This was one of my most anticipated reads of the year. I grew up listening to my grandma’s stories of growing up in Mexico, about spirits and ghosts and witch doctors.

The first 2/3 of this book had me. It’s deliciously atmospheric, creeping, and unsettling. The third act, however, fell completely flat. It felt unplanned. I was hoping for something bigger, more sinister. There was such a build up and the ending came so abruptly.

I’m a fan of Southern Gothic literature, and this felt like a neighbor. The mountain mining town reminding me of a childhood vacation I’ll need to tell you about. If you scare easily, or gross out easily, this is not the book for you. I took a lot of notes on this book. Definitely a spooky season read.

CW: General spookiness, sleepwalking, nightmares, body horror/ gore, poison, sexual abuse, boils, arranged marriage, blood, illness, eugenics, murder, curse, incest, suicide, spirits, haunted house, colorism, racism, seizure, patriarchal control, birth, pregnancy, miscarriage, witchcraft, herbalism, depression, neglect, sexual assault, gaslighting, cannibalism, murder of a child