House of Mist: A Novel by María Luisa Bombal
My rating: 3/5 cats
so. this book. they tell me that this is the first magical realism novel. ever. i disagree, but then me and “they” have always had differences of opinion.
this just doesn’t scream “magical realism” to me. sure, there are elements of the genre within, but they are elements that magical realism shares with the gothic romance, which this book feels more like to me. so there, take that, “they”!!
i may spoil some developments here with my callous distinctions, but that is a warning and you can do what you like from here on out. ima try not to, but i am in a mood, so discretion is not currently a priority.
so, there are prophetic dreams and visions. there is tragic, mysterious death, there is secret family history, there is a crumbling ancestral home, there is a form of mistaken identity, there are inheritances and marriage and secrets revealed and maybe-ghosts. i mean, mary stewart much?? this is pretty much textbook gothic, not magical realism.
also, there are bees and mist. in fact, all i could think about the whole time i was reading was Of Bees and Mist, which was very similar, very similar indeed. i am squinting at you, setiawan! you need to explain why your book also relies so very heavily upon fairy tale elements and seeeeecrets and, oh yes, bees and mist. j’accuse!
this is a fine book, if you ignore the psychological and emotional torment our heroine undergoes at the hands of her husband/sister’s widower, and the very convenient wrap-up. but, then, if you are reading this as gothic romance, you pretty much expect that sort of thing.
even “they” do.
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