Words: Ali Iannattone

Dark and twisted as it is elegant; Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s gothic horror novel ‘Mexican Gothic’ is one of the most intriguing horrors of the last few years.

Taking place in 1950s Mexico, the novel focuses on Noemí; a young socialite who unexpectedly receives a letter from her cousin Catalina. In this letter, Catalina tells Noemí about her growing suspicions of her husband and her belief that he will attempt to poison her. Noemí then decides to journey to the house in the mountains that her cousin shares with her husband and his family, and stay with them for a short while.

The events that unfold during her stay at the Doyle house are marked by the blood-curdling atmosphere of the household and the eerie demeanour of all its inhabitants. The remote location and the family dynamics in this novel will make you both want to close the book out of fear and keep reading until the last page out of complete fascination.

The author, Silvia Moreno-Garcie was born and raised in Mexico and later moved to Canada in 2004, at the age of 12. She studied at the University of British Columbia and published her first collection of short stories called ‘This Strange Way of Dying’ in 2013.

‘Mexican Gothic’ is Moreno-Garcia’s sixth novel; it received much positive praise from critics and readers alike and won her four awards, including the 2020 Bram Stoker Award for Superior Achievement. Other novels by her are ‘Signal to Noise’(2015) and ‘Gods of Jade and Shadow’(2019).

Moreno-Garcia’s writing is beautifully spine-chilling and draws readers in with her atmospheric descriptions and nightmarish storytelling.
‘Mexican Gothic’ is truly a gem and would make a wonderful read for any horror or latin literature fanatics.

Get your copy of ‘Mexican Gothic’ here: World of Books (used), Waterstones.