Mexican Gothic

When I closed this novel for good, I felt an immediate pang. Though the story disturbed me, I already missed it. It had wormed its way so insidiously and beautifully into my imagination that it hurt to think there wasn’t another chapter to devour, another act to get gorgeously, frightfully tangled up in. That there was nothing new to contemplate. If you are a fan of gothic fiction and haven’t yet read this contemporary masterpiece of the genre, please do so right now. Author Silvia Moreno-Garcia does absolutely “get it right,” as the Telegraph claims in the opening testimonials of my print copy. Everything is there—the driving arch plot of a single, modern, stubborn heroine out to defeat a seductive, all-consuming, patriarchal evil, even as she proves to herself her own depth and mettle. The enormous, isolated old house is perfectly neglected and rotting from within yet very much alive and grasping. The Doyle family is everything you can ask for in an antagonistic gothic clan—insular, incestuous, despairing in some cases, and depraved in others. The style and plot build beautifully in Moreno-Garcia’s pacing, beginning with a creepy setting and that odd, creepy family shackled to the past. It develops in small, simple details inserted here and there to suggest all is not right, despite the protagonist Noemi’s rational worldview. It builds in the surreal, fragmented, nightmarish dreams she begins to suffer, and finally drives the reader relentlessly through crises and a climax of literal events harrowing and developed enough to grasp that terrible potential fate worse than death within this cursed and controlling household. The ending, thus, if not entirely surprising, is fully cathartic, especially as love and perseverance win the day. Yet, brilliantly, Moreno-Garcia does not end this tale with unqualified optimism. There is a fear planted in the main characters, a foreboding seed of doubt—can one ever truly recover from trauma? Can one ever escape their nature, whether that nature is inherent and real or a misperception of the victim’s, ripe enough for a self-fulfilling prophecy? It is a resolution left open just enough to leave room for some wickedness and doubt, providing readers with a final, meditative shiver. It is also a resolution that pays respect to the depth and complexity of traumatic experience and how it might ultimately impact victims. Essentially, that’s what this novel is about—trauma. Specifically, the trauma of domestic captivity, for both women and men. For the female characters, that suffering manifests especially as sexual abuse by a sadistic patriarch (without being too difficult and graphic to read), supported by the terrible compliance of the matriarch. That is the essential horror—a real life one, tragically—that firmly roots this fantastic, speculative tale into our everyday world and makes it so awfully compelling, so terribly real.

⚠️ Spoilers ahead I have to say, I was not expecting this kind of plot twist. My usual genres are historical fiction, crime, and thriller. It’s been a while since I’ve read horror, and this one honestly reminded me of Stranger Things. The slow, creeping kind of scary that suddenly pulls you in. I didn’t even finish the last season of Stranger Things because it got too scary for me. I don’t like visual images forming in my head in the middle of the night. I thought this book would do the same. And it did 😅 But I still couldn’t put it down. It was intense, unsettling, and genuinely thrilling. The atmosphere was so strong that I kept reading even when I knew I probably shouldn’t right before bed. ⚠️ Ending thoughts below I hated the ending though. Did Francis become the next Howard? I honestly think so, and that part didn’t sit well with me. I’m giving this 4 stars because the pacing and story kept me hooked the entire time. But personally, I don’t think I’ll reach for this kind of horror again. Not helping my sleep at all.

This has been one of the most anticipated horror novels of the year, so I was excited when my copy arrived and I finally had the opportunity to dig in to it. From the title and description, I expected to read a fairly classical Gothic tale, transposed to the Mexican setting. This expectation was partly fulfilled, though there's a lot more going on in this book than the established tropes of the Gothic genre. The important thing to know about this book is that, though it is a horror novel, the horror elements are fairly understated through most of the book. It's very much a slow-burn story, allowing the reader time to gradually get to know the characters and the setting before delivering its climax. On many levels, this is effective, though I do think the pacing is a little bit off. I don't mind a slow burn of a story, but after an intriguing opening, the middle section seems to drag on a bit longer than it ought, offering tidbits of information about the horrific mystery at the novel's heart in small doses and in a way that doesn't particularly add to the story's tension. Once the stakes have been established fairly early, these revelations do enrich the reader's understanding, bit by bit, of what's really going on, but they don't seem to raise the stakes much, making the novel's middle section a bit of a slog. The slow-burn character of the novel does finally reverse itself in the final third or so of the book, when a final set of revelations come in rapid succession, building to a true climax. In fact, these climactic revelations seem to come a bit too rapidly, once again short-changing dramatic tension in favor of bringing the plot closer to its conclusion. The novel's pacing would have been better had the revelations built more gradually to a crescendo. Issues with pacing aside, I found it overall to be an enjoyable read. The reader will have no trouble liking or disliking the characters according to how the author means them to be viewed. While some characters are better-developed than others, they do provide an interesting ensemble. The writing style occasionally veers toward the wordy or "flowery," but always stops just short of the point at which it becomes too much so, giving the book a haunting, almost meditative sort of characteristic. Endings in horror are often difficult to get right, because once one knows what the evil (or the "big bad") actually is, it immediately loses much of its power to terrify. Admittedly, the revelation of this novel's big bad strains the limits of the willing suspension of disbelief a bit, but it nevertheless leads to an ending that's more satisfying than those of most horror novels. It's far from a perfect book, but it's well worth a read.

