First this cover is amazing. Second love translated dark/ horror books. This was gothic and moody. I was immediately enthralled in the story. Specifically the first part. The second part fell a bit short. But overall i enjoyed it and would love to read anything from this author.
Thanks #Netgalley for the arc

Thirst is a speculative novel told from the points of view of two women, born centuries apart, but who both end up in Buenos Aires. One was born in modern times and is slowly learning how to deal with the concept of death as her beloved mother suffers from a debilitating disease that will eventually kill her. The other was born in Europe and sold at a young age to a terrifying master. This master was a vampire and eventually turned her into one as well. But as Europes puritanical craze grows, she must flee and finds herself in Argentina.

This story isn’t your typical vampire story; it shows vampirism as a brutal, violent existence, acknowledging that these beings are more beast than human and are not trying to preserve what’s left of their humanity.

Each narrator has a different perspective of death, grief, and survival. The writing was intensely poignant and the prose was beautiful. It really made me question what humanity means and look at death in a new perspective.

However, I’d say this book was definitely more character driven than plot driven. The writing was very visceral and emotional, but lacked pace and the ability to keep my interest consistently. Overall it was a unique story that fans of character driven books and poetic prose will enjoy.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Always looking for more weird Latin American books. They have this sort of...vibe. Hard to explain. It's like things are so normal and trite while also being genuinely off putting and sometimes magical. Yet that magic is mundane. I don't know, I love it.

This was such a mixed read for me. The writing was well done and the I was hooked instantly. I did find my interest waning throughout the first half and especially the second.

This book explored some interesting topics involving power, grief and motherhood. I did find that I felt removed from the characters, so it was hard to get invested in their stories.

Most things felt explained rather than experienced. I really wanted to be more immersed in this but found it hard to.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc.

Marina Yuszczuk's first book released in English, translated by Heather Cleary, is a really interesting gothic tale that is told in two different stages. The first half follows a vampire as she makes her way over to Buenos Aires in the 19th century. She is animalistic in a compelling way that I haven't seen in a lot of modern vampire stories. She has a base level of thirst that will never be sated and her main goal is to hunt. I really liked the way she was portrayed and thought the historical tidbits and landmarks were really interesting. The atmosphere was amazing and it really was just a gothic dream.

The second half takes place in modern day Buenos Aires as we follow a woman who is dealing with the grief of her mother's terminal illness and taking care of her young son. The juxtaposition of life and death along with the symbolism of the vampire was really well done in this one and I did find myself to be more compelled to read this part, even though I preferred the vibes of the first half. It really does feel like you're reading two different books and that can be a bit jarring. I think both parts have their strengths and weaknesses, but - even though the connection was there - I do wish there was a bit more mixing between the parts because it did feel very jarring to switch time periods. The interweaving of these stories was done in an interesting way, I just wish there were more pages to explore the connection. Nonetheless, this was a really interesting book with a heavy focus on life and death and grief. It's a really interesting read and I can't wait to see what other works of hers get translated.

3.5/5

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book before its release.

From the beginning, I was so entranced by our nameless vampire. The entire first half follows her life as she flees Europe’s growing superstition for the promising beginnings of Buenos Aires. The stories told in the first 8 chapters are rich with detail, fascinating and indulgent. I couldn’t put this down.

The second half is very different, following an adult woman whose mother is slowly dying from a degenerative disease. The exploration of what it’s like to anticipate grief is beautiful- the period of waiting that takes place when death is approaching but hasn’t quite arrived.

The way the two halves come together does leave something to be desired, I wish there was more, but overall this was incredible. I went and picked up a physical copy on release day because I enjoyed it so much. Lovely! Sensual! Has inspired a great desire to visit Buenos Aires! A wonderful novel that I would highly recommend.

🎬 Read this if you like:
Interview with the Vampire
Love Lies Bleeding
⏰ Best time to read:
Part I: When you’re home alone at night with candles lit
Part II: When you can hold your family close
📝 Themes:
Vampire Horror, Historical Fiction, Two Timelines and POVs, Death and Dying, LGBTQ+, Spicy, Translation
👍 What I liked:
I absolutely loved Part One! It’s a classic vampire tale, filled with history and sensuality.
❓ Synopsis: During the 19th century, a vampiress arrives in Buenos Aires by ship after escaping persecution in Europe. Witnessing plague and war, she hides in the shadows. After her lover violently attempts to force her to turn him into a vampire, she hides from the world locked away in a crypt. A century later, Alma comes across a crypt key from her mother, who is slowly dying of a debilitating illness.
📣 Review: I forgot how much I love vampire tales until read this. I was as entranced as the vampiress’ victims. Part Two is very different in its feel, as Thirst switches from an atmospheric haunting to a story about a woman facing the impending death of her mother. I was less captivated by this half, but was still moved. I appreciate all of the ways that this book confronts death and what it means to “live.”

