SILVER NITRATE by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

My Quip: Hot MC Caught in a Plot from the Walmart B-Movie Bin

Today’s Topic: Silver Nitrate by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

From the Top: Clocking in at just over 100,000 words, Silver Nitrate is a slow-burn horror novel that promises a wild ride through the occult underbelly of diner-delicious-cigarette-smoke 1990s Mexico City. Moreno-Garcia weaves a tale of cursed films, Nazi magicians, and a sound engineer named Montserrat who’s meatier than a two-dollar steak. The premise alone is what got me intrigued. Imagine a lost reel of celluloid so drenched in dark magic it could rewrite reality. It’s the kind of concept that makes me want to dive headfirst into the pages, mezcal in-hand, ready for a cinematic thrill. And Montserrat? She’s a Badass who’s spent her life elbowing her way through a male-dominated industry, armed with grit and a charming rugged limp. Moreno-Garcia’s love for retro vibes and obscure history shines here.

My Quip:

Here’s the thing.

While the setup is fresh and Montserrat’s resilience carries the book like a champ, Silver Nitrate stumbles into a swamp of horror clichés that even a cursed film reel can’t salvage. We’ve got the tortured artist with a shadowy past, the creepy old mentor who knows too much, and a romantic interest who’s just brooding enough to make you roll your eyes. The occult intrigue starts strong, but by the midway mark, it’s like Moreno-Garcia decided to lean hard into every trope she could pluck from the B-movie bin at Walmart. The pacing drags as we’re fed exposition dumps about arcane rituals (usually something I enjoy), and the will-they-won’t-they tension between Montserrat and her childhood pal Tristán feels like it was ripped from a dog-eared script. It’s frustrating because the bones of something brilliant are here. Montserrat’s a character I’d follow into any haunted editing bay, but the story trips over its own predictability. I just feel like, for such a strong feminist character, the narrative went to waste taking her potential with it.

Tie it Off: If you’re a sucker for atmospheric horror with a side of film geekery, Silver Nitrate might still scratch that itch. Montserrat alone is worth the price of admission. She’s the kind of MC who’d punch a demon in the face and then fix its sound mix. But if you’re hoping for a genre-defying knockout, this one’s more of a flickering reel than a blazing masterpiece.

Flavor Profile: cigarettes, diner coffee, and smudging herbs.

Also, why does this book feel like it’s set in NYC? Doesn’t feel true to the actual culture of CDMX.