Book Review: The Queen of the Cicadas by V. Castro
Title: The Queen of the Cicadas
Author: V. Castro
Release date: June 22, 2021
From the beginning, V. Castro has been one of my biggest supporters. I’m always humbled when people continuously show up for you, and V.’s always done that. From reading and posting about my work, to sharing in celebratory news and blurbing some of my releases, I can’t thank her enough.
In that same time, I’ve been trying to keep up on my reading with her written output, but she’s been super prolific and with my TBR getting to the point of giving my Kindle a migraine, I’ve fallen a bit behind.
So, it was, that I was excited to see this one, her Bram Stoker-nominated, Flame Tree Press novel arrive at the top of my list. I’ll be diving into her ‘Alien’ franchise novel soon, but this one was up first and I began with an anxiousness that I’d not felt in some time.
What I liked: The novel is split into two time periods, the 50’s and present day, and in each, we’re given strong women characters to root for. In the 50’s, its Milagros, a young, Mexican woman who has moved to the States to work on a farm and earn money to send home to her family. In the present day, its Belinda, a Mexican woman trying to find her path in life after some setbacks – personal and professional – but who has a connection with Milagros.
Set on the sprawling farm where a horrific event took Milagros from this earth, Belinda desperately wants to bring Milagros closure, while also trying to get to the bottom of what happened and why the land is cursed.
The scenes between Belinda and the Queen of Death were phenomenal and felt much like what Barker had done with his Cenobites and human characters. It was unnerving, creepy as hell and showed that she had power and restraint.
The folklore/Mexican-lore that influenced this and drove the narrative was really well done and it gave the story a textured and aromatic presence, bringing you directly into each scene as V. wrote like a possessed author pouring forth her soul.
The ending – while expected – still contained an emotional wallop, one that will hit the reader in the guts before pushing you to the floor and driving in deeper with your assailants heel.
What I didn’t like: I found that the novel suffered a few pacing stutters. We would be racing along only for someone to go to bed or they’d wake up the next day and seemingly not want to continue following what had been happening.
As well, there was a huge missed opportunity to create a truly frightening scene, when a Scy Fy ghost hunting show came to the farm. I was expecting a significant portion devoted to them filming, discovering and revealing what was happening, but instead everything involving them was over and done with in five or six paragraphs.
Why you should buy this: V. Castro has found her storytelling voice and fuck if it isn’t powerful and a refreshing change. Strong characters, women who want to have sex, not be taken advantage of and who’ll rip someone’s heart out if they look at them the wrong way. I’ve long been a fan of Castro’s work, but seeing her literary rise has been nothing but amazing and inspiring and this one is a solid read from start to finish.
4/5
