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The Devil Takes You Home
Goodreads Choice Award
Nominee for Readers' Favorite Horror (2022)From Bram Stoker, Anthony, and Locus award-nominated author, Gabino Iglesias, comes a genre-defying thriller about a father desperate to salvage what’s left of his family, even if it means a descent into violence--both supernatural and of our own terrifying world.
Buried in debt due to his young daughter’s illness, his marriage at the brink, Mario reluctantly takes a job as a hitman, surprising himself with his proclivity for violence. After tragedy destroys the life he knew, Mario agrees to one final job: hijack a cartel’s cash shipment before it reaches Mexico. Along with an old friend and a cartel-insider named Juanca, Mario sets off on the near-suicidal mission, which will leave him with either a cool $200,000 or a bullet in the skull. But the path to reward or ruin is never as straight as it seems. As the three complicated men travel through the endless landscape of Texas, across the border and back, their hidden motivations are laid bare alongside nightmarish encounters that defy explanation. One thing is certain: even if Mario makes it out alive, he won’t return the same.
The Devil Takes You Home is a panoramic odyssey for fans of S.A. Cosby’s southern noir, Blacktop Wasteland, by way of the boundary-defying storytelling of Stephen Graham Jones and Sylvia Moreno-Garcia.
Buried in debt due to his young daughter’s illness, his marriage at the brink, Mario reluctantly takes a job as a hitman, surprising himself with his proclivity for violence. After tragedy destroys the life he knew, Mario agrees to one final job: hijack a cartel’s cash shipment before it reaches Mexico. Along with an old friend and a cartel-insider named Juanca, Mario sets off on the near-suicidal mission, which will leave him with either a cool $200,000 or a bullet in the skull. But the path to reward or ruin is never as straight as it seems. As the three complicated men travel through the endless landscape of Texas, across the border and back, their hidden motivations are laid bare alongside nightmarish encounters that defy explanation. One thing is certain: even if Mario makes it out alive, he won’t return the same.
The Devil Takes You Home is a panoramic odyssey for fans of S.A. Cosby’s southern noir, Blacktop Wasteland, by way of the boundary-defying storytelling of Stephen Graham Jones and Sylvia Moreno-Garcia.
321 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 2, 2022
852 people are currently reading
48425 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 2,472 reviews
September 1, 2022
I listened to the audio of “The Devil Takes You Home” by Gabino Iglesias narrated perfectly by Jean-Marc Berne. This dark noir story is an internal narration, something like a meditation of sorts, of a desperate man, tormented by bad fortune resulting in very bad decisions.
Mario just lost his precious daughter to cancer. He and his wife racked up hundreds of thousands of dollars in hospital debt in an attempt to save their daughter. She died anyway. Mario’s wife left him, and Mario receives daily texts reminding him how much money he owes to the hospital. He is desperate.
A friend of his, Brian, who is a junky with a pregnant girlfriend, suggests that they get involved with the Mexican cartel for some quick and serious cash. When Brian introduces Mario to the head of the cartel, after Mario exchanges his pleasantries, the cartel man says:
“I was just telling your friend Mario that meeting me is never a pleasure; meeting me is something that happens to people because they have made a bad decision.”
This story is one bad decision after another. This reminded me of the Netflix series “Ozark” in that it shows how a man, trying to take care of his family, gets sucked into the harsh and disturbing world of the Cartels. Iglesias is heavy handed with religious supernatural encounters, most of them revolting and horrific. He shows how tightly religion is tied into the Cartel life.
I was happy that I chose the audio because it’s written in Spanish and English. I got to hear the Spanish spoken, which made the story more realistic in my mind. Spanglish is used frequently which wasn’t a distraction to me as I listened. I’m not a Spanish speaker, yet I enjoyed this remarkable devise he used. Bilingual readers will love it.
As with “Ozark” this is a horror-thriller. I usually stay away from such darkness, but for some reason, I found this captivating, much like watching “Ozark”. Bad news: you can’t close your eyes when it’s your imagination from reading.
I really need to find a box of puppies now…..
Mario just lost his precious daughter to cancer. He and his wife racked up hundreds of thousands of dollars in hospital debt in an attempt to save their daughter. She died anyway. Mario’s wife left him, and Mario receives daily texts reminding him how much money he owes to the hospital. He is desperate.
A friend of his, Brian, who is a junky with a pregnant girlfriend, suggests that they get involved with the Mexican cartel for some quick and serious cash. When Brian introduces Mario to the head of the cartel, after Mario exchanges his pleasantries, the cartel man says:
“I was just telling your friend Mario that meeting me is never a pleasure; meeting me is something that happens to people because they have made a bad decision.”
This story is one bad decision after another. This reminded me of the Netflix series “Ozark” in that it shows how a man, trying to take care of his family, gets sucked into the harsh and disturbing world of the Cartels. Iglesias is heavy handed with religious supernatural encounters, most of them revolting and horrific. He shows how tightly religion is tied into the Cartel life.
I was happy that I chose the audio because it’s written in Spanish and English. I got to hear the Spanish spoken, which made the story more realistic in my mind. Spanglish is used frequently which wasn’t a distraction to me as I listened. I’m not a Spanish speaker, yet I enjoyed this remarkable devise he used. Bilingual readers will love it.
As with “Ozark” this is a horror-thriller. I usually stay away from such darkness, but for some reason, I found this captivating, much like watching “Ozark”. Bad news: you can’t close your eyes when it’s your imagination from reading.
I really need to find a box of puppies now…..
June 22, 2022
From nearly the very first words and continuing throughout, these pages are infused with grief, guilt, sadness, racism, poverty and overall REALness. Gabino Iglesias pulls no punches, nor would I want him to. That said, these punches are packing enough power to break your heart. Several times.
The story steps right off into nothingness when a young couple's little girl is diagnosed with cancer. Not only is that word scary, it's expensive. This is the tale of Mario, his wife and daughter, their predicament, and Mario's attempts to provide for his family.
"A sad woman is a blade hanging over the world, threatening to fall at any moment."
The honest truth is hiding here, if you're brave enough to face it. The world is a hard place.
"Sometimes things go wrong and there's nothing you can do about it. And yet, we mostly refuse to give up. Instead we invent gods to help us push forward. Pain invades us and we find reasons to carry on. Death approaches, bony arms outstretched, and we fight it with that inexplicable desire to keep living."
I think the story told here is not that unusual. Parents want to provide for their families, they want their children to be healthy and to have things other children have. Those wants become needs and sometimes it's hard to do what is needed and sometimes nothing can be done at all.
"True pleasure is not wanting anything. Sure, some things feel great when we do them, but we often take for granted what we have, and sometimes what we have is enough. The laughter of your child, for example, is something no degree of poverty can touch."
One more quote that really struck me:
"The truth often sneaks up on you. Things you should have seen suddenly jump at you, covered in insults and screaming, asking how you could have missed them when they were so obvious."
What is obvious to me right now, is that Gabino Iglesias is a talented man with serious writing chops. If you are not familiar with his name, I feel secure in saying you soon will. Especially if dark fiction that doesn't shy away from...well, anything, is your cup of tea.
THE DEVIL TAKES YOU HOME broke my heart and stole a piece of my soul and as such gets my highest recommendation!
