popular. I think Canada is an incredibly talented writer.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, War, and Violence
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Death, Classism, and Colonisation
Minor: Sexual content
elskede's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
medium-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? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Gore, War, Violence, Physical abuse, Misogyny, Alcohol, Vomit, and Gun violence
inky_blooms's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Colonisation, Blood, Violence, and War
Moderate: Classism
Minor: Sexual content
theycallmebookish's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
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
4.0
For me, this really didn’t feel like a horror story. It felt more like a spooky historical novel. You’re able to learn a lot about what was going on during the Mexican-American War from the perspective of those living in Mexico. Nena is an amazing main character and gave such bad bit*h energy during a time period where women went expected to be quiet and obey. I love the inclusion of vampires and how the author pulled from Mexican mythology instead of the American/European version of vampires. All the details made you feel like you were right next to Nena.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, War, and Death
monicaa_d's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I enjoyed this, but it fell in the middle of the road for me. The story moved quickly enough, and had a little bit of mystery and a fairly good allegory for colonialism throughout. I enjoyed the story, but didn't really vibe with the characters. They meet and become best friends between the ages of 9 and 13, ultimately being each other's first love (to the degree that a 13 year old can be in love). Then they're separated for nine years, and the story resumes there. We find out that they haven't forgotten each other, that they still can't think of the other without pain, that every action they've taken in those nine years was shaped by the absence of the other, etc. It's all very sweet and pining and true love, but eventually just felt annoying. Throughout the story they repeat the same pattern of finding and losing one another, and every time they do we get to hear how they can't live without the other, again and again... Maybe I just expected more horror and less pining from a vampire book, but it just didn't do it for me. The story was enjoyable, but I felt like I was just going through the sappy parts to find out what would happen with the rest of the plot, because it's obvious from the start that they're going to get their happy ending. This isn't at the top of my recommendations, but I wouldn't discourage anyone from reading it, especially if they're more interested in romance and not so much in horror.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail and Blood
Minor: Body horror, Colonisation, Grief, War, and Gore