Silver Nitrate by Silvia Moreno-Garcia on July 18, 2023
Genres: Fiction / Hispanic & Latino, Fiction / Horror, Fiction / Thrillers / Supernatural
Pages: 336
Format: ARC
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This was a very strange book about Mexican horror films and Nazi occultism. I didn’t know what to think of this one. I have read Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia but this one was a little different. This had such an odd and sinister feel. I felt like I was watching one of those old black and white horror movies from the 70’s that were a little corny but also spooky.
This was a slow burn so don’t pick this up expecting action from the get go. The first 1/3 of this book was build up and character development. We get background on the two main characters and on some of the supporting characters. Tristan is a former soap opera star who is now doing lower level acting things. He has been friends with Montserrat since they were young. Montserrat is an audio tech who is barely scrapping by and hating her boss. She has always had a little crush on Tristan, but Tristan has always focused on Tristan in the past. With his rotating door of girlfriends and boyfriends, he doesn’t pay much attention to Montserrat’s crush. (Did I mention that both these two are bisexual?…another interesting fact)
There was lots of sound engineering details and movie details that it was interesting. I also got a bit of a history lesson in occultism, which was a bit unnerving.
Tristan and Montserrat befriend an old director of horror films that lives above Tristan and he tells them about the cursed film he worked on that never got made, and the Nazi occultist name Ewers who assisted in much of the project. Ewers thought that if you used silver nitrate film for spells and magic, that it would be more powerful and effective. (He also thought the Aryan race was superior, especially when mixed with magic.) Montserrat studies his book and ideas and gets taken in by everything until it becomes dangerous and Tristan has to be the one to save her for once.
If you like classic horror films, you would definitely enjoy this one! This was packed with historical information as well as information on magic. This took a few twists that I didn’t expect. I don’t know I how felt about mixing the love interest with the horror in this one. I thought that wasn’t really necessary but I was glad there was a resolution to their story at least. This isn’t my typical genre so I had to open my mind a little on this one. I think I could have enjoyed it more if I would have known what I was getting into. I think I need to be in the mood for a sinister, horror type book. This was still worth the read for me though.
Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for the ARC.