MEXICAN GOTHIC

Mexican Gothic is easily one of the books you must read this year, and not just if you are a horror fan. Silvia Moreno-Garcia does a fabulous job of creeping you out with atmosphere, and she also makes you invest in the character of Noemí, our protagonist, who moves through the story arc from someone who is flippant and modernistic to someone who begins to accept and believe and develops a better understanding of familial ties.I was pulled into the story in the first ten minutes. Noemí Taboada is urged by her father to pay a visit to her cousin Catalina, who stays in her husband Virgil Doyle's house in a small village in the Mexican countryside named El Triunfo. Catalina has sent a fervent letter claiming to see things in the house and that her husband is probably poisoning her. Placing family over everything else, Noemí puts her life on hold and heads out to the Doyles' House, High Place.High Place is as weird as it gets, and the Doyles are the perfect residents for it. The house is huge and palatial but is almost worn out and moldy, and is practically at a level of disrepair. The Doyles were rich people, thriving off their income from the mines, but after an accident, the mines shut down and the Doyles lost their income. They are the creepy house on the mountain now, alleged to have buried the corpses of the miners without headstones, and who have now devolved into a shady existence.In the house, there are no liberties. Aside of Virgil, there is Howard, Virgil's father, who is not just old but ancient. It is particularly enchanting to read his descriptions as Moreno-Garcia tells it to us bit by bit. It gets scarier when the near-fossil Howard develops a kind of curious fascination for Noemí, which Virgil thinks is quite normal. Then there is Florence, Virgil's aunt, who is a proper reflection of Nurse Ratched from One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. Florence does not take too kindly to Noemí at first glance itself and admonishes her, and even keeps her away from meeting Catalina, which is the main purpose of her visit.The one character you start rooting for is Francis, Florence's son. There's probably just a hint of a romance there, between Noemí and Francis, but Florence does not approve of it. Then there's also the fact that Francis appears to be harboring a major secret of his family's past, which includes the massacre of the previous family members by a daughter named Ruth.Well, it takes time for Moreno-Garcia to establish these characters and the atmosphere of the house. But once that is done, the story takes off with gusto.At about 40% of the story, when you wonder what is really happening, there is the revelation of the secret that the family holds. It goes much beyond Ruth (no, this is not Amityville Horror), it goes much beyond the normal ghost-in-the-walls kind of haunting, it goes much beyond anything. It has to do with a particular every day object, mostly edible, which we see all around us. And when this revelation, this deep secret, reveals itself, it is the money shot! This is where you know the book has transcended the common tropes of horror and gone way beyond.I really loved the book when it hit its stride, which is after halfway. From here on, the action is relentless. You feel that you are on a journey and there are a lot of bumps. Noemí plans to leave the house, but she is held back because of one bizarre occurrence or another. And when it is revealed that there is an overall design in holding Noemí back and that design is laid out by the house itself, you start gasping for breath.Mexican Gothic might be a tough read for some because it takes time to get the story rolling after its initial setting up of the premise, but those who stay after the halfway mark are richly rewarded. It is actually the climax where you see why the book has done so well and why it is topping most awards lists this year.Do pick this one up to see how a masterful story is told, right from the time it starts as an idea in the head to the moment when it takes its finished form on paper. I strongly recommend Mexican Gothic to creative-minded folk who want to tell their own tales. This is a masterclass in storytelling.

Mexico Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia 4🌟"The world might indeed be a cursed circle; the snake swallowed its tail and there could be no end, only an eternal ruination and endless devouring."Noemi is a social butterfly whose curiosity wavers from one thing to another. After receiving a distressing letter from her cousin Catalina, Noemi's father asks her to call upon her cousin. On reaching High Place, she is greeted with the dreariness of the place and pointless rules, which she decides to pay no heed to. Once a flourishing house with a working silver mine is now in ruins. Howard Doyle, an englishman and the head of the High Place, has lived for 70 plus years in Mexico City, but is unchanging in his "english" ways. The occupants of the High Place are very secretive and eccentric. Even her visits to her cousin are handful and always under supervision. Noemi is inquisitive and after digging around finds about the disturbing past of the Doyle family (something like The Amityville horror). She is convinced that something sinister lurks at the High Place and she needs to get herself and her cousin as far as possible. There's definitely more to the story than meets the eye and Noemi sets on the quest to uncover the truth before her own nightmares take over her sanity.What started as a gothic horror with its disintegrating manor, gloomy countryside, eccentric family with unpalatable past, and nightmares that almost seem real, turned out to be a shocking story with a twist that you could not have thought of in your wildest imagination! A bit slow paced but equally intriguing.The details get too graphic towards the end. However, it lacks impressionable characters and the "twist", it came as a shock initially but later i found it to be a tad bit comical. Overall a good halloween read!

