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jhbandcats 's review for:
Silver Nitrate
by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
adventurous
dark
informative
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
So far this is my least favorite of Moreno-Garcia’s books. I had a hard time suspending disbelief, something that’s usually necessary to fully appreciate a story. I wasn’t absorbed in the tale of magic and spells though I did like learning the history of Mexican filmmaking.
I liked the characters of Montserrat, Tristán, and Abel, but felt the plot about Evers, Alma, and Clarimonde fell flat. I thought Tristán’s enduring grief and guilt were carefully expressed, showing how grief often never goes away. It became a crutch he used to shirk responsibility and fuel his insecurities that manifested as narcissism. I also liked the emphasis on Montserrat’s frustration with her job, the oppressive misogyny and casual diminishing of all that she was. While everyone likes a happy ending, this one didn’t feel real given Tristán was almost forty and still wasn’t particularly mature.
I will still avidly read anything by this author. This one book just didn’t work for me.
I liked the characters of Montserrat, Tristán, and Abel, but felt the plot about Evers, Alma, and Clarimonde fell flat. I thought Tristán’s enduring grief and guilt were carefully expressed, showing how grief often never goes away. It became a crutch he used to shirk responsibility and fuel his insecurities that manifested as narcissism. I also liked the emphasis on Montserrat’s frustration with her job, the oppressive misogyny and casual diminishing of all that she was. While everyone likes a happy ending, this one didn’t feel real given Tristán was almost forty and still wasn’t particularly mature.
I will still avidly read anything by this author. This one book just didn’t work for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Bullying, Death, Drug abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racism, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Classism