Cabaret in Flames

by Hache Pueyo

Hache Pueyo returns after But Not Too Bold with her new novella Cabaret in Flames, where Interview with the Vampire meets Certain Dark Things in an alternate-Brazil where brutal flesh-hungering Guls stalk the night streets and manipulate the government from their glittering cabaret

Guls can be brutal. Few know this better than Ariadne, who lost half her body to their appetites, but their brutality is a predictable constant amid Brazil’s political chaos. Now, she treats them in the specialized clinic she inherited from Erik Yurkov—the mentor who rescued her as a child, trained her in medicine, built her prostheses, and disappeared without a trace.

Ariadne’s routine is disturbed when Quaint knocks on her door: a charming, tattooed gul claiming to be Erik’s oldest friend. Quaint suspects foul play in Erik’s disappearance, and they soon discover Erik sought asylum at Cabaré, an infamous club in Rio de Janeiro frequented by the gul elite.

Together, Ariadne and Quaint will unravel the conspiracy behind their friend’s disappearance, navigate the labyrinthine world of Ariadne’s memories, and discover what Erik means to them—and what they are starting to mean to each other.

At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

Genres: Horror, Fantasy, Vampires, Novella, Adult, Fiction, Queer

160 pages, Hardcover

Expected publication March 10, 2026

About the author

Hache Pueyo is the Argentine-Brazilian writer and translator of Cabaret in Flames, But Not Too Bold and A Study in Ugliness & Outras Histórias. She won an Otherwise Fellowship for her work with gender in speculative fiction, and her short stories have appeared as H. Pueyo in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, Clarkesworld, Strange Horizons, and The Year’s Best Dark Fantasy & Horror, among others.

Reviews

[Zoë · Rating 4 out of 5]

this is the vampire weird lore I want thank you

[Zana · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

I absolutely loved the dark and creepy worldbuilding. You've got monster people eating human flesh and drinking human blood, creepy human experimentation, human and guls having sex, etc. Super gross and super cool.

But since this is a novella, it felt like too much worldbuilding for too little payoff.

I know it's totally unfair to say that the novella word count is too short, but I think that this story would definitely work so much better as a novel. There was so much going on—too much going on tbh—that the story begged for a much longer word count.

Also, I'm not an insta-love fan, so the romance didn't work for me. It felt like it came out of nowhere. I'm happy for the characters and all, but I wish there was more of a buildup. But then again, there's only so much you can do in a novella.

I'll take it for what it is. It was a dark read and exactly the type of thing I'm into, so I did enjoy it, despite all of my complaints. I really wish this was a duology because I would've loved to read more from this world and these characters. I wanted to revel in the dark fantasy and supernatural horror-ish vibes, but the story ended all too quickly.

Thank you to Tordotcom and NetGalley for this arc.

[Ana Dantas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read the original Portuguese version, and it was charming and impossible to put down. Can't wait for you all to meet Quaint, he's the sweetest ❤️

[Lukasz · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think I understand why people rave about Cabaret in Flames even if I didn’t fall for it quite as hard.

For me, it’s a solid 3/5.

A lot of it works, and when it works, it’s really good. The writing does the heavy lifting here. It’s moody, textured, and pulls you in. That dark, neo-noir vibe never lets up. Brazil feels gritty, and unstable. The gul society is predatory and elegant, and believable. The worldbuilding is top tier.

Ariadne makes a strong lead. She’s a quadruple amputee, survived a gul attack as a kid, now runs a clinic treating those same creatures. That push-and-pull (living with trauma, finding a way to coexist) hooked me. Her relationship with her body, her memories, just making it through the day, all of it comes across with real care.

Then Quaint shows up. Tattooed, ancient, and a gul who claims he’s Erik’s oldest friend. From there, the story splits: you get a slow-burn romance between Ariadne and Quaint, a grim thriller about Erik’s disappearance, political unrest bubbling up, a decadent cabaret where the gul elite party, and darker stuff - people getting taken for body parts.

The book jumps between romance, thriller, social drama, and gothic horror. Each part is solid, but when you piece them together, the mood gets choppy. I admired what the book tried to do more than I actually got lost in it.

Still, I should say: I’m in the minority. Most people seem to love this novella, and I totally see why. The prose is gorgeous. The way it handles trauma, survival, intimacy is intentional. The setting alone is worth a read.

