I love stories about generational trauma, and stories from Mexican and Mexican-American mythology, so this was right up my alley. But this book surprised me by making me think deeply about motherhood, and it gave me some pretty big feelings.

An ambitious tale weaving Mexican folklore together with ancestral lineage and heritage, the (mostly) unrecognized hardships women experience as mothers, and too familiar abuse and trauma. In the book's first pages we know it will be a dark, oppressive story.  Castro captures Alejandra's despair over feeling unfulfilled and under appreciated as a mother caring for three small children with little help or attention from her husband (portrayed as a real jerk). Her emotions felt true, and hopeless, and these feelings culminate with visions of a vicious creature with nefarious intent. 

As Alejandra digs into her past (she's adopted) and connects with her roots, the story goes back in time to shed light on the curse that's followed her family through the ages. There's a lot of back and forth, a lot of repetition with Alejandra's ancestors as the layers are peeled back. And a lot of body horror.

I struggled with the writing. A lot of the prose was just awkward and didn't flow easily. Each time the vision appeared, we got a new onslaught of descriptors (it appears a lot). Many sentences just didn't make sense. While the Europeans did introduce a myriad of atrocities when they arrived in Mexico, the Aztecs and Mayans did practice human sacrifice, so it wasn't all butterflies and rainbows. Alejandra is at school with the kids at the beginning of a paragraph and "getting the kids ready for school" at the end of the same paragraph. A woman is referred to as both a great-grandmother and mother (to the same person) in the same paragraph, same with an uncle referred to as a cousin in another paragraph. "Four of them" when referring to her family of five. Hopefully these inconsistencies were caught in the final edit, they took me out of the story. 

I did crack up at these lines: "...knew without a test she was pregnant. It had happened after an Aerosmith concert four weeks before." and: "Dream On played as soft as his touch to take her away". Of course it did. 

My thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for the ARC in exchange for this review.

This is a haunting book in more ways than one! First off, La Llorona is one of the scariest ghost stories ever to me. In this story, we start with Alejandra struggling with being a stay-at-home mom to three children and her husband's expectations that she enjoy such an "easy" life. It is in that context that Alejandra begins seeing La Llorona. Right off the bat, those are two of my biggest fears.

However, this book is about much more than a haunting or a woman dissatisfied with her life. It is about generational trauma and pain. It is also about connecting with your roots, your ancestors, and finding your power. It is also about seeking help! Alejandra starts going to therapy and thus beings her journey to understanding what is happening to her. Her therapist does help her confront the spirit of La Llorona, but she also helps her with what she wants from her husband, from motherhood, and from herself.

There are just layers upon layers to unpack for Alejandra and for the reader. I loved it!

Content Warnings: rape, ghosts, suicidal thoughts, blood, self-harm, suicide, discussions of harming children.

3.5 stars

Well, that was an experience. I loved most of the start, even with a very depressed MC who tells you every little thing on her mind. And I mean every little thing. It still builds like a contemporary gothic horror, and I was here for it. I liked how it was weaving folktales into the narrative, and I was desperate to see where everything was leading. I was pulled out of the story once we started introducing some other ancestors, mainly because they read exactly like the present day timeline to their thoughts to the dialogue. Then came the ending, which at the best interpretation I just didn’t like, but the more I think about it, the more I sort of hate everything. So I’m just going to stop thinking about it, and remember the good times (the start and buildup). If you are a women’s fiction person who likes mildly creepy horror now and then, you might love this book.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest opinion.

This was an interesting concept, but the execution fell flat. I was bored by large portions of this, and the characters felt inauthetnic at times. It was also very, very slow.

First and foremost, thanks to Del Rey and Penguin Random House (shoutout to Sabrina S. at Del Rey for recommending based on other novels I've reviewed!) for providing me access to an eARC of The Haunting of Alejandra by V. Castro in exchange for an honest review.

Castro's Haunting of Alejandra is a slow-medium paced novel that spans centuries and generations of women who have been haunted by an entity that feeds off of their sorrow. Our protagonist is a modern mother of two who, having grown up in an unstable home environment, is enraptured by a young white man who promises her stability. Unfortunately for our protagonist, she ends up in a marriage without real love or affection and deeply unhappy (her spouse's gaslighting her certainly doesn't help things).

