The Hacienda

*slight spoilers  Gothic historical horror, it follows newlywed Beatriz who experiences strange occurrences as she just arrived at her husband's hacienda, and her only help might be in the figure of Andrès, a priest who hides a dark secret. 
This was such a great debut novel, very reminiscent of gothic novels like Rebecca, The Haunting of House Hill or Mexican Gothic.  I really appreciated how the authors interwove historical and cultural elements of Mexico in the 19th century, taking on themes of colonialism, racism, faith, traditions, sexism.  The gothic, literally chilling atmosphere of the hacienda house was perfectly rendered especially in Beatriz's point of view, and I loved how the entity slowly destroys her physically and psychologically.  I also loved how the house was a living and breathing space, full of emotions.  Some parts had too much repetition in some of the things said or done, the reveal on who was responsible didn't feel impactful enough and the aftermath of the big showdown being a bit too dragged out, so this wasn't a perfect read.  Still this was an incredibly strong debut and I'm looking forward to reading more of Isabel Cañas' books.