So even if it didn’t quite win me over, I’d still tell people to check it out. Maybe I missed something obvious. Wouldn’t be the first time I’ve been out of step with the crowd.

[Dante Luiz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Will make a better review later, but I adore Ariadne and Quaint's dynamic so very much.

[Gretal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow, I honestly don't know what to say about this. Dark and thought-provoking, for sure. I definitely intend to keep reading works from Hache Pueyo.

[Pennie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This novella is a bold, boundary-breaking work—part mystery, part dark fantasy, part intimate character study—that refuses to fit neatly into any one genre. Within its lean page count, it grapples with some of the heaviest and most human themes: childhood sexual abuse, the long echo of trauma, disability and survival, the possibility of healing, and the complicated ways love can grow in the aftermath of devastation. It also doesn’t shy away from examining abuses of political power, systemic violence, and the fragile, chosen families people build to keep going.

The world itself is astonishingly vivid for a story under two hundred pages. Humans coexist with guls—creatures who resemble us only at a distance but possess inhuman speed, strength, and a hunger for flesh, blood, and bone. It’s a world that feels fully formed, brutal, and strangely beautiful. At the heart of it all is Ariadne, a woman who carries her trauma in both memory and body, her prosthetics a stark reminder of what was taken from her. When she teams up with Quaint, a gul whose ten sets of bone-splintering teeth are matched only by the unsettling pull she feels toward him, she is forced to confront the darkest corners of her past.

Their search for Erik—the man who rescued her long ago and rebuilt her broken body—pushes Ariadne into places she hoped she’d never revisit. Old wounds split open as she crosses paths with guls she once prayed to forget. Yet this time, she isn’t alone. Quaint walks beside her, a dangerous ally, a constant temptation. The deeper they go, the harder it becomes for Ariadne to understand whether her desire for him is a twisted echo of past horrors…or the beginning of something real and fiercely her own.

I’d recommend this book wholeheartedly to readers who don’t shy away from darkness, who want characters with edges, scars, and stories that demand to be felt. Although the novella incorporates supernatural and speculative elements, the true focus lies in the characters and the emotional gravity of their journeys. Readers who typically seek out creature-driven fantasy will find plenty to enjoy, while those who prefer human-centered narratives will discover a surprising amount of heart beneath the shadows.

There is violence and gore, but it is handled with restraint—enough to unsettle, never gratuitous.

I won this book through a Goodreads giveaway. That did not reflect my review at all.

[Mimi Schweid · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely fantastic novella in a world I would happily take more from but I believe this is going to be a standalone novel.

Ariadne is a young woman living in a world with flesh-eating guls, a corrupt government and some trauma to unpack whether she wants to or not. This book is fast paced, gritty and the finest bit uplifting. I look forward to reading it again! And hopefully listening to an audiobook copy when it's out in March.

[Hollowspine · Rating 4 out of 5]

A genre defying, nuanced mystery that discusses childhood sexual abuse and trauma, disability, healing and love, while also touching on abuses of political and other power structures, found families, and desire. All this within less than 200 pages and while developing a perfectly built world shared between humans and guls, beings who share a likeness with humans, but are capable of much greater strength and speed, and who subside on human flesh, blood and bones. Ariadne must watch herself and her heart when she teams up with Quaint, a gul in possession of ten sets of bone crushing, flesh slicing teeth, in order to find Erik, the man who pulled her from a pit of mutilated children and created prosthetics for the limbs taken from her. Ariadne faces flashbacks as she encounters guls from the past she'd rather forget, but her path seems to tread directly into that past trauma - this time she has Quaint by her side, but is her desire for him just another echo from the past she must overcome, or something else?

I'd highly recommend this for readers who don't shy away from the darkness, those who are looking for a story that will fully engage with complex and interesting characters. While the novella has elements of speculative fiction, the focus is more on the characters and plot than creatures and supernatural lore, both readers who love supernatural stories and those who don't will find something to grab their interest here. Gore and violence is described, but not in great detail on the page. Readers of Cassandra Khaw, Gretchen Felker-Martin, and Poppy Z. Brite will find similar elements of exploring sexual abuse, trauma, and healing within a dark storyline and often using speculative fiction elements.

[Rachel Shaw · Rating 5 out of 5]

Any book that has me looking up terms like “moral relativism” when trying to review it gets five stars. The ultimate goal for me when reading is to use my brain. This novella accomplished that aggressively.

