Review: Mexican Gothic
I think this is the last book of this month before we can finally advance to the month of June!! YAY! I first thought of adding one more book but then I realized I don't actually have enough time to blog about it and it would automatically pass into the next month itself.
After receiving a frantic letter from her newly-wed cousin begging for someone to save her from a mysterious doom, Noemí Taboada heads to High Place, a distant house in the Mexican countryside. She’s not sure what she will find—her cousin’s husband, a handsome Englishman, is a stranger, and Noemí knows little about the region.
Noemí is also an unlikely rescuer: She’s a glamorous debutante, and her chic gowns and perfect red lipstick are more suited for cocktail parties than amateur sleuthing. But she’s also tough and smart, with an indomitable will, and she is not afraid: Not of her cousin’s new husband, who is both menacing and alluring; not of his father, the ancient patriarch who seems to be fascinated by Noemí; and not even of the house itself, which begins to invade Noemí’s dreams with visions of blood and doom.
Her only ally in this inhospitable abode is the family’s youngest son. Shy and gentle, he seems to want to help Noemí, but might also be hiding dark knowledge of his family’s past. For there are many secrets behind the walls of High Place. The family’s once colossal wealth and faded mining empire kept them from prying eyes, but as Noemí digs deeper she unearths stories of violence and madness.
And Noemí, mesmerized by the terrifying yet seductive world of High Place, may soon find it impossible to ever leave this enigmatic house behind.
QUICK THOUGHTS AND REVIEW: 5/5, ABSOLUTELY STUNNING.
Possible Trigger Tags:
1. Endogamy
2. Inbreeding
3. Gore
4. Mentions of rape.
5. Mentions of drug abuse.
6. Mentions of smoking and drinking.
7. Substance abuse.
8. Casual Cannibalism
WHAT DID I FEEL ABOUT THE BOOK'S:
1. Writing Quality: The writing quality in the first chapter isn't that interesting to be very honest. It was kind of a bore because there wasn't anything interesting happening in the first chapter other than the letter, which hit me as quite stereotypical. But cue to second chapter and BOOM, there's a whole different rush of adrenaline and suspense and horror and everything you'll find in a historical fiction book. And I loved it, because it's been a good while since I read a book that has genuinely piqued my interest in it. The last read I had was completely disappointing and this was truly a break from it. Seriously.
2. Setting: YO it's so hot here I'm fricking melting. I hate this kind of weather, fricking humid heat with no chance of rain. The worst kind of weather. And my jealousy was so intense when I found out that the place where the whole of the book takes place is so cold that you need multiple sweaters to keep you warm. Bruh I'd rather accept the cold weather and die of hypothermia than melt in this fricking heat. But ranting aside. The eerie vibes in this book are splendid. Personally, I'm not a fan of horror. And I will definitely not read horror if anyone recommends me. But there is this whole creepy village vibe that I absolutely dig. Plus Mexican culture, which is also one of my fave cultures when it comes to the paranormal. Absolutely one of my favourite settings.
3. Character Development: Now see, here. There are characters that are really well developed and they have this eerie mystery about them but boy do I have opinions.
Noemi: Noemi can be seen as another version of Jordan Baker. A kinder, better version, perhaps. Because she reminds me of Jordan Baker in so many ways. She's beautiful, smart rich, conniving and she knows her self worth. She basically could be a historical gaslight, gatekeep, girlboss character. On the same hand, she's also kind and caring about her cousin Catalina, which shows that she is not entirely insensitive as Jordan Baker was.
Catalina: Catalina can be called as the "damsel-in-distress" stereotype, because first, she actually is a damsel in distress, and second, she has this weird habit of putting everything into a fairy tale or comparing it to one. But the badassery she shows in the end is insane. Stabbing her own husband who tried to kill her? SLAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY.
Francis: Soft child. I know he's a man but he strikes to me nothing more than a soft child. His character development is minimal, but I am glad to see that he actually develops a spine by the end of the book because I was beginning to call him a wuss to some of my other friends.
Howard and Virgil Doyle: The definition of disgusting men. Howard Doyle is disgusting because a. he's marrying his own cousins, which is disgusting in the worst way and b. he was trying to make moves on a girl young enough to be his great granddaughter. Ew. Virgil is no better than Howard though, he tried to kill his own wife and force himself on his sister-in-law. They're just two disgusting men I wanna yeet off the face of the earth like Hera yeeted Hephaestus off Mount Olympus.
Florence: DIE DIE DIE DIE DIE DIE DIE DIE DIE YOU BITCH. Florence is the definition of a bitch and not in a good way, but in the most foul and gruesome way. I want to cut off her head and wave it on a stick in front of her weeping mother. Or just throw her under the bus more than a thousand times till she's just minced meat.
I do however, feel like the townsfolk could have been emphasized a bit more, it would have suited the book better.
4. Couldn't put it down- Ness: 10/10, if I didn't have some appointments in between, I'd have finished this book in one clean swipe.
5. Plot Twists: Okay, OKAY, so talking about the plot twists. Shit got really good in the last 70 pages. Like really good, hella awesome. I was barely recovering from one plot twist when another plot twist was being dumped on me and my jaw was slack and I was legit like "are you guys serious right now?" I understand the need and the importance of a good plot twist and trust me when I say this, this book has some damn good plot twists. Plus the eerie nature throughout the book makes stuff really unpredictable. And as we know unpredictability yields a good plot twist.
6. Plot: I remember playing this PC game before called "Island of Death" and it gave me the same vibes because they followed a similar plot point. Well, not similar, but they did have similar vibes. I was a child when I played this game though, its been so many years since I've played this game with my sister. We used to play PC games on our brother's computer when we were kids. Ah good old days. But yeah, I kind of do find the plot interesting and it also has a similar plot structure to "House of Salt and Sorrows" [link will be down below] minus the dancing portion.
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