🕮 Historical Horror

🕮 Magical Realism

🕮 Spooky

Pros:  Silvia Moreno-Garcia is great at creating a sense of place in her books, this time Mexico City in the 1990’s. I felt as if I was there with Montserrat and Tristán, caught up in the mystery enfolding around them. I appreciated that even someone like me, a horror film avoider, was able to keep up with their conversations about movies, even if I had never heard of the title. This is billed as a horror novel that isn’t too scary and would appeal to anyone who is a fan of the occult or ghost stories. 

Cons: The story was very slow to start and I had a hard time getting into it.  Luckily I enjoy Moreno-Garcia’s writing so I stuck with it and I’m glad I did.  The romance subplot felt unnecessary and not fully realized, almost like an afterthought. It could have been excluded and the story would have had the same feel and emotions.