Mexican Gothic Book Review
The online book community was obsessed with Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s Mexican Gothic when it was published—for good reason. Mexican-Canadian female author, stunning cover, spooky family drama, strong female protagonist, striking-yet-dangerous potential love interest. You couldn’t scroll through social media without the gorgeous green and maroon cover presenting itself at least once.
In general, I tend to let a book exist out in the wild for a bit before I pick up a copy, especially if it’s written by a new-to-me author. Of course, there are always exceptions, but having not read Moreno-Garcia’s previous works, I opted to wait for the online book community to pass judgment before I dove in.
You know when someone gives you a recommendation for something they really enjoyed and you make a mental note to look it up when you get home and then you promptly forget to do so? That’s what happened to me with Mexican Gothic. Fortunately, I happened to swing by my local independent bookstore and saw Mexican Gothic was their book club pick for February and by this time, I’d seen enough positive reviews from trusted sources to know I would enjoy this read.
Mexican Gothic is—as the name suggests—a Gothic-style mystery with sci-fi and thriller elements. Set in 1950s Mexico, this novel draws on all traditional Gothic genre tropes and is equal parts Crimson Peak, The Yellow Wallpaper, Rebecca, and We Have Always Lived in the Castle with a dash of social commentary set against a vibrant Mexican culture.
After receiving a cryptic letter from her newly married cousin containing improbable accusations about her husband and the voices inside the walls of her new home, Noemi Taboada heads to High Place, a mysterious mansion shrouded in mist in the distant Mexican countryside.
Determined to uncover the truth, Noemi encounters her cousin's English husband and his family, the Doyle’s, who bear a striking (almost too similar) resemblance to one another and explores their strange ancestral home which seems to have a will of its own.
I finished this novel in a few evenings and despite a few slower moments, some repetitive descriptions, and a slightly ambiguous ending, I still gave Mexican Gothic an A- rating. I acknowledge my preferential bias towards Gothic fiction influenced my overall experience with this book but considering all other factors, Mexican Gothic still would have scored above a 90%.
Here’s where you may struggle: The first 150 pages. It takes a while to get to the real action and this may be why some reviewers say they just couldn’t get into it. A slow burn is pretty standard for Gothic fiction so I wasn’t that put off, and the first half of the book is Moreno-Garcia’s opportunity to establish Noemi’s character.
The Doyles (with the exception of Francis who we’ll talk about later) all felt gray and flat. I haven’t decided if this was intentional or a result of underdeveloped characterization, but either way, there really wasn’t much to say about the members of Doyle family except YUCK.
In contrast, if we consider High Place, the Doyle’s ancestral home, to be an active character in the story (and you should totally consider the house to be a character) then the character relationships become a bit more interesting.
I do disagree with some claim’s that Noemi showed incredible character growth because she humbled herself enough to admit that Francis wasn’t completely weak, boring, and ugly. In fact, her constant descriptions of Francis’ frailty and weak upper lip were really starting to wear on me by the end.
Francis on the other hand was a satisfying, three dimensional character. We see him go from accepting his fate in his family to serve as a vessel and feed the fungus for the greater good and longevity of the Doyle bloodline to denouncing his family’s actions and suffering great pain, personal loss, and potential negative long-term effects because it is the right thing to do.
If you can hang on through the first half of the book, I highly recommend picking up a copy of Mexican Gothic if you are in the mood for a spooky read.