We also get insight into our protagonists femme ancestors, who, all the way back to the inception of colonization in what is today México, have been burdened by this curse, intended to punish colonizers by one of our protagonist's forebears.

Wrapped into this generational curse and its consequences are an interpretation by the author of the myth of la Llorona of Latin American folklore. Perhaps one of the most interesting characters of the novel, this creature, perhaps from another dimension/part of the universe, has an insatiable hunger for violence and malevolence on par with the Spanish conquistadores.

"Before the invasion of this land by other humans, the creature had known that something just as malevolent as itself sailed the horizon. Perched on a jagged rock at the edge of a cliff, the creature had watched the bleeding sunset and inhaled the scent of death carried by the currents from the open waters creeping onto the shores. An omen." (location 544 in eARC via Kindle app)

A great fit for fans of Latin American folklore imbued fantasy, fans of Latin American inspired horror, folks who enjoy fantasy that covers broad time periods/is multi-generational in nature, readers who want to discover new takes on familiar tropes/stories (la Llorona, in this case), and emotional or heavier fantasy. I'll be on the lookout for more by V. Castro!

CWs: thoughts of unaliving oneself, horror, ghost stories, family/generational curses, emotional manipulation and gaslighting, childhood emotional abuse, childbirth, regret of having children, adoption + associated emotions for birth parent and adoptee

A great story of a women who have all been haunted and cursed. I like how Castro switched timelines pretty effortlessly and it was easy to follow along with because the pacing was well done.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read this advanced reader copy.

Woah! I was completely taken in by this book! It is haunting throughout, with several points of view, the main being Alejandra, a wife and mother to 3 children, who is feeling depression and hopelessness and fear that she is not good enough for her children. There is generations of familial trauma endured by the women in her family’s past that fuel her haunting.

I loved reading about that story of La Llorona and how V. Castro weaved it into her new tale.

As this was an ARC, I did notice some grammatical errors where I had to reread a sentence more than once to understand the intent but I have confidence the editors will make appropriate corrections.

Source: DRC via NetGalley (Random House Publishing Group-Ballentine, Del Rey) in exchange for an honest review
Publication Date: April 18, 2023
Synopsis: Goodreads
Purchase Link: Amazon

Why did I choose to read this book?

I was drawn to this book because of the haunting and because of the act of shaking off generational trauma. As much as we might like to deny it, the sin/actions/consequences of our ancestors are visited onto us, and it’s up to us whether we will continue them or break the cycle. I’m interested in how authors choose to tell the story of breaking the cycle and if there’s spookiness to boot? I’m in.

What is this book about?

The Haunting of Alejandra falls into the same category as Nightbitch by Rachel Yoder. A woman, who is a mom of 3 (four if you count her passively aggressive overbearing slightly emotionally abusive husband) has reached a point of no return. She wants to end her life to escape the hole she’s dug for herself. But then she receives a visit from a ghost in the bathroom and begins thinking she’s crazy, that she’s seeing things. She visits a mental health professional who is also a spiritual healer and begins to discover that this might be more than just something that lives in her own head.

What is notable about this story?

The use of La Llorona as a real, modern threat was very intriguing. I’ve said before that I enjoy learning about other cultures and historical events through fiction, and this book does not disappoint. The curse of La Llorona flows through bloodlines, and Alejandra is next on the list.

I also think it’s important to see women’s stories as mothers who are beaten down, trapped, and worn out. Alejandra gave up her career, her name isn’t on anything that her family owns, she’s bored and sad and frustrated. She feels disconnected from her husband who is just as helpless and irritating as the kids. He sneakily lures her into a life of housewifery and it all happened so fast that now she can’t see a way out. So many women live this way and it’s not right. If you’re reading this right now and you are in that situation, you are not alone.

Was anything not so great?

This only the third book I have chosen not to finish this year. The writing, oh my goodness the writing. It’s not even the style. It’s like what a high school student would write if their paper was due in 3 hours and they hadn’t started so they were just writing a stream of consciousness. It was just so…I’m not a literary scholar so I don’t know how to describe it. It didn’t feel polished. It didn’t feel edited. It felt like a 4th or 5th draft where you have the timeline and the characters established, but how you connect it all just feels like a plastic bag full of mayonnaise. There were words, and they meant things, but they weren’t doing anything. It was like reading a diary that was trying to be a novel.