*Thank you to the publisher for the E-ARC in exchange for my honest feedback. I pre-ordered a copy of this book, even though I received an ARC, because I loved it THAT MUCH AND I want to support this author in any way that I can.*
The story steps right off into nothingness when a young couple's little girl is diagnosed with cancer. Not only is that word scary, it's expensive. This is the tale of Mario, his wife and daughter, their predicament, and Mario's attempts to provide for his family.
"A sad woman is a blade hanging over the world, threatening to fall at any moment."
The honest truth is hiding here, if you're brave enough to face it. The world is a hard place.
"Sometimes things go wrong and there's nothing you can do about it. And yet, we mostly refuse to give up. Instead we invent gods to help us push forward. Pain invades us and we find reasons to carry on. Death approaches, bony arms outstretched, and we fight it with that inexplicable desire to keep living."
I think the story told here is not that unusual. Parents want to provide for their families, they want their children to be healthy and to have things other children have. Those wants become needs and sometimes it's hard to do what is needed and sometimes nothing can be done at all.
"True pleasure is not wanting anything. Sure, some things feel great when we do them, but we often take for granted what we have, and sometimes what we have is enough. The laughter of your child, for example, is something no degree of poverty can touch."
One more quote that really struck me:
"The truth often sneaks up on you. Things you should have seen suddenly jump at you, covered in insults and screaming, asking how you could have missed them when they were so obvious."
What is obvious to me right now, is that Gabino Iglesias is a talented man with serious writing chops. If you are not familiar with his name, I feel secure in saying you soon will. Especially if dark fiction that doesn't shy away from...well, anything, is your cup of tea.
THE DEVIL TAKES YOU HOME broke my heart and stole a piece of my soul and as such gets my highest recommendation!
*Thank you to the publisher for the E-ARC in exchange for my honest feedback. I pre-ordered a copy of this book, even though I received an ARC, because I loved it THAT MUCH AND I want to support this author in any way that I can.*
October 27, 2022
This author without a doubt is a master craftsman when it comes to writing. Man, can he write. Loved the voice of this character. And loved the premise of the book. These are two of the most important aspects I need in a novel.
I know you can feel it coming...here it is: However. I picked this book up believing it was a crime novel. I realize that sometimes there is a fine line between crime novels and horror and this book crossed the line. It didn't tiptoe over the line it jumped over with both feet. There is one scene that is so abhorrent it tossed me out of the story and made me dislike the main character for not taking action and for going along with it. And as it happens what this scene deals with is one of my only triggers. I saw some pretty gruesome stuff in thirty-one years in law enforcement but this one...this one literally made my skin crawl. So now if your a horror reader are looking for a jolt this might be your baby. But the problem with that is too much of the book is a crime novel and not enough horror. A genre bender.
I've pique some GR folks who want to know what the scene depicts and might even pick up this novel to find out. For the record though, I warned ya.
3.5 stars rounded up for the great writing craft.
d.
I know you can feel it coming...here it is: However. I picked this book up believing it was a crime novel. I realize that sometimes there is a fine line between crime novels and horror and this book crossed the line. It didn't tiptoe over the line it jumped over with both feet. There is one scene that is so abhorrent it tossed me out of the story and made me dislike the main character for not taking action and for going along with it. And as it happens what this scene deals with is one of my only triggers. I saw some pretty gruesome stuff in thirty-one years in law enforcement but this one...this one literally made my skin crawl. So now if your a horror reader are looking for a jolt this might be your baby. But the problem with that is too much of the book is a crime novel and not enough horror. A genre bender.
I've pique some GR folks who want to know what the scene depicts and might even pick up this novel to find out. For the record though, I warned ya.
3.5 stars rounded up for the great writing craft.
d.
August 3, 2022
A great story marred -once again- by politics.
I've never felt "White Shame" before, nor will I ever. My wife is Asian, my best friend is black, I lived in Bangkok for over a decade, and love the people there. It's an incredible place! I have friends from all over the world, all cultures, colours, backgrounds, and I'm proud to say that non of them subscribe to this kind woke, child-like mindset that Gabino Iglesias pushes in this anti-white propaganda. I'm not ashamed of who I am. You should be ashamed though, for pushing these kind of lies. Not everyone who has white skin is a racist that wants to tread on you.
A shame really - As it was so well written.
2 Stars.
I've never felt "White Shame" before, nor will I ever. My wife is Asian, my best friend is black, I lived in Bangkok for over a decade, and love the people there. It's an incredible place! I have friends from all over the world, all cultures, colours, backgrounds, and I'm proud to say that non of them subscribe to this kind woke, child-like mindset that Gabino Iglesias pushes in this anti-white propaganda. I'm not ashamed of who I am. You should be ashamed though, for pushing these kind of lies. Not everyone who has white skin is a racist that wants to tread on you.
A shame really - As it was so well written.
2 Stars.
January 5, 2023
I read this long before it was up on goodreads so I didn't post my stars. That's my excuse. It's a hell of a novel with images that still flitter through my brain in random moments.
September 8, 2022
Holy Smokes!! I’m a little speechless right now after having just finished reading this book.
I will start off by saying that the title of this book, The Devil Takes You Home, intrigued me. The cover captivated me. The synopsis pulled me right in. The Devil Takes You Home is my most memorable read of 2022 thus far. And if I’m being honest, this book messed me up!
There were instances in this story that were too violent and graphic for my taste, but please do not let that steer you away from reading this story. Our main character of Mario is one that all of us can relate to (or should be able to). No matter how disturbing some of the pages are- this book is REAL. LIFE.
I’m still trying to wrap my head around what I just read and may need to come back and update this review later, but in the meantime I highly recommend reading this book!
I will start off by saying that the title of this book, The Devil Takes You Home, intrigued me. The cover captivated me. The synopsis pulled me right in. The Devil Takes You Home is my most memorable read of 2022 thus far. And if I’m being honest, this book messed me up!
There were instances in this story that were too violent and graphic for my taste, but please do not let that steer you away from reading this story. Our main character of Mario is one that all of us can relate to (or should be able to). No matter how disturbing some of the pages are- this book is REAL. LIFE.
I’m still trying to wrap my head around what I just read and may need to come back and update this review later, but in the meantime I highly recommend reading this book!
October 21, 2022
Has a slow start, but WOW what a wild ride!! You guys weren’t kidding when you said this was brutal; the violence was graphic, vivid, and probably wasn’t the best thing to read before bed. I also loved the supernatural aspect, definitely wouldn’t have liked it as much as I did without it. Highly recommend!
August 12, 2022
Started ok but turned way too nasty and violent for me. Sometimes whole sentences/paragraphs were in untranslated Spanish. Can’t exactly use Google Translate when listening to an audiobook. Skimmed to end. 2.5 stars
October 21, 2022
An intense novel of vengeance, exploitation, and pushing the boundaries of what humans are capable of. Brutal and tense, this novel delivers a buildup of anxiety and outrage, sorrow and fear, highlighting the real-life consequences of crime, racism, and poverty. Combined with ritualistic horror, this novel is a nail-biting thriller that radiates heartbreak. Compelling and insightful.
June 13, 2022
Thanks to Mulholland Books for an ARC of “The Devil Takes You Home” by Gabino Iglesias for an honest review. 📚 🥰 ❤️
“You can wrap a shotgun in flowers, but that doesn’t make the blast less lethal.”
