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iamamyyyyy's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
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
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Death, Murder, Racism, Misogyny, and Suicide
Moderate: Car accident
Minor: Cancer and Addiction
ecn's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
This book is SMG at her core and I really liked the concept of the book! The only drawbacks were that it REALLY seemed like the story dragged on for too long at different moments and (like classic SMG) sped up super quickly at the end. I also felt like I didn’t get enough out of the main characters other than sho they are at their surface level. I think this book would greatly benefit from a sequel and building out this world more.
The writing was spectacular and the fantasy elements kept me entertained. I just wish it was edited a bit better and a whole lot spookier (then maybe I could feel fine with not dive too deep into the characters?).
However I will say the biggest win is having two messy/annoying bisexuals obsessed with horror (kinda) as the MCs. Huge representation win lol
The writing was spectacular and the fantasy elements kept me entertained. I just wish it was edited a bit better and a whole lot spookier (then maybe I could feel fine with not dive too deep into the characters?).
However I will say the biggest win is having two messy/annoying bisexuals obsessed with horror (kinda) as the MCs. Huge representation win lol
Content Warnings
Graphic: Antisemitism, Drug abuse, Xenophobia, Violence, Sexism, Racism, Murder, Misogyny, Grief, Gore, Death, Body horror, Drug use, Vomit, Toxic relationship, Fire/Fire injury, Cultural appropriation, Cancer, Colonisation, Animal death, Addiction, Ableism, Toxic friendship, and Blood
cappuccino136's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism
Moderate: Misogyny and Ableism
megan_harper's review against another edition
adventurous
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? Yes
4.0
The first third was slower than other books I’ve read by SMG, but there was a lot of context to set in order to build a strong world. Overall, I really liked the fact that the flaws in Monsterrat were used in the climactic scenes in ways that caused her to doubt herself. I also appreciate that while the tension between Monsterrat and Tristán was thrumming in the background, it wasn’t a central plot line and wasn’t overly romantic.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, Blood, Violence, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Misogyny, Ableism, and Colonisation
Minor: Racism
bookiecharm's review against another edition
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Animal death, Cancer, Death, Ableism, Suicide, Sexual harassment, Car accident, Addiction, Blood, and Racism
mlovesbooks's review against another edition
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? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Blood
Moderate: Misogyny, Cancer, and Racism
Minor: Animal death
cadence99's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Overall I really liked this book- I
felt like the character development was much improved from the books that I’ve read of hers in the past. I’d highly recommended it to anyone who can handle supernatural horror. A lot of if also felt very historical fiction heavy, with all the elements of old Mexican horror movies inserted throughout, and I really enjoyed that about it.
felt like the character development was much improved from the books that I’ve read of hers in the past. I’d highly recommended it to anyone who can handle supernatural horror. A lot of if also felt very historical fiction heavy, with all the elements of old Mexican horror movies inserted throughout, and I really enjoyed that about it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cultural appropriation, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Antisemitism, Ableism, Bullying, Car accident, Colonisation, Racism, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Violence, Chronic illness, and Death
Moderate: Biphobia, Addiction, and Cancer
Minor: Child death, Homophobia, Stalking, Suicide, Drug abuse, Abandonment, Animal death, Genocide, Vomit, and War
savvylit's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Silver Nitrate is an intriguing tale of occultism, cinematic drama, and lingering Nazi sentiment. Moreno-Garcia immerses readers in Mexico City during the early 90's. U.S. influence is spreading - Mexican cinema is drying up and American products are taking over the shelves. Montserrat is a brusque, cold - yet immensely likable - main character. Tristán is her perfect foil; he's charming and suave.
The mysterious sorcery at the novel's center draws from classic film techniques and Nazi views of "purity." Moreno-Garcia blends these two elements both skillfully and chillingly.
Ultimately, though, I felt that this novel was too plot-focused and could have used more character development. Montserrat and Tristán were appealing main characters - but that's what made me want more from them. More about them. Both of their perspectives seemed oddly predictable and surface-level. It made it difficult for me to feel their fear, which thus made it difficult for me to really appreciate the horror that was central to this story.
Thank you @netgalley and @penguinrandomhouse for the advanced copy of Silver Nitrate in exchange for my honest review! All thoughts and opinions are my own.
The mysterious sorcery at the novel's center draws from classic film techniques and Nazi views of "purity." Moreno-Garcia blends these two elements both skillfully and chillingly.
Ultimately, though, I felt that this novel was too plot-focused and could have used more character development. Montserrat and Tristán were appealing main characters - but that's what made me want more from them. More about them. Both of their perspectives seemed oddly predictable and surface-level. It made it difficult for me to feel their fear, which thus made it difficult for me to really appreciate the horror that was central to this story.
