Wow Wow Wow. This book was phenomenal and exactly what I needed to get out of my slump. I devoured this and thought about it whenever I had to take a break from reading it. This was a beautifully written horror novel that was captivating from the moment it started. This is definitely a top contender for my favorite of the year.

This one is hard for me to rate. I personally wasn’t in love with this book but I don’t think that it’s the books fault. It is very literary and atmospheric. The dialogue felt so nonchalant even when talking about monstrilio eating “things.” I know that’s just how the writing is but it was just odd to me. I did enjoy how you could feel the love that these people had for M. They did everything they could for him and their love was deep! It made me think of my own relationship with my son and by the end I thinking “y’a I would do all of this for him.” If you knew you could bring a loved one back in some sort of capacity would you? I do think it was a beautiful book I just kind of felt like I trudged through it a little. Thank you so much Netgalley for this advanced copy.

"The world lightens before and revels its edges. Its shapes and in-between spaces. I step forward." So ends Monstrilio, or, as I would call it "A story of a failed attempt of becoming a particular image of the human". What I especially admire is the way Gerardo Sámano Córdova found a monstrous excess that is (always already, right?) a part of gay and lesbian middle class domesticity. A monstrous excess of desire that will never be tamed and always escapes that which would bound it to familiar and all too human ways of being. An excellent novel which I would pair up with Huesera, a post-horror film made by the Mexican director Michelle Garza Cervera, for an example of another line of flight from the stifling environments, which I accidentally saw a few days ago.

3.5 stars This was definitely unique. Started out bizarre and gross…I didn’t think I could wade through it. It then morphed into a sad and strangely beautiful story of grief, difference, and love.

This one ended up winning me over after a slow start. I found the quality of the prose uneven and the second section weaker than the rest, but the last third of the novel was particularly engrossing. This can be read metaphorically and it brings up a lot of questions about family, grief, nurturance, parental expectations, queerness, and how far people will go to protect those they love. A very interesting debut with a strong perspective and unwavering commitment to horror.

Honestly, I was not able to make it past the graphic dead baby mother mourning scene, that was rough, and it wasn't a good time emotionally for me (death of a friend's parent), but thank you for this advance copy anyway! Maybe consider more thorough trigger warnings, I know I feel silly saying that as this is a horror genre work.

MONSTRILIO surprised me more than any book has in a long, long time. This queer literary horror tackles grief, love, loss, pain, and what it means to be human.
The story opens with married parents Magos and Joseph grieving the death of their eleven-year-old son Santiago. Overcome with the weight of the loss, Magos cuts out a piece of Santiago’s lunch and keeps it in a jar. After learning of an old folktale from her mother’s housekeeper, Magos feeds and nurtures the lung until it grows into a carnivorous monster, given the name Monstrilio, that both loves Magos and cannot control its monstrous instincts. Throughout the novel, Monstrillio continues to grow and resemble Santiago, but can nurture fully erase nature?
This novel, told in four acts through the viewpoints of Magos, her friend Lena, Joseph, and finally Monstrilio, envelopes you in story that will expose complicated emotions and the strength of a parent’s loyalty.
This book was one of my highly anticipated releases for 2023 and it certainly did not disappoint. Gerardo Sámano Córdova’s use of language and story is a lush, all-consuming experience. I would not consider this novel a horror in the original sense and this story genre-bends in a way I have not experienced in a long time.

Pick up this book on March 7, 2023!

*thank you NetGalley and ZandoBooks for this early copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book is heartbreaking, weird, and even a bit funny. It's not really scary, but it's tense. You don't know what will become of Monstrilio or his loved ones. This book has various POV & most characters are queer. Monstrilio is unique. I think this book is lovely in the most awful way

Thank you Zando and Net Galley for this ARC! Im giving this novel a well deserved five stars. The story coming from multiple points of view was absolutely brilliant and all tied together well. Each character deals with grief a different way but learn to heal together. This was an emotional one for me, I felt super connected to each of the characters. I can’t believe this is a debut novel and can’t wait to see what Gerardo does next!

