Silver Nitrate by Silvia Moreno-Garcia review: Menacing and magical happenings made believable

Silvia Moreno-Garcia is a diverse and skilled writer turning to horror with her latest novel, Silver Nitrate. The Mexican-Canadian author has already had success writing in such diverse genres as historical, fantasy, noir and gothic fiction, and this time she delves into an occult horror story with real verve and style. Silver Nitrate is set within the film industry of Mexico City in the ’90s, where Montserrat is a talented but isolated sound editor. 

Along with her faded soap-star friend Tristán, she gets involved with ageing cult horror movie director Abel, who enlists their help in finishing an old movie which, he claims, was cursed. 

Get the latest news and insight into how the Big Issue magazine is made by signing up for the Inside Big Issue newsletter

Abel thinks that the silver nitrate stock that the original movie was filmed on was imbued with dark magic by a Nazi occultist, and while that seems ridiculous to Montserrat to begin with, she is gradually disturbed by dark forces around her as the story progresses. 

Moreno-Garcia’s strengths here are creating a menacing atmosphere and weaving real-life films and movie myths with possibly magical and devilish goings-on. The pacing of the narrative is expertly judged and the revelations perfectly placed. This is a writer with a natural feel for horror tropes and a desire to subvert them when needed. This is also a book that digs deep to create a believable framework for
all the supernatural happenings. Exemplary stuff. 

Doug Johnstone is an author and journalist 

Silver Nitrate by Silvia Moreno-Garcia is out now (Jo Fletcher Books, £18.99). You can buy it from The Big Issue shop on Bookshop.org, which helps to support The Big Issue and independent bookshops.

This article is taken from The Big Issue magazine, which exists to give homeless, long-term unemployed and marginalised people the opportunity to earn an income. To support our work buy a copy!

If you cannot reach your local vendor, you can still click HERE to subscribe to The Big Issue today or give a gift subscription to a friend or family member. You can also purchase one-off issues from The Big Issue Shop or The Big Issue app, available now from the App Store or Google Play.