These Vengeful Wishes

November 4, 2024
When Nicaraguan American Cecilia “Ceci” Navarette, an aspiring artist, sends an anonymous tip to the police, her step-
father—with whom she lives in luxury due to his shady business dealings—is arrested for fraud. With him in jail and divorce proceedings imminent, Ceci and her mother are forced to move back to her mother’s hometown of Santa Aguas, which is shrouded in fear of the legend of La Cegua, a female spirit with the face of a horse skull. As Ceci moves into her new home—a mansion her mother received in the divorce—she unearths the history of its previous owners, whose male members all died young. Upon Ceci finding a door in the woods near the house, she uncovers a well in a scene that looks uncannily like her own paintings. Urged by a mysterious voice, Ceci uses the well to make wishes that grant her wildest desires. But each wish comes with a price. Though the convoluted plot occasionally disorients, the complexly rendered characters and their relationships are a bright spot in this revenge-fueled horror novel by Montalban (A Tall Dark Trouble). Ages 14–up.

December 1, 2024
Grades 9-12 Ceci Navarette never lets anyone get too close to her. It's a protective measure learned from being frequently uprooted by her socialite mother. Their latest move takes them to Santa Agua, Florida, the small town where her mother grew up after emigrating from Nicaragua. Much to Ceci's surprise, her mother owns an old mansion there that once belonged to the wealthy Sevilla family, rumored to have been cursed by a witch. Ceci can't help falling in love with this strange place and the stories of La Cegua (a woman from Nicaraguan folklore) indelibly stitched into its fabric. While pursuing information on the Sevillas and La Cegua, Ceci makes genuine friends (including the very cute Jamie) and starts to reevaluate her habit of keeping the world at arm's length. Fans of Silvia Moreno-Garcia's Mexican Gothic (2020) will adore Montalban's haunting mystery. The story's supernatural elements cast a nightmarish sheen over the events, though they occasionally provide Ceci with answers too conveniently. Nevertheless, it is an immersive, eerie read that examines the historic mistreatment of women and the wounds they often carry.

COPYRIGHT(2024) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

December 1, 2024
A scandal forces a high school senior to move to her mother's childhood home--a tiny town with a secret. Aspiring artist Cecilia "Ceci" Navarette enjoyed a privileged life in Miami until her millionaire stepfather was arrested for fraud. Afterward, her newly broke mother (even Ceci's college fund is gone) relocates them to remote Santa Aguas, Florida, where she owns an old mansion. Ceci's first impressions are bleak; graffiti on the town's welcome sign warns of la Cegua, a woman from a Nicaraguan folktale who lures men into the forest and petrifies them. As Ceci settles into the estate once owned by the Sevilla family, the town's founders, she uncovers their bloodline's chilling legacy--a supposed curse that led six generations of male heirs to untimely deaths and one to disappear. Inexplicably drawn to the house, Ceci finds inspiration for her art. After she paints a mysterious garden door, she's exploring the grounds with her kindhearted new friend, Jamie, when she stumbles upon the actual door. Beyond it, in the forest, she and Jamie find a statue of la Cegua guarding a wishing well. But the wishes it grants could come with perils, putting Ceci and her loved ones in grave danger. Nicaraguan American Ceci is a richly developed protagonist, yearning for genuine connections, while Jamie emerges as a dreamy love interest. This gothic tale weaves together a captivating backstory with entertaining--if occasionally predictable--twists. A delightfully eerie exploration of curses and wishes.(Horror. 14-18)

COPYRIGHT(2024) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

January 1, 2025

Gr 9 Up-A fast-paced ghost story about betrayal and revenge, brought to life by flawed yet deeply relatable characters. When Ceci's stepfather is arrested, she knows exactly what comes next: her mother will sell off their valuables, they'll pack up the car, and they'll start over somewhere new. This time, they return to Santa Aguas, her mother's hometown, where they take up residence in the abandoned Sevilla mansion, home to the family that founded the town. Ceci soon becomes enmeshed in the legend of La Cegua-a vengeful spirit said to lure corrupt men to their doom. As an aspiring painter, Ceci has always been inexplicably drawn to the image of a mysterious door in the forest. Now in Santa Aguas, she feels an even stronger pull toward the forbidden woods and the haunting tale of La Cegua, convinced this spirit is what brought her to the town. One fateful night, the door from her paintings manifests in the woods, leading Ceci and her new friend-and potential love interest-Jamie to a wishing well inhabited by the spirit of La Cegua. What follows is a riveting exploration of the town's hidden past as Ceci uncovers the tangled connections between the spirit, the cursed Sevilla family, and her own mother. Montalban masterfully portrays the complex dynamic between Ceci and her mother, immersing readers in their relationship before unraveling the chilling secrets of La Cegua. As the truth unfolds, readers will find themselves captivated, racing toward an unforgettable conclusion. VERDICT Recommended purchase; hand this to fans of Trang Thanh Tran's She Is a Haunting and Krystal Sutherland's House of Hollow.-Ashley Grillo

Copyright 2025 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.