MEXICAN GOTHIC has my heart racing and my mind reeling, and I was absolutely spoiled to get an arc for review from author Silvia Moreno-Garcia at Boskone this year. It was one of my most anticipated books of 2020, and it did not disappoint.

Think Crimson Peak meets Get Out in the 1950’s Mexican countryside and you’re coming close to what makes this book so special. This book both loves and subverts classical Gothic tropes, infusing the familiar crumbling English manor home and looming handsome predator and whispers of family curses with a strong tonic of post-colonialist sensibilities. The writing is heady and lyrical, but the taut plot doesn’t get lost in the lovely, gloomy atmosphere.

This book will weave mystery and malice around you before you even know you’re in dancer, and the dark enchantment of manor High Place will get in your blood and never let you go. I loved heroine Noemi terribly, from her will to survive to her couture gowns to her double-edged wit. There’s a romance in here to root for as well, and women wrenching agency away from horrible men with bloody hands. The book won’t be widely available until June 30th, but you can pre-order right this second. So what are you waiting for?

CW: There’s a pervasive threat of sexual violence and attempted sexual assaults in this book, but they’re handled with an appropriate amount of both rage and grace, and I found the heroine and the ending to be a really satisfying kick in the teeth of patriarchy and sexual violence. But if it’s a delicate topic for you, proceed with discretion!