I am from Florida. I have an ex best friend. All the makings of a successful soiree into this title! It was dreamy, it was atmospheric, it was strange, and I knew each darting lizard. This being a debut title addresses some of the lingering wants of the storyline and plotting for me. However, that didn't really affect how much I enjoyed it. The flashbacks took up a bit of time, but I think that was just on me because I've been reading a lot of nonlinear books lately. Thank you so much to Gonzalez, NetGalley, and Random House for advanced access. Looking forward to Gonzalez's next project.

This was an eerie debut and entertaining read that I finished quickly.
A well written story that kept me hooked from the very beginning.
The characters draw you in and keeps you flipping the pages.
I really enjoyed the writing style. I found myself hooked, turning the pages.

This book had potential, but it often felt like two different stories mashed together, and both leaned more YA than I expected. The swampy Everglades setting was atmospheric, but the characters didn’t quite land for me. I never fully understood Ingrid’s infatuation with Mayra, who honestly came off as self absorbed and cruel. Their dynamic felt one sided, and it was frustrating to watch Ingrid cling to someone who treated her so poorly. While the premise intriguing, the emotional core & lack of cohesion just didn’t connect the way I hoped.

Thank you NetGalley & Random House Publishing for the gifted copy.

Mayra by Nicky Gonzalez is a mind bending Bookclub/Women’s Fiction that borders thriller, supernatural, and literary. Though this is technically quiet fiction, the beautiful writing and atmospheric descriptions, blended with dual timelines, will keep you captivated despite the quiet plot.

I’ve already said it, but I want to drive this point home: The writing will keep you captivated. The sentences are beautiful and thought provoking. You’ll be captivated until the end, and left questioning the events of the story.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House for this advanced reader’s copy.

I also listened to the audiobook version of this story, which I obtained from my library. I listened at 1.75x speed (my normal audiobook listening speed is 1.5-1.75x). The audiobook was performed well by a single narrator.

Mayra + Ingrid were childhood besties who eventually grew apart after Mayra left their hometown and Ingrid behind for a better college education. When Mayra makes a pit stop within driving distance of her hometown, she reaches out to Ingrid to ask her to join her for a few days so they can rekindle their friendship and catch up on everything they’ve missed out on. Ingrid considers not going but eventually gives into her curiosity and makes the drive only to discover that things aren’t what she expected.

Not 5 stars because the pace of the book was a bit slower than I appreciated, but a good read overall. Would highly recommend to folks who enjoy Southern Gothic reads // eerie dream reads.

I was confused by this book from the very beginning and try as I might I could never really find my way to a clear understanding of what was going on. It was a struggle to finish.

My Selling Pitch:
Monster House but she’s an A24 swampy fever dream that’s all vibes and no action. Still worth the read imo.

Pre-reading:
🎶 Florida! 🥁🥁🥁

(obviously potential spoilers from here on)
Thick of it:
She’s not like other girls.

Cute-iful is criminal.

Who got the name brand mouse past the copyright team?

I dunno, obviously he’s insufferable, but I’d rather have fun questions than banal small talk.

Reminds me of Ripe and My Year of Rest and Relaxation.

That’s just having empathy for other people also being members of society. I know she’s like it’s not altruistic, it’s purely selfish, but I think trying not to do harm, so they don’t harm you in the future is like defensive empathy. I feel the same way.

Haha, I’m Yesi.

To hide the potato! So true, bestie.

Gorgeous imagery

Dolphin girls are even more psycho than horse girls, and we don’t talk about it enough.

Make a merkin great again hahaha

Litfic loves piss sin

Double letters (I figure out the rules to these riddles so fast lmao.)

This is slow and reflective but so atmospheric.

Detritus sin

Alright, we need an incident to occur. Chop chop.

Girl, how are you like lol gross, but whatever. That’s not normal! I’d be out. He’s chefing it up to eat you!

I don’t speak enough Spanish for this book and by enough, I mean literally any.

Def a summer book

Camaraderie, I mean- 🎶

The girl was too stunned to speak!
Kinda bored tbh. My sound bite jokes are the only thing keeping me going.

I hate men.

He’s date raping a bunny. I will never understand these girls impressed by shitty weed addicts.

Where are they getting this grocery delivery?

Romance mentions serial killers sin

It’s very The Lamb.

I’m bored.

It’s either all the people she’s eaten or all the people whose skin she’s worn.

Blood on Her Tongue is also super similar.

