After unwrapping family history, Alejandra may be haunted by a Mexican demon, La Llorona.

I liked this one because not only was it a horror and spooky, it also told a cultural tale with mental health aspects to it. It is the story of Alejandra and the trauma and history that is passed down generationally. It is also about post partum and how raising children, especially with little help, is not always happiness and fun. The creepiness factor in this one slowly builds and I love the cultural history to it.

“Whatever is happening to me feels beyond what I can see or touch. I’m in a place where I have one foot on the ledge of a cliff and the other dangling in the air.”

The Haunting of Alejandra comes out 4/18.

TW: suicidal ideation, suicide, mental illness, generational trauma, postpartum depression/anxiety, body horror, violence

I started off really enjoying this and then about halfway through felt like it was falling flat. The story was repetitive, had a lot of what the characters were thinking but lacked action, and I felt like it was choppy. I also feel like the end fight between Alejandra and La Llorona happened quickly, wasn’t very clear in what occurred/how La Llorona was defeated (though this could just be because I was trying to push through to the end to get it finished), and sort of anticlimactic. The dialogue between characters felt so forced and unrealistic - take, for example, the conversation between Alejandra and her father at their first meeting:

She too felt this undeniable familiarity as they matched each other’s gaze. “Are you Rogelio?”
He nodded. “You my daughter with Cathy?”

In this scene, I just feel like it would be so unrealistic for him to immediately recognize her when he’s never met her and she’s coming into his shop for the first time. Why would he automatically assume she was his daughter?

I felt like the alternate timelines was cool and helped develop the generational trauma point that the author was trying to make but I would have liked more character development for Alejandra as as soon as the book starts she’s already seeing La Llorona and deep in suicidal thoughts. I also think the author did well in explaining what postpartum anxiety and depression can look like/how it can develop, though Alejandra’s was because of La Llorona.

I enjoyed the tie-in of Mexican folk-lore, which is the initial reason I picked up this book. I think I would have liked more information on how the entity became La Llorona/how it came to Earth (I know it was briefly touched upon).

Overall, I enjoyed the book but found that it took too long to get to the finish line - which is saying a lot for such a short book. I found the final showdown to be short and still don’t really know how La Llorona was defeated. The author did well with descriptions of La Llorona and other aspects of the story, but the body horror & violence could be construed as graphic so be aware of that!

Thank you NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

The haunting of Alejandra is an ambitious and intriguing novel. The story follows Alejandra, a Mexican-American mother and wife who is haunted by nightmares and visions of la Lorna-a ghost in mexican folklore who murdered her children centuries ago. In seeking help from a healer/therapist, Alejandra realizes that the ghost has haunted the women in her family for generations and tries to figure out how to save her daughter and to break free from the families curse! Through the story of La Lorna, the novel explores deeper themes of multigenerational trauma, motherhood, mental health, and family/marriage. The pacing is perfect and the character development will keep the pages turning. A well-written novel and one that will be very deserving of the praise it will get this spring!

Arc provided by the publisher by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 rounded to 5

In the Haunting of Alejandra, V. Castro reimagines the folktale of La Llorona through the lense of generational trauma. I grew up hearing stories about La Llorona and how she drowned her children before taking her own life. I have to admit I never gave much thought on where this story originated until now.

V. Castro drew me in with Alejandra's story and the stories of her ancestors. Although the main narrative revolves around Alejandra, a mother of three, Castro inserts chapters of the women who came before her, painting an illustrious history of a curse befallen on women who dared to find a path away from traditional norms.

Alejandra is a Mexican-American woman born and raised in Texas. Her mother abandoned her when she was younger and she was taken in by a religious family. Alejandra married who she thought was the man of her dreams and three kids later she realizes she hasn't lived for herself. She is struggling with being a good mother, a good wife and a good caretaker. For once she wants to be good for herself and not for everyone else. As she continues to experience more violent thoughts she seeks out help from a part curandera/part therapist who urges her to dig deeper into her family's history. Alejandra soon learns that she is the target of a strong generational curse that has followed the women in her family and in order to save her daughter she needs to put a stop to it.

I very much enjoyed reading about all of the women. They each had their own passions and fervent desires. I also loved the emphasis on self-acceptance , healing and boundaries. Castro shines a light on the endless and often thankless work that mothers do day in and day out. Her characters strive for more than what society expects of them. It was refreshing to see Castro give a voice to such a prominent folktale. Her utilization of La Llorona did not feel like a gimmick or caricature. The myth started with a woman and ultimately liked the possibility Castro led us to.

This is my first book my V. Castro and she did not disappoint.

There were some parts where the writing felt a bit clunky specially around the dialogue between characters. I do wish the book would've been a bit more scary. Although I did feel the tension build it didn't quite feel like a horror book.