Thank you so much Hache Pueyo, Tordotcom, and Nergalley for my advanced review copy. My opinions are my own.

[Kelsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cabaret in Flames is a dark, complex, and utterly delicious novella set in an alternate-Brazil. It is immediately engaging, centered on Ariadne, a human doctor, and the charming Gul, Quaint, as they search for Ariadne's missing savior-parent-mentor-crush, Erik. I absolutely LOVE QUAINT and found all the characters to be fascinating. The Erik-Ariadne dynamic—a complicated relationship that suggests an almost-lover layer—is particularly compelling, reminiscent of a marginally more healthy version of Jinx-Silco in Arcane.

The book tackles heavy, powerful themes in its exploration of overcoming trauma. It handles difficult subjects like sexual assault, the threat of forced pregnancy, limb loss, and general lack of bodily autonomy with depth. This focus on deep trauma within a world of brutal Guls elevates the story significantly.

My only complaint is that I had sooo many questions left by the end—I genuinely want more from this universe! A spin-off about Quaint and Erik, or exploring Quaint's past, would be perfect. Read this for a thrilling and emotionally resonant dark fantasy.

[Vanessa · Rating 3 out of 5]

There was a really strong start to the novella, that in the end, probably needed a full novel to flesh out the characters, relationships and themes that Pueyo wanted to address.

There were characters and concepts here that I absolutely love, but they weren't developed enough for me to fully appreciate them.

[kathrine]

IWTV mentioned 🫡

[Izzie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cabaret in Flames is lush, dark, horrifying, yet somehow… heartwarming? I spent much of this short book absolutely sickened by Ariadne’s backstory, but I liked how her personal journey and the plot were interwoven to reach the end.

Definitely recommend checking trigger warnings!

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

My thanks to Tor Publishing Group for an advance copy of this new book that is both a social commentary and a work of horror fiction, something that seems to be merging in the conscience of many humans as the world gets darker and more crueler than most of the creatures of the night are.

Horror is a genre that relfects the world around it. One can look at classic books, classic films, even some classic horror comic books and get an idea of not only what the world was like when the work was being penned, but how people felt. And what made them concerned. The rise of woman's voice in society, sex and how society dealt with, it civil rights, more woman asking for a voice and society's reaction to it. Added to that is the death of institutions, schools, social responsibility, again with sex and who can love whom, and of course a fear of that social institution that matters so much in our lives, government. Troops are in the streets, people are grabbed by masked men on streets, things are failing and justice is a joke. There will be some great stories coming from this time. This book will be considered one of them. I just hope their will be people to read them. Cabaret in Flames by Hache Pueyo is a story of horror, the failure of our heroes to measure up, the lure of darkness, not just in people but in political movements, and of course creatures of the night doing bad, bad things.

The time is maybe now, but on an Earth not our own. The book takes place in Brazil amidst a political crisis. This crisis is exacerbated by the fact that Guls walk the Earth. Guls are creatures who feed on humans, and have become power brokers, working with the elites to keep power, and to keep feeding. Ariadne knows guls as the maimed her years before, her life only saved by the efforts Erik Yurkov, a doctor to guls, and to her, who gave Ariadne the prosthesis that allows her to walk, and help him in his work. Ariadne is at a loss as Erik has disappeared, continuing on with his work with no purpose or drive. Which changed when a Gul, Quaint knocks on Ariadne's door. Quaint is an elder Gul heavily tattooed to remind him of his past and his many sacrifices, a past that Quaint tells Ariadne includes Erik as his best friend, and doctor. Quaint offers to look for Erik, and Ariadne accompanies him, finding out much about her mentor, herself, and about the gul Quaint, findings that might change her life. Though there are others looking to stop their investigation, along with dark forces of the government fighting to keep power.

A novella that has a world that is more develeoped than most fantasy series that are ten or fifteen books. Pueyo develops a world, a mythology, a political system, even a biology for this story, which is quite compelling and keeps the reader flipping pages. The book starts immediately, and doesn't let up until the end. However one is never lost, the characters grow, and become not only more complex, but interesting. This is a dark book, but one that is rich in characters, plot and a world that asks for more investigation. This is the second book I have read by Pueyo and the writing is so different, so much darker, and yet quite compelling. A nice mix of horror, political intrigue and human and well gul insight, that make for a really good read.