Thank you @netgalley and @penguinrandomhouse for the advanced copy of Silver Nitrate in exchange for my honest review! All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Blood, Racism, Misogyny, Addiction, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Drug use, Cancer, and Murder
devynreadsnovels's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Antisemitism, Racism, Violence, Death, and Xenophobia
Minor: Vomit, Misogyny, Alcohol, Self harm, Blood, and Cursing
bkwrm1317's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-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? Yes
4.25
First and foremost, big thanks to NetGalley and RH/Ballantine/Del Rey for providing me yet another copy of a forthcoming novel by one of my favorite contemporary SFF/Horror writers in exchange for an honest review.
A bit different than other novels by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, Silver Nitrate is an (of course) exquisitely researched and written novel, at its core, about folks who work in the film industry in Mexico, a film recorded on silver nitrate reel that was part of a magical spell, and a Nazi occultist. Our main characters, Montserrat and Tristán, childhood friends, both embedded in the film industry and starting to be looked over in their respective portions of the field (Montserrat, or Momo, in the sound editing world; Tristán in the acting world) as they start to get older and don't seem to cut it compared to younger, more attractive colleagues.
Perhaps most interesting in this particular Moreno-Garcia novel is the weaving together of the film industry of years past and Nazi occultists' obsession with film as conveyer of magic. Tristán and, especially, Montserrat, get themselves into lots of supernatural trouble as a result of messing with a film that contained the "unfinished" spell of one such dead Nazi occultist from Germany (this character, Ewers in the novel, is based on the real historical figure of Joseph Goebbels, former Chief Propagandist of the Nazi party (etc), and who was convinced that cinema was "one of the most effective propaganda instruments" (Author's Note).
As with all of Moreno-Garcia's works, the author also comments on historical and contemporary social issues like colorism and racism within México, love and the forms it takes, disability, homophobia and biphobia, and one could even read commentary of white folks co-opting spiritual practices of folks from the Global South into some of the novel, among others.
Spoiler ahead: The friends-to-lovers trope is definitely strong in this one, and the chemistry between Montserrat and Tristán builds throughout the novel. I particularly like that they are a bit older (40s-ish), so there is also commentary towards the end of the novel around how sometimes things are better, rather than worse, with age, and that love can be one of these.
I hope folks enjoy this Moreno-Garcia novel just as much as her others. It felt a bit different to me (not at all in a bad way) from prior works of hers, so I'll be genuinely interested to see what more folks things once this book hits shelves in a little over a week!
CWs in more or less order of intensity/severity: some explicit detailed gore (of someone long-deceased, but would give this one as a more graphic warning; description is fairly brief), misogyny, death, ableism, cultural appropriation (done by the Nazi occultist because of course), biphobia, bullying (as flashbacks/references to childhood), addiction (specifically alcoholism and references to the alcohol intake of a character increasing, references to side effects of hangover, etc.).
A bit different than other novels by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, Silver Nitrate is an (of course) exquisitely researched and written novel, at its core, about folks who work in the film industry in Mexico, a film recorded on silver nitrate reel that was part of a magical spell, and a Nazi occultist. Our main characters, Montserrat and Tristán, childhood friends, both embedded in the film industry and starting to be looked over in their respective portions of the field (Montserrat, or Momo, in the sound editing world; Tristán in the acting world) as they start to get older and don't seem to cut it compared to younger, more attractive colleagues.
Perhaps most interesting in this particular Moreno-Garcia novel is the weaving together of the film industry of years past and Nazi occultists' obsession with film as conveyer of magic. Tristán and, especially, Montserrat, get themselves into lots of supernatural trouble as a result of messing with a film that contained the "unfinished" spell of one such dead Nazi occultist from Germany (this character, Ewers in the novel, is based on the real historical figure of Joseph Goebbels, former Chief Propagandist of the Nazi party (etc), and who was convinced that cinema was "one of the most effective propaganda instruments" (Author's Note).
As with all of Moreno-Garcia's works, the author also comments on historical and contemporary social issues like colorism and racism within México, love and the forms it takes, disability, homophobia and biphobia, and one could even read commentary of white folks co-opting spiritual practices of folks from the Global South into some of the novel, among others.
Spoiler ahead:
I hope folks enjoy this Moreno-Garcia novel just as much as her others. It felt a bit different to me (not at all in a bad way) from prior works of hers, so I'll be genuinely interested to see what more folks things once this book hits shelves in a little over a week!
CWs in more or less order of intensity/severity: some explicit detailed gore (of someone long-deceased, but would give this one as a more graphic warning; description is fairly brief), misogyny, death, ableism, cultural appropriation (done by the Nazi occultist because of course), biphobia, bullying (as flashbacks/references to childhood), addiction (specifically alcoholism and references to the alcohol intake of a character increasing, references to side effects of hangover, etc.).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore
Moderate: Death, Ableism, Cultural appropriation, and Misogyny
Minor: Bullying, Alcoholism, Biphobia, and Addiction