Book Review: Silver Nitrate by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

 

From the publisher:

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Daughter of Doctor Moreau and Mexican Gothic comes a fabulous meld of Mexican horror movies and Nazi occultism: a dark thriller about the curse that haunts a legendary lost film—and awakens one woman’s hidden powers.

Montserrat has always been overlooked. She’s a talented sound editor, but she’s left out of the boys’ club running the film industry in ’90s Mexico City. And she’s all but invisible to her best friend, Tristán, a charming if faded soap opera star, though she’s been in love with him since childhood.

Then Tristán discovers his new neighbor is the cult horror director Abel Urueta, and the legendary auteur claims he can change their lives—even if his tale of a Nazi occultist imbuing magic into highly volatile silver nitrate stock sounds like sheer fantasy. The magic film was never finished, which is why, Urueta swears, his career vanished overnight. He is cursed.

Now the director wants Montserrat and Tristán to help him shoot the missing scene and lift the curse . . . but Montserrat soon notices a dark presence following her, and Tristán begins seeing the ghost of his ex-girlfriend.

As they work together to unravel the mystery of the film and the obscure occultist who once roamed their city, Montserrat and Tristán may find that sorcerers and magic are not only the stuff of movies.

Silver Nitrate by Silvia Moreno-Garcia was released July 18th, 2023 from Del Rey Books.

My thoughts: 

I gave this book 5/5 stars. It's well-written. The two main characters are likeable. And the pace is decent. It's slow in the beginning as you get to know the characters and their place in the world. Then things speed up once they meet the famous horror director Abel Urueta.

Montserrat was my favorite character. Her relationship with Tristán is interesting and has lasted a long time - since they were children. She is a strong character who has often protected Tristán over the years. I didn't like him as much because he gets a liittle whiny at times, but still overall felt he was a likeable character. Both Montserrat and Tristán show growth over the course of the book. 

I enjoyed the horror elements. I thought it was an interesting idea that whether or not a scene had been completed on silver nitrate film could affect curses and ghosts. 

Overall, it's definitely worth a read. If you like your horror with a little history and based in the occult, then this would be a good book for you.

Silver Nitrate by Silvia Moreno-Garcia was released July 18th, 2023 by Ballantine.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. This did not affect my opinion.