Cover Image: Our Share of Night

Our Share of Night

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Member Reviews

Our Share of the Night by Mariana Enriquez is a definitely a unique read for me. It’s a story about a father who will do anything to keep his son safe from the Order who is on a hunt for this father and son duo. This book is not a fast or easy read. The details that this book goes into is the reason that this book is over 600 pages.

Triggers: abuse, death, horror, lgbtq,

Thank you Netgalley and Random House for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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You need to commit to this book. Its very well written but quite long, although every page is good. Very different from any book I have ever read and truly enjoyed it. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher!

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This book is SO LONG. I was intrigued and it is such a well written book with so much in there. By about 60% though, I was tired and I couldn't see where we'd gotten from the beginning. I think if you're super super into this sort of thing, this is for you. If you're just dipping your toes, try another book.

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This book is a chunky one, so I was slightly intimidated by it, but the richness of the writing and the complex weaving of each character and their relationships made it an absolutely fascinating read!

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Our Share of Night captivated me with its richly woven relationships, intricately detailed narrative, and the nuanced attention to every aspect of the story. The author's ability to delve into the complexities of relationships brought the characters to life, making the book a truly immersive and satisfying read. Highly recommended for those who appreciate thoughtful storytelling and a deep exploration of human connections.

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I was quite excited for this book, but unfortunately it was a miss for me. Despite the gripping premise, with its sinister and supernatural elements, it had trouble keeping my attention. Perhaps it’s due to the book’s length; naturally, anything this length will take longer to develop plot lines and grip readers. And though this is no fault of the author’s, I struggled a bit with the Argentinian dialect, which has always been tricky for me but wasn’t explained much here, which meant I was looking things up on my own to be sure I understood the meaning. Overall, it became an exhausting read I couldn’t finish, though I do hope to some day give it another chance because I think the writing is brilliant and the story is so unique.

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Another Latinx Woman written thriller! YES PLEASE!

Our Share of the Night is a dark, mysterious, and tense story that explores the complexities of love, family, and the supernatural, with a focus on the occult and queer subplots, set against the backdrop of Argentina's military dictatorship and its aftermath.

Amazing and thrilling and so much to stay about Argentina during the military dictatorship. Fantastic!

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Juan is running from his parents-in-law with his young son, Gaspar. Juan is a medium, and his wife’s family worships an entity called The Darkness. They want to do horrible things to Gaspar, and Juan has to figure out how to stop them.

This is a hard book to read. It’s mentally heavy. Horrible things happen to children, and Juan abuses his son. He has a reason for the abuse, but it’s still hard to read. Yet, this book is compelling, and characters you think might be one-off are vital. All of the characters are well-crafted and distinct.

This review is based on an advanced reader copy provided through Netgalley for an honest review.

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This book was longgggggg. I didn’t love it, but I didn’t hate it. I don’t think it was for me. Maybe it was the way it was translated? It Was a good and interesting story line though

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First off, my sincerest apologies for getting this to you absurdly late. Please know that my life was incredibly busy and hectic and the publication date just slid by me, and that it was a huge honor to be asked to read this.

That being said: this was absolutely incredible. It was like an Enriquez story expanded to novel-length, and in fact, she managed to recontextualize one of her own short stories in such a meaningful way. The only gripe I have about the novel is the length and the way that some things and plot points felt dragged out for the sake of adding pages, but overall, Enriquez kept my attention throughout.

A spellbinding read!

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I took my time with this novel and did not want to finish. Our share of night, originally a Spanish translation - is a political story that just left me captivated. The elements of horror , a cult, romance and overall complex themes left me loving it so much. This is a must read for Al latinx and horror lovers for sure!

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"Our Share of Night", by Mariana Enríquez, translated from Spanish by Megan McDowell, is a tome of a horror novel, set in Argentina. I was a fan of Enriquez's previously translated short story collections, "The Dangers of Smoking in Bed", and "Things We Lost in the Fire". Some of the themes present in her short story fiction are easily recognized here, like the horror inspired by Argentina's political past. For me, her prose was more impactful in short form, as I found "Our Share Of Night"'s almost 600 pages to be a little overwhelming and too long to deliver the same punch.

Plot-wise, the story follows a father and son, on the run from the boy's mother's side of the family. The mother's family is implicated in an old cult, and wants to use the boy as part of their rituals, due to his supernatural abilities. There is a lot of history behind the cult, as well as focus on the father-son relationship, and the love relationship between the father and the mother. Overall, the story was interesting and the writing atmospheric. However, I found my interest falter at times due to the length.

I would still recommend this to fans of Enriquez's short stories, as it's definitely been loved by many of her fans. Also, horror lovers who prefer longer books, this one may be for you. Thank you to NetGalley and Hogarth, Random House for the e-arc in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own. "Our Share of Night" has been out since February 2023.

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I was hoping for something closer to the author's short stories, I think, and was disappointed by this title. I think the length was my main issue, as I felt the story could have been told in 50% of the page count.

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I have read so many glowing reviews of this book and it is clearly so well loved, and I genuinely feel like I am missing something huge. I just read something around 700 pages that never actually went anywhere???? The writing and the characters were well done, but the extremely graphic torture of children was upsetting and then genuinely, I don't know what the point of the book is. plz feel free to mansplain

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This was requested when I first found out about NetGalley and I had requested so many ARCs that I could not get to all of them before they were archived. I really wanted to get to this one, as it seemed interesting. If I can find this somewhere for a reasonable price, I will try to get it! I am giving this book three stars, as I don't want to give it a good or bad rating, since I did not get to it and we have to leave a star rating.

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I will continue recommending this book to readers who might enjoy it, but it wasn't for me. I would have liked it if it were half the length. Much of it, some entire character perspectives, felt unnecessary.

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Gaspar and his father Juan travel to the ancestral home of their late mother (/wife). She was part of the Order, a cult of people who worship the Darkness and seek immortality. Juan wants to protect his son from the Order, and there isn't much he won't do to this end.

This was gorgeous. Told in long sections throughout time, we learn about the family, grief, love, and loss.
The writing was lyrical while maintaining an intriguing plot. My one gripe is that the ending felt a bit rushed, but this is still well worth your time.

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This book is both captivating and challenging to read. Its unconventional structure, lacking chapters and divided into uneven sections, may frustrate some readers. Just as you settle into the narrative, it abruptly shifts, introducing new perspectives, moods, and themes. Enríquez doesn't slow down; she demands your full attention to grasp the story. To truly understand the ending, you must read the entire book. While it falls under the horror genre, it deviates from traditional Western horror storytelling, embracing a dark magical realism approach. Don't expect flashy horror effects or a grand battle against evil. Identifying the true villain in this book is difficult; apart from Luis, every character has shades of awfulness. The supernatural and grotesque elements are deeply horrifying, surpassing the incomprehensible supernatural entity worshipped as a god. Despite its flaws and brokenness, I found this book satisfying in ways that few horror novels achieve. It is beautifully written, thematically dense, and the characters are intricate. The story is addictive yet repulsive, ending on an oddly hopeful note. Amidst the imperfections, the human capacity for love triumphs over the selfishness of those who reject it as illogical, leading to their downfall.

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I really wanted to love this one - but it was too long and it lost me :(. Love her short stories and I'll continue to read whatever Enriquez puts out!

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Like one big mystery that leaves you wondering what is going on, until you are hit with revelation after revelation. Our Share of Night was simply fantastic

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