I guess the best way to describe it using my own experience is like hearing someone sing a really familiar song badly. You know the background music and the words to the song and so does the singer you’re about to hear. But then they start to sing and you cringe because how they are singing it is just so wrong. And it’s a professional type event, not karaoke, so your expectations are that this person would be a good singer. So you’re disappointed, and a little tiny bit mad, that your time was wasted.

Luckily this was a digital advance copy of the book, so I didn’t spend money.

What’s the verdict?

Unlike previous DNF books where I was pretty clear that it just wasn’t for me but it was well written so if it sounded like you might want to try it you should, The Haunting of Alejandra was simply not a well written book. It hurt my brain to read it. I made it to 46% before I called it quits so I felt confident enough to write a review, but unfortunately I have to give this one star on Goodreads. It’s got all the ingredients of a great story, I just can’t make it through when the writing is this bad.

On to the next one!

💀ᗷOOK ᖇEᐯIEW💀

Happy Pub day !!!!!
The Hunting of Alejandra by V. Castro
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A retelling of la llorona (The Weeping Woman), a Mexican folklore figure and a vengeful spirit of a woman who drowned her own children. La llorona hunts the souls of delicate women by manipulating them and feeding off their sorrow.
Alejandra, who is the main character is at her braking point. There is this darkness that is dwelling inside of her. She begins to see a crying woman dressed in white, which is petrifying her.

After seeing a therapist named Melanie, Alejandra starts to dig into her family history. A curse, a vengeful spirit and their sorrow. Can Alejandra protect her children and herself from this curse ?

Growing up I always heard about la llorona being a ghost who cries at night looking for her children, so when I saw this was a retelling I was excited to read it! This book definitely kept me on my toes the whole time.😱 I love how the author included cultural details about la llorona and Mexican history. It felt like when I was growing up and would hear la llorona stories.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Publishing-Ballentine for the ARC.

💭 What book reminds you of stories growing up?

I will upload my review to Goodreads. I’ll also add it to Amazon when the book is released on April 18th.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and V Castro for providing me with a complimentary digital ARC of The Haunting of Alejandra, coming out April 18, 2023. The honest opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Alejandra doesn’t know who she is anymore. She is a wife to her husband and a mother to her children. To her own adoptive mother, she is a daughter. But they don’t know her any longer. They don’t know she is a woman struggling with a darkness that threatens to overtake her completely. 
 
In times of sorrow, a ghostly vision appears to Alejandra. It’s the apparition of a crying woman in a white gown.
 
Alejandra visits a therapist to try to get help with her visions. She explores her family’s history, starting with the biological mother she never knew. As she dives deeper into the lives of the women in her family, she finds out that heartbreak and tragedy are just a few things she has in common with her ancestors.

The crying woman stayed with them too. She is La Llorona, the vengeful and murderous mother of Mexican legend. And she will not leave until Alejandra follows her mother, her grandmother, and all the women who came before her into the abyss. 
 
But Alejandra has inherited more than heartache. She has inherited the strength and the bravery of her foremothers—and she will give everything they have passed onto her to banish La Llorona forever.

I was definitely excited to receive this from NetGalley. I learned Spanish and love learning more about Spanish culture. I’m familiar with La Llorona and was definitely interested in learning more. This book was fascinating and creepy to me. There were a couple parts I didn’t quite understand how it was connected to the rest of the story, but it was a fun read. There were some dark, creepy parts and I loved it. I’m definitely interested in reading more by this author.

I would recommend this to anyone interested in Spanish horror novels!

Wow. For starters this book kept me on the edge of my seat. I enjoyed how the author included real cultural beliefs. This retelling of “la Lorena” was really immersive in the writing. This book touches on so much more though, for me it spoke about generational trauma, post partum depression, this book talks about fighting your own demons and learning to take care of yourself even when others are counting on you.

I’d also like to say i hated Matthew the MCs husband. This book gives example to how a lot of women probably feel in their marriage and it’s honestly empowering to see the MC dig herself out of these issues.