I love author Gabino Iglesias’ writing; it’s rich with feelings without being sappy, filled with just enough details to make you feel like you’re there, even though you may not want to be!! And no long boring or obtusely confusing beginnings, which I vehemently dislike. We’re immediately devastated on the first page with our protagonist Mario and his wife Melisa being told their young daughter has leukemia, so don’t assume this is an all gunfight story of a misguided or lifeless hit man. Iglesias continually takes you to the scene of the crime—of the heart or of the hand—and you feel yourself being shoved to the edge, but never wanting the story to end. Brilliant. Now to get my grubby paws on Gabino Iglesias’ previous two books… Mulholland can you hook me up?!! 💕
“You can wrap a shotgun in flowers, but that doesn’t make the blast less lethal.”
I love author Gabino Iglesias’ writing; it’s rich with feelings without being sappy, filled with just enough details to make you feel like you’re there, even though you may not want to be!! And no long boring or obtusely confusing beginnings, which I vehemently dislike. We’re immediately devastated on the first page with our protagonist Mario and his wife Melisa being told their young daughter has leukemia, so don’t assume this is an all gunfight story of a misguided or lifeless hit man. Iglesias continually takes you to the scene of the crime—of the heart or of the hand—and you feel yourself being shoved to the edge, but never wanting the story to end. Brilliant. Now to get my grubby paws on Gabino Iglesias’ previous two books… Mulholland can you hook me up?!! 💕
November 11, 2022
Sigh. Because there are racists on here giving this book low ratings because they don't like books calling out systemic racism or for some reason are magically offended that, in a splattery horror novel, white criminals are killed (weirdly I bet they are fine when this happens in, oh, every action movie ever), I feel like I need to clarify that these are not the reasons I don't like this book.
I don't like it because Iglesias doesn't really seem to get that women are people, not props. Also for the brief, tired transphobia.
So yeah, actually it's not woke enough for me!
Also I found the plot cartoonish and the writing bad, so. Whomp whomp.
I don't like it because Iglesias doesn't really seem to get that women are people, not props. Also for the brief, tired transphobia.
So yeah, actually it's not woke enough for me!
Also I found the plot cartoonish and the writing bad, so. Whomp whomp.
October 24, 2022
2.5 stars
The first few chapters were heartwrenching but from there this turned into a weakly written hitman thriller. The author setup a motivation for the character needing the money but it didn't properly establish the believability this man immediately turned into a hardened murderer. Otherwise, this read a lot like Blacktop Wasteland, so it may appeal to those same readers. Unfortunately, I don't love either of these action packed blockbusters.
The first few chapters were heartwrenching but from there this turned into a weakly written hitman thriller. The author setup a motivation for the character needing the money but it didn't properly establish the believability this man immediately turned into a hardened murderer. Otherwise, this read a lot like Blacktop Wasteland, so it may appeal to those same readers. Unfortunately, I don't love either of these action packed blockbusters.
March 25, 2022
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!
This was my first experience reading Gabino Iglesias. I’ve had Coyote Songs on my Kindle forever … I know, I know … I’ll get to it one day. It’s in my ever-growing TBR stack. Going into this I knew the guy had writing chops and had been nominated for a few awards. Honestly, though, I only requested this because of the beautiful cover and the comparisons to SA Cosby. The Devil Takes You Home is Cosby-esque, but decidedly supernatural. In places.
It took a bit to get into this one, I’ll admit: I couldn’t quite connect to the main character despite his sad situation. But as the story went on, and I got to spend more time in his head (this novel is written in the first person) I grew to like him more. He’s just a fairly average guy thrown into some shitty circumstances and has to be sort of a villain to get out. It’s funny, as I’m writing this review I just saw a blurb that said this book is perfect for fans of Breaking Bad, and I thought the same thing—especially in the final fourth or so. It has a very similar vibe, and is sure to get the heart racing just as that show does.
By the novel’s end I finally decided I had to give 5 stars. This is a smart, gritty, thrilling, and occasionally scary story: one I won’t soon forget.
This was my first experience reading Gabino Iglesias. I’ve had Coyote Songs on my Kindle forever … I know, I know … I’ll get to it one day. It’s in my ever-growing TBR stack. Going into this I knew the guy had writing chops and had been nominated for a few awards. Honestly, though, I only requested this because of the beautiful cover and the comparisons to SA Cosby. The Devil Takes You Home is Cosby-esque, but decidedly supernatural. In places.
It took a bit to get into this one, I’ll admit: I couldn’t quite connect to the main character despite his sad situation. But as the story went on, and I got to spend more time in his head (this novel is written in the first person) I grew to like him more. He’s just a fairly average guy thrown into some shitty circumstances and has to be sort of a villain to get out. It’s funny, as I’m writing this review I just saw a blurb that said this book is perfect for fans of Breaking Bad, and I thought the same thing—especially in the final fourth or so. It has a very similar vibe, and is sure to get the heart racing just as that show does.
By the novel’s end I finally decided I had to give 5 stars. This is a smart, gritty, thrilling, and occasionally scary story: one I won’t soon forget.
August 3, 2022
I couldn't read this book any further after the terrible dialogue and implausible sequence of events. I don't think a person like Brian would every say, "Call if the damn poverty noose gets too tight, yeah? I got you." This phrase "poverty noose" sounds something an activist would say, not some meth head. And the fact that the first job he had for Mario was a hit just sounds too out of the blue and shows how lazily this book was written.
July 10, 2022
Vivid, visceral and unrelenting, The Devil Takes You Home is brutal, brilliant and impossible to box in.
The writing is fist pumping good and the characters honest. Gabino Iglesias pulls zero punches, in fact the author gives you the literary equivalent of a broken nose, portraying violence as it actually is in real life- savage and cruel.
Love, loss, grief and guilt fuel the main protagonist, sending him on a dark, scary, intensely emotional journey into a hell of his own making
An absolutely superb novel. Not for the faint hearted.
The writing is fist pumping good and the characters honest. Gabino Iglesias pulls zero punches, in fact the author gives you the literary equivalent of a broken nose, portraying violence as it actually is in real life- savage and cruel.
Love, loss, grief and guilt fuel the main protagonist, sending him on a dark, scary, intensely emotional journey into a hell of his own making
An absolutely superb novel. Not for the faint hearted.
August 20, 2022
Devastation from cover to cover... A story of a man who lost everything, became a monster and confronted bigger monsters - what a genuine adventure.
Every ugliness and brutality on this earth is presented to us readers in Iglesias' gorgeous, stunning, striking prose – so much that there were moments where I found myself awed and fascinated in the beauty of words describing someone shot in the head! A paradox that confused me and made me doubt myself!
This road story is so brutal, so ugly that in a conventional novel the horror and hostility of the setting and the background of The Devil Takes You Home alone would be the peak, the punchline. In contrast to the brutality caused by humans the supernatural elements almost felt like a welcome relief to me, a familiar rescue from so much reality or verisimilitude.