[Trevor Williamson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Disclosure Statement: I received an ARC of this novella from the publisher. My thoughts and opinions on the book are entirely my own and have not been influenced by the author or the publisher in any way.

Without posting huge spoilers, I do want to state that this novella contains allusions and description relating to child sexual abuse and sex trafficking; I am unsure whether or not that was disclosed in materials sent to me, but it bears stating because I do think it is a heavy topic and may not be for everyone.

And it hits especially different knowing about recent releases from the Epstein files.

I don't know that the book was intended specifically to be as timely as it is, except that it does have a lot to say about the consumptive appetites of those in power, and about how trauma, especially sexual trauma, leaves permanent scarring that remains evident throughout one's life.

To say that this book is painful wouldn't be enough to capture the many ways it cuts, and it is a constant reminder of how trauma nestles in to stay. But it's also a book about confronting that trauma, of survivorship and growth. There are confrontations here, there are messy feelings and self-doubts that reflect on the psychological damage done by early traumas, and there are developments that make for a resilient main character who faces fear and hurt and still manages to find some way of moving through the world with it, if not in some ways moving beyond it.

What I find compelling about the book is its reflection on power and predation. It's a book about guls (or ghouls), all of whom are raised in social and economic power, and all of whom predate on human flesh in order to survive. Pueyo takes that metaphor and stretches it, creating characters capable of ethical reflection, guilt, and nuance in their thoughts and actions, such that their power as elites is fragile, questionable, fearsome but vulnerable. And the book wants to grapple with what it means to have literal power, as much as it also wants to grapple with the dynamics of generational power--whether it be wealth or social or political privilege--and how anyone can operate within an unfair system. The whole of the book presents characters who are trapped in one way or another, and asks whether or not a trap can even be escaped.

I genuinely love all of its messiness and its metaphor, even as I think it is extraordinarily emotionally draining to read. It is tough subject matter, made tougher by exquisite character craft. I don't think the book has nearly scratched the surface of what it is possible to explore (my sole criticism), but I do think it is a powerful novella reflecting on real scars. Whether taken literally and personally or much more broadly and allegorically, I think it has a lot to offer.

[Elle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review of advanced copy received from Netgalley.

A novella set in a gritty future, under a fascist political regime, this book follows a cybernetic woman and a male ghul as they try to uncover the mysterious disappearance of their mutual acquaintance, a human ghul-doctor. This novella has an interesting premise, that ultimately doesn't live up to its potential due to weak writing and a lack of cohesive world building.

The writing in this book was quite inconsistent. Originally written as a shorter story in Portuguese, the book was rewritten and expanded by the author in this English publication. I almost wonder if that's what I was sensing as I read the book, as some sections had really interesting metaphorical writing (describing the Cabaret as a mouth swallowing the protagonist) and other times the writing was clunky. An example was random word choices, where the author used very official words, instead of standard nomenclature. It felt as though the author used a translation tool, and editors didn't refine the wording to match the generally casual writing style. I also think the dialogue could have been better. It felt as if large chunks of dialogue were removed in lieu of large interpretations on each characters part. A few additional exchanges within the scenes present could have made for better relationship work between the characters.

The premise of the two main characters was interesting: a cybernetic woman, Ariadne, and a ghul, Quaint. Ariadne's character was the most developed - her background is revealed slowly throughout the narrative. Quaint is less interesting as a character, and his interest lies in more of what he is - a sort of vampire type monster that lives off of human flesh, has a light sensitivity, and lives for a long time, but isn't seemingly immortal. Be ready for a romance at the core of this.

While the plot was interesting, it ultimately didn't come together in a super satisfying way. I would have been much more interested in an exploration of the politics of the place in relation to ghuls and how ghuls undermine human power. Ultimately, that wasn't the intention of this novella.

[Tiana · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book wasted no time throwing us right into the action and the chaos of the world, and honestly? I was completely here for being dragged along for the ride! We weren’t spoon fed lore or explanations about the state of the world or what the Guls were, but we were slowly made to piece together all of the details which made the experience way more immersive. I really appreciated how much this book trusted the reader to understand and interpret what was going on.

Ariadne is such a compelling character. Her past was very clearly BRUTAL, full of nightmares and trauma that lingered on every page. Reading about all of these memories being brought to the forefront of her mind again had me constantly wondering what happened to her in the beginning, and realising very quickly just how horrific it was and how much it would matter later on in the book. Her story adds so much emotional weight to the fast paced plot.

