Silver Nitrate
True to her method, she succeeds here by knowing when to follow the rules of genre storytelling and when to turn them upside down ... Several times in Silver Nitrate, a spirit commands, 'Follow me into the night.' While the better part of us hopes Montserrat and her compatriots will refuse, there is simply no resisting the dark spells cast by Moreno-Garcia’s characters — nor those so expertly cast over readers by the author herself.
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If this sprawling tangle of mythic and literary references seems a little esoteric, fear not. Silvia-Moreno's soaring cosmic horror stays rooted in grit and feeling ... As always with Moreno-Garcia, the corporeal ends up meaning more to her characters than the spectral — and the heart is far from powerless against the horror. One recommendation: Read Silver Nitrate on paper. Moreno-Garcia imbues the tangible qualities of physical books with a palpable, talismanic power, just as she does with the vinyl records and silver nitrate film within those novels. And if any ink happens to come off on your fingers, take that as further proof of her magic.
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This book does not linger in subtlety. The budding, slow-burn romance between Tristán and Montserrat is telegraphed from the beginning. Inner thoughts are projected to the point where revelations feel toothless, and key plot details are delivered in stiff dialogue. Moreno-Garcia couches this world in endless references to actors, directors, horror films, occultists and Mexican companies. At its best, it is a robust and haunting picture of 1990s Mexico City, its film scene hollowed out by neoliberal reforms and bad taste. Other times, the details weigh down the narrative ... After this throat-clearing is over, the novel picks up, taking on an electrifying rhythm as Moreno-Garcia’s inventive and carefully arranged supernatural mystery unravels.
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