I need to add that at no point did I feel that the violence depicted in this book was glorifying or for violence's sake only. It is important because a dog-eat-dog world does exist. Here the people surviving, even if they are doing things that are hard to grasp for others, aren't only shown, they are literally shoved into our faces reading this, so we cannot ignore them like we do in real life. Take, for example, the story of a grandmother whose disabled grandson was declared “a miracle”, little Milagrito, and people starting to fetishize the boy as a religious figure, asking, buying a little part of him like a little hair or a nail clipping. She is even ready to negotiate to cut off some more, mind you...
As a migrant's daughter myself, I felt the social commentaries scattered in between passages were spot on even though I don't live in the USA - confirming how universal injustice and bigoted thinking are. I personally found some of these a little over-explained for my taste and would have appreciated a little more “show, don't tell” as maybe some readers would have understood it on a deeper level.
Since I am not a great fan of gangster or heist stories I probably would have given this book three or four stars but I'll raise it to five because of its message. It's an important work and I feel very impressed, I will keep thinking about it for some time.
Every ugliness and brutality on this earth is presented to us readers in Iglesias' gorgeous, stunning, striking prose – so much that there were moments where I found myself awed and fascinated in the beauty of words describing someone shot in the head! A paradox that confused me and made me doubt myself!
This road story is so brutal, so ugly that in a conventional novel the horror and hostility of the setting and the background of The Devil Takes You Home alone would be the peak, the punchline. In contrast to the brutality caused by humans the supernatural elements almost felt like a welcome relief to me, a familiar rescue from so much reality or verisimilitude.
I need to add that at no point did I feel that the violence depicted in this book was glorifying or for violence's sake only. It is important because a dog-eat-dog world does exist. Here the people surviving, even if they are doing things that are hard to grasp for others, aren't only shown, they are literally shoved into our faces reading this, so we cannot ignore them like we do in real life. Take, for example, the story of a grandmother whose disabled grandson was declared “a miracle”, little Milagrito, and people starting to fetishize the boy as a religious figure, asking, buying a little part of him like a little hair or a nail clipping. She is even ready to negotiate to cut off some more, mind you...
As a migrant's daughter myself, I felt the social commentaries scattered in between passages were spot on even though I don't live in the USA - confirming how universal injustice and bigoted thinking are. I personally found some of these a little over-explained for my taste and would have appreciated a little more “show, don't tell” as maybe some readers would have understood it on a deeper level.
Since I am not a great fan of gangster or heist stories I probably would have given this book three or four stars but I'll raise it to five because of its message. It's an important work and I feel very impressed, I will keep thinking about it for some time.
June 4, 2022
Review to come, but WOW.
August 20, 2022
Dark, gritty, sad...really well written.
June 23, 2025
Nothing says Christmas like kids dying of leukemia, Mexican drug cartel assassins, unbelievably graphic torture scenes, racism, demon-possessed Mexican witches, and a six-way shootout in the New Mexico desert. Oh, and: trigger warnings!
Gabino Iglesias’s novel “The Devil Takes You Home” is chicken soup for the sado-masochistic soul. It’s the perfect story for anyone who hates Christmas. It’s torture porn for Grinches.
If Cormac McCarthy and Laird Barron teamed up to write a road novel, it would be this novel.
I haven’t read a horror noir this bleak since, well… ever. Actually, the closest in tone that I can recall was a graphic novel series by Garth Ennis called “A Walk Through Hell”, which honestly still gives me the chills.
It’s actually a decent comparison because, like Ennis’s graphic novel, “The Devil Takes You Home” is a surprisingly spiritual novel, and one that is asking some seriously tough questions about faith.
The novel’s protagonist, Mario, was once a happy husband and father. Then, his daughter was diagnosed with terminal cancer, and before he even had time to process the diagnosis, she is dead. Soon after, he leaves his wife (or she leaves him, it’s unclear but also irrelevant), and unable to deal with the staggering grief, he goes to work for a local cartel as an assassin. He rationalizes his actions by telling himself that the people he kills are pedophiles and rapists and drug dealers and murderers, but it brings an iota of solace. One day, a friend offers him a job being a mule, running illegal guns across the border. Mario knows there is more to the job, way more than he wants to even acknowledge, but he accepts. Soon, he finds himself on the road to perdition where the final destination may, literally, be Hell.
I could tell you more, but I don’t want to spoil the unending terror. Or the unexpected beauty. Be forewarned: this book is by turns a graphic depiction of the evil that men do and a total tearjerker. Mario is both an unlikable anti-hero and a poor sap that you can’t help but root for and shed tears for because, depending on how God or the Devil lay their cards down, this guy could be any one of us.
Gabino Iglesias’s novel “The Devil Takes You Home” is chicken soup for the sado-masochistic soul. It’s the perfect story for anyone who hates Christmas. It’s torture porn for Grinches.
If Cormac McCarthy and Laird Barron teamed up to write a road novel, it would be this novel.
I haven’t read a horror noir this bleak since, well… ever. Actually, the closest in tone that I can recall was a graphic novel series by Garth Ennis called “A Walk Through Hell”, which honestly still gives me the chills.
It’s actually a decent comparison because, like Ennis’s graphic novel, “The Devil Takes You Home” is a surprisingly spiritual novel, and one that is asking some seriously tough questions about faith.
The novel’s protagonist, Mario, was once a happy husband and father. Then, his daughter was diagnosed with terminal cancer, and before he even had time to process the diagnosis, she is dead. Soon after, he leaves his wife (or she leaves him, it’s unclear but also irrelevant), and unable to deal with the staggering grief, he goes to work for a local cartel as an assassin. He rationalizes his actions by telling himself that the people he kills are pedophiles and rapists and drug dealers and murderers, but it brings an iota of solace. One day, a friend offers him a job being a mule, running illegal guns across the border. Mario knows there is more to the job, way more than he wants to even acknowledge, but he accepts. Soon, he finds himself on the road to perdition where the final destination may, literally, be Hell.
I could tell you more, but I don’t want to spoil the unending terror. Or the unexpected beauty. Be forewarned: this book is by turns a graphic depiction of the evil that men do and a total tearjerker. Mario is both an unlikable anti-hero and a poor sap that you can’t help but root for and shed tears for because, depending on how God or the Devil lay their cards down, this guy could be any one of us.
March 23, 2024
This was super dark and super gritty! Very graphic too! I wasn’t expecting that! But it’s a very well told story and I really liked it… feels like an SA Cosby book with some supernatural elements in it which obviously I really like!
Mario goes down a very dangerous path after his young daughter’s leukemia diagnosis to make money and try to pull his family back together… what he finds is one of the most horrifying things he could ever imagine!
Mario goes down a very dangerous path after his young daughter’s leukemia diagnosis to make money and try to pull his family back together… what he finds is one of the most horrifying things he could ever imagine!
August 26, 2022
Awful, at least for me. Mario and his wife Melisa have to deal with tragedy, which ends their marriage. Mario falls in a rut, and starts working as an assassin punishing bad hombres. Then, his one true friend Brian introduces him to Juan Carlos (Juanca), who is looking for two partners for a big score, ripping off one of the cartels. Mario convinces himself that this money will help him reunite with Melisa since one of their ongoing problems was a lack of suitable jobs and pay. Then things get trippy horror weird as their patron is deeply involved in serious bad magic. In addition to whiny characters, horrible racism against Hispanics, the Spanish dialogue was not translated nearly enough for us gringos to follow along. Over the top violence and grotesque developments again and again.
