Certain Dark Things by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

"A gritty, bloody, dark take on Vampires, their existence in the world, how other countries deal with them and how one street kid in Mexico City is about to have his entire world turned upside down but, he's eager for the ride."

3 Stars

Pros: Bernardino's a great character, he's absolutely terrifying and brilliant/The ending, now that was unexpected but I liked it. It was well done.

Cons: Atl and Domingo's friendship, that at first started as just a necessity on Atl's part, still felt forced at times/Atl could be a real standoffish, cold, beast, she wasn't the most likable of characters/The dialogue was unbalanced and uneven at times.

Full Review:

Domingo is a street kid. He makes a living by collecting garbage and giving what he finds to other collectors or recycling it for money. All he knows about Vampires is what he's read from comic books. So when a dark, beautiful, girl asks him if he wants to be her friend, then takes her back to his apartment and promptly, feeds from him, once his head clears, he's enamored.

All he can think about is Atl. All he wants to do is be with Atl. So when it turns out that she actually could use his help navigating the dangerous streets of Mexico City, he jumps at the chance. Atl was a Warrior Priestess in one of the Aztec clans but a clash with another clan has left everyone she knows and loves, dead. So she's alone in the world. And though she's hesitant at first, hearing the voice of her sister in her head that she shouldn't "play with her food" she decides to give Domingo a shot.

Together they navigate a Mexico City that is dangerous and dark. Not only are there different clans and kinds of Vampires milling around, there are also drug cartels, gangs and law enforcement. Everywhere they turn is dangerous and Atl must rely on Domingos' street smarts to get anywhere.

At times the writing felt stilted, kind of uneven. The dialogue would feel strangely unbalanced. Domingo would go from saying something like, "I aint go no ID" to then in the next sentence asking eloquently, "But why would you feel this way?" It was just odd and gave the book an uneven, inconsistent feel.

It was an interesting enough story and one that kept me eager enough to find out what happened. And though the ending was not what I expected, once I'd read it and sat with it for a while, I figured it was the best way to end the novel and leave it as is.

Comments

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