The man in the journal is Benji, no?

God, the scene in the swamp! The imagery is so beautiful and so malevolently gay. Like bitch can absolutely write. This book just needs a fucking plot. It’s the slowest of slow burns.

She does forboding so well. She just never delivers.

Sublime! (I can’t not hear that in Ryan Gosling‘s voice.)

But like is it the house controlling him? Benji is like a zombie because of that whole car thing.

Oh interesting, the house is expanding with the memories of her own house!

Do you think all these bunny references are homage to Bunny the like OG weird girl fever dream book?

I think it’s so interesting how many weird girl lit fic horror books reference hyenas, and they’re absent elsewhere. I love them. One of my very favorite animals.

I love when horror makes food ominous and conflates it with consumptive romance. Like it just works every single time!

I love a fucked up haunted house novel.

He’s a fucked up realtor. Which like she’s one too so-

The house ate him so the girls couldn’t use him to escape?

A dream is the brain with its hands around your throat is one hell of a line.

Oh, what a lame ending!

Post-reading:
Oh man, what a frustrating book!

The vibes? Immaculate. Spot on. Gorgeous prose. The imagery is sumptuous-that’s really the only word for it.

But calling this a slow burn is too fast. It’s more sinking into muck, millimeter by millimeter. You get mired in it. It doesn’t have a strong enough plot backbone to drive you through it.

The themes are fun. Malevolent house eating away at your upbringing, if you want to go forward, you have to let go. Gay as hell.

But like you’re gonna get bored. There’s one bonkers moment mid-book where you’re like okay, training wheels are coming off, we’re about to get gnarly-and then the book just ignores the setup and continues to circle the drain. And it’s tear your hair out frustrating because it could be so good! All the ingredients are just sitting there! There’s just zero action to be had.

Pick this up for Midsommar A24 worthy fever dream imagery and undeniable looming menace. Just…expect to be left hanging. You’ll get set up and no follow through, but the setup is so damn good, I’ll definitely be giving the author another shot. I just hope her next book pairs the gorgeous reflectiveness with some ballsy action.

Who should read this:
Gothic horror fans
Sapphic horror fans

Ideal reading time:
Summer-you’ve gotta read this with sweat trickling down your neck.

Do I want to reread this:
No, but I’ll pick up the author again.

Would I buy this:
Yes.

Similar books:
* You’re the Worst by Alison Rumfit-psychological horror, haunted house, unreliable narrator, sapphic
* House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski-horror, meta fiction, satire, haunted house, unreliable narrator
* Blood on Her Tongue by Johanna Van Veen-paranormal, revenge thriller, sapphic
* The Lamb by Lucy Rose-horror, family drama, sapphic
* The Starving Saints by Caitlin Starling-historical, magical realism, horror, sapphic, ensemble cast, unreliable narrators
* Eileen by Ottessa Moshfegh-psychological horror, lit fic, character study, sapphic, unreliable narrator
* House of Beth by Kerry Cullen-lit fic, character study, revenge thriller, sapphic, paranormal, mental health
* Oddbody by Rose Keating-short story collection, lit fic, horror, mental health, sapphic
* Ripe by Sarah Rose Etter-dystopian horror, satire, mental health, social commentary
* My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh-angry sad girl lit fic, character study, mental health, female friendship, social commentary
* Bunny by Mona Awad-psychological horror, dark academia, unreliable narrator, sapphic
* The Seaplane on Final Approach by Rebecca Rukeyser-lit fic, character study, vibes over plot
* The Unworthy by Agustina Bazterrica-dystopian horror, sapphic
* Helpmeet by Naben Ruthnum-historical, horror, revenge thriller
* Rest Stop by Nat Cassidy-psychological horror, social commentary

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

**Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the eARC of this ethereal read!!**

Mayra was not quite what I expected but ended up being just what I needed. I ended up listening to this one via audio thanks to PRH audio and the narrator crushed it. I loved the spooky vibes that haunted the entirety of the plot, but also appreciated digging into the dynamic of friendship and how people change.

Ingrid was an interesting FMC and I loved getting to know Mayra through her eyes. Not quite a haunted house novel but this one ended up being pretty spooky!!

A little bit more “literary” than I usually read but the pacing was excellent and I will definitely be recommending this one to my followers!! I also do really love books set in / near the Everglades. It is really a perfect setting for horror and suspense!!

