Friday 1 May 2020

"Mexican Gothic" by Silvia Moreno-Garcia


Mexican Gothic

by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

A review


The protagonist of Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s novel Mexican Gothic is twenty-two year old Noemí Taboada, a feisty socialite from a well-to-do family, who is equally at ease flirting with young men at parties and studying anthropology at University, despite both activities being considered quite daring in 1950s Mexico.  Her carefree life is unexpectedly interrupted by an urgent missive received from her cousin Catalina, recently wed to mining magnate Virgil Doyle.  The letter has a series of incredible allegations: she states that she is being held captive in a haunted house, and possibly being poisoned.  Something is clearly amiss. Noemí is not particularly keen to play the (potentially supernatural) detective, but she promises to leave for High Place, the Doyles’ remote country mansion, in return for her father allowing her to pursue university studies. 

When she arrives at High Place, Noemí realizes that Catalina’s tall tales might not be so far-fetched after all.  The Doyles, in fact, make for a weird household, ruled with a fist of iron by the repulsive old patriarch Harold Doyle.  The house itself seems to throb with malevolence, crumbling under the weight of a horrifying secret…

The novel is called Mexican Gothic and it certainly delivers what it says on the tin.  Most of the tropes of classic Gothic suspense are thrown into the mix: a decrepit, haunted mansion; “chosen” brides; a young woman who is, for all intents and purposes, imprisoned by a smoulderingly handsome yet terrible husband; a strange family hiding terrible secrets; silent servants;  abandoned mines; rituals which  seem uncomfortably (to this reader) like blasphemous versions of Catholic liturgy; a mist-covered cemetery; even magical mushrooms...

Sometimes the dividing line between tribute and parody can be very thin. Moreno-Garcia’s novel is a such smorgasbord of Gothic clichés that it easily have degenerated into a parody of the genre. Yet, despite being over-the-top (as most classic Gothic is), it has enough interesting and idiosyncratic touches to make it an enjoyable pastiche.             

I noted that one of the authors to give early praise to this book is Yangsze Choo, the author of The Night Tiger (which I review here). I am not surprised as, despite the contrasting geographical settings, and the different folkloric traditions they tap into, both Mexican Gothic and The Night Tiger combine horror and historical fiction, and feature a likable, independent-minded young heroine. Like The Night Tiger, Mexican Gothic also has a sentimental subplot which will particularly appeal to fans of Romance.  I confess I preferred both novels' darker aspects…   

Kindle Edition336 pages

Expected publication: June 23rd 2020 by Jo Fletcher Books

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