Reviews tagging 'Misogyny'

Goddess of Filth by V. Castro

23 reviews

hollowspine's review

dark emotional hopeful tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

A group of girls, just graduated from HS, have one last summer together. For two of them it will be especially memorable. The group decide to have a little fun with a séance, but when Lourdes invites an ancient being to inhabit Fernanda, it actually works. Fernanda immediately writhes on the floor and speaking in a language the group doesn't understand, though Lourdes believes it might be Nahuatl, the ancient language spoken by indigenous peoples of Mexico and Central America.

The story is told in two central POVs of the two girls, but also a few chapters from other POVs, including a local Catholic Priest and Fernanda's mom.   Lourdes is just trying to save her friend as well as navigate the adults in her life who treat her like she's worthless, when she has dreams just like any young woman - to take classes, pursue her interest in history and have a career, not work at the local Sonic. Fernanda has been kept close by her parents and has had little chance to have growth experiences like her peers. She wants to figure some things out before going to college, like how she feels about her sexuality, what makes her feel good and be sure in her own mind.

The central messages of body positivity and sex positivity and sexual freedom for girls came through, along with a good story of teenage friendship and the dangers of letting other people decide who you are.

 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Misogyny, Blood, Trafficking, and Kidnapping

asolis's review

dark reflective medium-paced

2.5

 A teen girl séance ends with one of them getting possessed by an ancestral spirit, which leads our Chicana circle of friends to self-actualization, sexual liberation, and general girl power - with some vigilante justice along the way. The premise was interesting but the execution was clunky (including a cartoonishly evil Catholic priest). 

The writing felt a bit immature, which may have been intended to match the narrator, but resulted in some simplistic prose and stiff dialogue. It felt very YA, but with a lot of "mature content." Unfortunately I came away  really meh about this decolonized ghost story novella. 

I was also distracted by an unclear sense of time for when the story was taking place. Musical references mostly suggested the mid 90s or so, while technology ranged from "the family computer" to using phones to record video. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body horror, Cursing, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Sexual content, Blood, Religious bigotry, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Infertility, Self harm, Vomit, Trafficking, Stalking, and Colonisation

vererito's review against another edition

hopeful fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Misogyny, Sexual content, Blood, and Murder

Minor: Trafficking and Colonisation

bookishholly's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated

4.0

I think this being approached as a typical horror is where people are marking it down. This book clearly has so much to say, rather than just trying to scare you. There are such beautiful prose about the terrors women, especially women of colour face. And to mark this down because it wasn’t “horrifying” enough is to do disservice to the horrors that marginalised people face every day. 
I will give it a 4 star for now because so felt that I needed a little more from the characters to fully fall in love with the book but my rating may increase as I sit with it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Misogyny, Sexism, Blood, Religious bigotry, and Murder

Moderate: Kidnapping

Minor: Bullying

louiepotterbook's review

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Homophobia, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Sexism, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

zombiezami's review

dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious sad tense fast-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Bullying, Racism, Vomit, Kidnapping, Stalking, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Incest, Xenophobia, Trafficking, and Alcohol

mothmania's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Death, Self harm, Violence, Stalking, and Alcohol

Minor: Mental illness, Misogyny, Forced institutionalization, Trafficking, and Deportation

spicycronereads's review against another edition

adventurous dark hopeful mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

Set in San Antonio, Texas, Goddess of Filth is the story of five Latina friends and amateur brujas who graduated from high school a year ago. It is told primarily from the points of view of Lourdes and Fernanda, with Fernanda’s sections sometimes narrated by Tlazoltéotl, the Náhuatl-speaking goddess of filth who inhabits her after the girls summoned “an old spirit” in a ceremony inspired by The Craft. The main cast of characters is rounded out by Ana, Perla, and Pauline. Short sections are also narrated by Father Moreno, a serial unaliver obsessed with purity/La Virgen, who is brought in by Fernanda’s mother to address the changes in her daughter after she is inhabited. The final major character is Dr. Camacho, a Professor of Mexican and pre-Columbian history who Lourdes enlists to help them figure out who is inhabiting Fernanda. She helps them identify Tlazoltéotl and translate her Náhuatl, fulfilling the goddess’ desire to have her stories heard in a world where they have been largely lost to history or eclipsed by Catholicism. 

The goddess responds to the girls because of their strong friendship and we see that as one of the central themes of this book. Living in a world where Brown girls are subject to interlocking oppressions of gender and race, the girls have fierce love for one another that helps them survive. Their experiences with the goddess lead them beyond surviving to claim their power and ultimately thrive. One of my favorite quotes is “Everything about her could be considered a nightmare, but I wasn’t scared. She flowed with fury, beauty, and power” (loc. 352).

This is not a romance genre book but there is a bit of romance (and some spice!) between Fernanda and Pauline’s brother, Ruben. The romance plot serves primarily as a catalyst for Fernanda’s embracing of her pleasure and pursuing her own desires and goals. So I give it an unexpected 🌶️🌶️. There is really not much romance or spice but what is there is swoony, steamy, and undeniably intersectional feminist. 

Speaking of which, the novella has lots of diverse representation- the five Latina girls being the foremost. Even among them we see diversity in class representation with Lourdes having to work a lot to help support her family and care for younger siblings to help her mother in the wake of an absentee stepfather. The other girls’ families seem more financially stable, though still working class or lower middle class. Fernanda is the only one headed to an Ivy League college with a slate of scholarships.

Though Dr. Camacho does help Lourdes gain admission and a scholarship to UTSA, which validates her knowledge and problem-solving skills that come less from high school and more from documentaries and street smarts.

Overall I really liked this short horror novella. I did find that I had the same reaction here that I often have with short stories - really liked it on an intellectual or conceptual level but it was too short for me to feel emotionally invested. I recommend it to anyone who wants a quick read about young women of color claiming their power in a world of patriarchy and white supremacy that operates through school, family, and church. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/🌶️🌶️

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Racism, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Gun violence, Sexual content, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Stalking, and Murder

Minor: Genocide, Torture, Trafficking, Abandonment, and Colonisation

mermaidsherbet's review against another edition

dark emotional informative inspiring mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Minor: Body horror, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Alcohol, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Deportation

readingsofaslinky's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

What an excellent horror novel! Something that truly celebrates and empowers womanhood and body autonomy. Bad ass brujitas~ I cannot wait to read all of V. Castro’s work!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content and Blood

Moderate: Misogyny, Religious bigotry, and Murder

Minor: Trafficking