When Noemi's father receives a frantic yet inscrutable letter from his niece, Catalina, he decides Noemi needs to temporarily leave her high-society life to discern the problem and potentially prevent a scandalous divorce.
While Noemi would prefer not to leave her social life in Mexico City, her father indicates her cooperation will earn her his permission to pursue a master's degree in anthropology. Newly determined to get a handle on the matter, Noemi packs her bags and leaves her beloved city for the remote hilltop estate known as High Point.
Having heard little from Catalina since her wedding, Noemi has little idea of what to expect when she reaches High Point, but the reality surprises nonetheless. The house is a mouldering mansion, its staff sparse and uncommunicative, its residents, the Doyle family, unsettling in a variety of ways. Her darling cousin Catalina is a shadow of her former self, bed-bound from an illness and appearing somewhat sedated.
As Noemi explores the house and grounds while her cousin rests, she is increasingly convinced there is more to her cousin's ramblings than the lingering side-effects of disease (as Catalina's husband, Victor, insists) or hysteria (as Noemi's father believes). Something feels wrong in this house and it's not just the decay from the years of neglect after the family's silver mines shut down.
Something about Victor and his family feels off, too.
The patriarch, Howard Doyle, is palpably sinister and unusually interested in both Noemi and eugenics. Victor is alternately cruel and dismissive, both to her and to his wife. The servants in the house seem like automatons. Her only allies are Catalina, who still has rare moments of lucidity, and Victor's nephew, who is mostly treated as a servant instead of a family member.
Dark stories about the family's past begin to surface as Noemi begins to suffer from vivid dreams and hallucinations. Noemi realizes she and her cousin need to get out, but doing anything against the wishes of the Doyle family has already proven to be a significant challenge.
Will Noemi be able to keep her wits about her and escape with her cousin or will the house and Doyle family claim them both for good?
It is rare that a title so succinctly describes the book, but in this case, "Mexican Gothic" works equally well as a descriptor as it does a title. While set in 1950s Mexico, the remote, crumbling manor feels straight out of a Bronte novel. The prose, by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, is lush and evocative. Noemi is as smart as she is sophisticated, making her a protagonist that readers can really root for. The plot is full of unexpected twists and turns while slyly criticizing the perils of colonialism.
This moody historical thriller is thoroughly compelling and genuinely creepy. Recommended for fans of dark historical fiction or those seeking a fresh take on gothic horror.
Courtney Waters is the teen services manager at the Missouri River Regional Library.