The Haunting of Alejandra by V.Castro
The Haunting of Alejandra
Fiction, Horror
Del Rey
April 18, 2023
E Book, Audio, Hardcover
272
A woman is haunted by the Mexican folk demon La Llorona in this “utterly terrifying and wholly immersive . . . story about generational trauma, colonization, systemic oppression, and the horror at the heart of motherhood” (Library Journal, starred review).
“Castro is one of the most exciting genre authors on the scene right now, and this might be her most powerful book yet.”—Paste (Most Anticipated Horror Novels of 2023)
Alejandra no longer knows who she is. To her husband, she is a wife, and to her children, a mother. To her own adoptive mother, she is a daughter. But they cannot see who Alejandra has become: a woman struggling with a darkness that threatens to consume her.
Nor can they see what Alejandra sees. In times of despair, a ghostly vision appears to her, the apparition of a crying woman in a ragged white gown.
When Alejandra visits a therapist, she begins exploring her family’s history, starting with the biological mother she never knew. As she goes deeper into the lives of the women in her family, she learns that heartbreak and tragedy are not the only things she has in common with her ancestors.
Because the crying woman was with them, too. She is La Llorona, the vengeful and murderous mother of Mexican legend. And she will not leave until Alejandra follows her mother, her grandmother, and all the women who came before her into the darkness.
But Alejandra has inherited more than just pain. She has inherited the strength and the courage of her foremothers—and she will have to summon everything they have given her to banish La Llorona forever.
The Haunting of Alejandra by V. Castro
A deeply haunting and harrowing story that retells the tale of La Llorona, yet deeply looks into the darkness of motherhood.
The synopsis
Alejandra is tired and over extended. She is a stay at home mother and has since lost sight of who she is. She has also recently been having strange visions and thoughts, sometimes capturing glances of transparent figures, and what looks like to be a crying woman.
Each day she devotes her hours to mothering her two toddlers and eight year old daughter. Giving all her energy and time to their daily needs, cooking her husband’s favorite dinner, even ensuring that he gets his pleasure whenever he asks for it. Leaving so very little time for Alejandra to check with herself, to remember how deeply human she is. As she seeks out professional help from a curandera (a healer both physically and spiritually.) Both in the Alejandra’s sessions and alone, she gets deeper into the meaning of the visions and family curses that might end with her efforts in finding herself.
My experience with this book…
I had such a profound connection to The Haunting of Alejandra, V. Castro was able to both retell a classic Mexican folklore yet also paint a secret picture of the dark side of motherhood.
With each new vision, revelation, and hauntingly relatable dark thoughts, thought-out on paper I felt such an attachment to Alejandra and her journey. Even when I felt the symbolism was too deep to explain, my heart felt the kinship to *that feeling.*
That goes to say that V. Castro’s writing style is rich, vivid, beautifully macabre, they are lethal yet take great care of details. The Haunting of Alejandra was my first V. Castro book and I now want to read the rest of their back-list.
Do I recommend?
I absolutely encourage everyone to read The Haunting of Alejandra by V. Castro! This book is eerie, it’s sharp like a knife, yet compassionate. V. Castro wrote an all-absorbing story that will shake you to your core and revive your senses.
Carla is a born-again bookworm originally from Puerto Rico. Becoming a mom is what drove her back into the love of reading. Starting with the love of Romance books but now she enjoys any epic tales that are well written. She’s a mom of three, a wife, and resides in Central Florida. Hurricane news doesn’t scare her but finding out a second book in a series doesn’t come out for another year will send her into a real panic. Sending her chocolate and another great book works best to support her through such times.
