A review by snarkyspice
The Hacienda by Isabel Cañas

dark 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? No

5.0

I was gonna rate this a 4.5 or a 4.75, but the way Cañas writes the desire between Beatriz and Andrés (especially at the end!) cancels out whatever other hangups I may have had with the novel. Like... there's "romance" and then there's this. 😓🥵 It didn't even need to get smutty (although I would not be opposed!) for it to just be HOT. I should've known from the very beginning what the deal would be based on Andrés' narration.

But if God is the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, if He is three in one in the Trinity, then God knows nothing of loneliness. [...] Of his shoulders slumping beneath the new weight of knowing what it meant to not be alone, and an acute awareness of his own chest's emptiness. God knows nothing of loneliness, because God has never tasted companionship as mortals do: clinging to one another in darkness so complete and sharp it scrapes flesh from bone, trusting one another even as the Devil's breath bloom hot on their napes.

I would not object to a sequel that explores more of Andrés really stepping into his powers as a witch and truly balancing what that means while also being an ordained priest. What does the supernatural darkness from his paternal side that he keeps locked away mean for him in less extreme circumstances? When love and life/death are not on the line, how does he control it?