September 15, 2022
"Being in the presence of monsters is okay as long as you don’t think too much about what they’re capable of. The scarier thing is what you’re capable of yourself."
Similarly to S.A Cosby’s Razorblade Tears and Stephen Graham Jones’ The Only Good Indians, this book is violence and retribution, grief and pain. This is a book you’ll be gripping tightly as you read, a book with human monsters and paranormal underworlds, a book that will leave your jaw on the floor as it did mine.
Having read and loved author Gabino Iglesias’ short story contribution to one of my favorite anthologies--Orphans of Bliss, this is not my first introduction to his writing. But it is my first deep dive into a full novel and Iglesias' prose are as beautiful as they are raw, gritty, self-aware, and emotional.
The story follows Mario, a struggling father and husband who is suddenly delivered a ghastly blow when he learns his 4 year old daughter has been diagnosed with leukemia. In a desperate hope of securing cash to pay debts, he consults a friend who offers him a very dangerous job. Mario will soon see how much of a monster he is willing to become for love and family.
As readers follow Mario on this blood-soaked journey, themes of systemic oppression, racism, poverty, religion, traditions, and family are laid out effortlessly. And the ending!!!! You will be emotionally gutted by the final page.
Thank you to Mulholland Books for my advanced review copy of this brilliant book.
Similarly to S.A Cosby’s Razorblade Tears and Stephen Graham Jones’ The Only Good Indians, this book is violence and retribution, grief and pain. This is a book you’ll be gripping tightly as you read, a book with human monsters and paranormal underworlds, a book that will leave your jaw on the floor as it did mine.
Having read and loved author Gabino Iglesias’ short story contribution to one of my favorite anthologies--Orphans of Bliss, this is not my first introduction to his writing. But it is my first deep dive into a full novel and Iglesias' prose are as beautiful as they are raw, gritty, self-aware, and emotional.
The story follows Mario, a struggling father and husband who is suddenly delivered a ghastly blow when he learns his 4 year old daughter has been diagnosed with leukemia. In a desperate hope of securing cash to pay debts, he consults a friend who offers him a very dangerous job. Mario will soon see how much of a monster he is willing to become for love and family.
As readers follow Mario on this blood-soaked journey, themes of systemic oppression, racism, poverty, religion, traditions, and family are laid out effortlessly. And the ending!!!! You will be emotionally gutted by the final page.
Thank you to Mulholland Books for my advanced review copy of this brilliant book.
November 1, 2022
One part Cormac McCarthy, one part Elmore Leonard, and two parts Inferno, this is a quick paced tour through one man's apocalypse.
Where a father grieving the loss of his child finds an emotional vent for his rage against the world and life itself in violent crime.
Seeing a possible escape from his current problems and a new life for him and his estranged wife he accepts a job that will take him into the depths of the underworld. Both criminal and otherwise.
Often poetic and insightful, with biting commentary that hides vicious machinations and social manipulation underneath. The book begins desolate and in the final chapters moves into outright harrowing territory.
It's not fair, it's not easy, but it is honest.
A lyrical and atmospheric descent into hell. 8.5/10
Part of my big, yucky, Halloween review round up:
www.patreon.com/posts/74021554
Where a father grieving the loss of his child finds an emotional vent for his rage against the world and life itself in violent crime.
Seeing a possible escape from his current problems and a new life for him and his estranged wife he accepts a job that will take him into the depths of the underworld. Both criminal and otherwise.
Often poetic and insightful, with biting commentary that hides vicious machinations and social manipulation underneath. The book begins desolate and in the final chapters moves into outright harrowing territory.
It's not fair, it's not easy, but it is honest.
A lyrical and atmospheric descent into hell. 8.5/10
Part of my big, yucky, Halloween review round up:
www.patreon.com/posts/74021554
February 6, 2023
A Dark Journey of Mutilation Horror
Review of the Mulholland Books hardcover edition (August 2, 2022)
Note 1: This book contains very graphic scenes of violence especially involving body part mutilation and body part fetishization with supernatural elements.
Note 2: There are probably a few hundred sentences or expressions of untranslated Spanish in the book. A Kindle or other eBook edition with translation capability is recommended if you are not fluent in Spanish and/or do not enjoy reading in languages you don't understand. The 'Book of the Month' edition apparently provided a translation guide, but I have not been able to locate a freely available version of that online.
This is a very dark "barrio-noir" book which centres on a planned heist by hitman Mario, his meth-addicted friend Brian and cartel gang member Juanco. The trio are fronted by a cartel kingpin in the heist which is both a reprisal on a rival cartel and a plan of vengeance. Puerto-Rican American Mario has fallen on hard times after going into debt in an attempt to save his leukemia stricken daughter Anita. He then fell into depression and lost his wife Melisa who left him after his resultant abuse. The hospitals are after him to pay off his debts and in desperation he takes on hitman jobs. The 'one big final score' of $2 million would net each of the trio $200,000 after they reimburse their mentor. Mario dreams that he can still find redemption and reunite with Melisa and throughout the book he flashbacks to his early ideal life with his family. Considering the calibre of his allies, you know that this is not going to end well.
This is more of a horror fiction than a crime noir. Most of the horror is human however and relates to the removal of body parts, with the supernatural being hinted at throughout and only becoming realized towards the conclusion. This is not for the faint-hearted and some of its imagery is very disturbing.
I read The Devil Takes You Home due to its nomination for Best Novel in the 2023 Edgar Awards by the Mystery Writers of America. The winners of the 76th Annual Edgar® Awards will be announced on April 27, 2023.
Other Reviews
NPR Book Reviews at Consider the Depths of Darkness by Ilana Masad, August 6, 2022.
Soundtrack
Until I read The Devil Takes You Home I was not aware that the subgenre of Narcocorrido (Spanish: Drug Ballad) even existed. The music is heard several times by the protagonists in this book. Read further about this subgenre at NPR Narcocorridos: Ballads of the Mexican Cartels. The music of Chalino Sánchez (1960-1992) is mentioned, particularly his song "Contrabando en la Frontera" (Spanish Contraband at the Border) which is based on a true life border shootout by Rosaura Santana and Juan Escalante. The song is on YouTube here and you can read the lyrics here.
Trivia and Links
The Devil Takes You Home has been optioned for a possible future film adaptation by Sony Pictures with director Alejandro Brugués. Read the background to that at Deadline.
Review of the Mulholland Books hardcover edition (August 2, 2022)
"Good," said Juanca. "Good. From now on, we ride con Diosito," he said and lifted his left forearm to show us the tattoo of an agonizing Jesus ... He finished while pointing to the Satan tattoo I'd already seen on his other arm. "Then, when it's time for things to get ugly we ride con El Chamuco. You know, because sometimes God is your copilot, but it's the Devil who takes you home."
Note 1: This book contains very graphic scenes of violence especially involving body part mutilation and body part fetishization with supernatural elements.
Note 2: There are probably a few hundred sentences or expressions of untranslated Spanish in the book. A Kindle or other eBook edition with translation capability is recommended if you are not fluent in Spanish and/or do not enjoy reading in languages you don't understand. The 'Book of the Month' edition apparently provided a translation guide, but I have not been able to locate a freely available version of that online.
