I just could not connect with the main character and I did not enjoy the pacing. The pacing definitely increased my struggle with connecting to the main character. I was disappointed in this, because I really wanted to like this book. I think I agree with the many reviews that argue we've been inundated with 'feminist' retellings in the past few years and it's getting a little overdone.

I was looking forward to it but when it came down to brass tacks, the writing style didn’t catch my interest to much. The subject of the book was so unique to me but it ended up not being what I thought it was.

Thank you to Atria Books for the review copy!

DNF @ 15%

I picked this one up because I wanted to learn more about Malinalli, and understood that this would be an empowering reimagining with fantasy elements.

I suppose I wanted something more like My Lady Jane (the book), where the authors changed what was historically accurate and created a fantastical setting in order to tell a fun, feminist, empowering story. Instead, the story felt like historical fiction with a few magical elements. It is extremely dark, and I need a little more hope or joy in my books these days than I was getting from this one.

I would recommend this one to fans of Circe, Lilith, and the Between Earth and Sky series.

I very much enjoyed the historical research behind this book. But I do feel that this book needed another round of ending, and a more impactful ending.

Thanks to Atria Books for gifted access via Netgalley. All opinions above are my own.

This is the story of a woman in ancient Mexico who was born a twin in a culture that feared them. Given a goddess's name, she had expectations of a life that were shattered when her twin takes her birthright and again when father and twin are killed. She is shuffled off so her mother can remarry and is sent off to learn magic under the guidance of priestesses. She survives slavery and being made a concubine before she meets the Spanish and the actions for which she is forever remembered come to place. She has an Arya Stark-like need for revenge against Moctezuma which impacts the future of the Americas forever.

I love historical fiction that wraps up with mythology and turns a legend into a living breathing person. Malinalli went from a girl who was party to what appeared to be a terrible betrayal to a woman who made choices, some based on her place as a woman and some based on her need for revenge. I liked those aspects and the mixing of cultures and religion.

What didn't work for me was some of the structure. The pacing was strange at times and felt super rushed at times where I wanted a more measured detailed pace. I also felt like it was supposed to be a feminist retelling, but by adding some magic that undermined the fact that this woman had made actual choices. It wasn’t enough magic to be sci-fi but too much to be historical fiction so you’re sort of left interpreting what the author was trying to say about that.

It is a debut novel, so I give it a little grace for that but with a few more revisions it could have been really great.

Summary – describe what the book is about

This book is a fantastical reimagining or retelling of the historical figure, Malinalli, an Indigenous woman who was the interpreter for Hernan Cortes’ “expedition” of kingdoms and villages in Mexica.
The story begins with Malinalli growing up with her brother in her family’s village. Her brother is permitted to attend a magical school to learn and hone his powers, causing Malinalli to become depressed as she believed that she would be the one to attend. When news arrives that her brother is no longer alive, their father goes to the capital city to learn what happened; he too is killed. Malinalli’s mom sends her daughter to a goddess temple, where the women teach Malinalli about her namesake and learn about her abilities.
One day, Malinalli and her friend, Hummingbird, are chosen to accompany a royal figure to ensure their safe passage. During this journey, Malinalli and the travelers are attacked, and survivors are kidnapped and sold as slaves. When Malinalli is sold to a prince to be one of his wives, she learns about these mysterious figures who arrived on flying clouds from the Eastern Seas. Malinalli eventually learns that these mysterious figures are White Men (Spaniards) who are exploring these lands, seeking the capital city. Malinalli agrees to join the White Men, specifically Cortés, on their journey to the capital, as Malinalli begins to plot her revenge against the king who killed her brother and father. But as Malinalli learns more about these White Men and Moctezuma, the king, she begins to question how far these men are willing to go to achieve their ultimate goal of power, and whether she can prevent the destruction of the people.

What worked well/What I liked

I enjoyed the sensory description of the region, kingdoms, villages, and temples; it helped me have a deeper appreciation of the Indigenous communities before the Spanish colonization and genocide. I appreciated the insight into the values, religions, and manners of these communities as informed by their physical settings. I liked learning how these Indigenous communities and rulers could be ruthless, greedy, and also sought power or domination; it wasn’t only Europeans.
What didn’t work well/What I don’t like
At first, I was confused by the mythology or magical realism at the beginning of the book, because I couldn’t tell if the characters were humans or gods. Eventually, I realized that the characters were avatars or namesakes of the gods.
Malinalli’s shift in motivation and hesitancy at critical moments in the book towards the end seemed out of character for her. She starts out seeking revenge, but then shifts to seeking peace, yet she doesn’t actively pursue either aspect. She simply waits until someone else makes a decision.

I’m gonna keep this short—I was just disappointed by this read. I found it really hard to get into the story, and every time there was a moment where I thought, “Wow, this is really great,” something else would happen that pulled me right back out of it.

One thing I can say is that the book is really descriptive and atmospheric. There are certain things about the storytelling that I appreciated when it came to scene-setting. But overall, this was a letdown for me. I usually love a good historical fiction novel—especially ones that aim to tell the stories of those who are forgotten, complicated, and layered. But this never felt like the author wanted to truly depict La Malinche as the complex woman she was.

Here we have a woman seen as a traitor to Tenochtitlan, but so often, her Indigenous perspective is ignored. I was hoping for a deeper, more nuanced exploration of a figure who worked alongside the very man that brought down her people—while being a prisoner and a victim herself. Instead, Malinalli is portrayed as narcissistic, selfish, prideful, and flat.

There are more complexities and emotions that should go into telling the story of La Malinche, and I feel like we were missing that here. And being that this is historical fantasy fiction, I also hoped there would be more magical realism and fantastical elements—which we just don’t get. Overall, I appreciate the effort put into this, and I hope it inspires more Mexican Indigenous literature in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley and Primero Sueño Press for this egalley.,

This book was one of my most anticipated reads this year and I'm so thankful for the gifted copy! I appreciated the author's voice and character arc for Malinalli and loved how rooted in folklore and belief the plot was. I didn't anticipate the plot to mimic a layout and cadence of dark academia so this facet caught me off guard, but it wasn't necessarily a bad thing (if ambitious). I do think more world-building was necessary to make the setting feel more accessible because I often forget where the characters were in a scene. I also wish editing had paid more attention to the pacing of the story.

Overall, I appreciated the visibility and portrayal for one of history and legend's most villainized women and I think this story does an excellent job framing the patriarchal persecution of women.

Malinalli was an excellent read. I loved the character development and the writing was propulsive. I would read more from this author

There wasn't a lot here to really like. The lead character (and writing overall) is very disenfranchising, the magic is random and kind of pointless, we never really get insight into the historical aspects, none of the characters had nuance or were even likable, and the pacing of the book is very off.

Story: Malinalli is the cherished banesake of a Goddess. But after being kidnapped from her temple, she is traded around until she ends up with the Spaniards who have just arrived in Mexico. She despises the 'always angry' Cortez and his stupid and greedy countrymen. But she will join forces with him/them to overthrow Monteczuma - the King who murdered her twin brother.

Perhaps most problematic is the writing here. We are told Malinalli is powerful in the magic but she never does anything with it really (except to freak out the Spaniards, whose reaction to her magic: "Don't ever do it again! Now, go translate." is even more inexplicable). Most of the book is about building up to her getting closer to her namesake goddess (the Spaniards enter past the 50% mark) and it is very disaffectingly written. There is no warmth or humanity to Malinalli - just someone walking around and doing things rather blandly.

The author speeds up and then suddenly pauses the narration, skipping events that would have been better served if explained better. The book pretty much ends suddenly with the fall of Tenochtitlan without really going into the complex reasons of why it fell. This means the book's sole purpose is Malinalli spending most of her life wanting revenge on Monteczuma - with really no way for her to get it until the Spaniards are dropped into her lap. The whole book feels incredibly implausible and unrealistic.

All the Spaniards are portrayed as single mindedly greedy without any hint of the personality for which Cortez was known. Monteczuma is even odder, looking to be the worst type of Machiavellian pretender who makes grand pronouncements of knowing all but then doing absolutely nothing while still spouting how he planned everything. It's very odd.

