Silver Nitrate
NATIONAL BESTSELLER • From the 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.
“No one punctures the skin of reality to reveal the lurking, sinister magic beneath better than Silvia Moreno-Garcia.”—Kiersten White, author of Hide
LOCUS AWARD FINALIST • A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: The New York Times Book Review, The Washington Post, Tordotcom, Polygon, CrimeReads, BookPage, Book Riot
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.
“No one punctures the skin of reality to reveal the lurking, sinister magic beneath better than Silvia Moreno-Garcia.”—Kiersten White, author of Hide
LOCUS AWARD FINALIST • A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: The New York Times Book Review, The Washington Post, Tordotcom, Polygon, CrimeReads, BookPage, Book Riot
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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Readers say *Silver Nitrate* is eerie, atmospheric, and immersive, filled with occult energy and rich cultural and film history. Reviewers agree Moren...
Silver Nitrate is eerie, atmospheric, and brimming with occult energy. Silvia Moreno-Garcia dives into themes of curses, obsession, old-school horror filmmaking, and the dangerous pull of dark belief systems — all while crafting characters who feel rich, flawed, and fully alive.
The culty elements were absolutely delicious and had me hooked. The tension builds slowly but powerfully, and by the midpoint I was holding my breath. The worldbuilding is immersive, the mystery is unsettling, and the supernatural elements feel grounded in a way that makes everything even creepier.
A beautifully written, chilling, unputdownable read. Silvia Moreno-Garcia continues to prove she’s one of my favorite authors.
The culty elements were absolutely delicious and had me hooked. The tension builds slowly but powerfully, and by the midpoint I was holding my breath. The worldbuilding is immersive, the mystery is unsettling, and the supernatural elements feel grounded in a way that makes everything even creepier.
A beautifully written, chilling, unputdownable read. Silvia Moreno-Garcia continues to prove she’s one of my favorite authors.
I really like the stories Moreno-Garcia tells, I just tend to get a little lost in the story-telling itself. Despite all the details, I kept a grasp on the plot and basically understood what was going down (magic! projected by film! the protagonists are the key to stop the bad guy!). I loved Monserrat and Tristan - both characters were really strong, interesting protagonists to me and their story is what really kept me hanging on. Just like Mexican Gothic, I loved the setting and the people - I just kept getting confused on who was who. Maybe it’s me. Maybe it’s my ADHD. Either way, I enjoyed this enough to guarantee I will read more of what Moreno-Garcia has written, and am looking forward to her forthcoming book in 2025. #bookstagram #librarian
It took me a while to get through this book, but I think ultimately I enjoyed it. The two leads with alternating perspectives are very different from each other and both have their own flaws and strengths. I feel like turning their friendship into a romance in the very last chapter didn't quite work. I would have liked a little more development throughout to make it feel less sudden. For a horror book, I would say the horror elements are fairly mild. I enjoyed learning about Mexican film and culture. The story is set in 1993, but the characters reflect on Mexico's past as well. I got a little bored with the villain backstory and spending time with the older, somewhat underdeveloped characters that were there to provide threats, rescues, and exposition mostly. I would recommend if you like the idea of niche horror movies, but don't actually want a book with really disturbing or gruesome scenes, and don't mind a slower pace that's more character focused.
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