The Hacienda
In the turbulent aftermath of the Mexican War of Independence, Beatriz has lost everything: her father executed, her home destroyed, her mother's family unwilling to take her in. So when the wealthy Don Rodolfo Solórzano proposes marriage, she accepts, choosing security over caution and ignoring the whispers about how his first wife died.
But Hacienda San Isidro, Rodolfo's remote country estate, is no refuge. The moment her husband returns to the capital, the house turns against Beatriz — cold spots, voices, red eyes in the dark, and dreams that leave marks. Isolated and disbelieved, she turns to Padre Andrés, a young local priest who carries a dangerous secret of his own: an inherited gift for witchcraft that the Church would see him burn for. Together they must confront whatever malevolence has taken root in San Isidro before it consumes them.
Isabel Cañas's atmospheric debut braids gothic horror, slow-burning romance, and the real violence of colonial-era Mexico into a haunted-house story told in two voices, as unsettling as it is romantic.
A young priest with an inherited, dangerous gift for witchcraft who helps Beatriz.
A mestiza newlywed who arrives at Hacienda San Isidro in 1823 with her criollo husband and finds the house is not empty.
Rodolfo's deceased first wife, whose death under suspicious circumstances haunts the marriage — the vengeful presence at the heart of the hacienda's haunting.
The wealthy widower whose first wife died under murky circumstances.
Rodolfo's sister, who actually runs Hacienda San Isidro's planting and harvest and chooses to live among the workers rather than in the main house.
This novel is a standalone work and does not require reading any other books to understand the story.
The author was inspired by her own heritage and her academic research into history, specifically aiming to fill a gap in the gothic genre by featuring characters and perspectives that she had not previously encountered in such stories.
The narrative primarily follows Beatriz, but it also includes chapters told from the perspective of Father Andrés, a local priest who possesses his own unique connection to the estate.