Book Review: The Daughter of Doctor Moreau by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

“Pain must be endured, for without it there’d be no sweetness.”

Silvia Moreno-Garcia, The Daughter of Doctor Moreau

Review:

Carlota has spent most of her life in a sort of isolation. Her father’s estate provides enough companionship and entertainment that she can’t picture her life anywhere else. She sees herself inheriting the estate someday and taking care of her father’s experiments — the hybrids. 

Carlota’s vision of the future starts to change with the arrival of two men visiting the estate. For the first time, she can see herself leaving home, getting married… but the Doctor’s experiments may be in jeopardy and the hybrids in danger.

I reluctantly picked up this book because I didn’t care much for Mexican Gothic but I’m so glad I did. Though different from the books I usually read, I was absorbed into the story and found myself wanting more once I reached the end. What I enjoyed most were the spiritual themes, though I can’t say much without having to mark for spoilers. I can see myself rereading this in the future. 

Likes & Dislikes:

What I liked:

• Though I haven’t read The Island of Doctor Moreau by H.G. Wells this felt like a solid retelling.
• The spiritual themes.
• The character growth.

What I didn’t like:

• While I anticipated it, it was a little gorier than I would have prefered.
• Some scenes just didn’t sit well.

Afterthoughts:

I read this to fill a reading challenge prompt and it ended up being a great surprise!

Where to buy the book: