Title:   Castle of the Cursed
Author:   Romina Garber      
Genre:  Fantasy      
Rating:4 out of 5    

THE HOUSE IS ALWAYS HUNGRY…

After a mysterious attack claims the lives of her parents, all Estela has left is her determination to solve the case. Suffering from survivor’s guilt so intense that she might be losing her grip on reality, she accepts an invitation to live overseas with an estranged aunt at their ancestral Spanish castle, la Sombra.

Beneath its gothic façade, la Sombra harbors a trove of family secrets, and Estela begins to suspect her parents’ deaths may be linked to their past. Her investigation takes a supernatural turn when she crosses paths with a silver-eyed boy only she can see. Estela worries Sebastián is a hallucination, but he claims he’s been trapped in the castle. They grudgingly team up to find answers and as their investigation ignites, so does a romance, mistrust twined with every caress.

As the mysteries pile up, it feels to Estela like everyone in the tiny town of Oscuro is lying and that whoever was behind the attack has followed her to Spain. The deeper she ventures into la Sombra’s secrets, the more certain she becomes that the suspect she’s chasing has already found her . . . and they’re closer than she ever realized.

I feel like there was a lot going on in this novel:  romance, magic, a bit of scifi, a mystery, family drama, and a whole lot of darkness. I enjoyed the read, but it did feel a bit chaotic. I liked how the opening scene gave a glimpse into Estela’s life and relationship with her parents, which later turned out to be only the tip of the iceberg. This was a solid read, and I’d be interested in seeing more in this world with these characters.

Romina Garber is a bestselling author. Castle of the Cursed is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)

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