Mexican Gothic

By: Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Narrated by: Frankie Corzo

Length: 10 hrs and 39 mins

Publisher's summary

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “It’s Lovecraft meets the Brontës in Latin America, and after a slow-burn start Mexican Gothic gets seriously weird.”—The Guardian

IN DEVELOPMENT AS A HULU ORIGINAL LIMITED SERIES PRODUCED BY KELLY RIPA AND MARK CONSUELOS • WINNER OF THE LOCUS AWARD • NOMINATED FOR THE BRAM STOKER AWARD

ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: The New Yorker, Vanity Fair, NPR, The Washington Post, Tordotcom, Marie Claire, Vox, Mashable, Men’s Health, Library Journal, Book Riot, LibraryReads

An isolated mansion. A chillingly charismatic aristocrat. And a brave socialite drawn to expose their treacherous secrets. . . . From the author of Gods of Jade and Shadow comes “a terrifying twist on classic gothic horror” (Kirkus Reviews) set in glamorous 1950s Mexico.

After receiving a frantic letter from her newly-wed cousin begging for someone to save her from a mysterious doom, Noemí Taboada heads to High Place, a distant house in the Mexican countryside. She’s not sure what she will find—her cousin’s husband, a handsome Englishman, is a stranger, and Noemí knows little about the region.

Noemí is also an unlikely rescuer: She’s a glamorous debutante, and her chic gowns and perfect red lipstick are more suited for cocktail parties than amateur sleuthing. But she’s also tough and smart, with an indomitable will, and she is not afraid: Not of her cousin’s new husband, who is both menacing and alluring; not of his father, the ancient patriarch who seems to be fascinated by Noemí; and not even of the house itself, which begins to invade Noemi’s dreams with visions of blood and doom.

Her only ally in this inhospitable abode is the family’s youngest son. Shy and gentle, he seems to want to help Noemí, but might also be hiding dark knowledge of his family’s past. For there are many secrets behind the walls of High Place. The family’s once colossal wealth and faded mining empire kept them from prying eyes, but as Noemí digs deeper she unearths stories of violence and madness.

And Noemí, mesmerized by the terrifying yet seductive world of High Place, may soon find it impossible to ever leave this enigmatic house behind.

“It’s as if a supernatural power compels us to turn the pages of the gripping Mexican Gothic.”—The Washington Post

“Mexican Gothic is the perfect summer horror read, and marks Moreno-Garcia with her hypnotic and engaging prose as one of the genre’s most exciting talents.”—Nerdist

“A period thriller as rich in suspense as it is in lush ’50s atmosphere.”—Entertainment Weekly

©2020 Silvia Moreno-Garcia (P)2020 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“An inspired mash-up of Jane Eyre, Ann Radcliffe’s The Mysteries of Udolpho, Dracula, Rebecca and that 1958 classic sci-fi movie, The Blob . . . Inventive and smart, [Mexican Gothic is] injecting the Gothic formula with some fresh blood.”—NPR’s Fresh Air

“Stylish and edgy. . . While the book draws inspiration from Gothic classics like Rebecca and Jane Eyre—there is a spunky female protagonist and an ancient house filled with disturbing secrets—its archly intelligent tone and insightful writing make Mexican Gothic an original escape to an eerie world.”—New York Times

“[An] irresistibly dark feminist reimagining of the Gothic fantasy novel . . . It’s all wonderfully creepy, blending chilling scenes of horror with classic Gothic tropes for a seductive and subversive tale. A book to devour in a few—very thrilling—sittings.”—Vanity Fair

Exceeded All Expectations

Loved every thing about this book. Vivid descriptions paired with mystery, action, romance, and horror. I was intrigued because it was recommended for fans of Rebecca and Jane Eyre, both of which are too 5 favorites, so my expectations were very high. My expectations were not only met but completely blown out of the water. I loved this Mexican Gothic tale and will probably listen to it again very soon.

Truly excellent!

This a great book with a very enticing story. I was sold by the title alone and it was absolutely everything I hoped for.

Takes a while to find its feet

The premise of the book was interesting but it failed to keep my interest in the first three quarters. I would have stopped in the middle but others reviews said that the payoff was in the last hour. My problem was that the pacing. Was so slow. The author had a tendency to repeat things over and over again. The narrator’s monotone delivery only worsened my boredom. The main characters, especially the villains, were one note. The characters made decisions that made absolutely no sense at times. Even the dialogue...someone could be talking about how ugly the wallpaper was and then the next sentence be pontificating on the chemical structure of the dye in said wallpaper. It was maddening. Something that irked me in particular was the interaction between Noemi and Catalina. These were women in their twenties who sounded like preteens. No one speaks like that. I ended up skipping ninety minutes in the middle and the last hour was pretty good as promised. My advice is save your money on the audiobook. This one you maybe better off reading

If only the narration was a brilliant as the story

The story is engaging and well written—full of twists and turns keeping you guessing.

The narration sounds for the most part, stilted and stuff. Plus, the attempts at an English accent are sadly autrocious. Finally, all of the characters, men and women alike, are read is such a similar tone that it is a surprise who is speaking at times. For me, the narration detracted from the story.

Beautifully written! Highly recommend

Carefully crafted to include so many beautiful historical elements throughout the entire fictional tale! The book allows the reader to better grasp an understanding of pre and post British imperialism of Mexico.

Wow

this kind of horror is scary, I loved it!!! I loved the main character.

Agh! Perfection a miss due to narrator

Let me start by saying I thought this was gonna be “another gothic thriller”. I was wrong!! The story was refreshingly original, loved the period she chose, and the main character is smart, strong, witty and brave. Moreno-Garcia does a great job describing both Mexico City life back then and gives hints at the culture and classist prejudice that still exists. I kept extending my audible timer each night because I wanted to know “what happens next?”

What pretty much drove me nuts is the narrator. Not trying to be mean but she HAD little inflection, emotion and variation between characters!! You couldn’t differentiate well enough between Noemi and her cousin! And her male voice would slip and have a too obvious feminine quality to it. Not to mention the fact that her British accent was not very passable. Clearly this is her career so she has strengths but this book was not one.
With that said I still couldn’t stop hearing this book.....that’s how good this story is.

Loved it!

Gosh it was such a good book! I really thought I wasn’t going to find it interesting but I did very much. So glad I got to read it!

not for me

I like the title, but overall the plot was not interesting. once I'm invested in a book I try to listen/read through, but not a book I recommend

Atmospheric and Original

Definitely worth listening to! The narrator was fantastic and the story felt fresh and original.