Celestina’s House by Clarissa Trinidad Gonzalez is an evocative and haunting debut novel that masterfully weaves family drama, love, betrayal, and supernatural elements. Set in the Philippines, it follows Celestina Errantes as she grapples with a legacy of betrayal that shatters her family. A mysterious inheritance—a long-abandoned house in Manila—offers her an escape and a chance to redefine her life. However, the house is steeped in secrets and echoes of the past that intertwine with her journey toward self-discovery and healing.

The novel is an intergenerational tale rich in gothic atmosphere, blending magical realism with deeply personal and cultural themes. Gonzalez vividly captures the Filipino setting, its cultural nuances, and its complex history, bringing depth and texture to the story. The characters are flawed yet relatable, and their struggles with grief, identity, and forgiveness feel profoundly human.

With lush descriptions, especially of food and daily life, and a slow-burning plot, Celestina’s House delivers an unforgettable narrative. Fans of Mexican Gothic or The House of the Spirits will find its mix of familial bonds and the supernatural irresistible. A poignant exploration of love, loss, and resilience, this novel is a gem worth savoring.

Celestina's House by Clarissa Trinidad Gonzalez is an interesting, character-driven novel.
I really enjoyed reading this book. The cover of this book is just gorgeous.
Thank you NetGalley and Dundurn Press for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The writing is compelling and poetic. This follows the odyssey of Celestina. Reading all about her parents made me happy but reading about her life made me sad because it was not easy. Celestina’s life wasn’t easy. It was filled with all the unsettling and disturbing memories and emotions. It is shocking, touching, unsettling and poignant read.

Thanks to the Publisher and Author.

i'm not rating this why in 2024 are we using insane victim blaming language for INCEST that isn't even relevant to the story. the misogyny in this one was coming from inside the house. absolutely insane.

I wanted so badly to like this book. It was marketed as a haunted house novel and was compared to The Hacienda and The Mexican Gothic but was a complete letdown.

Celestina's House is a vivid tribute to the phillipino culture and is beautifully written, however, because of the blurb I expected more. There's horror, supernatural, and everyday life in the book, and in spite of previous comments it was entertaining.
I thank the author, her publisher, and NetGalley for this ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the Publisher for providing me with a Arc in exchange for an honest review.

C.W.: rape, acts of pedophilia, abortion.


Celestina's House is the debut novel by Clarissa Trinidad Gonzales, it is a love letter to her homeland, to the Philippines, of which she talks about the beauties of Manila, its neighborhoods and landscapes, its folklore and culinary traditions, myths and legends. There is a black lump in the story which is perversion, darkness and evil of the human soul. This is a novel for adults, I would not recommend it for anyone under 18 because the writer gives glimpses of carnal violence within a family and acts of pedophilia by religious figures.
Celestina's House, in its narrative style, recalls the magical realism of "100 Years of Solitude" by Garcia Maraquez and "The House of the Spirits" by Isabel Allende.
The novel is set during the thirty years of Marcos' presidency, in Manila at a sumptuous and mysterious palace, 'Twin Dragon Towers' where Celestina Errantes, the protagonist, lives.
Her house is full of mysteries and ghosts.
Celestina is a beautiful woman with a dark past, her mother is Stella Sytanco, daughter of a Chinese magnate, her father Antonio Errantes is a Filipino teacher and writer. Celestina's life, since her childhood, has been marked by bad luck. In her childhood, she was ‘ her father beloved daughter’ but afterwards, her relationship with him changed into something sick and monstrous, which had ended in abortion.
After this devastating experience, Celestina, who is a strong, courageous and a fighter, ‘as all the Sytanco’s women are’, is determined to live and overcome the trauma and redeem herself from a past of pain.
Celestina is frequently in and out of love. In her love life, she meets different types of men: Verg ‘A beautiful eunuch’; Johnny, the singer, a long-distance love and finally, Josemaria, a rich Filipino entrepreneur who is madly in love with her, but he doesn’t understand Celestina’s traumas. His love towards Celestina is a tragic one, it’s made of possession and obsession like her father's.
The father-master figure, a diabolic and evil man, is omnipresent in the story, Celestina is destabilized by him, she feels sad and impotence.
Reading the Advance Readers Copy several times I got the impression of a well-structured narrative: the flow of events is, at first, slow; then faster in the central part, slows down once again to pick up speed when the final tragedy occurs . Beyond the shocking experiences, the writer leaves us, however, a glimmer of hope.
I also discovered, thanks to this novel, the Hispanic culture of the Philippines, previously unknown to me and I appreciated the hints on traditional Philippine Cuisine, for example ‘Chicken Tinola was the magical soup that got you on your feet when you were laid down with illness. Maybe the soup will help heal whatever ailed their household.'
I've noticed that there are many negative reviews of this novel, I wouldn't be so negative considering her true narrative talent.

Writing: 4 stars
Cover: 4 stars Very beautiful indeed.
Plot: 4 stars
Final rating: 4 stars

This review will be posted today on Ig Eng, Goodreads Eng

On La Bardo Lettrice Blog on the 31st of October, www.labardolettrice.it (it's underconstruction) only in Italian.