This book felt like a lot of nothing to me -- when I finished it, I wondered what I had just read. Granted, it's short, so this doesn't matter to me as much as it would have had this book been over 200 pages. I felt that this book was attempting to do something, but I wasn't sure what exactly. A positive, though: the two narrators had *very* distinct voices, and I felt that their characters were portrayed really well through the writing. Other than that, I don't really have much to say about this.

4.5 rounded up

wow. this was a really beautiful and striking take on the vampire and their eternal struggle with loneliness… the writing and the atmosphere was captivating and i really felt like i understood her choices when in so many other vampire stories i can’t always be convinced by their decisions.. i felt like her story was a bit rushed though, i would’ve loved to linger in her history a bit more and i think it only would’ve enhanced the story … because while i enjoyed alma’s part a lot, i wanted to get more into the vampires head when she is woken up into this new buenos aires that alma is barely managing to stay afloat in throughout her mothers illness… i don’t know! i loved it but i’m also left wanting more. i did enjoy how the author finished it off and i think it was very fitting and satisfying, not sure if everyone will agree though.

This is a vampire book I can get behind! It was sad, it was violent, it was brutal, it was sexy! I am a huge vampire fan so this hit all the dark gothic and historical vampire wants for me. I enjoyed the points of view of both women and the differences in both of their lives and the challenges both women struggled with and faced.

I enjoyed the atmospheric writing. I easily pictured myself on the streets of Buenos Aires covered in dirt and grime too. The storytelling was beautiful.

I cannot wait to tell others about this book and read more from this author!

Thirst is a dual-timeline exploration of themes like grief, femme rage, motherhood, and acceptance. We are introduced to an unnamed central character that becomes our favorite little enraged vampire who lets us travel her life journey for centuries with her. Then we meet Alma, a separated single mom who is experiencing the process of a terminally ill parent. These two characters cross paths in an unusual way, and we are left to ponder their connection and impacts on their world.

I loved this book, so very much. I loved seeing the vampire’s thought process through her POV then seeing her in contrast through Alma’s POV. There is a specific arc that was very profound and had me sobbing towards the end of this book.

My only complaint is the ending, and wishing it hadn’t felt so rushed. That might just be because I wanted to see more of their venture, rather than just what’s hinted at.

Thank you Netgalley and Dutton Publishing for an ARC!

First, the things I liked. The ambiance of this book is killer (no pun intended). Very gothic--think spooky cemetaries, crypts, abandoned buildings, a city plagued by disease, and obviously vampires. I really enjoyed getting to know our main (unnamed) vampire lady. Really, the first part of the book is an intricate portrait of our vampiress and all of the things that drive her (and anyone) to being a monster (think greed, revenge, anger, desire).

My quibbles? The second half of the book wasn't as compelling for me as the first half. We are introduced to Alma, a present day character with a young son and a dying mother. I thought that the author did a good job at drawing parallels between the suffering mother and the vampire, and with juxtaposing a young child full of life with the overaching gloom of death that permeates the rest of the story. HOWEVER, I kind of wanted more of a romantic connection between the vampire and Alma--to be honest this was not nearly as sapphic as I was expecting based on the description.

Thanks to NetGalley, Dutton, and Marina Yuszczuk for the eARC!

Honestly, I wasn't sure what to expect when I started reading this, but I absolutely loved this! The writing and story echoed a lot of my favorite feminist Gothic writers, and it was a great read from beginning to end.

I absolutely loved Thirst. This fast-paced novel includes all of the best vampire tropes. Best of all, these tropes are included in ways that wink at the genre rather than seeming played out. The unnamed vampire at the center of the story is as alluring and fascinating as any vampire fan could hope! Furthermore, readers are allowed to witness immense changes in the city of Buenos Aires from a resident who watched it all from the shadows. I love that Thirst is historical fiction without being dull or overwrought.

