MonstrilioMonstrilio
What it's about
After her eleven-year-old son Santiago dies, his grieving mother, Magos, cuts out a piece of his lung and keeps it, following an old folktale. It grows into a creature, Monstrilio, which the family raises as their own. But as the creature grows into a man, his monstrous hunger becomes harder to control.
Why it's worth reading
It was a Goodreads Choice finalist. It's a strange, tender horror novel about grief.
You'll love it if you liked
The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina
Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng
FrankensteinGood to know
It's gory and deals with the death of a child.
By the numbers
- Readers46 out of 100 · counts 42%
- Critics0 out of 100 · counts 14%
- Bestseller25 out of 100 · counts 34% (its stronger lane)
- Buzz0 out of 100 · counts 10%
Critics and Bestseller are two ways to earn a place: a book's stronger one counts more. Buzz rewards recent bestseller weeks and prizes, so older books start at zero. The parts combine into the Must-Read Score, shown on a scale where the best book we found scores 99 and the last book to make the ranking scores 50.
On our reserve shelf: it's well reviewed, but isn't currently a prize winner, a lifetime bestseller or a book everyone's talking about, so we don't rank it. We check again every month, and it can still turn up in your 50 once you've read most of our ranked books.
Why it made the list
Reads as
Dark, Gripping
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Quick answers
Is Monstrilio worth reading?
It was a Goodreads Choice finalist. Its Must-Read Score is 61.6 (the best book we found scores 99).
What is Monstrilio about?
After her eleven-year-old son Santiago dies, his grieving mother, Magos, cuts out a piece of his lung and keeps it, following an old folktale. It grows into a creature, Monstrilio, which the family raises as their own. But as the creature grows into a man, his monstrous hunger becomes harder to control.
How long does it take to read Monstrilio?
About 8 hours (324 pages), or about 2 weeks at 30 minutes a day.
What should I read after Monstrilio?
If you liked it, try The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina by Zoraida Córdova, Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng by Kylie Lee Baker or Frankenstein by Mary Shelley.