The Hacienda – Book Review

Mexican Gothic meets Rebecca in this debut supernatural suspense novel, set in the aftermath of the Mexican War of Independence, about a remote house, a sinister haunting, and the woman pulled into their clutches…

In the overthrow of the Mexican government, Beatriz’s father is executed and her home destroyed. When handsome Don Rodolfo Solórzano proposes, Beatriz ignores the rumors surrounding his first wife’s sudden demise, choosing instead to seize the security his estate in the countryside provides. She will have her own home again, no matter the cost.

But Hacienda San Isidro is not the sanctuary she imagined.

When Rodolfo returns to work in the capital, visions and voices invade Beatriz’s sleep. The weight of invisible eyes follows her every move. Rodolfo’s sister, Juana, scoffs at Beatriz’s fears—but why does she refuse to enter the house at night? Why does the cook burn copal incense at the edge of the kitchen and mark its doorway with strange symbols? What really happened to the first Doña Solórzano?

Beatriz only knows two things for certain: Something is wrong with the hacienda. And no one there will help her.

Desperate for help, she clings to the young priest, Padre Andrés, as an ally. No ordinary priest, Andrés will have to rely on his skills as a witch to fight off the malevolent presence haunting the hacienda and protect the woman for whom he feels a powerful, forbidden attraction. But even he might not be enough to battle the darkness.

Far from a refuge, San Isidro may be Beatriz’s doom.

So these days, I have been reading a lot of horror books, because, it’s the month of October, which is the spooky season and I specifically bought these books so I can read during the spooky season.

The Hacienda by Isabel Canas is one of those books I specifically bought to read during the spooky season.

Beatriz loses everything when her father is taken away and executed and she and her mother loses everything. Determined to create a name for herself, Beatriz meets the handsome Don Rodolfo and marries him despite the rumors circulating around about his first wife. Beatriz moves into San Isidoro and Beatriz is determined to make San Isidoro her own home. But San Isidoro is not what it seemed. When Rodolfo returns back to the capital, strange things happen around, making the house unhabitable for Beatriz. Beatriz believes that a dark spirit is lurking around the house. She seeks help from Padre Andreas, who two years ago was banished from San Isidoro, as she is determined to find the history behind the house.

The whole book felt like I was watching a horror movie. Some parts of the book were really scary–darkness looming around, red-eyed dark spirit, sharp teeth…it was too scary to read but nonetheless, I couldn’t put the book down. The story is told mostly in Beatriz’s POV and Andreas’ POV. I like how Beatriz and Andreas get together, trying to save the house and trying to dry the dark spirit out of the house. Juana, Beatriz’ sister-in-law is cold in character and she and Beatriz have a very cold relationship. I also learned lot of Mexican traditions and culture, the things that were used to exorcise the ghosts. Both Beatriz and Andreas are courageous characters–particularly Andreas who risked his own life and job to help Beatriz. I also liked how Beatriz, gets along with everyone including Paloma, who works at the Hacienda.

The descriptions of exorcism and the haunting kind of did gave me chills while reading this book, and as I earlier mentioned, it felt like watching a horror movie. The ending was great. Overall this whole book gave a sense of creepy feeling throughout and is a great horror book to read. Worth four stars. And since I actually enjoyed reading this book, I cannot wait to read more books from thus author.