An ultra-faced paced, gripping mystery!

I was immediately hooked by the pitch - MEXICAN GOTHIC meets THE SHINING. And BOCHICA lived up to it! The comps were spot-on - the atmosphere was dark, gothic, and unsettling, and we get the sense that we really can't quite trust what's going on in Antonia's mind. Not because she's an unreliable narrator; no, her reality distorts as part of what happens at BOCHICA.

The svetybas were also a fascinating piece of folklore to learn about; they ratcheted up the tension, which interwove with the overarching mystery of what happened to Antonia's mother. I love stories that are about protecting the land and nature, so the underlying themes of the book also were in line with what I was hoping to read.

The romantic subplot, for me, did develop a bit quickly; I would have loved to see their relationship deepen a bit more. However, I thought that the characters had great chemistry from the first time they met.

BOCHICA is perfect for a quick and engrossing read, a dynamite addition to any gothic horror reading list.

I LOVED this gothic mystery, the atmosphere was so well done, I could smell the stench coming from the falls from my living room in Canada! Lol
The visuals were very rich as were the emotional aspect of Antonia’s doubts. By the way, I loved Antonia. I really appreciate when the characters are not passive and Antonia is far from it. Very determined to find out what happened to her mom. The mystery kept me intrigued until the end! All the stars! Can’t wait to read more from the author.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for a free ebook copy in exchange for an honest review.

I love stories with gothic themes! The crumbling mansion, the mysterious death of Antonia’s mother, the atmosphere of death surrounding the land, and the evil svetybas that haunts Antonia’s dreams. The Colombian lore added to the mystery of the story.

Perhaps due to the short length of the novel, I found that the romance happened a bit quickly, so it was hard to connect to the main character’s love interest and I found myself distrusting of the relationship. None of the characters were well fleshed out or had any depth, so I didn’t connect to them, either. The reveals were a bit predictable and seemed too simple of an explanation.

Overall, this was not the best fit for me. I liked some elements of the story and disliked others. It wasn’t particularly memorable to me.

Read this if you like short, quick mystery novels with a romance, and some gothic elements.

Bochica is a gothic tale set in 1920s Colombia, weaving a spellbinding story of family secrets, eerie mansions, and a young woman grappling with the shadows of her past. This stunning debut transports readers to the hauntingly beautiful and lush La Casona - a mansion stationed above the infamous Salto del Tequendama waterfall, where the line between the living and the dead blurs.

Antonia, the novel’s protagonist, returns to her childhood home three years after a tragic fire and her mother’s mysterious death. Once a family mansion, La Casona has been converted into a luxurious hotel, but its haunted corridors still hold the echoes of a dark legacy. Through Antonia’s journey, readers are immersed in the rich cultural and historical backdrop of 1923 Colombia.

Flórez-Cerchiaro has the ability to craft a world that feels simultaneously inviting and menacing. The descriptions of La Casona and its surroundings are gothic yet breathtaking. The intertwining of Latin American folklore and gothic tropes are unusual and this book stands out in the modern gothic landscape.

That said, this is undeniably a gothic novel at heart. Its themes of grief, legacy, and the search for truth align with the traditional hallmarks of the genre. Antonia’s unraveling of her mother’s cryptic journal entries and fragmented memories creates a slow-burning tension that builds to conclusion.

For fans of Mexican Gothic and atmospheric historical fiction, Bochica offers a mesmerizing journey through family trauma and the power of confronting the past. It’s not just a story of hauntings but of resilience, courage, and the complexities of what it means to inherit a legacy you never asked for. #flórezcerchiaro
#bochica #AtriaBooks

Bochica is a gothic debut set in Columbia, following a young woman’s struggle to unearth the secrets of her past by returning to the haunted hotel where her family faced tragedy years before. There was a lot I enjoyed about this book, and some elements that didn’t work as well for me; but Bochica is a well-done debut that will appeal to many readers, and should be on every gothic fiction lover’s radar.

I loved the Latin American historical setting; it’s wonderful to me how so many diverse authors have taken the gothic genre and made it their own over the last few years with characters and settings from so many cultures. I felt that Bochica did this well, immersing the reader into the culture and time period. I also loved how atmospheric this book was; half of the gothic genre is atmosphere, and it delivered on the spooky, haunting vibes.

I did feel that Antonia’s character could have been fleshed out a little more, and I would have liked to see more time spent on building her relationship with Alejandro. I also went into this book expecting it to be quite a bit scarier due to the comparison to The Shining in the book summary; I was expecting more of a horror novel. I would say this book is not horror, and completely gothic; the haunting is more atmospheric than terrifying and the book follows more traditional gothic plot-lines. This was not a problem for me as I love gothic novels, but if you are a fan of more horror-focused books, just be aware that this is a gothic and falls into the lighter end of the horror spectrum.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book, and I’m excited for it to find its readers when it publishes in a few months! I would recommend Bochica to readers who love gothic novels, historical fiction representing Latin America, and atmospheric stories.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the arc! All thoughts and opinions in the review are my own.

This book is a very special, very scary, heartbreaking and beautiful story and experience.

I was craving heavy desriptions, some gothic elements, and a vibe similar to that of “Mexican Gothic” and this book delivered. I went into this book as “blindly” as I could, as I try to do that with new authors and this was an amazing story. It is sad and scary and made me feel very complex emotions. I loved this one.

I could not put this one down and I finished it in two sittings with sweaty palms and a racing heart. I am excited to buy this book once it is released and cherish it on my bookshelf forever.

I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity to read this in advance! This is my honest opinion I am leaving. I received a free ebook through Net Galley.

On paper, this was everything I wanted. As a lover of Latin American literature and gothic literature, I was really excited for this. It ultimately didn’t work for me. I found it both entirely too simple plot and character wise, and then way to too confusing it how it was written. I’m unsure if this was a translation issue. There needed to be more character development overall as well. And the horror needed to be cranked up. I don’t think I would classify this as a horror to be honest. A lot of potential but has some issues with execution.