Excellent Blend of Thriller, Folklore, and Cosmic Horror

 House of Bone and Rain by Gabino Iglesias

House of Bone and Rain book cover

Author Gabino Iglesias 

El Garita del Diablo El Morro San Juan LBM1948, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons

Image of Ellegua Happycheetha32, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons

Baron Samedi veve National Park Service, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

I was really excited to find Gabino Iglesias’s most recent book House of Bone and Rain in my library. Last year, I read The Devil Takes You Home and was blown away by Gabino’s mix of suspense, tragedy, crime, violence, and the supernatural. It may seem like a kind of unlikely combination, or maybe like he’s trying to mix up too many genres, especially with a father who experiences the worst tragedy, but it also created a kind of fearless character who had nothing left to lose. While that book took place in Texas and Mexico, Iglesias’s latest book takes place in his native Puerto Rico, specifically in San Juan, before, during and after Hurricane Maria’s devastation. In some ways, this creates another kind of desperation and hopelessness, but I think that Gabe, the main character of this book, has much more hope and more to live for and strive for than Mario, the father from The Devil Takes You Home. In some ways, Gabe and Mario are similar in that they both care about their loved ones, and are both haunted by tragedy—Gabe lost his father in another storm when he was younger, and his best friend’s mom was recently murdered. Yet, he also has a girlfriend who he cares deeply about, as well as his mother and his group of close friends, with whom he spends time and hangs out in Old San Juan. It is Gabe’s connection with his friends, especially his friend Bimbo, that propels him to pursue vengeance and enter the darkness that envelops Puerto Rico during and after the hurricane. Iglesias’s novel once again combines genre elements in a unique and entertaining way, both capturing what readers love about suspense, thrillers, and horror, but also slightly subverting some of the tropes in wildly inventive and novel ways. I loved how this was a story that featured a band of friends who unite to pursue justice and vengeance, only to find out that their pursuit might be misguided. I also loved that throughout the novel, Iglesias subtly brings up the history of colonization and exploitation of Puerto Rico, going back to the extermination of the Taino people. These are powerful nuggets reminding readers of the kind of dual status and veil that many Boricuas experience—being part of America, but not always completely accepted. I also loved that Iglesias incorporates Puerto Rican history, literature, and folklore throughout the book. One of the strongest elements of this book was Iglesias’s ability to integrate traditional folk practices and myths in the story, especially when dealing with the villains, who seem to have supernatural/black magic connection to their powers. Iglesias incorporates the trickster Elegua (also known as Legbas, Papa Legbas) as a powerful guardian of the roads, the path that Bimbo, and later Gabe, see as their only way to overpowering the powerful drug lords who control San Juan’s La Perla. Gabe also finds strange markings on his home and around San Juan as signs of vodou, bringing in the Caribbean traditional religion that has blended Yoruba and Catholic rites. Baron Samedi and other Orishas also make appearances that add to the creepy and mystical tone as the residents of San Juan seek survival in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria. 

 In addition to vodou traditions, one of the creepiest aspects of the book is when the hurricane occurs. I’m not sure if this is Puerto Rican mythology or something Iglesias invented, but he describes the kind of odd events that happen during a hurricane. In some ways, it reminded me of Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God, when the residents of Lake Okeechobee are waiting for the hurricane to pass. There’s this feeling of powerlessness and hope. Iglesias’s vision is much darker, where he describes monstrous babies born in the midst of the hurricane, some tearing out of the womb and inflicting physical damage to their families. Babies born with horns and sharp teeth are either murdered or murderers, harbingers of the powerlessness that humans experience in relation to nature. I’m not sure if these wild and supernatural events are connected to some later human-animal hybrids that we discover beyond the reef of La Perla. These creatures also seem to give the drug lords power over others and enable them to control the drugs and crime in San Juan’s famous neighborhood. I also loved this aspect of the book. Iglesias’s creatures and the desire to feed them bodies reminded me a lot of some of Lovecraft’s best monsters. There’s this kind of cosmic horror happening in wake of the hurricane, but also recognizing that the horror and violence on the island is much older and entrenched. 

I was on vacation in Puerto Rico in March, so I loved reading about San Juan, Loaiza, El Yunque, and other spots that I visited. In particular Gabe’s group of friends visit El Morro, the immense fortress that sits on the coast of Old San Juan and guards against invaders. He describes the Devil’s Sentry, a watchtower that sits below the ragged cliffs. I remember hearing something about the story of missing soldiers, and Iglesias brings this in to remind readers about the strange and mysterious history of this island. Whether Iglesias embellishes the myths and folklore or represents it accurately, he has done an excellent job creating an exciting and entertaining novel that effectively synthesizes the best elements of genre fiction while also incorporating traditional folklore and history. I borrowed this book from my digital library, and I sometimes hang on to digital books for a day or two afterwards to go over some different sections or lines that really stood out. However, I quickly returned this book since there were 4 people waiting for it. It’s too good of a book not to share with others. I can’t wait to read more from Iglesias, one of the most exciting and adventurous writers today.