This is one of the few times that a rather dry, factual account of the fall of the Aztec empire (Conquistadores and Aztecs by Stefan Rinke) was infinitely more interesting than a novelization. I couldn't help but notice so many interesting factual tidbits that were glossed over or ignored that would have made the story infinitely better had they been included. Reviewed from an advance reader copy provided by the publisher.

I really enjoyed reading this novel. I love historical fiction and magical realism and the fact that this was a retelling of La Malinche and the role she played in the Spanish Conquest against the Aztec Empire had me extremely excited to read.

My favorite parts were the descriptions as they painted a very vivid visual for me of the places and things Malinali was experiencing. I also really enjoyed the parts with Pakal Balam. I wish we got more of them together. Mali was a strong young woman who endured a lot and made mistakes along her journey due to her anger and pain and for that I LOVED HER. Other than her I also loved the loyalty of her friend Hummingbird and the sisterhood she experienced with the Temple of the Eighteen Moons. Oh, and this COVER? Geesh This is a book I would have picked up from a bookstore just off the cover alone.

The story did start off slow and I wish some of the more important events were more detailed and had longer explanations specifically the ending.

Overall, this was a great book especially for being Veronica Chapa’s debut novel. I recommend this book to everyone especially to my fellow readers of Mexican decent.


Thank you to NetGalley and Atria/Primero Sueno Press for the eARC. All opinions are my own.

I enjoyed the fictionalized version of the historical Malinalli very much. Powerful, strong, resilient female characters, some magical powers, a bit of factual history... this book had a lot to offer. I wasn't familiar with this story so I feel like I didn't have any preconceived notions and I really enjoyed her story. Thank you to NetGalley and Atria/Primero Sueno Press for the advance copy!

I really enjoyed the fresh perspective of her life with more of a fantasy twist. Some people see La Malinche as a traitor for assisting the Spanish, but others see it as a way of her own survival. Also, I can add to the fact that she might not have had a real choice in the matter.

It was awesome to imagine the life of indigenous populations and the rich cultures that were described throughout the book. For example, how vibrant life must have been in Tenochtitlan or the smaller villages where many people thrived. Most of this was lost because of the Spanish colonization that started in the early 1500s. I can't speak on the accuracy of everything since I only know bits & pieces of Malinalli's true story, but I kept reading because I wanted to see how the author would end it.

I felt that there were moments when the story was kind of flopping back and forth with Malinalli's character in the book. I had a hard time staying focused on some parts of the story because of it.
Yet, I enjoyed how the women in this book stood together to be resilient in the face of great change & destruction. The support systems they developed.
I always enjoy reading books based on mythology, especially when it comes to ancient Mexico/Latin America. There are so many incredible stories that could be adapted & brought to life just like this. Overall, I thought it was an intriguing read!

This book was hard to get through. Its best quality is that it centers various indigenous cultures during a historical period where indigenous perspectives have been hidden or destroyed. Unfortunately, the ideas in this book are better suited for an essay than a magical realism novel.

On top of this, the novel is poorly written/edited. Scenes where nothing happens are described in excruciating flowery detail, and then in the next scene the narration will mention a huge event that occurred apparently in between this scene and the previous one. We are given no emotional attachment to any characters because they are never developed and also because Malinalli’s reactions to serious events are absurdly blase. Worst of all, Malinalli’s existence seems to make zero difference to the events of the book.

I understand that perhaps the author wanted to stay true to history, but even if your main character can’t make an impact on the outcome of events they should be making at the very least some sort of emotional difference to the story. Malinalli’s presence seemed to make no impact on any other character in the entire book. Similarly, the introduction of magic to the story made no noticeable impact on the outcome or events of the book. The “mythic” nature of the retelling feels more like an excuse for poor world-building, character development, and storytelling.

I was excited to see how the author explored the fascinating potential of translators to impact history. I was excited to see a story about a strong woman in history. I was disappointed to find that the impacts of translation were only ever alluded to or were simply not interesting, and that this story actually felt….pretty sexist, both in its handling of side characters (Malinalli sees herself very much as “not like other girls”) and also in the treatment of Malinalli herself (who is bizarrely sexualized and who sits back and doesn’t make a single move to get herself or her loved ones out of bad situations for her entire life). I find it hard to believe that the real Malinalli would have been anything like this one. At least this book might inspire people to learn more about her and imagine her themselves!

Thanks to Net-Galley and Atria Books for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A fictional retelling of the story of Malialli, the interpreter who helped Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés communicate with the native people of Mexico. The story combines native folklore, magical realism and actual historical events to create a tale of female empowerment and friendship.

I really wanted to love this book but it fell short for me. The major issue I had with this book is the overall pacing of the storytelling. There were parts of the history that read like an essay, with other events of major relevance being glossed over or ending abruptly with little depth and explanation. I felt as though I was plodding through continually checking how many pages were left. To be honest I probably would have dnf if it hadn’t been an arc.

I would like to thank Atria/Primero Sueño Press and NetGalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

I didn't like the "creative liberties" the author took. I was looking for some kind of historical retelling of the actual story for Malinalli, not a character that had her name but everything was changed about her, as well as the accuracies of how society would have treated her with the way she spoke back to everyone. I like feminism and stories that show strong women, but I don't like it when it's something like this, something that could have just been her true story.

Thanks a bunch to NetGalley and Atria for sending me an e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Malinalli’s story has been lost to history, but this book brings her back to life. She was a young girl who was sold into slavery and later became a translator for the Spanish invaders of Mexico.

This book is important even though it’s fiction because it gives Malinalli a voice and a life that she’s often overlooked. Women are often made villains when the whole story isn’t told. This was a great read and I highly recommend it! 🩵

2.75 rounded up

"My mind wandered and entered a dark tunnel. If only I had not agreed to become his Tongue. If only I had resisted joining him. If only I had run away. The if onlys descended like crows to pick at me. I wanted to tear my skin with a maguey spine."

this book is kind of weird because it feels like simultaneously a lot is happening and nothing is happening at all. like the events are super sequential and just like… ““matter of fact-ly”. it makes it feel like it wants to be a history article, and then sometimes remembers that it’s supposed to be a fantasy retelling, but quickly forgets again a few pages later. the fantasy elements in this story are extremely minor. I feel like calling it a fantasy retelling was a stretch and it made for a misleading plot summary. this book is definitely more historical fiction with the teeniest tiniest pinch of magical realism.

but at the same time, the magic is TALKED about A LOT. so it’s also jarring for a book that talks about magic almost constantly, to not show us much of the magic hardly at all, until almost the end of the book.

as I read, I kept coming across scenes that made me feel hyped and excited for what would come next (like Malinalli imagining her revenge or feeling her power and planning to use it to stand up for herself and the ones she loves), only to have her do nothing. I didn’t think much about it the first time this happened because she was still quite young in the story (the book literally follows her from birth to young adulthood), but when it kept happening every few years and she just kept… moving along like normal…??? it got harder to stay invested. like girl, you have every reason in the world to be angry and you have the powers of a goddess inside you… stand UP!!!

I felt so excited to get my “good for her” moment where she snaps and takes her revenge. it’s profoundly disappointing to not have that moment.

I was not familiar with the story of La Malinche before I read this book, but I did some research about her while I read.

I don’t think this did a very good job as a “retelling”, Malinalli didn’t feel redeemed or more powerful in this version of her story. the way the author tried to justify Malinalli’s decisions felt weak. Malinalli was clearly ambitious, but when she suddenly shifted her motives from revenge to brokering peace, it felt... off. and unbelievable for her character.

one thing that I really loved that I feel like was a MASSIVELY missed opportunity to expand on, was Malinalli’s translations and the decisions she made when translating for Cortes. it reminds me of Babel by R. F. Kuang -

“Translation means doing violence upon the original, means warping and distorting it for foreign, unintended eyes. So then where does that leave us? How can we conclude, except by acknowledging that an act of translation is then necessarily always an act of betrayal?”

