Vampires of El Norte by Isabel Cañas

SYNOPSIS

As the daughter of a rancher in 1840s Mexico, Nena knows a thing or two about monsters - her home has long been threatened by tensions with Anglo settlers from the north. But something more sinister lurks near the ranch at night, something that drains men of their blook and leaves them for dead.

Something that once attacked Nena nine years agon.

Believing Nena dead, Néstor has been on the run from his grief ever since, moving from ranch to ranch working as a vaquero. But no amount of drink can dispel the night terrors of sharp teeth; no woman can erase his childhood sweetheart from his mind.

When the United States invades Mexico in 1846, the two are brought abruptly together on the road to war: Nena as a curandera, a healer striving to prove her worth to her father so that he does not marry her off to a stranger, and Néstor as a member of the auxiliary calvary of rancers and vaqueros. But the shock of their reunion - Nena’s rage at Néstor for seemingly abandoning her long ago - is quickly overshadowed by the appearance of a nightmare made flesh.

And unless Nena and Néstor work through their past and face the future together, neither will survive to see the dawn.

~~~~~

A western/horror love story for the ages, Vampires of El Norte transcends genre’s to bring us seat gripping thrills and heartrending emotion.

I could not get enough of this book and I knew as soon as I started reading it, that it would make it into my top reads of the year list. Vampires of El Norte is the perfect October read to experience that “monster lurking around the corner” horror while paralleling supernatural monstrosity with that of real human acts of violence. Following Nena and Néstor in this western tale felt akin to the scary stories you tell around a campfire in the dead of a crisp autumn night. We get a tale of star-crossed, childhood sweethearts with a healthy dose of angst born of separation, we get the thrilling events of monsters born into reality, we get the heartbreaking history of invasion and colonization, and we get it all in one book. Historical Romance and Supernatural Horror wrapped up in one book is literally exactly what I love in life so there is no question that this was the exact book for me. Nena was a strong and independent character with relatable ambitions and dreams. Néstor was the ultimate flawed but faithful love interest. And together they were a pretty unstoppable dynamic duo. If you haven’t read this book yet, you need to immediately.

We start off how all the best stories do, in the past, with a monster attack. Nena and Néstor are just children with an unbreakable bond when they sneak out one night to find Spanish treasure. Nena is attacked by something neither child has seen or heard of before and Néstor, believing his best friend and the love of his life is dead, runs for the hills. Nine years later, Néstor has been living an empty life, working himself to death to save money for his own ranch and constantly missing the person he used to live for. When war breaks out, Néstor is driven back to the one place he swore he’d never return, Los Ojeulos, where he last seen Nena. When he gets there, to his utter shock and regret, she’s alive and his last decade of running meant nothing. Nena is angry that Néstor could be dumb enough to assume she’s dead and does not trust or believe him especially after learning how many widows and wives he’s wooed over the years while she waited daily for any word of his well-being. As they head to the front lines together, the endless antagonism and hurtful barbs fade into the background as more dangerous issues arise. Invading forces and supernatural monsters stalk and hunt our main characters while they journey to forgiveness, forcing them to work together and confront all their most secret and painful desires once and for all.

The angsty build-up of the “I spent all this time thinking she was dead and she’s really alive” trope really hit me in the feels and I was on the edge of my seat waiting for the reunion of these to lovesick characters and it did not disappoint. Cañas managed to build up such a good slow burn with this childhood sweethearts to reluctant allies to lovers that the pay-off was extremely satisfying and the fact that this author managed to do all this with the backdrop of both a horrific war and monstrous beings was insanely impressive. I don’t think this plot could have gotten more fascinating and, as complicated as you’d assume it would be with everything going on, it was so well executed that every single piece fell into place seamlessly. There was NO mental gymnastics needed to understand the fantasy/supernatural elements of this one.

This book is largely marketed as horror so I was surprised that it was just as much a historical romance. However, what shocked me the most was how a lot of the horror didn’t just come from monstrous things like Vampires, it came from humanity. Greedy, cruel, humans who were willing to plow down anyone in their path for LAND. Destroying families and cultures and heritages with no empathy or hesitation. The parallel between the vampires and the evil of the expanding Texan settlers as highlighted extremely well and chillingly. Because that part wasn’t fictional, and a lot of people alive today had family members that experienced that exact horror.

Néstor and Nena both had fantastic character development and the supporting characters were also so layered. Even with characters like Beto and Abuela and Javiera having small scenes, I spent the entire book concerned for their well-being and I loved them instantly. Nena, despite being the daughter of a ranchero, has still had a hard life. She faced death, lost her best friend, and grew up with a toxic parental relationship. Seeing her grow from her self-interested naivety to a more mature and empathetic person while still keeping her self-interests as an important pillar of who she is, was striking. A lot of “spoiled” characters lose that selfishness as they grow but I liked that Nena still had ambition and drive to get what she wants. Néstor, though super loveable and faithful, was a little bit of a coward and I loved him finding his courage and purpose. The grew and developed together but could stand alone as individuals. They were better together, but could stand on their own.

I, obviously loved this book to pieces. I gave it 5 stars and this was my book club pick this month so I cannot WAIT to gush about it with my friends. It’s the perfect October read and is a great fit for lovers of romance, historical fiction, horror, and westerns (believe it or not). This book is probably one of the best I’ve read all year and minutes after closing the book, I was already downloading everything else this author has written. I highly recommend this one.