SILVER NITRATE by Silvia Moreno-Garcia – Review

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.

Silver Nitrate by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Published by Del Rey on July 18 2023
Genres: Adult, Horror
Pages: 336
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
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The nitty-gritty: Full of fascinating history, slow build suspense, and two unforgettable main characters, Silver Nitrate is a must read for Silvia Moreno-Garcia fans.

“Editing was changing. The Moviola and the Steenbeck machines were yielding space to video monitors, tapes, and computers. Beyond the Yellow Door was an item from another era; it enchanted her with its antiquated film stock and post-synchronized sound: it was like meeting a gentleman in a tweed suit and a monocle these days. She wanted the story about its troubled production. She wanted to discover its secrets, and there was nothing to be known. In her mind, the picture she had assembled of the film was vanishing, like decomposing celluloid.”

I can always count on Silvia Moreno-Garcia to bring something new and interesting to the table, and wow did she succeed with Silver Nitrate! Although I have to admit, the first half of the story is very slow, and I struggled a bit to get to that halfway point. But once I got there, I found it to be immensely compelling and hard to put down. The author brings a heady mix of mystery, the occult, ghosts, Mexican film history and wonderfully loveable characters to her tale, and as you can see by my rating, I ended up loving this book.

The story takes place in Mexico City in the early 1990s. Montserrat Curiel is a sound editor who works for a company called Anteres, and as the only female sound editor there, she has to deal with a sexist boss who doesn’t appreciate just how talented she is. Her best friend is Tristán, a once famous soap opera star whose career suffered after a debilitating car accident. Now Tristán is lucky to get the occasional modeling gig, but at least he has Momo (his nickname for Montserrat) and their mutual love of old movies to keep him sane.

Their lives change one day, however, when they meet retired filmmaker Abel Urueta, who just happens to live in Tristán’s building. Abel was working on a film called Beyond the Yellow Door, but it was never completed. Since then, a mysterious run of bad luck has afflicted Abel and the others who worked on the film, and Abel is convinced that the only way to break the “curse” is to finish making the movie. He convinces Montserrat and Tristán to help him, and they reluctantly agree. Abel’s stories about the film sound like fantasy, especially when he tells them about the man who wrote the screenplay, a German occultist named Wilhelm Ewers. Ewers literally believed in “movie magic,” and that the combination of sound, the silver nitrate film medium, and an audience could create the perfect storm of elements to cast spells.

Montserrat uses her editing skills to dub Abel’s film and finish it, but things get worse, not better. Tristán begins to see the ghost of his dead girlfriend Katrina, and Montserrat senses a dark presence following her and trying to communicate. Something horrible was unleashed when they meddled with the film, but what? And how do they stop it? 

Moreno-Garcia carefully lays the groundwork for her rather complex story, which is probably why it started out slow for me. In hindsight, I can see exactly what she was doing, and trust me, the payoff at the end is worth having some patience in the beginning. Silver Nitrate is full of fascinating details about the Mexican film industry and its history, Nazi occultism, the sound editing business and yes, silver nitrate film and its dangerous properties. I love learning new things when I read, and this story is chock full of interesting and sometimes shocking information. The author has done a ton of research and it shows. Either that, or she’s had experience in the film business herself, because everything she writes about feels authentic. Of course it doesn’t hurt to have a character full of curiosity, and Montserrat takes on the role of student in order to learn everything she can about Ewers and his diabolical plans to use his movie to cast spells.

And while I found the subject matter fascinating, it was the characters who really made this story work for me. I absolutely adored Montserrat and Tristán, both separately and when they interacted together. Montserrat is a tiny, fierce woman who is trying to make it in the “men’s club” film industry in the early 1990s Mexico, and despite her size, she can hold her own and isn’t afraid of the sexist idiots around her. Her love of horror films and her obsession with her Volkswagen add to her charm, and her complete devotion to Tristán (although he annoys her now and then!) was so sweet.

And speaking of Tristán, I had such a soft spot for him. His personality is bigger than life, and despite all the drama, he comes across as a squishy, lovable guy. He’s completely devoted to Montserrat, who is one of the few people who understands him. Late in the story, he’s forced to venture out of his element and do some terrifying things, and his willingness to put himself in danger for his friends made me love him even more. The scenes where Tristán and Montserrat interact were some of my favorite parts of the story. Both characters are damaged in different ways and would be lost without each other, and their relationship was so satisfying. 

Silvia Moreno-Garcia is a genius at bringing 1990s Mexico City to life. The story drips with atmosphere, and I loved the time period, right before cell phones and wide spread internet usage were common. It gave the story an almost old fashioned vibe. The characters carry pagers around, which made me laugh (every time I read about pagers, a line from Buffy the Vampire Slayer pops into my head: “If the apocalypse comes, beep me!”) She also touches on the frightening concepts of racism and eugenics that were prevalent when the movie was first made, and this added yet another fascinating layer.

Once you hit the halfway mark, the story really takes off. When Montserrat and Tristán figure out what the occultists are trying to do, of course they need to stop it. Things turn scary very quickly, with ghosts, blood sacrifices, satanic runes and much more, as our intrepid heroes try to save the day. A wonderful, feel good ending was the cherry on top of this excellent story, although I’ll admit I was very sad to be leaving Montserrat and Tristán behind.

Big thanks to the publisher for providing a review copy.