Eric though, he was instantly fascinating for me! His sudden disappearance, the mystery around what he did (or what was done to him) and why both people and Guls might have wanted to get their hands on him was RIVETING.

Don’t even get me started on how complex, funny, and enigmatic Quaint was 👀 his entire character had me in the biggest chokehold, and I just couldn’t help but get sucked right into every little detail about him. It also felt like there was this haunting, star crossed lovers energy running throughout the story (between him and Ariadne), like no matter how much time had passed or how much they changed, these two characters were always going to be orbiting each other. It genuinely got me.

What really sealed the deal for me was the ending. Everything coming full circle back at the clinic, everyone getting their own version of a happy ending (or at least what they deserved) felt incredibly satisfying.
This was totally the kind of book you pick up to just “read a little bit” and then suddenly it’s over and you’re staring at the last page in awe. I loved it.

[Amy (amysbooked) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rating: 2.5 rounded up

Review: I had a few issues with this book - one I felt as though we never actually knew what a gul was? And I even tried to google it to see if maybe I just wasn't aware and it didn't help clarify that for me? I also feel as though maybe I was just so in love with But Not Too Bold that my expectations for this book were so high and so inherently impossible to meet? I'm not sure. I think another issue I had with this book was that it never felt like it really found it voice? Like I never felt as though this book knew who it was and where it was intentionally taking me. I love Hache's writing but this one just didn't work for me. And I could tell because it took me four days to finish this less than 200 page book because I never found myself wanting to pick it up

Synopsis: Guls can be brutal. Few know this better than Ariadne, who lost half her body to their appetites, but their brutality is a predictable constant amid Brazil’s political chaos. Now, she treats them in the specialized clinic she inherited from Erik Yurkov—the mentor who rescued her as a child, trained her in medicine, built her prostheses, and disappeared without a trace.

Ariadne’s routine is disturbed when Quaint knocks on her door: a charming, tattooed gul claiming to be Erik’s oldest friend. Quaint suspects foul play in Erik’s disappearance, and they soon discover Erik sought asylum at Cabaré, an infamous club in Rio de Janeiro frequented by the gul elite.

Together, Ariadne and Quaint will unravel the conspiracy behind their friend’s disappearance, navigate the labyrinthine world of Ariadne’s memories, and discover what Erik means to them—and what they are starting to mean to each other.

[PlotTrysts · Rating 5 out of 5]

So I kind of loved this super weird vampire "romance" novella set in modern day Brazil. I read Pueyo's But Not Too Bold last year, and she WENT THERE with a truly monstrous monster romance. Here, she takes on the vampire romance with her own take on vampire lore.⁠
⁠
Ariadne is a "gul doctor" who was rescued, raised, and trained by her mentor, Erik. But Erik disappeared a few years ago, right around the time the Brazilian government established a curfew and roving death squads took to the streets. Ariadne keeps to herself while eking out a living pulling teeth for aged guls. And then one day, a hot gul (vampires are almost obligatorily hot, aren't they?) shows up at her door looking for Erik.

Quaint (that's the hot gul) doesn't see her as a pathetic rescuee, and includes her in his search for Erik. For the first time in her life, Ariadne both feels like and is treated as the adult woman she is. Quaint has a connection with her past, but he didn't raise her the way Erik did. And Ariadne is finished with living life in the background.

The book isn't for the squeamish or for anyone who finds references to CSA to be triggering (and to be clear, I don't blame you if you do!). Ariadne has an extremely traumatic backstory, and her romance with Quaint (and previous crush on Erik) are both bound up in the way she was raised; her love life is inextricably linked to her childhood experiences. To be frank, all of the guls have some trauma going on! But this mix of litfic, specfic, and romance really worked for me.

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

[Reading_seas0n · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you, Tor Publishing Group | Tordotcom & NetGalley for this arc and allowing me to read and review the book before its release honestly.

TW: Child murder, child trafficking, cannibals, human trafficking, experimenting on guls & humans and PTSD.

I've read two books by this author and every time, they provide a banger!

I love when we get a monster/creature story that is beyond the usual ones; like vampire, werewolf etc.
In this tale, we find ourselves in Brazil on the brink of political chaos, where humans & Guls (undead, cannibalistic humanoids) wonder the streets. Our main character, Ariadne, is a human who is also a Gul Doctor and meets a gul named Quaint who has ties to her missing mentor Erik.

