May 15, 2023
Cañas (The Hacienda) hits a bit of a sophomore slump in this uneven gothic fantasy, set in an alternate 1840s South Texas as plagued by giant vampire bats as it is by invading Yankees. After 13-year-old best friends Magdalena “Nena” Serrano, a ranchero’s daughter, and Néstor Duarte, the son of a vaquero, are attacked by a many-fanged monster, Néstor flees the Serrano estate, believing Nena to be dead. He returns nine years later to join a militia created to fight off the Americans and the vampires they employ. He’s tasked with guarding the militia’s healer—who turns out to be none other than Nena, alive and furious with Néstor for abandoning her. When this feuding duo is separated from the rest of the militia, they must work together to survive. Cañas toggles between her protagonists’ perspectives, often retreading the same plot points from a new point of view. Meanwhile, her metaphor-heavy prose occasionally obscures meaning, as when a scar is described as “erupting with the crawling legs of a thousand insects.” Is this a moment of supernatural body horror or does the character simply have an itch? These repetitions and vagueries turn a desperate flight from the colonizers into a clunky slog. All but Cañas’s most devoted fans can skip this one. Agent: Kari Sutherland, KT Literary.
December 1, 2023
Set in 1837 Mexico, Ca�as's (The Hacienda) latest is a historical horror that promises vampires but also delivers romance. As children, Nena and N�stor are the best of friends, even though they come from different worlds; Nena is the daughter of a wealthy Mexican rancher, and N�stor's family works the rancher's land. One fateful night, a strange creature attacks the two friends. Thinking Nena dead and feeling responsible, N�stor flees and never looks back. Nine years later, when war breaks out between Mexico and the United States, N�stor returns and is shocked to find that Nena survived. Their reunion is complicated by the coming war and the presence of monsters, both earthly and supernatural. Ca�as weaves together elements from Westerns, historical fiction, and vampiric horror to create this vibrant tapestry, but it's the romance that shines, thanks in part to skilled narrators Jose Nateras and Krysta Gonzales. They relay the story's events through Nena's and N�stor's viewpoints and inject their words with simmering desire tempered by the acknowledgment of adult responsibilities. VERDICT This complex blend of historical fiction, romance, and horror captivates on many levels. Share with fans of Silvia Moreno-Garcia, Alma Katsu, and Andy Davidson.--James Gardner
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