The novel is divided into two parts: the vampire's perspective & the perspective of her eventual liberator, Alma. Both women are complex, sensual, and occupied by death. I enjoyed each of their narratives and, especially, when the two women finally get close to one another.

This was okay, I enjoyed the first half the most and had a hard time with the second half as most people have mentioned. I wonder if some of the author's voice was lost in translation. Or if too much was condensed into the last half.

The first half tells the story of a vampire fleeing Europe and arriving in Buenos Aires. There she must be more discreet than she was before and takes to hunting at night. She watches as time transforms the city and how things change when yellow fever arrives.

In the present day, a woman is dealing with her mother's terminal illness. Her mother passes her a key that neither knows much about but it leads her to the city' cemetery, where she encounters a vampire.

Thanks so much to the author and Penguin for this ARC to review.

Despite the shorter page length, this dragged for me unfortunately. Probably shouldn't have read this so soon after A Dowry of Blood as the vibes were too similar. I did appreciate learning more about the founding of Buenos Aires and the city's history. Just wished I had connected to the characters more, especially Alma in the second half.

3.5/5

After an amazing first half - a near perfect reading experience - I became bored with the second half. Merely because of the tonal shifts and lack of atmosphere. May be worth reading just for the first half experience.

Woah. Like I’m going to need some time to process this.

Thirst is a translated fiction story by Marina Yuszczuk, an Argentinian writer, who tells the story of two women from two different time periods (one of whom is a vampire) who come to grips with the isolating insanity that their loneliness brings. It covers themes of female independence, sapphic love, the rotting binds of desire, and confronting death.

This story to me was absolutely entrancing: the prose is so wonderfully poetic and raw. These women go through some absolute awful trauma that is unfortunately relatable and as a reader, seeing how its described keeps you reading each page. The tone is super gothic (which, personally love to see) but it also reminds me of the way Allende and Marquez describe their magical realist worlds with such beautiful rawness and directness.

The themes were absolutely phenomenal. I normally support all forms of escapism but I truly enjoyed how this book just hit the mark on its themes of feminine agency. Its a central part of the book but it does not completely overwhelm the actual characters themselves, which I thoroughly appreciate. I think in this post-COVID era we are all coming to terms with death and its presence it our world, and this story felt sort of relatable to that with one of the protagonist’s overwhelming grief and watching her mother’s illness take over and feeling absolutely helpless. Its definitely a must-read in the right headspace (please see the CW/TWs on Goodreads) but I cannot recommend it enough. Its one of my favorite reads this year, and its definitely inspiring me to read more translated fiction and more contemporary lit.

If you are looking for a plot driven thriller about a vampire, then Thirst is not for you. However, if you love a closely detailed character study about vampirism, bodily autonomy, and the loneliness of living an immortal life then this is exactly what you are looking for.

Deliciously gothic in its atmosphere, the story is set in Buenos Aires and broken into two parts. The first follows the life of an unnamed woman from the time of her imprisonment and transformation into a vampire through her journey from Old World Europe and her eventual settlement in Argentina. The second part of the story is set in modern day Buenos Aires and follows a young mother named Alma whose mother is dying of a neuromuscular condition and she knows that she too will ultimately succumb to the same fate.

Gorgeously written prose (hats off to the translator) that is full of sensual spice, both hetero and sapphic, made this the perfect one sitting read for a rainy day. Recommended for fans of Anne Rice, sapphic romance, character driven novellas, and anyone in their Vampire Era.

Thank you to NetGalley, Dutton, and Marina Yuszczuk for an advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review.

Sapphic vampires, feminism, creepy old crypts...I have been SO excited about this book. Overall, it doesn't really let down. While I enjoyed the translation, it left me wishing I could read the book in its original text, especially as the original blurb draws comparisons to Shelley and Jackson and other gothic greats.

The first half of this book is AMAZING. A vampire struggles with survival and bloodlust as she tears through the world and we get a really compelling backstory. She was compulsive and evil and I was engrossed just to see what she'd do next. In comparison, the second half lulls as we get the story of a modern-day human woman as she struggles to care for her sick mother. I was less engaged. There's a lot to get through before the two stories connect, and when they do, it is more cerebral than physical. It's a satisfying ending although it happens quick, so if you're expecting a romance, this book isn't that – it doesn't dwell on their specific connection. It draws one with the world at large, about women and how they express grief, shame, desire and other "ugly" emotions often limited by society.

Overall, I really liked this! Hope more of this author's works are translated or I'll just have to learn Spanish.