Vividly disorienting - wildy florida. A tale of friendship with blurred boundries; does she want to be her, or does she love her. Growing up together in florida 2 friends Mayra and Ingrid- you get a a big glimspe of wild weird girlhood in early teen years through to college. Its weird, gross, and just a couple girls trying to grow up faster then they need to.

There is a reunion after many years apart, all the way down in the Everglades. It is bittersweet, and there is still some social paranoia on Ingrids end, aways idolizing Mayra. Mayra's boyfriend is also at the house with them- almost like a servant.

The house is a quirky maze, its disorienting and has hallways and closets, and weird shaped rooms and the oddness enhances as you give deeper into the novel. It almost feels as if you are falling down the rabbit hole like Alice in Wonderland.

Reading this I felt entwined with the characters and the house, and I slowly felt reality slipping away as well. Questioning time of the novel- it had felt like weeks had passed. You literally feel stuck in the swampy muck with Ingrid and Mayra. Trying to figure out how to escape, do you want to escape. Who are you.

This was a fantastic read, and I definitely will pick up anything Nicky Gonzalez writes.

This novel has some good ideas about atmosphere and the erotic and cruel power of friendship but not many, and the potential of those ideas is invariably completely wasted by the impotent structure of the novel, which completely fails to build suspense, create tension, or enact anything resembling a plot. Not good! I would not be happy with my teachers if they let me publish my debut in this state.

If you like horror novels that are basically just books that make you feel DREAD--like, the whole time you're reading them you just have an ache in the pit of your stomach--you probably want to check out Mayra.

Ingrid and Mayra used to be best friends: from the moment they met in middle school, they were inseparable. But then Mayra leaves Hialeah, FL and her tight-knit Cuban-American community for Cornell ... and more importantly (to Ingrid), she leaves her best friend behind, too. As the book opens, Mayra's back in Florida, and she reaches out to Ingrid so they can reconnect at Mayra's boyfriend's house in the middle of the Everglades.

Told exclusively from the first person POV of Ingrid, the book investigates the women's relationship, both past and present. There's a house that may or may not be haunted, but the real terror lies in how Ingrid's grasp of her situation and her psyche is so tenuous. She's not sure of what's going on and neither are you as the reader ... but you both know that something isn't right.

It's a book about memory, childhood friendships, what "home" means, and a really creepy house in the middle of nowhere. I loved it.

This objective review is based on a complimentary copy of the novel.

⭐️⭐️⭐️- released 7/22/25

The description of this book was really interesting, and I wanted to love it more than I actually did. The strengths of this book include the writing style and the atmosphere, I’ve never thought of the Everglades as particularly haunted or spooky before and I most definitely do now. Also with this book being set in Hialeah, my FYP getting tooooo local, which was fun and also a little weird ( Flanigan’s mentioned!!!!!!). The plot was where I had most of the problem, it felt like so much of the development of the plot was shoved into the last 15 percent of the book and the ending felt rushed. I do love the exploration of the specific horror that is an ex best friend (girlhood, am I right?), so if you’re looking for books that focus on that, this might be right for you!

Thank you to @penguinrandomhouse and @netgalley for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review

#books #bookreviewer #bookrecs #bookrecommendations #newrelease #advancedreadercopy # NetGalley

Shades of The Haunting of Hill House, shades of my own toxic homoerotic high school best friendship. Anyone who has experience with that terrifying creature, the ex best friend, will appreciate this. The setting is so good and the descriptions so vivid I could really imagine myself there at the edge of the world. The gothic vibes were immaculate. The ending felt a bit like it was taken from another book as things take on a fever dream quality very quickly, but the more I’ve sat with it the more I think it works. Bottom line: Gothic, gay, atmospheric, weird. I really enjoyed this.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

An excellent piece of writing and an intriguing character study, if ultimately a bit of a let-down in terms of plot.

I love the way that Gonzalez writes, and the particular attention she pays to character nuance. The relationship dynamic between the protagonist and Mayra is what makes this so compelling, and it’s a very successful micro study of how complex and fraught friendships can be (especially among young girls who come of age together).

The spin on the menacing house trope was a potentially good one, but it’s a bit frustrating that it fizzles out at the end and that the whole narrative is focused on Mayra and Ingrid, but ultimately the situation with the house exists completely outside of their relationship.

