Silver Nitrate
Fast paced
Suspenseful
Intense

Silver Nitrate

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Daughter of Doctor Moreau and Mexican Gothic comes a fabulous meld of Mexican horror movies and Nazi occultism: a dark thriller about the curse that haunts a legendary lost film—and awakens one woman’s hidden powers. Montserrat has always been overlooked. She’s a talented sound editor, but she’s left out of the boys’ club running the film industry in ’90s Mexico City. And she’s all but invisible to her best friend, Tristán, a charming if faded soap opera star, though she’s been in love with him since childhood. Then Tristán discovers his new neighbor is the cult horror director Abel Urueta, and the legendary auteur claims he can change their lives—even if his tale of a Nazi occultist imbuing magic into highly volatile silver nitrate stock sounds like sheer fantasy. The magic film was never finished, which is why, Urueta swears, his career vanished overnight. He is cursed. Now the director wants Montserrat and Tristán to help him shoot the missing scene and lift the curse . . . but Montserrat soon notices a dark presence following her, and Tristán begins seeing the ghost of his ex-girlfriend. As they work together to unravel the mystery of the film and the obscure occultist who once roamed their city, Montserrat and Tristán may find that sorcerers and magic are not only the stuff of movies.
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Reviews

Photo of Alli
Alli@maybeitsalli
4.5 stars
Oct 16, 2024

Old cinema, blood magic, conspiracy theories and cults is a combination I didnt know I needed in book form. I love how much care Silvia Moreno-Garcia puts into her books - there is so much depth and richness here. Likable & unique characters, with an interesting plot. This was a slow build in the beginning, but I couldn’t put it down after the first half. I could see all of the scenes so vividly in my mind - I think this would make a fantastic movie as well.

Silvia Moreno-Garcia continues to be my favorite author.

Photo of Patty Pforte
Patty Pforte@pfortep1
4 stars
Oct 11, 2024

Really enjoyed this book and its blend of cinema, magic, and examination of racist Aryan myths that continue to be perpetuated about the art, cultures, architecture of Mexico and Latin America.

+12
Photo of Apiecalypse Jen
Apiecalypse Jen@chippedfang
4 stars
Sep 24, 2024

As someone who both appreciates the absurdity of cookers and the depth of the isomeric white supremacist conspiracy theories and esoteric alien and Illuminati history, AND the culture of horror films, can I say what an ambitious crossover? This had so much detailed and nuanced research down both sides of those roads and still managed to tell a truly weird and interesting story about people and how they relate to each other over time. Not a simple task by any measure, let alone one that pulls off blood magic and classic film nerds.

+3
Photo of Steve Langton
Steve Langton@stevel
4 stars
Mar 10, 2024

Another winner from Silvia Moreno-Garcia. This one will be catnip for fans of ,the Horror genre, with the author's love of the wonderful world of Mexican Horror Cinema shining through. Silver Nitrate concerns an incomplete film that must be unearthed to summon a magician from beyond the grave. Expect a beautifully written and paced book, with 2 winning central characters, a former film director and relentless chase scenes, all bound up with potent magic. A good, solid read and highly recommended.

Photo of Whitley
Whitley@ofmermaids
4 stars
Jan 17, 2024

silvia’s best yet.

Photo of Cody Degen
Cody Degen@codydegen
4 stars
Jan 12, 2024

Solid, easy read, I liked Mexican gothic more but still an easy 4- or so

Photo of shellybn
shellybn@pillywiggin
5 stars
Jan 8, 2024

I loved this book. It is now my favorite by Silvia Moreno-Garcia. The characters are fantastic, as is the setting. The plot device of tying magic to an old film is clever. I thoroughly enjoyed the mystery and suspense in this story. I loved the allusions to classic horror in this story, especially the nod to "The Keep", which is one of my favorites, but often seems to be overlooked. The way Moreno-Garcia incorporated old films, Nazis, and the supernatural to create a dark and engaging story is amazing.

Photo of OliviaPadilla
OliviaPadilla@livstoread
2 stars
Jan 5, 2024

I love Sylvia Moreno-García, but this book did not hit. I wasn’t moved or transfixed by the plot or characters. I couldn’t wait to finish the read.

Photo of Ashlyn
Ashlyn@demonxore
3.5 stars
Sep 18, 2023

Silver Nitrate is probably considered contemporary pulp, but it is very entertaining and hella well researched. I really love the true occult history details Moreno-Garcia uses as worldbuiling enrichment.

+4
Photo of Abigail
Abigail@abigailb
3.5 stars
Sep 14, 2023

This read like a spooky Wikipedia article which is fun sometimes but got very long and overly expository in full novel format.

Photo of Amelia Hruby
Amelia Hruby@ameliajo
3.5 stars
Sep 11, 2023

I really need this to be a movie

+3
Photo of Gisela Ayala
Gisela Ayala @giselasmusings
5 stars
Aug 17, 2023

This book This book This book. I finished it last night and I just stared because I couldn’t believe it was over and what a freaking incredible journey this book took me on. This has got to be my favorite Silvia Moreno Garcia book yet! It’s creepy, it’s spooky, and it’s thrilling. I also love how she seamlessly inputs historical tidbits in her stories. It makes the characters and the plot truly come alive. I could totally see this book becoming a limited series and in fact, I hope it does. I KNOW this will become part of the list of books I reread every year.

+4
Photo of Jenell Pizarro
Jenell Pizarro@nellarro
4 stars
Sep 15, 2024
Photo of Kiley
Kiley@reader22
4.5 stars
Feb 3, 2024
Photo of Dana
Dana@midnightlibrarymouse
5 stars
Jan 6, 2024
+3
Photo of Susan Forsythe
Susan Forsythe@bookmaven
3.5 stars
Dec 17, 2023
Photo of claire
claire@calorie
2.5 stars
Dec 10, 2023
+4
Photo of Sam White
Sam White@samiwhit68
4 stars
Nov 21, 2023
Photo of Deborah Kerr
Deborah Kerr@debbie
3 stars
Sep 15, 2023
Photo of Cheryl Hedlund
Cheryl Hedlund@cappuccino136
4 stars
Sep 8, 2023
Photo of Boothby
Boothby@claraby
3.5 stars
Sep 4, 2023
Photo of Nova ♡
Nova ♡@novareads
4 stars
Jun 16, 2024
Photo of Itzel
Itzel@itzea
5 stars
May 8, 2024
Photo of baku
baku@swallowthemoons
3 stars
Apr 7, 2024

Highlights

Photo of Ashlyn
Ashlyn@demonxore

This novel uses a bit of real occult history as a backdrop and alludes to the stranger-than-fiction life of American rocketeer Jack Parsons. Silver Nitrate doesn't focus on Parsons at all, but it's super crazy and coincidental that I keep seeing his story everywhere, along with the uncanny connections to figures like Aleister Crowley, L. Ron Hubbard, and golden-era Hollywooders. What a weird world!!

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