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acozyreaderlife's Reviews (408)
“Mexican Gothic” is a beautifully written nod to the women who wrote horror before. From references to Rosemary’s Baby to The Yellow Wallpaper, Garcia lures the reader into a haunted house and lets the horrors unravel. After her father received a letter from her cousin, Catalina, she claimed that her new husband was poisoning her, the walls talked to her, and that she is a prisoner in this spooky mansion. He sends his daughter to check on her.
Noemi arrives at the mansion, and right away knows something is off. Catalina’s husband doesn’t want Noemi to see Catalina even though she was sent there to check on her. Virgil and Francis don’t want her there. And when she is allowed to visit her, Virgil has to be present. While staying at the house, Noemi begins to see women trapped in the wallpaper. The scent of the house becomes increasingly mustier. Soon, she begins to have visions and is trapped continuously in an almost somnambulistic state.
The pacing of the novel was perfect. It was slow and creepy, ramping up the tension with every chapter. It was very atmospheric, full of beautiful descriptions that made this play out like a movie in my head. It’s length, although it was eerie and slow, luring the reader into the story. It wasn’t too long of a story, and my god, was the pay off worth it at the end! Garcia did not waste words in this book. She told the story perfectly.
Noemi arrives at the mansion, and right away knows something is off. Catalina’s husband doesn’t want Noemi to see Catalina even though she was sent there to check on her. Virgil and Francis don’t want her there. And when she is allowed to visit her, Virgil has to be present. While staying at the house, Noemi begins to see women trapped in the wallpaper. The scent of the house becomes increasingly mustier. Soon, she begins to have visions and is trapped continuously in an almost somnambulistic state.
The pacing of the novel was perfect. It was slow and creepy, ramping up the tension with every chapter. It was very atmospheric, full of beautiful descriptions that made this play out like a movie in my head. It’s length, although it was eerie and slow, luring the reader into the story. It wasn’t too long of a story, and my god, was the pay off worth it at the end! Garcia did not waste words in this book. She told the story perfectly.
Thank you so much, Macmillan-Tor/Forge for the ARC of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue! I've already started reading it! This is my most anticipated book of 2020! I can't believe it's in my hands!
V.E. Schwab spins a beautiful narrative that spans over nearly 300 years. We follow Addie LaRue as she evolves as a person. Watch her life unfold, and as she lives with being forgotten—and not having the ability to leave a mark on the world with her own hands. We get to see glimpses into the life of one who has lived for lifetimes.
This novel is full of beautiful imagery and metaphors that give the story a melancholy feeling. As the story goes on, she evens them out, so they flow more with the story. The first 30% of the book is drawn out, slow, and atmospheric setting up the world. It took a while for Addie to make her deal with the Devil. But after that, the book picked up, and I was completely absorbed into the world of Addie LaRue. VE Schwab places the reader in France in the 18th century and immerses the reader into that world. Addie makes a deal with the Devil to live forever but is cursed to be forgotten.
Although the book is about Addie, there is some distance between her and the reader. We aren't in her head, but we follow her on her journey through her life of being forgotten by everyone until one day, someone remembers her. When she meets Henry at a bookstore, he remembers her.
This is very different from Schwab's other books, but this is one of the most beautiful books I have ever read. Her other books have grit and darkness, and although this book is about making a deal with the Devil, it doesn't go quite into the darkness in comparison to Schwab's other novels. Schwab shows readers as Addie clings to her mortality and immortality. How Addie longed for her independence and to escape a life where she was destined to be married off. And live and die in the same plot as her family. Which she traded to live forever and be forgotten by everyone she meets. We see Addie as she struggles with her identity as a woman, alone on the streets. Fighting to survive and the fight for her to hold onto her soul. Addie carries a part of her home in France with her over the years. Until she is stripped of that familiarity, plunging into the unknown world and truly being on her own. Despite all the hardships of her life, she still clings to her soul even with the Devil's temptations to give it up.
