Thank you so much to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for access to an eARC in exchange for my honest review!!

what's it about? ⬇️

When a sudden tragedy leads to the deaths of Estela's parents and everyone else in the Subway car with them other than Estela and media attention turns her into a spectacle, Estela is checked into a facility to monitor her mental health and, for a while, stuck feeling like she is suddenly all alone in the world. Until a letter arrives from her estranged Aunt who lives in Spain, inviting her to come and live with her in her little village called Oscuro. And though her parents never spoke of any other family members, there is no other choice for Estela but to go along with this relocation plan and make the best of things.

When she arrives, she is met by a tiny village cloaked in the shadow of the castle--actual castle--where she's meant to live, and as if that wasn't already strange enough, things only get stranger from there, from the strange shriveled seed-pod 'pills' her Aunt prescribes for her to the oddly fervent attitude of the village boy teaching her Spanish to the horrific--and hauntingly beautiful--shadow creature that stalks her through the castle at night.

But this is only the beginning of Estela's journey, as Oscuro and la Sombra have far more secrets and mysteries and dangers to reveal as she settles in, and many of them may threaten her safety and even her life.

my thoughts? ⬇️

I had such high hopes going into this book. It seemed like it would be right up my alley, and there was so much promise in the first half of the book. But things very quickly went off the rails, and while I love a good plot twist, there were so many and they were so outlandish each time that it was hard to suspend my disbelief that far and to keep up with the plot as the roller coaster kept getting even crazier.

I considered DNF'ing more than once, but I stuck with it to see Estela through her journey and to see just how wild things got, and by the end...I did end up enjoying it, even though I think I have more complaints than praise.

The inclusion of a vampiric house, a vampire prince from a separate dimension, magical powers connecting only to twins in this one bloodline (that spans multiple dimensions and species), and the struggle between actual sisters to actually kill one another in order to survive was just a lot to swallow. And especially that last bit really got to me personally, since the first mention of Antonella actually excited me and kept me going because I thought their bond would be what saved them both. And then that definitely wasn't what I got.

All in all, it's a 2.5 star rounded up to 3 for me. I wouldn't not recommend it for fans of gothic lit in search of a chaotic, crazy ride, but it's not one I'd recommend for anyone outside that niche.

trigger warnings ⬇️

death of parent(s), child death, blood, murder, death, gore, body horror, violence, grief, injury/injury detail, fire/fire injury, suicidal thoughts, suicidal ideation, suicide attempt, self harm, dysphoria, drug use, medical content, forced institutionalization, mental illness, panic attacks, bullying, body shaming, gaslighting, abandonment, child abuse, media abuse, sexual assault, sexual content, eating disorder, body dysmorphia.