This book was my induction into the SMG fan club. As a mythology and folklore girlie, it brought into stark relief how little Latine mythology and folklore I’d read until then, and I’ve been chasing that high ever since. This is the story of a young woman with big dreams in a small Mexican town who unwittingly unleashes the Mayan god of death (which I will point out she only did after her bitch-ass primo pissed her off on some misogynist shit). The god makes her an offer she can’t refuse (join him on a journey to reclaim his throne), and so begins an epic, cross-country journey set in Jazz Age Mexico.

Bonus rec by this author: Certain Dark Things (vampires in Mexico City!), The Beautiful Ones (gossip! telekinesis! love and betrayal!)

Mariely Lares, you had me at “Zorro reimagining” and “Mesoamerican mythology.” In an alternate 16th-century Mexico, two decades after the Spanish conquest, a masked vigilante known as Pantera is doling out justice and fighting the tyranny of Spanish rule with a lethal combo of magic and swordplay. Leonora de las Casas Tlazohtzin is promised to the heir to the Spanish throne, a respectable lady loath to ruffle even the tiniest feather… OR IS SHE? Plot twist! Pantera and Leonora are one and the same, and the threat of an ancient prophecy may force Pantera to surrender her mask. If you’ve been waiting for the sequel, it’s out now!

This epic series starter draws inspiration from the history and folklore of colonial South America. Reina is an outcast who embarks on a journey to meet the grandmother she’s never met and is attacked on the way, and would have died had said grandmother, a sorceress, not stepped in to save her life. Eva, illegitimate and of mixed heritage, is the shame of her family, and she’s secretly drawn to forbidden magic. Both young women find themselves fighting for agency as they contend with their ties to magic, all in a world divided by prejudice and shaped by colonial rule.

A quick note: I haven’t read this one yet, and I’ve seen some reviews calling this book out for problematic portrayals of indigeneity. I found this two-part review by @mynameismarines on TikTok to be a thoughtful and nuanced examination of the book, including discussions about the author’s lived experience and fiction’s ability to discuss problematic topics but not condone them. Here are parts one and two of that review.

This plant-powered romantasy read is the first in a series about the Flores family women, who each possess a touch of magic. Sage Flores left her hometown years ago after her younger sister died, but has now returned reluctantly after losing her job. She slides back into her old gig at the Cranberry Rose Company, where her ability to speak to plants comes in handy when she’s tasked with tracking down some unusual plant specimens. Problem! Sage is paired with the last person she wants anything to do with on this botanical mission: Tennesse Reyes, the boy who broke her heart in high school. Now on top of her dead sister’s ghost bringing her coffee and her other sister’s volatile magic creating weather-related havoc, Sage has to find a way to resist the man she so desperately wants to hate. If you love plant magic, magical realism, and second-chance love stories, get into this book and series.

This is a sapphic monster novella with gothic fantasy elements inspired by the Mr. Fox variation of Bluebeard. What kind of monster, you ask? Just a giant humanoid spider named Anatema, Lady of the Capricous house, who just killed the keeper of the keys (and by killed, I mean ate). Now the keeper’s protégée, Dália, must take up the task of locking and unlocking the drawers of Anatema’s memories. The good news: access to these memories could be the key to unraveling the crime that led to her predecessor becoming a spidey snack. The bad news: Anatema loves her a beautiful woman, and has this pesky habit of devouring every one last of them that crosses her path.

This is the story of an Ecuadorian family who have long been in denial about the less-than-ordinary circumstances that have colored their lives. When the titular matriarch of the family summons them all for her funeral, they arrive to find that she is slowly transforming into a ceiba tree. As she prepares for her final transition, she bequeaths each of them with an unconventional inheritance. From there, the story alternates between Orquidea’s past and the family’s present, revealing how the gifts she left her descendants have shaped their lives—and the mystery she left them to solve. This beautiful work of magical realism and fantasy is bursting with heart, and is for me the crown jewel of Córdova’s prolific (and impressive) catalog.

This recommendation comes courtesy of Carmen, the lovely Latine lit champion behind BookTok account @tomesandtextiles. I like to think I’m pretty on top of this book thing, but Carmen routinely puts me on! This is a fantasy with romantic elements and a sapphic retelling of Pysche and Eros, but set in modern day with secret societies and a very sexy bargain. I’ve had this on my TBR since earlier this year and need to get to it soon!