Addie is a survivor, by the skin of her teeth, she has survived against the odds. And against a God waiting to claim her soul. Even if people have forgotten her, she has planted seeds into other's heads. Her ideas live on, and she has left her mark on the world. I remember Addie LaRue. This is one of the best books I have ever read. Five well deserved stars.
V.E. Schwab spins a beautiful narrative that spans over nearly 300 years. We follow Addie LaRue as she evolves as a person. Watch her life unfold, and as she lives with being forgotten—and not having the ability to leave a mark on the world with her own hands. We get to see glimpses into the life of one who has lived for lifetimes.
This novel is full of beautiful imagery and metaphors that give the story a melancholy feeling. As the story goes on, she evens them out, so they flow more with the story. The first 30% of the book is drawn out, slow, and atmospheric setting up the world. It took a while for Addie to make her deal with the Devil. But after that, the book picked up, and I was completely absorbed into the world of Addie LaRue. VE Schwab places the reader in France in the 18th century and immerses the reader into that world. Addie makes a deal with the Devil to live forever but is cursed to be forgotten.
Although the book is about Addie, there is some distance between her and the reader. We aren't in her head, but we follow her on her journey through her life of being forgotten by everyone until one day, someone remembers her. When she meets Henry at a bookstore, he remembers her.
This is very different from Schwab's other books, but this is one of the most beautiful books I have ever read. Her other books have grit and darkness, and although this book is about making a deal with the Devil, it doesn't go quite into the darkness in comparison to Schwab's other novels. Schwab shows readers as Addie clings to her mortality and immortality. How Addie longed for her independence and to escape a life where she was destined to be married off. And live and die in the same plot as her family. Which she traded to live forever and be forgotten by everyone she meets. We see Addie as she struggles with her identity as a woman, alone on the streets. Fighting to survive and the fight for her to hold onto her soul. Addie carries a part of her home in France with her over the years. Until she is stripped of that familiarity, plunging into the unknown world and truly being on her own. Despite all the hardships of her life, she still clings to her soul even with the Devil's temptations to give it up.
Addie is a survivor, by the skin of her teeth, she has survived against the odds. And against a God waiting to claim her soul. Even if people have forgotten her, she has planted seeds into other's heads. Her ideas live on, and she has left her mark on the world. I remember Addie LaRue. This is one of the best books I have ever read. Five well deserved stars.
Thank you Macmillan-Tor/Forge for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!
After reading and loving Empress of Salt and Fortune earlier this year, I couldn’t wait to pick this one up! When the Tiger Came Down the Mountain is a beautifully written, compelling, and mythic queer tale. This novella was utterly absorbing. I picked it up and couldn’t put it down; I got wrapped up in the world and story that Nghi Vo created. This story is a fantasy epic wrapped up in a novella. Vo is a fantastic storyteller. This is a queer love story about saving each other, abandoning family expectations, and being with the person you love. This story features a story within a story as we follow Chih on their journey when they find a band of tigers who want to eat them. The only way for Chih to survive is to tell the tigers the story of Dieu and Ho Thi Thao, about a tiger and a human.
I read this novella in one sitting, and it was a joy to sucked into this beautiful story. Nghi Vo is a master storyteller, and I hope there are more novellas to come in this series! Everyone needs to read The Singing Hills Cycle!
After reading and loving Empress of Salt and Fortune earlier this year, I couldn’t wait to pick this one up! When the Tiger Came Down the Mountain is a beautifully written, compelling, and mythic queer tale. This novella was utterly absorbing. I picked it up and couldn’t put it down; I got wrapped up in the world and story that Nghi Vo created. This story is a fantasy epic wrapped up in a novella. Vo is a fantastic storyteller. This is a queer love story about saving each other, abandoning family expectations, and being with the person you love. This story features a story within a story as we follow Chih on their journey when they find a band of tigers who want to eat them. The only way for Chih to survive is to tell the tigers the story of Dieu and Ho Thi Thao, about a tiger and a human.
I read this novella in one sitting, and it was a joy to sucked into this beautiful story. Nghi Vo is a master storyteller, and I hope there are more novellas to come in this series! Everyone needs to read The Singing Hills Cycle!