Thank you to netgalley for an advanced reader copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Alejandra's live is a mess- she's miserable and despairing- when her therapist Melanie rescues her by recognizing and ultimately exorcising the demon which has plagued her family for centuries. It moves back and forth in time to tell the story of how La Llorona, a vengeful spirit has haunted her foremothers. Castro incorporates Mexican folklore, magical realism, and horror to create a tale that will both engage and at times infuriate the reader. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. An intriguing and ambitious novel,.

✨ Review ✨ The Haunting of Alejandra by V. Castro

cw: suicide and suicidal ideation x a lot; deep trauma and sadness around motherhood; mentally abusive, cheating, and otherwise bad male partners

woah, this book.

Based on the tales of La Llorona, "The Weeping Woman," a mother phantom from Mexican folklore known for drowning her children before herself, this book delves deep into motherhood, trauma, suicide, and generational trauma. The book centers the story of Alejandra, a mother of 3 with a crappy husband, who's grappling with her desire to live around the traumas of marriage and motherhood. On top of this all, she keeps seeing a mysterious white-clothed woman in the shadows.

The book jumps back through stories of Alejandra and her ancestors as she tries to come to terms with the generational trauma that plagues her and the origin story of this horror she's facing. I must reiterate that this is a dark book filled with trauma and sadness, but that ultimately we find moments of light and relief from that misery.

I thought this was a fascinating spin on understanding La Llarona and the book brought us to many times and places (including to a Flora, a soldadera fighting alongside Zapata in the Mexican Revolution, and one of my favorite characters). I highlighted scores of quotes as this book reflected on the relationship between mothers and daughters, the impact of colonialism/patriarchy/power over women, and the other traumas so many women face.

The horror components are gross in places, but the true demons of this book are the dark feelings and horrors its characters face.

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 (3.5)
Genre: horror, historical fiction
Setting: Texas, somewhere nondescript on the East Coast, Mexico from the 1600s to the 2000s.
Reminds me of: The Many Daughters of Afong Moy in how it weaves in multiple voices across a bloodline to think through generational trauma
Pub Date: April 18, 2023

Thanks to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Del Rey, and #netgalley for an advanced e-copy of this book!

In V. Castro’s latest novel, Alejandra battles an inner darkness that her family cannot comprehend. When she explores her family’s history, she discovers a link to Mexican legend, La Llorona, whose demonic ghostly figure begins to haunt her. With the strength of her ancestors, Alejandra must confront the apparition and defeat it. V. Castro's narrative style is riveting and has vivid descriptions of supernatural horror that are both well-crafted and gruesome.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC of this one. There are some spoilers in this review so please be warned.

Castro is an amazing writer, taking folklore and twisting it into modern life is what she does best!

Alejandra is a mother that is depressed, neglected, but unbelievably loving to her children.

The Hauntings’s story takes us throughout Alejandra’s past and through her family’s long history. It really digs into the family trauma and hurt and adding in an evil entity.

The visuals of “La Llorona” are absolutely terrify and amazing! Showing the origin of the myth and how it was manipulated was a great touch.

The way there’s an almost ‘80s horror movie twist in the end is wonderfully twisted in the best way!

I was really excited about this book, but unfortunately, I found it more frustrating than enjoyable. The storyline was great, but everything was explained to an excessive degree. The dialogue between characters was also far too formal, with over-explained situations which made conversations feel forced. I am a bit bummed to rate this as a 3-star. Thank you, NetGalley for the eARC.

DNF around 30%.

While the synopsis for this book was very promising, I just don't think the execution worked for me. I did not find myself very engaged with the author's writing. There were long periods of introspection mixed with large segments of character's monologuing. I thought things were over-explained at times with lots of repetition used as well. Because of this, I didn't find the horror elements to be horrifying, and certainly not scary. The dialogue was unnatural, the characters were not speaking the way actual people speak.

I understand the project of this book, and I think at times some of the issues I mentioned above were intentional on the author's part. However, that didn't make this one any more enjoyable to read. I think this author's ideas and message were great, I just think the execution could have been better and more polished.

In the end I chose to DNF, which I rarely do, because I was just too bored. I hope this reaches its audience, though, because I'm sure there is a large number of people out there who will read and relate to this story.

- Meghan

Content warning: realities of pregnancy, child abandonment, adoption, miscarriage, suicidal ideation, death by suicide, child harm, child murder, self-harm, racist microaggressions, self-harm

Alejandra is a woman who is trapped in an ideal life that she isn’t sure is at all what she wanted for herself. A stay-at-home mother to three children, she and her husband recently moved to Philadelphia and a demonic presence adopting the visage of La Llorona haunts her shortly upon their arrival.