I've read on reddit that horror is the genre which is most difficult to write because there is no background music, no jump scares, not any cliched shots which are present in horror movies to instill fear in viewers. Writer has to rely on his writing alone to create fear in the minds of the reader. That is what makes this genre the most interesting to me. And then comes Gothic Horror. All the tropes like big mansion, creepy atmosphere, strange behaving people, an old curse; I am a huge fan. All these tropes are present in this novel which makes it an interesting read.About the plot, Noemi is a Mexican socialite who receives a letter from her cousin Catalina, that her husband Virgil Doyle is plotting to kill her. Noemi goes to High Place (the Doyle mansion) to meet Catalina and there she notices strange behaviour of every person in Doyle household. She learns from locals that the mansion is cursed but shrugs it off. However, when strange nightmares and sleepwalking episodes affect her, she begins to investigate the story behind the Doyles and the High Place. How she finds out the truth and saves herself and Catalina, forms the entire plot of the novel.The story will seem slow in the beginning to the first time horror readers but in my experience most of the horror novels are like that. The writing will remind you of Rebecca, The Hound of Baskerville and some parts of The Shining (If you've read all of those, you'll know what I'm talking about). The claustrophobic atmosphere is beautifully created but the climax could've been a little better. The story is okay but the writing style makes it a compelling read.My rating is 4 stars.

I rarely read horror but I seem to be on a bit of a horror bender at the moment, and picked this up to continue the ride. My initial thoughts are that it's quite disturbing and I both love and am afraid of this book!Set in 1950, Noemi lives in Mexico City, enjoying the parties, games and the flirting with handsome heirs to vast companies. When her cousin Catalina sends a telegram saying her new husband is trying to poison her, Noemi sets off to investigate her cousin's strange claim. Trekking across the Mexican countryside, Noemi arrives at High Place, a Victorian-style manor house that lords over a small town once famed for its silver mine. All that remains of the silver is Catalina's husband's family, the Doyles, and a few silver trinkets. Unwelcomed by the Doyles, Noemi finds her cousin has become a nervous wreck - making claims the walls are talking to her and her husband Virgil is trying to poison her - and vows to stay with her to keep her company. But as Noemi investigates her cousins claims, she unwittingly uncovers dark mysteries surrounding the Doyles and their silver mine. The more she scratches at the mysteries, the deeper Noemi begins to fall into the same dark trap as Catalina.This is NOT my usual read, however I'm lately taken by creepy houses/towns with creepy histories and this definitely delivers. It's a bit of a slow burn to begin with, but it absolutely knocks it out of the creepy park about 3/4 of the way through and looking back, it's not possible to do that without the slow setup.What I loved most about this book was the time period and the setting. The author describes everything so richly I had no trouble picturing it. Noemi also has several disturbing dreams and they too were handled really well - the creepiness of this book is delivered in the writing. Everything is so easily pictured and I think that's why I both love and am afraid of this book.It's honestly a gem and you should give it a go!

Set in Mexico in the early 1950s, Silvia Moreno-Garcia's novel 'Mexican Gothic' focuses on beautiful socialite, Noemi, who finds herself travelling to a remote mountainside estate after receiving a desperate letter from her recently married cousin, Catalina, who thinks her new husband, Virgil Doyle, is trying to poison her. When she arrives at High Place, a crumbling gothic mansion, Noemi meets the Doyle family, who are of English origin and all of them rather unusual characters. The handsome, cool and very collected Virgil tells Noemi that Catalina is merely suffering from a fever caused by a bout of tuberculosis and that Noemi need not worry herself about her cousin, but when Noemi tries to investigate further, she finds herself stonewalled by Virgil and the rest of the family - apart from the shy and gentle Francis, the youngest member of the family, who becomes very attracted to the lively and confident Noemi. As Noemi spends more time at High Place, the strangely menacing atmosphere begins to affect not only her waking hours, but also her dreaming hours and before long Noemi is having violent and macabre nightmares which seem too horribly real to be merely dreams. As time passes, and Catalina shows signs of acute mental distress, Noemi becomes convinced there is something rather sinister going on behind the scenes at High Place - but will she be able to discover what that is before something very unpleasant happens?This story is one that I can only describe as an incredible gothic romp - and, by incredible, I mean it is just not credible. It is true that I initially became caught up in the story and I enjoyed the author's descriptions of High Place with its unsettling atmosphere and its proximity to an eerie, mist-enshrouded cemetery, but this tale was just too far-fetched for me to really take on board and it became even more unbelievable as the story progressed. I have to say that I'm quite easily scared, but I'm frightened by things that I believe could possibly happen and not those which seem altogether too bizarre, so instead of finding myself "mesmerised by the terrifying yet seductive world of High Place" (as promised by the 'blurb') I actually found it almost comical in places - especially when amongst all the gory descriptions provided by the author, Ms Moreno-Garcia takes time out to describe Noemi's fashionable clothing for the day. That's not to say that there weren't parts to this story which held my attention and, as already mentioned, I enjoyed the atmosphere created by the author (and the cover on the book is gorgeous), but this was all a bit too fantastically bizarre for me and the book is now off to a friend who reads fantasy novels and who I feel will enjoy this more than I did.2.5 Stars.

