Publisher’s Description
In this mosaic horror/crime novel, ghosts and old gods guide the hands of those caught up in a violent struggle to save the soul of the American southwest. A man tasked with shuttling children over the border believes the Virgin Mary is guiding him towards final justice. A woman offers colonizer blood to the Mother of Chaos. A boy joins corpse destroyers to seek vengeance for the death of his father.These stories intertwine with those of a vengeful spirit and a hungry creature to paint a timely, compelling, pulpy portrait of revenge, family, and hope.
Summary
I recently read Coyote Songs by US author Gabino Iglesias after several recommendations and it did not disappoint.
Coyote Songs is a series of independent short stories that feature a family and the introduction of violence into their lives. The shattering of a child’s innocence with unexpected violence drives him to seek revenge. The mother becomes a symbolic portrait of vengeance incarnate and the devastation of a hopeful life. Intertwined is the coyote who assists the desperate to cross borders but becomes increasingly determined to fight back against the abuse of those he has aided to cross into a ‘better life’. The drive for vengeance and violence in both main story arcs intertwine in a compelling resolution.
Review
Coyote Songs was a masterpiece of a novel. The novel consists of a series of stories, often with interlinking characters and an overall story arcs that follows the noir theme of violence and struggle in a horrorscape of a city. Here, hope and revenge are intertwined in a gritty tale of a family’s drive towards increasing violence and revenge. Igleasias is a compelling storyteller and brings these worlds of crime and the supernatural into a thrilling novel.
Conclusion
A thrilling dark fiction combining gothic horror, ghosts, crime, gritty noir, politics and ancient gods. A fantastic and important read. Highly recommended!!
** This is my personal opinion and does not reflect any judging decisions **
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