I enjoyed this book so much and i thank NetGalley and Del Rey for the opportunity to get an ARC of this book. I cannot wait for a physical copy once its released!

𝘼𝙡𝙚𝙟𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙧𝙖 𝙙𝙞𝙙𝙣’𝙩 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙩𝙤 𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙞𝙘𝙪𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙙𝙞𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣 𝙚𝙭𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙙𝙖𝙮 𝙞𝙣 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙘𝙪𝙧𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙚𝙭𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚, 𝙖𝙨 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙛. 𝙃𝙚𝙧 𝙨𝙤𝙪𝙡 𝙛𝙚𝙡𝙩 𝙨𝙤 𝙙𝙞𝙢, 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙨𝙝𝙞𝙛𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙬𝙞𝙣𝙙 𝙤𝙧 𝙗𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙝 𝙢𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙨𝙣𝙪𝙛𝙛 𝙞𝙩 𝙤𝙪𝙩. 𝙎𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙨𝙚𝙚𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙙𝙞𝙙𝙣’𝙩 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙞𝙛 𝙖𝙣𝙮𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙗𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙚𝙫𝙚 𝙝𝙚𝙧.

Alejandra is the mother of three children, her life feels like it has shrunk, her soul withered. She wants it all to end, and a shadowy form is haunting her, whispering it can help her do just that. Is she on the edge of a breakdown or has something sinister risen from the depths of her bloodline? She scolds herself; it could just be the stress and anxiety of locating to Philadelphia from Texas, this is her husband Mathew’s big chance. The fact is, she feels the pressures that come with moving up in life, all the heavy lifting that will no doubt be her future. Matthew feels she should be thankful for all the things they have, and he certainly doesn’t understand her inner struggles, nor have does he demonstrate compassion. Her mind and body are exhausted, she desperately loves her children, but she is cracking inside and is terrified of the things she is thinking, feeling.

Matthew is wrapped up in his fulfilling career, while she had to give up her job aspirations. She is on her own, with his traveling for work, and there is no one she can call to help her with their children. Her mind is a fog, she feels like she is backed into a corner with no options left to her. She had promised early on that she would be a mother and wife first, and Matthew is holding her to it but what if she cannot measure up? He doesn’t have time for her breakdowns, she spends her time crying in the shower, unseen.

After putting her youngest children Elodia and Will to bed, she gives her daughter Catrina special attention by telling her a bedtime story. Catrina begs for a scary one, so begins the tale of La Llorona, a mythical Mexican ghost/demon who appears as a woman in white, drawn to weeping and tragic events, and hungry for vengeance. Her child knows nothing of her mother’s culture, with Alejandra having been adopted, her parents discouraged her interest in her own heritage. Then she married and had children, and the suppression became more about the distractions of caring for her young family. Strange to relay such a loaded story when she is beginning to question her own mind, hearing and seeing things, ashamed for wanting more when even her little girl wonders if she and her siblings are enough for Alejandra. It’s yet another thing to hate herself for.

Her dreams are dreadful, as if some monster is waiting around the corner, ready to silence her children forever before dragging her into the water. Never would she harm them, she wants nothing more than for her kids to have the opportunities to choose their own path when they grow up. Matthew is the perfect father in that sense, if not the best husband, he is a great provider, he can secure the freedom for their children she never had. Not all her dreams are haunted by evil, there are women in them too, who give her comfort some nights. If she can just learn to control her mind, then the world will not crumble, and she and her children will be safe. But from who or what, is it the phantom she is sensing, or is it darkness within herself?

With a DNA Tree letter in hand, she is excited to share her family history with her eldest, who only wants to please Alejandra so she won’t be so unhappy. The blank spaces on the tree, that is the real mystery. With Will gone everything gets harder, she seeks help by finding a therapist, one that is Mexican American, a spiritual medicine woman. Dr. Ortiz runs her own practice, an advocate for women of color, dealing with generational trauma, mental health and encouraging entrepreneurship. The women in Alejandra’s mind, from her dreams, seem to push her towards this confidant woman, one who she wishes she could be.

