I received this book for free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Signal to Noise Published by Rebellion on 13 September 2022 Genres: Fantasy
Format: ARC
Source: Netgalley
Goodreads
A literary fantasy about love, music and sorcery, set against the background of Mexico City.
Mexico City, 1988: Long before iTunes or MP3s, you said “I love you” with a mixtape. Meche, awkward and fifteen, has two equally unhip friends -- Sebastian and Daniela -- and a whole lot of vinyl records to keep her company. When she discovers how to cast spells using music, the future looks brighter for the trio. With help from this newfound magic, the three friends will piece together their broken families, change their status as non-entities, and maybe even find love...
Mexico City, 2009: Two decades after abandoning the metropolis, Meche returns for her estranged father’s funeral. It’s hard enough to cope with her family, but then she runs into Sebastian, and it revives memories from her childhood she thought she buried a long time ago. What really happened back then? What precipitated the bitter falling out with her father? And, is there any magic left?
After many years, I have finally finished this ARC. Unfortunately, it was not really worth it.
I fell in love with Silvia Moreno-Garcia when I chose to randomly pick up Mexican Gothic from the library. Since then, I’ve been crazy about reading anything she’s written. And for the most part, they’ve been pretty solid reads with beautiful cultural references, interesting magic systems (when they’ve been fantasy), and nuanced characters.
None of that was present in this novel. The story revolves around a group of friends who discover magic through music. The perspective switches between past and present and is predominantly focused on Meche. She’s an unlikeable character and this impression doesn’t change as the story continues. Sebastian is a slightly more interesting character but he gets limited opportunities to shine. Daniella is barely developed as a character, and she exists only for making the story work.
This novel also lacked the vibrancy I was hoping for from Garcia. Usually, her ability to describe the setting of the story and the atmosphere is so amazing that the readers find themselves transported there. In this novel, I didn’t get the feel of Mexico except for a few cultural references.
The magic system is also barely developed. Which is strange since this is a coming-of-age novel about three kids discovering magic.
And speaking of the plot, what was the point of the story? Was it a coming-of-age tale? If so, there was no character growth that usually is associated with this type of novel. Was it a revenge story? Was it about friendship? Honestly, I have no clue.
I know this was Garcia’s debut novel but even for a debut, this was a weak novel. It’s just a very flat story with few redeeming qualities.