A horror that leans heavily into women’s fiction, this is a story about reckoning with generational trauma, the bonds that tie families together, and the resentments fueled by unrealistic expectations of perfect motherhood that threaten to tear them all apart, both literally and figuratively.

Alejandra is a perfect protagonist for this sub-genre of both horror and literary fiction. When we meet her, she’s literally hit rock bottom in a kind of PMDD-fueled breakdown exacerbated by a mysterious voice suggesting she end it all. Her thoughts are dark, especially in the context of her being primary caregiver to three children in an idyllic life that’s anything but. Her husband is a bit of a man-child, and her mother lives thousands of miles away. The loneliness is as haunting and tangible as the presence that starts manifesting in her house and beyond.

What makes this novel particularly interesting is the way Castro weaves the stories of the women who came before Alejandra, including the mother she never knew and the ancestor who originated the curse. This is a book that also clearly loves the women within it and deeply respects and manifests the power of those intergenerational connections. It’s a hopeful thread, especially with where Alejandra starts in the depths of a depression that she needs to rebuild her self-esteem in order to dig herself out from. It’s not afraid to critique certain expressions of motherhood, but also honors the bonds that can be built between mother and child.

I found the prose in this one to be a little too straightforward for my tastes, but La Llorona’s grotesque presence and Alejandra’s journey of personal growth more than make up for it, making this a compelling read both for those seeking a story of self-empowerment through the power of community and for those looking to be scared by supernatural forces.

This kinda took me longer to finish. It first felt very depressing because of the way the main character was feeling with her life and being a mom. It’s in a way relatable and interesting because the way she was feeling was due to the curse which led to La Llorona haunting all the women. Technically it’s not La Llorona. So I don’t know why this books made or seem to be a story of her. It was good but I wished it had more sorry of La Llorona.

Here’s another great one from V. Castro. There’s so much honesty about being a mother on these pages. That part reminded me of Gemma Amor’s “Full Immersion,” but this one is wholly unique drawing pieces from Goddess of Filth and Hairspray and Switchblades, as well as the La Llorona folklore. This book is emotionally gripping, and I’ll remember how it made me feel for a while. Such a cool take on possession as well. I love the inclusion of therapy and a curandera to help solve the mystery of what’s haunting Alejandra.

Alejandra feels trapped in her marriage and as the mother of three demanding children. When she starts to see visions of a weeping woman in a white dress, she fears for her sanity. As she begins to attend regular sessions with a therapist who is also a curandera, she realizes that what she’s seeing may be very real, and that she may have inherited an evil that has preyed on the women of her bloodline for centuries. In order to save her family, Alejandra will have to heal herself and draw on the strength of generations. I received a free e-ARC through NetGalley from the publishers at Random House/Del Rey. Trigger warnings: parent/child/spouse death, suicide attempt (on-page), suicidal ideation, drowning, miscarriage, gore, guns, violence, period horror, abandonment, mental illness/depression, neglect, racism, sexism.

I liked the overall story and message in this book, but I didn’t vibe with the writing style or the main character. Part of the problem with starting the story when Alejandra first starts seeing La Llorona is that she’s already so deep in depression. It’s our immediate impression of her, with no sense of how she got there or who she is beyond that. It’s her dominating characteristic, and she can’t see past her own misery and self-pity enough to help herself. The writing style is also very dramatic and flowery, and it’s hammered in so many times that Alejandra’s life is a hopeless abyss (or something). It’s difficult to find a bright spot in a character like this. I cared, but I never felt what she was feeling, and I think I would have empathized more if the Absolute Crushing Darkness had been reined in a little.

It’s also not really a La Llorona story, if we’re being honest, at least not in the traditional folktale way. Castro trades in the myth for something more sinister and ancient, but I didn’t feel all the backstory on the creature was necessary. It gets less frightening the more we see of it, and the descriptions grow repetitive. Slobbery monster clothed in something else’s skin, got it. It’s never as frightening as the very real circumstances Alejandra and her ancestors face in widespread cultural racism and sexism, and I’d say the true monster of the novel is the generational horror of women being expected to be mothers and nothing else, even at the expense of their own well-being. While the past looks into her ancestors’ lives slow down the pace some, I think it’s necessary for the kind of story that’s being told. Alejandra draws strength from the women of her past, and her arc in healing herself is ultimately very well-developed. If it sounds like your kind of story, it probably is.

I review regularly at brightbeautifulthings.tumblr.com.

Inspired by the folk legend La Llorona, V. Castro tackles colonialism, generational trauma, and self-discovery in motherhood. The title character of <i>The Haunting of Alejandra</i> is tormented by a specter that feeds off the negative energy of women in her bloodline. With the help of her ancestors, Alejandra fights her demons, both literal and figurative.