Dr. Ortiz could be the guide she needs, to conquer the threatening evil that has hounded the women in her family for generations. It will take working through her personal trauma; from the moment her mother gave her up and the pattern that swims through their line to the dark evil presence that lingers. Mental health issues, how their Mexican American culture influenced the choices before them, hope, love, shame, desire, and terror… any mother that has ever felt like a failure can relate to the pain Alejandra is experiencing. Her female ancestors each have been under the curse of La Llorona, but why? Can it be stopped? Or will Alejandra lose everything.

Publication Date: April 18, 2023

Random House

Ballantine

Creepy and unputdownable. I loved V. Castro's take on La Llorona myth. There were moments that I felt like it lagged and could have been shortened but I still enjoyed it.

"The Haunting of Alejandra" by V. Castro is a must-read for both horror readers and those interested in Mexican folklore and culture. Unhappy in her marriage, Alejandra is haunted by La Llorona, who, according to legend, drowned herself and her children in a river. In an effort to prevent the growing darkness from destroying both herself and her children, Alejandra enlists the help of a therapist who encourages her to delve into her family's past in order to discover the origins of the generational curse that afflicts her..

This book is full of interesting cultural references and strong women characters. While I didn't find it to be particularly scary, I was thoroughly engrossed in Alejandra's story. Much more than a horror novel, this book explores the depression, dependence, lack of fulfillment, and isolation stay-at-home moms may feel. My heart really went out to Alejandra, and I genuinely cared about her wellbeing.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Del Rey Publishing, and V. Castro for the privilege of reading an advanced digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Since becoming a wife and a mother Alejandra feels like she is losing pieces of herself. In the depths of her depression she starts to hear voices and see things that aren't there. As these voices and visions become more violent she starts to question if they are in fact real and a much darker piece of her history.

Ughhhh this one could be so good. Iloved the story line - it is dark and ominous and I was sucked right in. The sense of dread is real with this one. BUT after the first 25% I felt like was being told things instead of being shown things. Im hopeful that the final version is a bit more finished than the ARC because this one has so much potential.

4.5*

“Everyone deserves to write their own story.”

Alejandra is a 30-something, stay at home mom with three children. Her life seems normal, except for the bloodied creature wearing flesh and fish skin for a dress that watches her children sleep.

I love books about trauma. I love books about mental health. I love *raw* and honest books about mental health. V. Castro is already one of my favorite authors, and The Haunting of Alejandra is no exception. I flew through this book quickly, devouring it in about two nights.

This was a hard book. I don’t have children myself, and don’t want them, but it shook something in me that made me take a look at my past and my trauma and how the people around me treated me over it. Women (and other marginalized communities) are meant to take so much trauma without creating a fuss. They are meant to give up everything to cater to others. And this is the norm, not an extreme. This book forces you to look at the uglier side of womanhood and motherhood. Reading this on the heels of The Lies We Weave by Grace R. Reynolds definitely added a bit of emotion to the story.

Tread with caution, and treat yourself kindly while reading this book. I loved Alejandra, and I hope you do too.

Thank you to NetGalley and Del Rey for the chance to read this advanced review copy.

CW for death, murder, body horror, suicide, suicidal thoughts/ideation, blood, gore, toxic relationship, sexism, abandonment, sexual assault, emotional abuse, child abuse, rape, mental illness/depression, infidelity, miscarriage, colonization, and racism

Wow! I did not know what I was getting into with this one. I went in blind and I definitely don’t suggest doing that if you’re a parent. That being said, this one was quite creepy and a really interesting psychological slow burn.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review,

First of all I was so happy seeing the folktale of La Llorona in a book because it’s a story I grew up with. I loved the story of Alejandra healing herself by confronting her trauma as well as the trauma of her female ancestors. I also loved reading about each ancestors story and how all of those events led Alejandra to where she is in the present.

I will say that I thought the story would be more on the paranormal side of horror but it is more psychological with lots of disturbing body imagery. I also struggled reading through this book because of the writing style. The exposition became very lengthy at times. Overall, it was a good story. I would recommend to anyone that likes psychological/body horror.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for this Arc in exchange for my honest review.

Slow burn and very creepy novel. This book really is quite unsettling in it's writing and the way the story forms. I recommend if you like gothic novels or slow burn reads.