Instant classic.
Suspenseful.
Gripping.
This book is *chef's kiss*.
If you are reading this post then there's a high chance that you are familiar with the literary canon. If you don't know, it's simple; the literary canon is a body of works that is deemed important or influential by a group of people over time. AKA those classic novels your high school English teacher made you read. William Shakespeare, Jane Austin, the Bronte Sisters just to name a few.
Dracula and Frankenstein are probably the most famous (or at least most talked about) gothic books in the canon. Well, there's a new sheriff in town and her name is Silvia Moreno-Garcia.
Mexican Gothic is about Noemí Taboada, a smart and glamourous young woman, living in 1950's Mexico. Noemí receives a strange letter from her recently married cousin. Something feels off, so Noemí is off to High Place, where her cousin and husband reside. There are a lot of rules at High Place that don't sit well with Noemí. Strange things start to occur and Noemí wants answers.
There are a lot of things to love about this book.
-Noemí Taboada is a great character. She is smart and strong-willed. She refuses to give up even though the odds quickly end up against her at High Place.
-The plot moved at a perfect pace. It felt like I was gathered around a campfire to hear a scary story.
-The language...oh the language. I don't even have the words to describe it. The imagery was detailed, yet not not overwhelming. Silvia Moreno-Garcia writes with purpose and that purpose leads to an addiction to her storytelling.
-This book had a lot of thought put into it. Silvia Moreno-Garcia is open about the fact that she conducted a lot of research to get a lot of the different aspects correct.
This book had all the elements of a classic gothic novel, but it didn't feel derivative or stuffy. Silvia Moreno-Garcia is going to resurrect the gothic genre for new readers and she will do it with perfect prose.
Silvia Garcia- Moreno is also the author of Gods of Jade and Shadow.
I just read the beginning of this online and it looks fantastic! The tone is fantastic and I like what you said about it feeling like a story around a campfire. It's officially on my to-read list!