My Goodreads review: The Hacienda

[ankh_hpl]

The Hacienda by Isabel Cañas

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This is a straight-up, supernatural Gothic novel with a solid historical background (Mexican civil war) & intriguing involvement of preChristian / folk belief. (Yes, it "works" just as well as Catholicism does, when it comes to the paranormal crunch.) All the standard tropes of a really satisfying Gothic read are here: young woman dealing with change in social status, remote husband, & creepy mansion all at once, dark family secrets, servants with even more dark secrets, malign hauntings, rumored infidelities, unsolved murders . . . all with a fresh setting and well-drawn protagonists.

I found the heroine occasionally exasperating, & the ending a little vague -- but possibly more realistic than many authors might have chosen. Readers who used to enjoy getting lost in those massive British Gothic romances (think Victoria Holt), should find this a suitable update, and those seeking a late summer dark escape will certainly find one.

This was an Audible read for me, & well worth the full credit purchase.









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