I love this book. Very well-paced and suspenseful.

Silvia Moreno Garcia faz algo muito interessante em "Mexican Gothic". Quase que uma colonização conceitual as avessas, ela traz os elementos clássicos das narrativas góticas para terras mexicanas (conceitualmente e literalmente na história ao colocar uma mansão inglesa em uma pequena cidade) a fim de tecer diversas críticas sociais. Da forma como a mulher é vista, até o perigo das histórias que romantizam a dor e o sofrimento e o impacto que isso pode gerar no olhar feminino, Silvia usa do gótico para tecer uma análise também a própria relação da colonização. O horror de "Mexican Gothic" vem de uma branquitude que se apropria e usa de todos os meios possíveis para se manter no poder e na pureza. Os comportamentos bizarros estão lá, assim como a falta de ética e a monstruosidade das ações. É um livro que traz elementos críticos para sua narrativa e a história ganha muito peso com isso. Sai do lugar comum das histórias góticas que comumente conhecemos, um ar fresco a um gênero já muito repetido. É uma boa leitura, ainda que com algumas ressalvas. Em determinado momento da história, o livro não consegue continuar sua progressão de eventos e assim como os urobouros tão mencionados na narrativa, a história fica de repetindo e não sai do mesmo local. É uma constante sensação de momentos que se deparamos com nadas, o que cria uma sensação enfadonha, uma prolixidade que tira um pouco do brilho do texto. Não é um livro que dá medo, ainda que consiga criar cenas mais horríveis por conta do body horror que se mete na narrativa, indo para um aspecto mais nojento. O clímax segue cenas muito comum em produções góticas, o que ao mesmo tempo mostra o comprometimento da obra com o gênero que quer mirar, cria um senso de "já vi isso antes". Gostei muito da sacada do elemento sobre-natural da história

I saw this book in a magazine and I was captivated by the reviews. Very well written. The story kept me engaged. Read it in three days.

Après avoir terminé « Rebecca » de Daphné du Mauguier j’avais envie de rester dans ce genre d’ambiance et de faire encore partie d’un autre temps... j’ai donc enchaîné sur Mexican Gothic car justement le résumé disait que c’était dans la lignée de Rebecca. Et effectivement je n’ai pas été déçue ! Il faudra néanmoins mériter cette histoire car l’auteure n’a pas été traduite, il faudra la lire en anglais. L’histoire: Dans le Mexico dans les annees 50, Noemie, jeune femme frivole qui mène tous les hommes par le bout du nez sans jamais se donner, est appelé au secours dans une lettre par sa cousine avec qui elle a été élevée. Celle-ci se plaint que son mari, qu’elle a épousé rapidement après leur rencontre, essaye de l’empoisonner et que des voix et des fantômes sont dans les murs de la demeure familiale, un manoir construit au cœur d’une forêt brumeuse éloignée de la ville. Le père de Noemi soupçonne le nouveau mari de vouloir faire main basse sur la fortune de sa femme en la gardant captive malgré une maladie psychiatrique qui nécessiterait plutôt de la rapatrier sur Mexico pour la soigner. Mais inquiet des conséquences d’un potentiel divorce sur l’image de la famille il envoie sa fille enquêter sous prétexte de s’occuper de sa cousine malade. Mais dès son arrivée, Noemi est battue froid par les occupants du manoir. Les occupants, le personnel, sa cousine... tous ont des comportements étranges... L’atmosphère devient rapidement oppressante, seul son nouveau beau-frère semble vouloir l’aider, mais peut-elle lui faire confiance ? Et pendant qu’elle cherche à faire la lumière sur ce dont souffre sa cousine, des éléments étranges lui font douter de sa propre santé mentale... Mon avis : Nous avons affaire à une héroïne audacieuse et intelligente, typiquement le genre de femme à laquelle on peut s’identifier même si le livre est écrit à la 3ème personne et que de l’extérieur on voit qu’elle ne voit pas le piège se refermer... c’est tellement bien écrit ! Il n’y a pas de longueur, tout s’enchaîne parfaitement... L’atmosphère est prenante, c’est à la limite de l’horreur mais il y a quelque chose, je ne sais pas l’expliquer, peut-être quelque chose qui émane de l’héroïne qui rend la chose plus angoissante qu’effrayante... J’ai adoré l’histoire, le style, le rythme, les personnages.... je vais sans aucun doute suivre l’auteure et lire d’autres de ses œuvres... Alors si la lecture en anglais ne vous rebute pas, je vous le recommande !

Llegó muy rápido y en perfectas condiciones