A review by andotherworlds
Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

3.0

3.5 // Hello, hello. Yes it is I, Nicolette, the one who has been in a two month reading slump and still is in the midst of one. I decided to pick this up for Halloween for the spooky vibes I expected. Well, uh, it appears that I was just a tad bit late. Like only 12 days late right. Anyways, I went into this with the expectations being a gothic story with light horror. And while that element was there, this was so much more. To those who are reading this review so they can see if this is a worthwhile book, I would recommend giving it a try, but I would also say that it is more fun if you don't know much going into it like me, because trust me you will be in for a surprise. ALSO TW FOR SEXUAL ASSULT AND SOME OTHER DIFFICULT TOPICS (I'M SURE YOU CAN FIND A LIST SOMEWHERE ONLINE JUST BE AWARE)

To those who have read it, or those who just want to read my thoughts, here are some bulleted notes I took whilst reading:

- So far a bit too fast and obvious
- I take that back, why did this generally decent book go from dark academia vibezzz to killer haunted mushrooms where the hell did they come from
- I think that bringing up this aspect of racism in the estate is quite important and prevalent. It almost seems like a nod to the white washing of the dark academia aesthetic and the entire realm of early gothic fiction.
- I like Noemie, Francis is a bit flat, Virgil would be an interesting character study but I guess we won't get much of that give this is in first person perspective (Noemie)
- Uh... mushrooms? REALLY
- EVERYONE LIVED WTF
- Ok but that ending was so "meh" was it really all that necessary I mean yeah we could go the hopeful route but still it felt off. "I THOUGHT I DREAMED YOU. I'M REAL" BAHAHAJDH BRO

Overall this was a decent read. I'm not sure if the turn it took was for me, but it was definitely an experience.