This is a very dark "barrio-noir" book which centres on a planned heist by hitman Mario, his meth-addicted friend Brian and cartel gang member Juanco. The trio are fronted by a cartel kingpin in the heist which is both a reprisal on a rival cartel and a plan of vengeance. Puerto-Rican American Mario has fallen on hard times after going into debt in an attempt to save his leukemia stricken daughter Anita. He then fell into depression and lost his wife Melisa who left him after his resultant abuse. The hospitals are after him to pay off his debts and in desperation he takes on hitman jobs. The 'one big final score' of $2 million would net each of the trio $200,000 after they reimburse their mentor. Mario dreams that he can still find redemption and reunite with Melisa and throughout the book he flashbacks to his early ideal life with his family. Considering the calibre of his allies, you know that this is not going to end well.
This is more of a horror fiction than a crime noir. Most of the horror is human however and relates to the removal of body parts, with the supernatural being hinted at throughout and only becoming realized towards the conclusion. This is not for the faint-hearted and some of its imagery is very disturbing.
I read The Devil Takes You Home due to its nomination for Best Novel in the 2023 Edgar Awards by the Mystery Writers of America. The winners of the 76th Annual Edgar® Awards will be announced on April 27, 2023.
Other Reviews
NPR Book Reviews at Consider the Depths of Darkness by Ilana Masad, August 6, 2022.
Soundtrack
Until I read The Devil Takes You Home I was not aware that the subgenre of Narcocorrido (Spanish: Drug Ballad) even existed. The music is heard several times by the protagonists in this book. Read further about this subgenre at NPR Narcocorridos: Ballads of the Mexican Cartels. The music of Chalino Sánchez (1960-1992) is mentioned, particularly his song "Contrabando en la Frontera" (Spanish Contraband at the Border) which is based on a true life border shootout by Rosaura Santana and Juan Escalante. The song is on YouTube here and you can read the lyrics here.
Trivia and Links
The Devil Takes You Home has been optioned for a possible future film adaptation by Sony Pictures with director Alejandro Brugués. Read the background to that at Deadline.
July 22, 2022
After the death of his daughter and the dissolution of his marriage, Mario is offered a job by his friend and former co-worker turned drug dealer, Brian, to become a hired gun. When he's introduced to Brian's friend Juanca, the three form a pact to hit a cartel run coming across the border - the infamous "one last job" that promises to set each of them up for life, if they can survive.
Gabino Iglesias has steadily built a name for himself in the small-press world with barrio noir-horror cross-genre hybrids like Zero Saints, the absolutely sublime Coyote Songs, a number of short stories across a wide-range of horror, noir, and bizarro anthologies, and a spate of awards. The Devil Takes You Home marks, I believe, Iglesias's Big 5 debut by way of Mulholland Books, and firmly showcases the talent of this rising star.
Mario is a wonderfully three-dimensional protagonist. Life's given him a raw deal, but he keeps stubbornly pushing ahead, even when that means doing bad things (albeit some of those bad things are done to worse people, so maybe it balances out in an end justifies the means kinda way). He's also surprisingly self-aware and reflective (fitting for an author who writes with his heart on his sleeve), his own grief and guilt dogging his heels with regularity, and deeply in-touch with his emotions. Rather than pushing what he feels down into the recesses of his soul, he firmly embraces what his heart and mind is telling him, even if he doesn't always listen to his better impulses, or the visions and omens warning him of what's to come.
The Devil Takes You Home reads like Dante's Inferno by way of Cormac McCarthy. It exists in the arid desert landscape of the Mexico-US border, an interstitial landscape of predation and heady mysticism, where the criminal and supernatural underworlds become inextricably entwined. This is a dark world of omens and portents where cartels and brujas carry equal threatening weight, religious superstitions are made real, deadly creatures burrow into the walls of drug tunnels, and violence lurks around every corner, in every shadow. And, like Dante, Mario descends deeper and deeper into this realm of bestial violence, guiding us through one hellacious circle after another as his sins mount.
Gabino Iglesias has steadily built a name for himself in the small-press world with barrio noir-horror cross-genre hybrids like Zero Saints, the absolutely sublime Coyote Songs, a number of short stories across a wide-range of horror, noir, and bizarro anthologies, and a spate of awards. The Devil Takes You Home marks, I believe, Iglesias's Big 5 debut by way of Mulholland Books, and firmly showcases the talent of this rising star.
Mario is a wonderfully three-dimensional protagonist. Life's given him a raw deal, but he keeps stubbornly pushing ahead, even when that means doing bad things (albeit some of those bad things are done to worse people, so maybe it balances out in an end justifies the means kinda way). He's also surprisingly self-aware and reflective (fitting for an author who writes with his heart on his sleeve), his own grief and guilt dogging his heels with regularity, and deeply in-touch with his emotions. Rather than pushing what he feels down into the recesses of his soul, he firmly embraces what his heart and mind is telling him, even if he doesn't always listen to his better impulses, or the visions and omens warning him of what's to come.
The Devil Takes You Home reads like Dante's Inferno by way of Cormac McCarthy. It exists in the arid desert landscape of the Mexico-US border, an interstitial landscape of predation and heady mysticism, where the criminal and supernatural underworlds become inextricably entwined. This is a dark world of omens and portents where cartels and brujas carry equal threatening weight, religious superstitions are made real, deadly creatures burrow into the walls of drug tunnels, and violence lurks around every corner, in every shadow. And, like Dante, Mario descends deeper and deeper into this realm of bestial violence, guiding us through one hellacious circle after another as his sins mount.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 13, 2022
I just cannot with this book. It is so boring. Like it is causing me to read less because I dread picking it up. It was my most anticipated book of the month this month. Im 80 pages and I am bored to death. Also the spanish adds nothing to this book. My BOTM came with its own translation guide that I was excited to get. I am currently learning spanish and was excited to learn more. But it takes away from the flow of the book. Me constantly having to close the book to look up a passage. Im using the translation guide as a book mark. And today Im just tired of being broken out of the immersion of a story.
April 14, 2023
The devil take me away from this awful book!
SPOILERS
My main issue is with our protagonist, Mario, and his relationship to the audience versus his relationship to the plot.
Mario has been through the ringer: his daughter died of a horrible disease, his wife left him soon after and he's drowning in medical debt. His friend Brian introduced him to the wonderful world of killing people for money, and Mario has now signed on for one last big job: one that, hopefully, will keep him financially comfortable for life and maybe even get him back together with his wife.
So he, Brian and this guy named Juanca head from Austin down to Mexico and back to Austin, picking up guns and magic good luck charms along the way, intent on ambushing a cartel vehicle loaded down with cash. The proceedings are appropriately gritty, a tad sleazy and incredibly supernatural which, added together, should make for a fun ride.
The problem is we are firmly stuck in Mario's head and perception of the world, and Mario has a LOT of opinions on things. He misses his wife and daughter, which makes sense, but he also mentions it constantly and comes across as . . . I dunno, whiny? A little self-pitying? I want to be sympathetic to the dude, but it's hard to enjoy their mission when everything, EVERYTHING reminds him of his wife and daughter.