Over the last few months I have read quite a few positive reviews for the novel, set in 1950s Mexico, at an estate linked to an erstwhile British-run silver mining company, high in the mountains. The building is text book spooky Victorian and the family members are an eclectic mix of curious individuals, who are each leading a strange life, incarcerated in their spookily atmospheric surrounds, a long way away from civilisation. Part Hammer Horror, part Addams family – or as the Guardian newspaper puts it – Lovecraft meets the Brontës in Latin America. The setting is perfect for the storyline and evoking this ghostly and atmospheric backdrop is something the author does superbly well. And. There are plenty of comparisons to Jane Eyre.I confess that this took me out of my comfort zone, I am not naturally drawn to the gothic/horror genre but I have to say it was the cover that swung me in the book’s favour; that, and also because it was set in Mexico. Just see, the power of the book cover ad location!Catalina is living with her husband Virgil Doyle, in the misty mountains near El Triunfo in the family mansion, where patriarch Howard Doyle is still wheezing away his days on his looming death bed. The family have mined the silver in the area for several generations. Catalina has sent a letter to her cousin Noemí’s family in Mexico City and Noemí is despatched to check on the health and well-being of Catalina. It seems that she might be experiencing psychological disturbance.Noemí arrives and almost immediately a shiver runs down her spine. It is a dank and dreary building, and the household is ruled with an iron fist (absolutely no speaking over dinner), with sharp-tongued Florence as at the helm.As Noemí delves deeper, she discovers all kinds of horrors and mysteries – and death.It is a reflective storyline, leaving the reader to ponder whether the house is sick or whether the sins of the ancestors – colonisers plundering the land for its resources – are being visited upon this generation.I was enthralled by the first third of the book, the writing and storytelling fully drew me in. Thereafter it levelled out for me. The longer she stays, the more Noemí sinks into the bowels of the sinister clutch of the house and its occupants. She starts to sleep walk, apparently, and the blur between reality and ghostly adventures starts to add confusion to her days. Soon thereafter it goes into more otherworldly realms. This is not my genre of choice and sometimes one just needs to step out of one’s comfort zone and expand one’s horizons. In many ways I am very glad I have read it. The New Yorker says its addictive prose “..is as easy to slurp down as a poisoned cordial…” It is indeed!

Hmmm. This book had me conflicted after I finished it. The first 3 quarters was so so good. I absolutely loved the setting, both the time and location. I was living for The Crimson Peak vibes. It was a sultry, eerie and mysterious story with never ending suspense, as well as rising tension between the characters. I was truly gripped and creeped out in parts. The writing lured me in and wouldn't let me go. I needed to know the end.And then, I got to the final part. It was such a let down for me. I'm keeping tight lipped on purpose as I don't want to spoil it for anyone. I've read some books that take bizarre turns, and it works but this was just a tad too odd. I do really want to read more books by Moreno-Garcia though as I loved how atmospheric and eerie the writing was.

‘Crimson Peak’ (brilliant film) meets ‘A Cure For Wellness’ (terrible film), but make it Mexican.The only redeeming feature of this book was the fact that for once that the main character is in their twenties and not their teens 🙄Very forceful and cliche with the spookiness:-Fog.-Haunted House on top of a hill.-Minimal electricity causing need for intricately detailed candelabras-Old, creepy men who look like vampires/ zombies-Furniture covered in white sheets,-Creaky doors and floorboards,-Old, mouldy libraries,-Rooms and furniture covered in dust. -Graveyard...All of that before page 47! 🙄 This made the book feel extremely tacky for me.And that ending... the “twist” on why the house is creepy.....what a pile of crock!