I think that there needed to be more slow creep as far as the menace of the house goes in order to make the way this ultimately concludes viable. This suffers from a problem that plagues a lot of magical realism, which is that the “magic” of it ends up feeling like either an afterthought or something present only in the action climax at the end of the book. Gonzalez does introduce related information as the story unfolds, but ultimately the ending still feels a bit out of step with the rest of the narrative.

Some books weigh heavily on the air that you breathe, and Mayra is one of them. You can feel the disorienting atmosphere of the remote house in the Everglades with every word, and it is stifling. Part exploration of female friendship and part modern gothic horror, Mayra makes you question what you remember about the past and how far you would go to recapture what you lost. House of Leaves is one of my favorite books of all time, and I definitely experienced a similar sense of infinite claustrophobia while reading this book. There was one unique "snack" scene that is permanently embedded in my brain (IYKYK). If I have any criticism, I just wanted a little more how and why in the wrap-up... and perhaps a little more of the nausea the snack scene invoked. Overall, a strong debut from an emerging woman in horror.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Random House and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

Mayra
Nicky Gonzalez

Ingrid and Mayra were inseparable in their adolescence. Unsurprisingly, life has created distance between them. The bonds that once held them together are now what separates them.

Ingrid is the one who stayed close to home. She learned to navigate around her anxieties. She can appreciate where she comes from for what the place is. This doesn’t mean everything is perfect, but it’s not all bad either. She’s just living like everyone else.

Mayra took the leap and distanced herself from who she once was. This also meant leaving Ingrid behind. The perspective of the novel is Ingrid’s. So, the hurt and anger she feels from Mayra’s past rejection of her is abundantly clear. In a lot of ways, she wants to impress her, and she still has hope for their relationship.

The void of Mayra’s absence expands as Ingrid examines their dysfunction. In chapter eight of the novel Ingrid states, “If two mirrors face-to-face created infinite worlds, I thought, then two mirrors with their backs to each other formed a void, a nowhere.” This sentence foreshadows what can be expected for both Ingrid stay at Benji’s ancestral home and the nature of her relationship with Mayra.

It’s fascinating how Gonzalez has weaved their relationship together. It’s simple, but delicate. Ingrid has to decide how much of herself she willing to give up to maintain a relationship with someone who hasn’t conformed to any of their original plans as adults.

Perspectives change and some decisions are not discussed at great lengths. At times I questioned the lengths of their relationship. It didn’t feel apparently platonic or overtly romantic. Their friendship feels intimately distressed.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for the ARC.

#readandtellwithshantel #nickygonzalez #Mayra

I found this book haunting and unsettling in true Southern Gothic fashion. The house invokes thoughts of the Winchester mansion, with long corridors and bizarre rooms, all while Benji gives off an aura of menace that you can't quite pinpoint the cause of. Surround all that with an inescapable Everglade swamp, and you'll find yourself confused, curious, and slightly off kilter for the entire story.

I loved the exploration of girlhood through Ingrid and Mayra’s eyes, how friendships change over time. Now, I have theories about the ending but I won’t spoil it, I really want to go to an event with the author to know more. I love when books make me feel this way. Can’t wait for Nicky Gonzalez’s next books.

Mayra is a slow burn gothic horror set in South Florida. It follows the toxic reunion of childhood friends Ingrid and Mayra at a house in the remote Everglades.
The vast majority of this book focuses on the toxic friendship with extended flashbacks in nearly every chapter. I did initially enjoy these sections, especially the descriptions of their hometown Hialeah, but as the book went on they just felt repetitive and detracted from the pacing.
The pacing also impacted the payoff of the horror elements. The overall oppressive nature of the Everglades is present as soon as Ingrid gets to the house, but nothing really happens and then its over.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Ingrid is invited to a remote house in the Everglades by an old school friend, Mayra. As she spends time there though, it seems like she is forgetting life outside the house.

A lot of tags for this one called it gothic and horror, but I unfortunately got zero of those vibes. It took soooo long for anything to even seem really out of place to Ingrid, and even then those few things about Benji were never explored. It was like "oh he eats lint? This is weird but needs no further thought." It really wasn't until the last maybe 20% of the book (and it really felt like the last 10%) that she was like oh wait I've forgotten that there is life outside of here and tries to escape. It didn't even seem like there was a real catalyst to it - just one day she and Mayra are talking about escaping. Where was the suspense? The creeping dread of something wrong? It was in the middle of the Everglades too so the author could have done so much with creepy flora and fauna. I was wanting a horror novel, but got just a reminiscing on friendship with maybe the slightest dash of horror.

I received my copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.