the way that Malinalli would make the executive decision to restructure things people would say, or omit words/phrases, or add her own explanations were the coolest parts. like I desperately wish we would have leaned into that more. that could have been an interesting way that her legacy became what it is today - if there were mistranslations involved and she was trying to help her people the entire time, but things got lost along the way. especially when you consider there were times where they were translating up to 4 languages for a single conversation. we already know Malinalli was fabricating some of what was said. what if the other translators were also making changes to what people were saying?

plot: ★★★★☆
I LOVE the concept of taking a real life historical figure that has become hated over time and reworking her story in a way that makes you look at her in a new or different way. that said, I don’t think Malinalli did that very well. the story had soooo much potential, and I was pulled into the story on page 1. I was so excited to see this girl who is told “no” over and over again stand up and say “yes” for herself and demand what she wants and avenge her family.

unfortunately, the plot is dragged out over the span of Malinalli’s entire life, and while she’s extremely ambitious and is constantly planning her revenge, we never really get to have a pay out for all of these thoughts and plans. it makes the book feel very empty by the end.

writing: ★★★☆☆ (2.5 rounded up)
the writing style was EXTREMELY jarring. it often felt like the author was not sure if she wanted to write a biography or a fictional novel. at times it read like a passage from a history book.

there were a lot of moments that were visually stunning. the author paints pictures with her words beautifully.

I do not know a lot about the Aztec/Mayan/Meso-American history, so I cannot say for sure how accurate she was there, but it seemed like the actual history was well researched. if nothing else, it inspired me to do a lot of my own reading about the history because as I was reading I wanted to know more about what was actually happening during this time period.

wish we had more magic early on, especially when we learn that Moctezuma is also a powerful magician. it felt random, but if we had seen more magic being practiced leading up to it, especially by other people, I think it would have made him seem like more of a threat. as it is, there wasn’t really any basis for comparison for his magic, besides Malinalli’s herself, but she barely used hers until the final stretch of the book, so. oof.

pacing: ★★☆☆☆
the pacing was so weird, dude. it seemed like we would move at a snail’s pace during the formative times of Malinalli’s life, but then when new and exciting things happen, we sprint through them so we don’t even get the chance to have fun or enjoy them, or in the sad moments, really feel the grief or pain that Malinalli is meant to be feeling. it made for a really weird reading experience.

romance: ★★★☆☆
I wish we would have explored the romance more. I didn’t expect there to be any romantic subplots in this book, so I was surprised when I came upon one, but I LOVED it while we had it. if I had it my way, I would have spent a little less time focusing on Malinalli’s childhood years, and used those pages to expand on her romance with Pakal Balam.

it also felt very one-dimensional, especially in the later parts of the story.

there’s a lot of “tell” in this book instead of showing or feeling. Malinalli tells us that she loves him, but it’s hard to believe her from reading the book.

characters: ★★☆☆☆
similar to above, the relationships with the other characters also felt one-dimensional. she talks about her two best friends, but we barely get to know them. I couldn’t even remember where she met Copil from, but apparently he’s super important to her??

the relationships with her family felt off too. we spend the early chapters really leaning into how important her family is to her, which makes you think they are going to be central to her story the whole way through. nope.

then the characters that ARE central to her story, we don’t get much background on. like Hummingbird’s daughter??? and we never touched on her in the epilogue? Malinalli HAD to have went looking for her??

Malinalli herself was a really fun character in the beginning of the book, but as I read, she became a frustrating character. I was so excited for her, and to see her spend so much time doing so little with this supposed amazing magic she had made me die a little inside. it just felt like she fell flat at every opportunity she had to do something more.

over-all: ★★★☆☆ (2.75 rounded up)
I think anyone with an interest in Meso-American history that also enjoys historical fiction novels will find this book interesting. I think I was hoping for more fantasy/magical elements so I was left a bit disappointed. my favorite parts of stories are often the relationships between the characters, and this book pretty much only focuses on Malinalli. I think that I just wasn’t the target audience for this book, but I’m happy I read it because I was unfamiliar with the story before. I would love to read other retellings about her in the future if I come across any.

I couldn't get into this book at all even though I really wanted to. The writing felt boring and predictable.

DNF # 8%

Thank you so much for Atria Books and NetGalley for the ARC.

Unfortunately, I couldn't finish the book. I encourage everyone to read this!