I loved the last section on the older sister, and the ubiquitous question about whether destiny is made or forged by actions throughout the book and the stories of the four siblings, but there's something that felt wrong about the treatment of some of the characters, especially the younger ones. Maybe just to...soup opery? I honestly don't know how to describe it. I may be alone in this opinion. I do think it's a great book conceptually, but the lenguaje felt plain and something about the characters was off. 

Sorry for that vague review.

Hermoso, la voz de la narradora ayudó, pero hay mucho lirismo y belleza en la prosa de la autora. Quiero leer todos sus libros, porque además logró contarme sobre la muerte de un niño en los 1500 y el dolor de su madre de una manera que nunca me cansó, sino que me hacía querer seguir escuchando. 

Lovely.

I want to go back and study philosophy (I thought about it briefly anyway before). Mostly it makes me realize that intersectionalism, not mentioned in the book explicitly, is a philosophical stand. It makes me want to write things about it. I'm also in love with Mike Schur.

Super entertaining read. At the same time, it feels like another WW2 story with strong female characters.

Es un muy buen libro, pero personalmente me fue difícil avanzar en la historia (a pesar de lo corto que es). Creo que esto tiene que ver con no estar en el espacio mental correcto para leer este tipo de historias que muestra un pedacito de la cruda realidad mexicana. Fernanda Melchor lo hace increíblemente, poniendo su lupa y lenguaje en un lugarcito de Veracruz, pero a veces es simplemente difícil seguir el camino de algo que se siente tan cercano, no porque yo me parezca a alguno de los personajes, sino porque ese sabor de vacío y desastre moral se sabe a lo peor de México.

Must read

The problem I have is that it doesn't feel like it can stand alone as a novel, there are various climax points, but not a main one and it is evident the idea is to continue reading the series, which is ok, just not my preference.

What I loved was that it is based on a theory for whom Merlin was (no magicians in the book) in real life, and I had no idea until the last section read by the author who described her research about this. Pretty cool.

Good, but not for me. I am not a fan of horror (not because it scares me, but because it usually doesn't, or I find it cringy). However, I am sure I will love the series (there has to be one coming soon). It's one of those books that feels like it's been written to become a series. I also feel that as a Mexican reader, the whole premise is a bit less surprising, I just have this theory that part of the excitement is reading about Mexico in a different gothic, old timey light.

Maravillosamente escrito. Vale sabe usar las palabras para describir su mundo, sus pensamiento y las asociaciones entre estos. Qué cosa.

Thrilling, lovely and perfect for science fiction lovers.

Meh. Te venden el libro como si fuera a redimir o edificar la figura de la esposa de Nábokov (no que yo supiera mucho de ella antes) y terminan con medio libro contado desde la voz de él y luego presentándote a una mujer medio histérica, celosa, controladora hasta la muerte (literal) y medio loca. Una doña sin talento pero de armas tomar... ok. Puede ser, pero ¿y su humanidad? ¿la retratan en el miedo que demuestra el haber cargado co un révolver a donde fuera? Nah. Lo terminé porque estaba cortito pero meh.

I read the first part at the beginning of the year and It disappointed me a bit because I thought (weirdly) that the tv version was better, more gruesome, specific and intense. However, I loved this second part, not only because it answers questions, but because it does so in a magnificent way by choosing three characters that give us a 360 view of the women of Gilead. Even if you know more or less what's going to happen, you get submerged in the story. At least that happened to me. I hope you enjoy too.

Qué forma más original de acercanos a las realidades más duras de Latinoamérica, a las realidades que suenan a pesadillas, a leyendas tétricas, a las peores películas de horror. Y el acercamiento que Mariana nos da, desde mi punto de vista, es emocionante, emotivo en ocasiones, humorístico en otras y siempre bien escrito.

En poquitas páginas, unas 75, la autora desarrolla una filosofía del oficio de cuidar (a otros que no pueden cuidarse a sí mismos) que es tan amena y cálida como inteligente y profunda. Vale muchísimo la pena leerlo por muchas razones, siendo la más básica que esta mexicana tiene una voz original y una mente que brilla, y que sin sermonear o ser demasiado coloquial, te habla de todo México desde la experiencia de cuidar.

This is a beautiful memoir of which chronology is the least important aspect of it. The author looks back at her 18-year-old marriage with M, whom we get to know as a kind, smart, ambitious, adventurous, loving and eager to protect. She writes this at a point where you can tell that her marriage has suffered a big shake, where she has doubt him more than ever, where she has questioned the future, and for me, a woman about to embark on marriage, it was a lovely and honest reading, a preparation for the tumultuous and beautiful life ahead of us.