VAMPIRES OF EL NORTE by Isabel Canas (Berkeley, August 2023) Hardcover, 371 pages.
Synopsis on the Goodreads website . . . . .
Vampires and vaqueros face off on the Texas-Mexico border in this supernatural western from the author of The Hacienda.
As the daughter of a rancher in 1840s Mexico, Nena knows a thing or two about monsters—her home has long been threatened by tensions with Anglo settlers from the north. But something more sinister lurks near the ranch at night, something that drains men of their blood and leaves them for dead.
Something that once attacked Nena nine years ago.
Believing Nena dead, Néstor has been on the run from his grief ever since, moving from ranch to ranch working as a vaquero. But no amount of drink can dispel the night terrors of sharp teeth; no woman can erase his childhood sweetheart from his mind.
When the United States attacks Mexico in 1846, the two are brought abruptly together on the road to war: Nena as a curandera, a healer striving to prove her worth to her father so that he does not marry her off to a stranger, and Néstor as a member of the auxiliary cavalry of ranchers and vaqueros. But the shock of their reunion—and Nena’s rage at Néstor for seemingly abandoning her long ago—is quickly overshadowed by the appearance of a nightmare made flesh.
And unless Nena and Néstor work through their past and face the future together, neither will survive to see the dawn.
My Three-Star Review on the Goodreads website . . . . .
If this had been the first book I read by Isabel Canas, I would probably rate it Four Stars as an entertaining read from a promising new writer. However, I read THE HACIENDA before this, and by comparison this is a bit disappointing.
While the horror elements are more than just a back-drop, there just aren't enough moments of pure horror to satisfy horror aficionados. However, the depiction of the vampires is well done and a welcome departure from traditional use of them. These vampires are weirder, stranger, more animalistic. I just wish Canas had provided a bit more backstory for them.
Also, Canas' excellent wordplay, imagery, and comparisons is on full display here and that alone makes this a worthwhile read. She excels at research and the book details an oft-forgotten part of history - - the forceful annexation of Mexican territory by Americans. The caste system between ranch owners and workers is also detailed and points a spotlight at the inequities.
So, as historical fiction this rates Four Stars.
As a romance tale, it rates Three-And-One-Half Stars (too repetitive in places).
As a horror/vampire story, it rates Three Stars.
As a weird western, it rates Three Stars.
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