Secondly, Mario pontificates a lot. At the beginning of the book, he describes himself as intelligent, which I believe to be true, but I am not exaggerating when I say he has an opinion on EVERYTHING. Before heading to Mexico, the trio stop at a barbecue joint and encounter some stereotypical racists. They (by which I mean Juanca and Mario) beat the snot out of them and make it clear that they should amend their bigoted ways. Pretty straightforward scene, right? But then Mario spends several pages explaining how pervasive racism is in America, how it's such an evil, how everybody's implicated in this grand evil. And I agree with his point of view, but also . . . you beat the guys up. Why are you telling us this when your actions indicated everything we needed to know?
Finally, Mario being in his head all the time makes the other characters seem hollow, two-dimensional. Mario has known Brian for a long time, but over the course of this journey, we come away knowing two things about Brian: he's a junkie trying to get clean and he's an indignant white boy who questions EVERYTHING that happens. And Juanca's personality doesn't help things, either. He's your stereotypical gruff, strong, silent type, constantly telling Brian to shut up and not ask too many questions. But also . . . they're on a life or death mission here. Why wouldn't Juanca give them more details about what's going to happen? Unless there's some sort of contrived twist at the end of the book that requires him to be obtuse, and obtuse in the most manufactured way possible. But, no, that couldn't be the case.
Either way, you have endless scenes of Brian asking indignant questions and Juanca telling him to shut up. And all the while, Mario is not engaged. He perceives, but he's not involved in the proceedings AT all, except for brief moments of action. Instead of character development, there's pontificating and instead of staying present, Mario's constantly thinking to the past or the future. Which, let me be clear, is a valid choice for your protagonist. I get the impression that The Devil Takes You Home wants to be both a gritty and gory heist story and a reflective piece on the nature of grief and trauma and regret, with plenty of socio-political commentary thrown in. It IS a valid choice, and it COULD work.
The problem is the writing's not strong enough to have it both ways. When I'm complaining about Mario, I'm also complaining about Gabino Iglesias: not just because he's making the choice to write Mario this way, but because when Mario and others talk, it sounds less like the character speaking and more like the author speaking through him. Later on in the book, there's a scene where the trio acquire guns, and Juanca spends a few lengthy paragraphs talking about how easy it is to get guns in America, and then the white gun dealers spend a few lengthy paragraphs explaining how much easier it is for white guys to get guns than it is for brown guys, and then Mario recaps the whole scene with a lengthy screed about racism and how guns are tearing this nation apart. (Also, one of the white gun dealers has a Dawn of the Dead t-shirt, and Mario keeps calling the zombie on his shirt a creature instead of a zombie. Just call it a freakin' zombie, my guy!)
And that is The Devil Takes You Home. It's a lot of emotion and opinion, but lacking in character development. It punctuates these long, tedious scenes of driving with moments of action, but those moments of action are described the same whether it's shooting a guy or opening up a garage door. And, most frustrating of all, the prose is just so extra a lot of the time. It's the classic "saying 'as of right now' instead of 'now'": Iglesias constructs phrases and sentences in a way that tries to elevate the prose but just comes across as exhausting AND it feels really inappropriate for the material.
It's bad. It could have been good, I like to think I see where it was trying to go, but it just doesn't.
SPOILERS
My main issue is with our protagonist, Mario, and his relationship to the audience versus his relationship to the plot.
Mario has been through the ringer: his daughter died of a horrible disease, his wife left him soon after and he's drowning in medical debt. His friend Brian introduced him to the wonderful world of killing people for money, and Mario has now signed on for one last big job: one that, hopefully, will keep him financially comfortable for life and maybe even get him back together with his wife.
So he, Brian and this guy named Juanca head from Austin down to Mexico and back to Austin, picking up guns and magic good luck charms along the way, intent on ambushing a cartel vehicle loaded down with cash. The proceedings are appropriately gritty, a tad sleazy and incredibly supernatural which, added together, should make for a fun ride.
The problem is we are firmly stuck in Mario's head and perception of the world, and Mario has a LOT of opinions on things. He misses his wife and daughter, which makes sense, but he also mentions it constantly and comes across as . . . I dunno, whiny? A little self-pitying? I want to be sympathetic to the dude, but it's hard to enjoy their mission when everything, EVERYTHING reminds him of his wife and daughter.
Secondly, Mario pontificates a lot. At the beginning of the book, he describes himself as intelligent, which I believe to be true, but I am not exaggerating when I say he has an opinion on EVERYTHING. Before heading to Mexico, the trio stop at a barbecue joint and encounter some stereotypical racists. They (by which I mean Juanca and Mario) beat the snot out of them and make it clear that they should amend their bigoted ways. Pretty straightforward scene, right? But then Mario spends several pages explaining how pervasive racism is in America, how it's such an evil, how everybody's implicated in this grand evil. And I agree with his point of view, but also . . . you beat the guys up. Why are you telling us this when your actions indicated everything we needed to know?
Finally, Mario being in his head all the time makes the other characters seem hollow, two-dimensional. Mario has known Brian for a long time, but over the course of this journey, we come away knowing two things about Brian: he's a junkie trying to get clean and he's an indignant white boy who questions EVERYTHING that happens. And Juanca's personality doesn't help things, either. He's your stereotypical gruff, strong, silent type, constantly telling Brian to shut up and not ask too many questions. But also . . . they're on a life or death mission here. Why wouldn't Juanca give them more details about what's going to happen? Unless there's some sort of contrived twist at the end of the book that requires him to be obtuse, and obtuse in the most manufactured way possible. But, no, that couldn't be the case.
Either way, you have endless scenes of Brian asking indignant questions and Juanca telling him to shut up. And all the while, Mario is not engaged. He perceives, but he's not involved in the proceedings AT all, except for brief moments of action. Instead of character development, there's pontificating and instead of staying present, Mario's constantly thinking to the past or the future. Which, let me be clear, is a valid choice for your protagonist. I get the impression that The Devil Takes You Home wants to be both a gritty and gory heist story and a reflective piece on the nature of grief and trauma and regret, with plenty of socio-political commentary thrown in. It IS a valid choice, and it COULD work.
The problem is the writing's not strong enough to have it both ways. When I'm complaining about Mario, I'm also complaining about Gabino Iglesias: not just because he's making the choice to write Mario this way, but because when Mario and others talk, it sounds less like the character speaking and more like the author speaking through him. Later on in the book, there's a scene where the trio acquire guns, and Juanca spends a few lengthy paragraphs talking about how easy it is to get guns in America, and then the white gun dealers spend a few lengthy paragraphs explaining how much easier it is for white guys to get guns than it is for brown guys, and then Mario recaps the whole scene with a lengthy screed about racism and how guns are tearing this nation apart. (Also, one of the white gun dealers has a Dawn of the Dead t-shirt, and Mario keeps calling the zombie on his shirt a creature instead of a zombie. Just call it a freakin' zombie, my guy!)
And that is The Devil Takes You Home. It's a lot of emotion and opinion, but lacking in character development. It punctuates these long, tedious scenes of driving with moments of action, but those moments of action are described the same whether it's shooting a guy or opening up a garage door. And, most frustrating of all, the prose is just so extra a lot of the time. It's the classic "saying 'as of right now' instead of 'now'": Iglesias constructs phrases and sentences in a way that tries to elevate the prose but just comes across as exhausting AND it feels really inappropriate for the material.
