Monstrilio

Name: Monstrilio
ISBN: 9781638930365

Gerardo Sámano Córdova

2023·326 pages

Fantasy Horror

body horror coming of age dark dreamy eerie family dynamics

“Heartfelt, bizarre, and unexpected. . . . At once a novel about family and love, a creepy tale that questions what it means to be human, and a celebration of queer stories, Monstrilio is as shocking as it is profound, and as humorous as it is thoughtful.”
— Gabino Iglesias, The Boston Globe

“uncompromising”
— Eric LaRocca, author of Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke and Other Misfortunes

“wholly unique”
— Eric LaRocca, author of Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke and Other Misfortunes

Grieving mother Magos cuts out a piece of her deceased eleven-year-old son Santiago's lung. Acting on fierce maternal instinct and the dubious logic of an old folktale, she nurtures the lung until it gains sentience, growing into the carnivorous little Monstrilio she keeps hidden within the walls of her family's decaying Mexico City estate. Eventually, Monstrilio begins to resemble the Santiago he once was, but his innate impulses―though curbed by his biological and chosen family's communal care―threaten to destroy this fragile second chance at life. A thought-provoking meditation on grief, acceptance, and the monstrous sides of love and loyalty, Gerardo Sámano Córdova blends bold imagination and evocative prose with deep emotional rigor. Told in four acts that span the globe from Brooklyn to Berlin, Monstrilio offers, with uncanny clarity, a cathartic and precise portrait of being human.

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Monstrilio

Gerardo Sámano Córdova

Year

2023

Pages

326

Fantasy Horror Literary Fiction

Praise

“Heartfelt, bizarre, and unexpected. . . . At once a novel about family and love, a creepy tale that questions what it means to be human, and a celebration of queer stories, Monstrilio is as shocking as it is profound, and as humorous as it is thoughtful.”
— Gabino Iglesias, The Boston Globe