When Magus and Joseph’s son Santiago passes away at 11 years old his mother takes hiss lung to have something of her deceased beloved boy but as she nurture that she relies on an old Mexican folk remedy and start feeding it and watch it while it grows into something unexplainable. Despite what it looks like though it’s her son and she calls it Santiago and loves it but the longer the new “Santiago“ is around magus is shocked at the new “Santiago“ in his strange urges. Some of her family doesn’t agree with what she’s doing and have a hard time adjusting to the new strange boy his grandma wants to have a mass for the deceased Santiago the Daddy seems in different but when he goes missing everyone is worried. Make us want him back because she loves him Joseph wants him back because he’s worried about what he may do this is one of the strangest best books I have read and I don’t know if it really falls under hora but whatever this is a great book and one I highly recommend . There aren’t that many horror moments in the book but OMG this is a great book. I received this book from the author and Net galley but I am leaving this review voluntarily please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review

When Goodreads released its list of most anticipated horror in 2023, I gave myself the challenge of reading all of the books on the list. Horror has always been, and I suspect always will be, my favorite genre. However, I found that I consistently and constantly read the same authors, which is not a bad habit in and of itself because those writers are incredibly talented. However, when that GR list of this year's horror was released, I realized that I am missing out on a lot of other books and authors within the genre.

Monstrilio is the second I've read out of the 39 on said list. Monstrilio's plot was unique, brutal, and fresh - like nothing I have ever read before! This book is insight into the brutality and horror of grief and the 'what ifs' we face in tragedy. Monstrilio was both an expedited journey through the stages of grief, as well as an exploration of the long lasting effects of bereavement, even the willingness to accept and love . . . a monster.

In addition to my delight in the uniqueness of the plot, the settings were also not one I was familiar with. Since I know very little Spanish and German, I did spend a lot of time looking up places and pronunciations because I wanted to be accurate and immersed in the settings. Overall, I have enjoyed this book.

Finally, Monstrilio depicts a variety of relationship types and the complexities within each.

Horror and magical realism are skillfully blended to create a harrowing, heartfelt tale about grief, acceptance and second chances.

Told from four perspectives and spanning three cities worldwide, "Monstrilio" explores just how far a family will go to protect themselves and the ones they love.

Mourning the loss of her 11-year-old son Santiago, grieving mother Magos carves out a piece of her son's lung. In the vein of an old folktale, Magos nurtures the lung as it grows into a sentient being, naming him Monstrilio. Little Monstrilio is animalistic in nature, but as he further develops to resemble a human, he and his family try their best to give Monstrilio a chance at a normal life. As Monstrilio navigates the burden of being the unspoken replacement for Santiago, his innate impulses become harder to suppress.

Getting to experience the point of view of each main character — mother, father, family friend and Monstrilio — highlights the humility of this family unit. Everyone copes with pain and loss in their own ways, but through the horror of it all, they remain loyal to each other. "Monstrilio" is a poignant family saga at its core that illustrates hope after tragedy.

What a unique story, I can easily say I have never read a book like this. I absolutely loved it! It is split into 4 different perspectives of main characters, which helps answer many of the different questions or things you wonder diving into this book.

Covering many different emotions grief, and how many handle. How they face those emotions, or don't face them. I feel a main premise of this book is about how they are unable to want to move on, how they cling to recreating their son, to not fully accept his death and fall in love with Monstrilio trying to create a version 2 of their life.

This story covers quite a handful of years, there is a jump in the middle of it where you get to see how everyone is doing and where they are in their lives. How they are all still struggling.

It was addictive, captivating, and highly unique.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC!

Feeling lost after the death of her son, Santiago, and moved by a mothers instinct, Magos removes part of her son's lung and nurtures it into the carnivorous child, Monstrilio. As he grows, he starts to resemble Santiago more and more, but his monstrous impulses continue to grow with him.

There are 4 different sections to this story where we see the growth of Monstrilio from the perspective of those around him - Magos (his mother), Lena (their friend), Joseph (his father) and finally, from Monstrilio (later called 'M') himself. M's own narrative made me so emotional - seeing his perspective on the choices his parents had made to try and curb his animal nature was really powerful.