It's bad. It could have been good, I like to think I see where it was trying to go, but it just doesn't.
August 23, 2023
I'm choosing to rate this as a literary horror rather than a literary suspense or thriller. For me, while I really liked the themes this explored, I just didn't vibe with this story as a whole. It got very violent and for me, I'm just not into that for most books. I also felt like the beginning was stronger than the ending
That said, I think this book falls into the category of a Strong Flavor. Not everyone is going to love something that goes for it the way this does, but if you're intrigued, it is worth giving a try!
That said, I think this book falls into the category of a Strong Flavor. Not everyone is going to love something that goes for it the way this does, but if you're intrigued, it is worth giving a try!
August 16, 2022
The writing style of Gabino Iglesias is insanely impressive and is by far the best part of this book which earns it four stars alone. I wasn't as captivated by the story or the plot twist as I had hoped though. But this is definitely an author I'm watching out for in the future.
July 31, 2022
Star review in the June 2022 Issue of Library Journal and on the blog: https://raforall.blogspot.com/2022/05...
Issue will also feature a Q&A with Iglesias. Link is on the post or here directly: https://www.libraryjournal.com/story/...
Three Words That Describe This Book: lyrical, brutal, strong narrative voice
Draft Review:
Mario is barely getting by, providing for his wife and daughter, until a cancer diagnosis causes Mario's world to crumble. Desperate, he seeks out his drug dealing friend, Brian, for violent jobs that will cover his debts and get his family back. Brian introduces Mario to Juanca, and the three lost souls go on a road trip to avenge Juanca’s family and steal from the Mexican drug lords who have stolen so much already. This is no ordinary thriller, however, as Mario narrates, readers see the miles pass, sunsets on the open road, and horrors that hide in plain sight, as he comments on the unfairness of the world. Scenes of magic, love, family and faith, are contradicted by brutality, violence, racism, and terror. A masterclass in discomfort, a Bario Noir, a raw crime story that unapologetically incorporates the ghosts, language, and traditions of the people it honors, a compelling, revenge fantasy with a deadly twist, one readers will be unable to forget .
Verdict: The violence here is brutal and graphic, but the story is also lyrical and staggeringly* beautiful. This is for fans of S.A. Cosby and Stephen Graham Jones, authors of stories told by marginalized, sympathetic and complicated characters, where every detail matters; entertaining works of thought-provoking human truths and the monsters at their core.
Notes: Bundle of satisfying contradictions-- beauty of language one moment and then killing the next. Intelligent observations about systemic racism and living as a "brown" person on moment, children being mutilated the next.
Raw, honest, and beautifully written thriller w/ serious supernatural elements on the southern border-- Barrio Noir it names itself. It will make you uncomfortable in every way and you cannot, will not, and should not look away.
Sense of place is amazing. From descriptions of poverty to explaining the difference between sunsets in the Caribbean vs. American Southwest. A Cockfight followed by a graphic murder. The beautiful monotony of the open road. The underground scenes in the drug cartel tunnels are fantastic-- I don't want to say more on that.
Ghosts and monsters-- both real and speculative. I you are going to beat the cartels at their own game, you need something extra. You need a secret weapon.
Strong narrative voice of Mario. Brian and Juanca-- his roadtrip partners, the men he will kill with-- are also great characters.
Fast pacing that does not sacrifice the details or lyrical language, or musings about what systemic racism and poverty look like on a day to day basis for those living it. Short chapters mean that you think, oh I can just read one more. Many end with a tease to keep going as well.
The violence is brutal and graphic, and brutal. But literally the next line may be among one of the most beautiful things you have ever read.
Spanish is here unapologetically. Some of it is translated for the English speaking reader-- the important parts only. Oh, and those translations are in italics, not the Spanish. The Spanish is part of the novel and the dialog. If you can't read it....tough luck. you miss part of the book.
This is as good as the award winning Thrillers by SA Cosby, but the Horror here is not only from real life. This is a horror-thriller hybrid, from the start it just is in the background for most of the novel, there but not in your face, until it is, right there, undeniable.
Iglesias writes like Stephen Graphic Jones-- every detail matters, and the story is entertaining but also speaks lyrical human truths without holding back the violence and monsters.
Issue will also feature a Q&A with Iglesias. Link is on the post or here directly: https://www.libraryjournal.com/story/...
Three Words That Describe This Book: lyrical, brutal, strong narrative voice
Draft Review:
Mario is barely getting by, providing for his wife and daughter, until a cancer diagnosis causes Mario's world to crumble. Desperate, he seeks out his drug dealing friend, Brian, for violent jobs that will cover his debts and get his family back. Brian introduces Mario to Juanca, and the three lost souls go on a road trip to avenge Juanca’s family and steal from the Mexican drug lords who have stolen so much already. This is no ordinary thriller, however, as Mario narrates, readers see the miles pass, sunsets on the open road, and horrors that hide in plain sight, as he comments on the unfairness of the world. Scenes of magic, love, family and faith, are contradicted by brutality, violence, racism, and terror. A masterclass in discomfort, a Bario Noir, a raw crime story that unapologetically incorporates the ghosts, language, and traditions of the people it honors, a compelling, revenge fantasy with a deadly twist, one readers will be unable to forget .
Verdict: The violence here is brutal and graphic, but the story is also lyrical and staggeringly* beautiful. This is for fans of S.A. Cosby and Stephen Graham Jones, authors of stories told by marginalized, sympathetic and complicated characters, where every detail matters; entertaining works of thought-provoking human truths and the monsters at their core.
Notes: Bundle of satisfying contradictions-- beauty of language one moment and then killing the next. Intelligent observations about systemic racism and living as a "brown" person on moment, children being mutilated the next.
Raw, honest, and beautifully written thriller w/ serious supernatural elements on the southern border-- Barrio Noir it names itself. It will make you uncomfortable in every way and you cannot, will not, and should not look away.
Sense of place is amazing. From descriptions of poverty to explaining the difference between sunsets in the Caribbean vs. American Southwest. A Cockfight followed by a graphic murder. The beautiful monotony of the open road. The underground scenes in the drug cartel tunnels are fantastic-- I don't want to say more on that.
Ghosts and monsters-- both real and speculative. I you are going to beat the cartels at their own game, you need something extra. You need a secret weapon.
Strong narrative voice of Mario. Brian and Juanca-- his roadtrip partners, the men he will kill with-- are also great characters.
Fast pacing that does not sacrifice the details or lyrical language, or musings about what systemic racism and poverty look like on a day to day basis for those living it. Short chapters mean that you think, oh I can just read one more. Many end with a tease to keep going as well.
The violence is brutal and graphic, and brutal. But literally the next line may be among one of the most beautiful things you have ever read.
Spanish is here unapologetically. Some of it is translated for the English speaking reader-- the important parts only. Oh, and those translations are in italics, not the Spanish. The Spanish is part of the novel and the dialog. If you can't read it....tough luck. you miss part of the book.
This is as good as the award winning Thrillers by SA Cosby, but the Horror here is not only from real life. This is a horror-thriller hybrid, from the start it just is in the background for most of the novel, there but not in your face, until it is, right there, undeniable.
Iglesias writes like Stephen Graphic Jones-- every detail matters, and the story is entertaining but also speaks lyrical human truths without holding back the violence and monsters.
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