Safe Return Doubtful

A few books have addressed the theme of grief in recent years, but this may well be the most inventive.

Cordova’s novel also shows how powerful the horror genre can be with an untethered imagination. Having said that, there classic influences are evident here.

It begins with the tragedy of a child’s death. 11 year old Santiago has suffered illness from birth, to live as long as he did defied medics. His mother, Magos, narrates, in a cold and distant manner, her mind on other matters than her son’s death. Calmly, she slices the corpse open and cuts out a piece of the lung, as a ‘memento’, and very much to the horror of her husband. They soon go their separate ways, her, back to her mother’s house to a rural part of Mexico.

Her mothers’s maid tells her of local folklore of how a woman tended a young girl’s heart until it grew into a person, and subsequently how she became cursed. In spite of the maid’s cautions, Magos goes ahead.

That is just a précis of the first chapter, but it’s enough to get an idea of what is to follow.

By its nature it is experimental, and as well as its many strengths and innovation, it has weaknesses. But it is a hugely bold piece of writing that one can only admire.

My GoodReads score 4 / 5