I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia Published by Del Rey on June 30 2020
Pages: 352
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
Buy on Amazon
Goodreads
The nitty-gritty: A creeping dread infuses this atmospheric Gothic tale of diabolical family secrets.
“The walls speak to me. They tell me secrets. Don’t listen to them, press your hands against your ears, Noemí. There are ghosts. They’re real. You’ll see them eventually.”
One of Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s strengths is her ability to create an atmospheric story, and Mexican Gothic has atmosphere in spades. The title says it all: this is a story that is set in Mexico in the 1950s, about an old, creepy mansion and the strange family who lives there. The story practically drips with Gothic sensibility, and if you love stories like Wuthering Heights or Rebecca, then you’ll love this as well.
The story centers around Noemí Taboada, a young socialite from Mexico City whose carefree life is upended when she receives a strange letter from her cousin Catalina. Catalina, newly married to a man named Virgil Doyle, now lives in the remote town of El Triunfo in a decaying mansion called High House, named for its location high atop a forested mountain. Catalina begs Noemí for help, claiming that her husband is trying to poison her. The rambling letter doesn’t make much sense, but Noemí’s mother urges her to go, suggesting that Catalina might need psychiatric help.
Noemí reluctantly agrees, and is shocked to discover High House is a crumbling, run-down mansion with peeling paint and moldy wallpaper and barely any electricity at all. Even worse, she’s given a chilly reception by the matriarch of the house, a stern woman named Florence who doesn’t seem to want her there. Soon she meets the rest of the household, including a handful of silent house staff, the handsome but unsettling Virgil (Catalina’s new husband), a mild-mannered man named Francis, and the head of the house himself, Howard Doyle, who appears to be on his deathbed. Noemí is barely able to see Catalina at all, as Florence insists she’s ill and needs her rest. In fact, the entire household seems to be trying to keep them apart, and it isn’t long before Noemí realizes something strange is going on.
Noemí’s unease grows when she starts to have weird dreams of pulsing shapes in the wallpaper, hears a voice whispering in her ear, and even finds herself sleepwalking. When an herbalist in town tells her about a long ago tragedy and a family curse, Noemí knows she must do everything in her power to get herself and Catalina out, despite Catalina’s insistence that “no one ever leaves High House.”
Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s imagery is simply amazing, and I could literally feel the moldering walls of High House closing in around me. The claustrophobic, Victorian atmosphere is almost cloying, it’s so vivid: the dark corners of the rooms lit only by a weak oil lamp, the mold spots on the old wallpaper, the fierce winter storms raging outside, and the weight of dark family secrets pressing down on poor Noemí and Catalina. I once made a reading list of books that revolve around fungi and mushrooms, and I’m thrilled that I’ll be able to add Mexican Gothic to that list! Yes, mushrooms play a big and extremely disturbing part in this story. I’ve come to realize that mushrooms in speculative fiction are never a good thing…And if you love little historic tidbits in your horror stories, how about the fact that some wallpapers used in Victorian houses contained traces of arsenic and were actually poisoning the air? Yeah, I loved that too.
I thought Noemí was a great character, even more so because of the 1950s time period she’s been thrust into. She’s a rich, spoiled socialite who seems flighty, given that her life revolves around making sure her lipstick color matches her shoes and attending the best parties in Mexico City. But Noemí has some wonderful layers to her, despite her penchant for flirting. She has a burning desire to learn and wants to become an anthropologist, and she’s smart as a whip. And since it is the 1950s, her mother scoffs at this and is pushing her to get married. But Noemí is trying to buck tradition and the sexist stereotypes that women faced during that time period, and she does a fair job of it. And yes, there’s a hint of romance between her and Francis, but trust me, it’s only a hint. I also loved how protective and caring Noemí is for Catalina, who really is in over her head and needs help desperately.
And boy does this story go to some dark places! There are a couple of horrible characters who made me shudder, and the most loathsome one, in my opinion, is Virgil Doyle. Virgil is the worst kind of predator. He’s extremely good looking and charismatic, yet he has an underlying evil about him that can’t be ignored. There is one scene in particular where he tries to rape Noemí—or is it all just a dream? Sometimes it’s hard to tell with this book. Nevertheless, all the trigger warnings for Virgil, just saying! The last quarter of the story turns very weird when Noemí (along with the reader) finally connects all the dots, so expect some sudden bursts of violence near the end, which honestly didn’t seem out of place at all.
I really enjoyed this story, and although it’s not my favorite Moreno-Garcia (that honor still goes to Certain Dark Things), this is one of her best books, in my opinion.
Big thanks to the publisher for supplying a review copy.
Everything about this sounds like a brilliant read. I already had it on my TBR list but it’s definitely going closer to the top. Is Certain Dark Things about vampires? Must check that one out too.
Glad you enjoyed Mexican Gothic 🙂
Yes, Certain Dark Things is a wonderful vampire story, it’s one of the best and most unusual ones I’ve ever read:-)
Oh boy, I have been waiting for a review of this, but I still don’t know what to make of it. Noemi is just the type of character I would enjoy, but I must admit, I have to be in the right frame of mind for Virgil. Brilliant review Tammy — you’ve given me lots to think about!
Luckily Virgil doesn’t overwhelm the story, it’s mostly about Noemi:-)
Great review, Tammy! I just finished reading this book last night and OMG, I don’t think I’ll ever look at a mushroom the same way again, lol.
Right?? And I’m a big mushroom fan, but I think I need a little break, lol.
I should not be surprised that a Moreno-Garcia novel would turn out to be an enthralling read, but your review is so enthusiastic and full of tantalizing details that I can hardly wait to read it for myself… 🙂
Thanks for sharing!
Maddalena@spaceandsorcery recently posted…The “WOULD YOU RATHER…” Tag
Lots of details that all add up to so much atmosphere:-)
I have read the first chapter but have 2 other books I need to finish before going back to this one. I have way too many books on the go right now! Great review and I’m so excited to dive further into this one. Let’s get real – do we ever think another book of hers will top Certain Dark Things? We are both such die-hard fans.
It’s going to be really hard to top Certain Dark Things, except maybe a sequel;-)
Mushrooms! I didn’t know about that, now I’m even more interested (…agree about them being bad news in SFF, I don’t think I’ve ever seen them being mentioned positively)
Great review!
Acqua recently posted…T10T: Underrated & Underread
Thanks Acqua:-)
I will never get over the beauty of this cover! And I do love a good gothic-like story so this sounds like it would be perfect for me.
Stephanie @ Bookfever recently posted…Review: Blue by Brynn Ford
I know, the cover is so pretty, and I love the detail of the green wallpaper in the background, which I didn’t notice until I read the story:-)
Great review, Tammy! I enjoyed this one too – it was just dripping with atmosphere wasn’t it? By the way, my review went up today as well. 🙂
I’m glad we both loved it, so much atmosphere!
I’m really looking forward to this one, Tammy. Good to know about the violence and this Virgil character and also that you feel that this is one of her best!
I hope you enjoy, Jenni:-)
Oh, I want to read this one so bad!
Angie recently posted…Hexis by Charlene Elsby
I hope you can read it, Angie!
Gothic, you say? I mean, okay, it’s right there in the title, but that doesn’t mean the book lives up to it. xD I’m glad to hear this one does! Gothic style can be hit or miss for me, but if this one’s as atmospheric as it sounds, it seems like one I should definitely read! I’m also definitely a fan of haunted houses. I think you’ve convinced me. Woe to my TBR!
There is a lot of Gothic atmosphere, and I’m pretty picky when it comes to that!
It’s great to hear this is a good one. I’ve been really curious to try it. And when you mentoined Certain Dark Things I double checked and found I do have that one, so maybe I’ll try pushing that up my list a bit.
I recommend both!
I finished this one earlier this week, I really enjoyed it! The story was on the slower side, but I had expected that with the “Gothic” in the tile, but I thought she did such a good job creating the mystery and making you wonder what’s going on in that house with this strange family!
Definitely a little slow, but it didn’t bother me. She definitely draws the mystery out for quite a while!
I am curious about this one. I seen a few negative reviews and so now your review has me curious, so maybe if I can get it on Overdrive I can try it. 🙂
I hope you can! I haven’t read any negative reviews yet:-)
Glad you enjoyed it so much, Tammy! My review is coming up next week, but I see we had similar impressions – the mushrooms, yeah!
I’m looking forward to your review!
I’ve just started this one and I’m already drawn in – glad to see you liked this one and the comparison to Wuthering Heights and Rebecca have me intrigued.
Lynn 😀
Hope you enjoy!
Great review – I flew through this last week and loved it (in that EWWWW skin-crawling AAAAARGH NO sense of ” love”, obvs). So atmospheric and so utterly, completely creepy. SMG does an amazing job of doling out the information along the way so you think you know what’s going on but it just keeps getting worse 😉
Exactly! She really keeps things under her hat until almost the end, very well done:-)
Ah, just finished and had to come back and read your terrific review! I loved this book, and yes, 100% agree that fungi in fiction never works out well! This book was so creepy and disturbing, and just perfect in so many ways.
So glad you loved this one Tammy! I really need to check out some of her work.
I can’t wait to read this! Well maybe I can. I may read it for Halloween/October.
This was my first time reading a book by this author but I can’t wait to check out more by her as it was fantastic. Although definitely disturbing too!!