Audiobook Review: “Mexican Gothic”
Mexican Gothic
Silvia Morena-Garcia, Narrated by Frankie Corzo
Noemí lives a glamourous life, full of parties and dresses, but when she receives a letter from her cousin, she travels to High Place, prepared to do whatever it takes to ensure her cousin’s safety. There, she meets a strange English family, who instigate their rules over this small corner of Mexico. The patriarch is a foreboding presence over the whole household who becomes fascinated with Noemí, her cousin’s husband is a handsome, menacing Englishman, but the shy, soft youngest son is someone she can ally with, at least.
At the centre of it all is the looming High Place, dark and full of secrets, with a life and character of its own, and the ability to infect those within its walls. Mexican Gothic is Gothic at its best, picking apart the societal structures, drawing on the genre while breathing new life into it. Moreno-Garcia uses the genre to explore colonialism, represented by High Place and the family within. High Place itself could be an English country mansion, and it’s not the only thing the family have imported into Mexico.
Noemí struggles against the rigid rules and restrictions of High Place, pushing back where she can but finding herself too often thwarted. She knows something is wrong with her cousin Constance, and doesn’t trust her husband Howard to really look out for her. Noemí is spoilt in many ways, but being used to getting her own way gives her a determination not to let herself be run out of the house.
The gothic setting is used to great effect, and the eeriness of the place is drawn out really well. There were definitely points where even a character mentioning ‘High Place’ made me shudder. There’s also the relationship between Noemí and Francis, which slowly builds through the novel, his desire to help her hindered by his knowledge of what his family is capable of.
High Place’s creepiness really adds to the tension, as Noemí digs that little bit deeper and finds out that little bit more, but largely remaining left in the dark about what’s really happening. Moreno-Garcia uses tension to great effect, truly placing us alongside Noemí as she experiences the strange home.
I listened to this as an audiobook via Audible, and the narration was fantastic – Frankie Corzo did a wonderful job with the variety of different characters and voices, conveying them so well.
I can really see why this has been so highly praised. It’s a wonderfully effective take on the Gothic genre, and does something unique with it. If you haven’t checked this out yet and are a fan of Gothic fiction, I can’t recommend it enough.
Mexican Gothic on Author’s Website
Review by Elle Turpitt
Twitter & Instagram: @elleturpitt
I purchased this audiobook via Audible