The story, pulling from legend and imagined family history that spans centuries, is fascinating and original. A companion to Silvia Moreno-Garcia's <i>Mexican Gothic</i> and Isabel Cañas's <i>The Hacienda</i>, Castro crafts an atmospheric horror deeply rooted in time and place.

At times, the writing can be stilted or the dialogue unnatural. Toward the end, some of the exposition was disconnected. Like tying up loose ends we didn't even know were there.

My formal gripes are pretty small and certainly not enough to undermine how much I enjoyed Castro's novel!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC

Alejandra, the main character in V. Castro’s newest novel The Haunting of Alejandra, is dissatisfied with her life. With three kids and a husband who makes enough money and has the mindset that she can be a stay-at-home mother, she feels like her life is a prison. Her husband is gone for work for long periods of time, and she is in a small box that is closing in on her and make her wish that she was anyone else. When she starts to be haunted by a woman dripping with water and wearing a white dress that looks like a patchwork of rotting flesh, she starts to search for the answers, not only for why this woman is haunting her but also the answers about her heritage, her family, and who she really is.

This is my fourth V. Castro book, and there is a pattern to her stories that is emerging. Castro writes strong female characters who either have fierce independence or are looking for it. Whether it be Leticia Vasquez in Aliens: Vasquez, Belinda Alverez in Queen of the Cicadas, or Alejandra in this novel, Castro’s main characters are either women you do not want to cross or women growing into their roles as strong, fierce, and proud women. With Castro’s work, you also receive the spirits of ancestors, women who came before them to pave the way for their success. In the case of Alejandra, these women manifest as the females in her entire ancestral line, a line that she does not know at the beginning of the story but relies on by the end.

Castro also uses Mexican history and folklore to tell her stories. This weaving of old traditions with new fiction makes her work stand out. Not only does she write a good plot, but she places enough history throughout to where the reader feels like they understand Latinx culture just a little more. Castro has so many important groups of people that she represents. With her crosshatching of stories that represent Latinx culture, strong female protagonists, and great horror, V. Castro has solidly placed her in the middle of a list of who’s who in strong voices in this new golden age of horror.

I received this as an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is a book that follows a lot of large themes and pushes them into an easily followed horror story. In being haunted by La Llorona, she truly being haunted by depression, motherhood, adoption trauma, generational trauma, feelings of inadequacy and feelings of alienation from her own culture. The imagery of this haunting figure is well-done, striking and pretty creepy. Switching between every day unhappy domestic life, horrific apparitions, and flashbacks to Alejandra's ancestors from whom she has lost connection. This book is a paranormal haunting, but takes on more of a psychological haunting feel as she deals with her depression and trauma. I thought this book had a lot of wonderful commentary around connecting with a clinician that you can relate to culturally and the importance of the therapeutic relationship.

Disclaimer: I received a gifted eARC and print ARC.

Thank you to @netgalley for my advance copy. This was the story of Alejandra. Doesn’t quite now who she is anymore. While going to a therapist she discovers secrets of her ancestory .

I love this cover so much. It is beyond gorgeous. I will say I found the story to be a bit boring and the beginning of it made it hard for me to continue. It could have just been me and my current life situation.

Alejandra is married with three kids and miserable. Her husband is distant and unsupportive and she is disconnected from her kids and her family. Soon she finds herself thinking about death and release from this life. But alongside her despair there are visions of a horrible figure who says terrible things to her, dragging her even deeper into pain. Alejandra is only the latest in a long line of women in her family who have been haunted by this figure and as she learns more about her family history, Alejandra finds the will and power to fight back.

I must be honest that this book was not for me. While the premise of generational trauma and curses stretching back through the centuries is compelling, I could not identify with Alejandra or most of the other characters. Though the glimpses into Alejandra's ancestors' lives was interesting - I enjoy historical fiction as well as multigenerational storylines - the dialogue in throughout the novel was stiff, forced, and exposition-heavy. Whenever the characters talked to others or to themselves, it pulled me out of the story because it felt so inauthentic. Decisions made by the characters also felt abrupt, with internal dialogue doing the heavy lifting of explaining reasonings that simply did not feel believable for the timeline. Castro addresses some very important themes - reluctant motherhood, embedded misogyny, generational trauma - but the pacing of the story doesn't allow for the narrative or the characters to develop as much as they need to. While I am sure there is an audience for this book that will love it, I am not one of them.

Thank you to Del Rey and NetGalley for the opportunity to read The Haunting of Alejandra early in exchange for an honest review.

Great haunting story. Would recommend to others. Great Main character. The atmosphere created was intriguing. Can't wait to read more from this author.