I am blessed enough to say that about 80% of the books I read are either ARCs or come from supporting my local library. And so, I’m helping authors and saving money. The novel Castle of the Cursed was sent to me by the publisher and like all ARCs it is an uncorrected proof so I won’t use quotes or anything like that. The book jacket claims “Mexican Gothic meets Dracula in Romina Garber’s delicious, bloodthirsty romantasy breakout.” And while I think the term is romantasy is ridiculous in any setting, I love the way this hooks the reader.
The novel is about a young girl who is left orphaned after her parents die in a strange train accident, along with 23 others. In fact, Estela is the only survivor. While she seeks to solve the case, her name and face are posted everywhere and she begins to wonder if she truly saw what she thought she did that day. Then one day, she’s told she has an aunt in Spain and is whisked off to a castle known as la Sombra. Full of secrets and half-truths, Estela’s passion to find the cause of her parents’ death reignites and she is sure is has something to do with their past, a past she had no idea existed. But with the weird shadow hallucination, the precarious friendship with a local boy and her distrust of her only living relative, Estela doesn’t know how to feel. Or what’s real.
Stars: 4.75/5
I think that my favorite aspects of this novel fall in Estela’s characterization and in the descriptions that the author gives of the setting. She gives us just enough to form ideas and clues, but never all at once. In some ways, it reminded me of classic Gothic novels like The Castle of Otranto. We know there are secrets that la Sombra are keeping and as readers, we walk alongside Estela to discover what they are. Estela is, understandably, feeling lost and alone. She is unsure who to trust but the lessons her father instilled in her make her want to keep going, even if only to discover the truth behind her parents’ death. Add in a shadowy specter that only she can see and we have the makings of a wonderful story.
There are quite a few other aspects of this novel that I love from the characters to how Estela’s ideas and beliefs get challenged time and time and time again. She is not an unreliable narrator, just one who is in the dark. And considering the setting of Garber’s tale, that makes perfect sense. Throughout this novel, the author plays on the ideas of trustworthiness and what it means, as well as the importance of family. As Estela learns more about her roots, she comes to understand why her parents left and why they never let her learn Spanish.
This is not a spoiler alert but it is, perhaps spoiler adjacent. Like in any good thrill ride, the author leaves us with a very delicious ending. And while I loved the entirety of the novel, that ending is what makes me sure that I will be reading more of Garber’s work in the future.
Castle of the Cursed comes out July 2024, so be on the look out. You can find the author, Romina Garber on most social platforms.
Let me know, does this sound like a book you would read?
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