I've been catching up with the Carterhaugh School book club reads. When I finished Mexican Gothic I could NOT wait to hear what the book club thought of it. Along with serious pointers on the Gothic genre was the important question - Can we ever eat mushrooms again?
I've had images in my head since finishing the story and I won't give away the plot by explaining my drawing on the left.
From the back cover:
When glamorous socialite Noemí Taboada receives a frantic letter from her newlywed cousin begging to be rescued from a mysterious doom, it's clear something is desperately amiss. Catalina has always had a flair for the dramatic, but her claims that her husband is poisoning her and her visions of restless ghosts seem remarkable, even for her.
One could say that the book is full of Gothic tropes and salutes to many famous predecessors. Yes, there is no doubt we are in a Gothic tale and that one can see echoes of Rebecca and Jane in there BUT Silvia Moreno-Garcia gives us Noemí, a confident woman with a fabulous wardrobe to get to the bottom of the mystery. Easily underestimated by her cousin's family Noemí is nonetheless being groomed for a fate worse than death (yes really).
The denouement is really creepy and "yech" the more you think about it. But... and there was agreement on this in the book club, the obvious horror of the book is not the most horrific and disturbing element of the story. It is the social values and mores of the Doyle family that are truly chilling.
Will we be able to eat mushrooms again? - Well yes I had some Swiss browns in garlic herbed butter on my Sunday brunch toast. Why do I talk about mushrooms? Read the book!
Update: for Halloween here is a phone wallpaper for you!