The cover art was designed by Alex Merto and art directed by Evan Gaffney and is absolutely stunning! It's a wonderful personification of Monstrilio - both monstrous and endearing.

This is presented as a horror book and there are some graphic descriptions of things but it's so much more than that. It's a powerful exploration of grief and love and the lengths people go to for the ones they care about.

MUCH more literary than horror but that's not inherently bad just means it wasn't quite what I was looking for at the time.

"Monstrillio" delves into the theme of grief. The book personifies grief through the character of Monstrillio who represents the grief of Magos and Joseph after losing their son, Santiago. The author does an excellent job of showcasing the various forms of grief and how it can change over time. The intensity of grief and how it can consume an individual's life is illustrated in great detail. It acknowledges the fact that the grieving process can be a long and arduous journey.

One of the things that I found particularly interesting about the book was the unique perspective on grief. It really made me reflect on my own experiences with grief and how different people handle it in different ways. The author's portrayal of grief as an all-consuming force that can take over one's life was both poignant and thought-provoking.

Overall, I think that this book is an excellent read for anyone looking to gain a deeper understanding of the grieving process. While it may take some time to fully comprehend certain aspects of the book, I believe that the author's message is clear and resonates deeply with readers.

This story really surprised me and it was beautifully written.

I don’t want to give too much away, but i do recommend approaching this one with minimal background research on it. Love, loss, grief, transformation and family dynamics are told from the pov of the four main characters in monstrilio and it’s done in a way that’s perfectly paced and relevant to the storyline.

I really enjoyed Joseph and M’s section of this story. I empathized with both of them and I feel like I could feel Joseph’s grief and M trying to navigate his role in his parents giref while growing and trying to find how he fits through his transformation.

So so good. One of my favorite reads so far for 2023. Definitely recommend this one, you won’t be disappointed.

thank you ZandoProjects for this ARC, courtesy of Netgalley. Publication date for “Monstrilio” is March 7, 2023.

This book is about grief, told through the eyes of who love him most. This book is about creation of what comes from the grief; it's about the sprawling effect it has on each character. It's about love and the sacrifice we make for who we love.
This story is beautiful and captivating-- I truly felt for the characters and I don't think that's an easy task to accomplish as an author.
As mentioned by several other readers, I wouldn't necessarily label Monstrilio as horror; sure, there is violence and descriptions that align with the horror genre, but it's just not. Once again, this debut is a beautiful piece of work-- I couldn't put this one down!

This book was unlike anything I’ve read in a long time. When I hear the word “horror”, I typically imagine scary. This, however, was a very different style of horror. It wasn’t scary in the traditional sense. It WAS bleak and a terrible reminder that grief can make a person do monstrous things with the best intentions.

The writing style was so great! I was sucked in from the start and was held captivated throughout.

Thank you to NetGalley and Zando for the e-ARC in exchange for my review!

Perfect for fans of Nightbitch and Motherthing, Monstrilio is a surreal portrait of fierce mother-love and the visceral power of grief …and the insatiable hunger to know yourself.

Magos and Joseph have just lost their son. Dead at 11 years old, Santiago had already lived 11 years longer than expected. While Joseph succumbs to a deep, immobilizing depression, Magos heads to Mexico to recuperate with family.

She didn’t tell Joseph what she brought with her - a small slice of their son’s long tissue, tucked away in a glass jar. She took it on instinct, and instinct also tells her to feed it.

The lung tissue grows quickly, but what is it growing into? How long can Magos hide it?
I’ll stop here to avoid any spoilers, but I will say that this is a story that will live in my head for a long time. With elements of folk horror and fairy tales, Monstrilio is a darkly magical work of literature and a remarkable coming-of-age story.

But be aware that this is also a graphic and grotesque little gem. It disgusts as it dazzles, and it never abandons its themes of loss, grief, longing, and fear. It stays heavy, but somehow also manages to maintain a dark comedic edge.

Monstrilio shows us our worst fears about loving someone and asks us to re-examine the concept of unconditional love. What is that limitless love capable of turning us into? Is boundless love always a good thing? And how far will we go to protect it? If we go far enough, what’s on the other side of it?
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc of this stunning debut!