This book touches on a lot of darker things that exist in our world even without Guls... because we have our own human monsters in this world. There are many memories that Ariadne shares and relives as they search for their mentor and dive more into the Gul world, more than they are use to. Their trauma and their darker past with that world is revealed and it is a hard read but if we remove the supernatural creatures, we see how real this is because it happens all the time. Human trafficking & child trafficking is very real & shows our world isn't free of monsters. monsters aren't just in fiction.
Adding that element made this book so real to me at it's core.


Also if you want/like theses, you should read the book:
Amputee FMC
Ghoul/Gul creatures
Human experiments
Overcoming Trauma
Mirror of our world

[Steph | bookedinsaigon · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you to Tor and NetGalley for the free e-ARC in exchange for an honest review

Sigh. CABARET IN FLAMES was a really cool concept that ultimately didn’t work for me. It should have been awesome: Vampires in Brazil! A half-cyborg MC! Instead, it was an underbaked idea that focused on a narrow set of things instead of fully developing all aspects of its story, leaving much to be desired.

What worked for me: the world that Pueyo has created is fascinating. In this alternate world, vampiric creatures called guls form a second society that disrupts the ways in which humans would operate in a gul-free world. Nightly curfews are enacted so that not too many innocent humans get taken off the streets. Politicians lose fingers or limbs over time as they strike a very tentative working balance with the guls. But guls also need healthcare, and so specialized doctors like Ariadne and her missing mentor, Erik, exist on the periphery of the guls’ world… only to be drawn in with various degrees of reluctance.

Unfortunately, not much else worked for me. While this world is endlessly cool, very little of it actually gets explored on the page. The bits about guls and the human government are thrown in here and there; the novella follows the characters so closely that it loses sight of how the rest of society would be affected by such a living situation. I found this disappointing because the politics of it all were what I found most interesting, and instead, CABARET IN FLAMES was, ultimately, a romance.

Yes, that’s right: the main focus of this story is the insta-romance between Ariadne and Quaint, the gul with the heart of gold who comes to her for help. Eh. Even though Quaint IS cool–Asian (I think??), tatted, with some interesting stories from his long past–his coming together with Ariadne happened so quickly that I felt like it was letting the wind out of the sails before they had time to open to their full potential. So the book slams the two of them together for the sake of a “hot” romance, and everything else is kind of secondary: the pacing, the slow reveal of Ariadne’s backstory, the forward movement of the search for Erik, and the fizzle of a denouement.

Overall, CABARET IN FLAMES needed a much stronger editorial hand, someone that could’ve been honest with the author and said, “More of this here, less of that there because it’s too soon,” etc.

[Jules Terry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cabaret in Flames brings an interesting twist to the monsters that look like us - are they vampires? Ghouls? I’m infatuated with Guls, which is why I can’t help but be a little frustrated that we don’t get more… However, Pueyo offers sound physiology and science when she gets into the nitty gritty.

I haven’t read anything that has a layer of romance in some time, focusing my attention on hard horror. Thankfully, the romance in this wasn’t over the top. It didn’t absorb the story or change the arc. It helps the character growth and doesn’t last for pages. There is comfort in its passion.

The story is fast paced. The ARC moves quickly. I wish my Portuguese was better so I could read the original. I imagine it would shed more insight. However, there are still themes of corruption, power struggles, coming of age, the seedy side of life, and more that shine through the dialogue and prose.

I did pick this up during Hispanic history month, but it’s worth it for anyone who likes horror elements, a little romance, mystery, and a unique monster.

[Bethany (Beautifully Bookish Bethany) · Rating 4 out of 5]

For a novella this book covers a lot of ground and has a lot of world-building! Cabaret in Flames is like a mashup of vampires, cannibalism, and a bit of a mystery element. Guls are humanoid monsters who consume human flesh and blood. Ariadne is a young woman with robotic limbs who has been trained as a doctor who can treat guls, but has a complicated history. Her mentor disappeared years ago and one day a gul claiming to be his friend shows up and she is drawn deeper into the world of elite guls.

This gets quite dark and deals with themes of child abuse and child sex abuse, but it is also a story about finding healing and reclaiming power. In some ways it also reads like a metaphor for abuse perpetrated by those in power and how they are too often able to hide and get away with evil. The guls feel reminiscent of vampires, but are something all their own. I could easily see this having been a somewhat longer novel and it's a world that could be interesting to explore further. I received a copy of this book for review via NetGalley, all opinions are my own.

