A review by subtleassiduities
The Daughter of Doctor Moreau by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

dark emotional tense slow-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? It's complicated

3.75

I read this after reading Mexican Gothic, hoping for that same visceral horror; I thought that surely the premise could deliver on that. But I was surprised to find that this book was much more subdued.

Like Mexican Gothic, the middle of this book was a slog, but even more so, with nothing particularly weird happening. A good chunk of the middle is the characters nervously waiting around. And while when the waiting ends, the book gets exciting fast, the middle was almost enough for me to put it down. However, I suspected that the ending would be great, so I hung in there (again based on my experience with Mexican Gothic). And it was pretty good. So it didn't feel like a waste of my time.

Nonetheless, I cannot help but feel that the premise was wasted, knowing how well Moreno-Gaecia can write body horror. The horror of the story rests far more with the colonist white men than it does with Dr. Moreau's creations. And while entitled white men will always be horrifying, I just think that the story could also have made better use of the doctor's experiments.

I will say that the characters are very well written. Each invokes strong emotion, and that really makes the ending feel earned and satisfying.
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