[Grace -thewritebooks]

Thank you to NetGalley and Titan Books for an eARC in exchange for an honest review

Almost read this in one night I enjoyed it so much. Would absolutely recommend for fans of Tender Is the Flesh and Certain Dark Things for all the people-eating but also sexy characters. Simply astounded at how Pueyo put so much worldbuilding into such a small pagecount but I would equally have read a full length novel of this.
I will admit I was a little confused on occasion on which vampire we were mad at for being evil (literally heinous crimes, you have been warned) but I was hooked on Ariadne's journey through an underworld she'd been on the fringes of for so long. Horrible and amazing

[Kelsey Vargo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!!!

In this novella a young woman grapples with surviving in a vampire filled Brasil, where the ever-hungry ghuls rule from the shadows. Trained in medicine by her mentor Viktor, Ariande must join forces with a ghul named Quaint to solve the mystery of his disappearance. The man's vanishing seems less his choice, and more so the machinations of the ghul elite.

Short, but packing quite the harsh punch, this novella tackles the desire to die vs to live after suffering trauma. Those sensitive to discussions of csa and trafficking, please be kind to yourself as our protagonist Ariande is a survivor of such horrors. The romance between Quaint and Ariande was faster than I usually enjoy to read about, yet as this is a short-form story such things are to be expected. The world-building really reminded me of the ttrpg amd franchise Vampire the Masquerade.

[Abigail · Rating 4 out of 5]

Monstrous and mysterious, gory and ghoulish. This dark paranormal novella is set in an alternative Brazil (own voices author) where flesh-eating Guls exist alongside humans. Ariadne runs a clinic for the care of Guls, even though she lost all four limbs to a Gul as a child. Now equipped with advanced prosthetics, she lives a life relative normalcy until Quaint, an ancient Gul claiming to be friends with her mentor, arrives to inform her of her mentor’s suspected abduction. Together they’ll travel into the elite world of Guls to save him. This fast-paced novella that blends horror with romance features complex characters and even more complex relationships. The darkly atmospheric setting contrasts with a story of survival and resilience. Readers who enjoy the work of T. Kingfisher may also enjoy Cabaret in Flames.

Thanks to Edelweiss and Macmillan for providing me with an eARC!

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received an advance copy from the publisher via Netgalley for review purposes; this in no way influences my review.

Hache Pueyo is definitely an author to keep an eye on. I love the way she tells a story, and Cabaret in Flames was excellent. It’s almost slow and quiet in its build up, but it’s such a layered story that it’s hard to put down. I love the way Erik’s journals developed the historical elements and the way Ariadne’s own history was revealed. There’s also power in how the name she refuses to have associated with because that person is gone is never revealed - she is Ariadne and that’s who she’s going to be. There’s a lot of trauma and violence, but the way it was part of the story felt gentle and like Ariadne was in control of what the reader is allowed to know of her past. I really enjoyed this and look forward to more stories from Pueyo.

[Elizabeth Nielson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't know how to rate this, exactly. I loved the premise and the characters, but there were so many problems that I just can't give this book any more than 3 stars.
My least favorite part by far was her sleeping with Quaint right after telling him about how he saved her from this house of child raping and eating. I felt like we for one didn't get any sort of lead up to this point in their relationship, since it really looked like they were maybe acquaintances who didn't like each other. Also, they kind of joked it all off and never talked about her experiences again to each other, which just doesn't make any sense to me. That dropped the rating down by a lot
Also, the guls confused me a bit. I didn't really understand why or what they were.
But overall I enjoyed it!

[Teresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pueyo is quickly becoming my go to short story author.....she is so goddamn talented and the ending of her books always wraps everything up (imo). This book is no different, for being 160 pages, she delivers a KO with the subject matter and the story.
Vampires....check
Biomechanical body parts....check
Mystery....check
Unchecked passion....check
Ariadne has always kept parts of herself hidden but when her mentor/father figure goes missing, she must work with the secretive gul, Quaint, to figure out what exactly happened to Eric....and that means confronting her traumatic past.
Everything about this book is steeped in secrets, passion and revenge...I couldn't put it down.
Thanks to Tordotcom for the ARC!