Oh, my heart! There were moments of genuine beauty in CELESTINA'S HOUSE by Clarissa Trinidad Gonzalez, but not enough for this contemporary fiction lover. Feeling more literary experiment than full-blown story, the story of a house and its people had such promise for a house-loving reader. However, it felt jagged and disjointed for me, a narrative arc that I had to put together for myself rather than a tale well told. The moments are vivid, the people in them are occasionally so, but overall, a did not finish with regret experience for me. In ways, it felt like a very full outline rather than a fully blown and completed novel. I hope that Ms. Gonzalez continues with her storytelling and develops the fascinating people and places hinted at in this debut novel. I received a copy of this book and these thoughts are my own, unbiased opinions.

This was an intense story that dealt with some intense topics. Celestina admired her father so much; it was a terrible blow to have him break her trust in such a horrible way. She tried to find herself and move past what happened, but it was always in her mind. By meeting all those different men, she was able to heal at least some parts of herself while also learning to find a bit of joy in life again. While her story did not end the way people would hope for, I think it ended ideally once she heals her relationship with her mother and perhaps looks for help in a new place where she may be offered resources to deal with her past and able to finally let go of her past and forgive herself for what happened and learn to love freely again.

It is such a beautiful book that will break your heart. Thanks to the publisher for the arc; all opinions are my own.

Thank you Netgalley & Rare Machines for an eARC ♥️

Imagine stepping into a grand, old mansion, expecting whispers of secrets and shadows. Instead, you're lost in a labyrinth of disconnected rooms, each filled with unfinished stories.
This Gothic haunted house novel promised suspense and intrigue but delivered a disjointed narrative. It's like trying to assemble a puzzle with missing pieces.

A House of Broken Dreams

Celestina's family history unfolds like a tapestry, but the threads are frayed. Her mother's defiance, the wartime romance, and Celestina's own tangled love life – all intriguing, yet isolated, storylines.

Character Silhouettes

The cast is more sketch than portrait. Celestina's family is introduced, then fades into the background. Love interests materialize, only to disappear.

The Haunting – A Ghostly Afterthought

Unexplained forces lurk, but the tension dissipates, lost amidst the narrative chaos.

Manila's Vibrant Facade

The city shines bright, a vivid backdrop for this fractured tale.

A Disjointed Whole

"Celestina's House" feels like multiple novels wrestled into one. I searched for cohesion, but it remained elusive.

3.5 stars but I rounded up.

This is very much a modern, literary gothic. It’s not magical realism and it’s not a haunted house story though it does have supernatural elements. I really think the promo focused much to much on the house of spirits Celestina moves in to when this story is much more about Celestina and how she moves through the world than on her experience in the house.

Celestina experiences betrayal and horror in her teenage years (trigger warning for SA) and it destroys her relationship with her family and her sense of self. The book explores Celestina’s attempts to create an identity and a home for herself in a world that only values her beauty. The book is very atmospheric with gorgeous depictions of the Philippines, and especially its food and culture.

Unfortunately, the narrative is choppy and clunky and for all the beautiful language and individual scenes, it’s just not cohesive. A bunch of beautiful ideas but not knitted together. But I know it’s a book that will stay on my mind.

The bones of a great story are here. I loved reading about the Filipino food and cultural references as well as the idea of interacting with the spirit world and the magical realism. However, I think there was some character development missing, and Celestina was not fully fleshed out in a way that allowed the reader to develop a real sense of attachment for her. I wanted to love her as well as some of the other main characters but it seemed as though part of their stories were missing. Additionally, I'd echo other reviewers that the specifics of her abuse were unexpected (in a jarring and unpleasant way) and could have benefited from some kind of CW.

I'm slightly aghast if this book is being published in it's current form. I have had this galley for a very long time, but the publishing date has been moved out, so it dropped down my TBR list until now, so perhaps I have a very early version? I don't know if that's possible, but this book is not ready.

When one of my children was in speech therapy, one of the activities they used to encourage sequencing etc was to get him to describe a set of images, one by one, saying anything he could about the contents of that card, then move on to the next. What it produced was a series, highly descriptive, full of detail, with a beginning, a few what nexts and an ending. No character building, except what they wore, what they looked like, what they were doing in that split second, and maybe an expression of some rather obvious emotion, perhaps a speech bubble. They would presumably build into a simple narrative arc, but they were not about storytelling, nuance, rising or falling action. We never left the clinic wondering what the characters were doing next.

That's what this book reminds me of. A sequence of stylised images.

What kept me reading was the luscious food and the fact that this is the first book I have read that is set in the Philippines. The author does a very good job of capturing a sense of place, but for me, little else.

The writing is naive, the dialogue is clunky, the characters are one dimensional, the threads are not pulled together in any way, the house, the apparent main character, is a big let down, the magical realism is corny.

My worst gripe about this book is the sense throughout that somehow this author has a warped impression of romance, and I'm not talking about the obviously repulsive father. She portrays a world where females are somehow responsible for the lack of control that men inherently possess, that beauty is the only virtue, that predatory behaviour is just par for the course. She is complicit in female, especially young female objectification in a 70s or 80s Harold Robbins prurient way. Ick.

There is no ending to this story. Fade to grey only works when you have made a point, and I cannot figure out what the point of this story is.

Needless to say, I wouldn't recommend this. I would have fired it at the wall only I value my ereader too much.

Thanks to #netgalley and the publisher for providing an eGalley for review purposes, as usual, honesty prevails.

An atmospheric but uneven novel that's completely cringey. Know that this centers on grooming and abuse. Secrets, lies. and a missed opportunity. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Wasn't for me and I DNF so over to others.

I think this is the first book I read that was immersed in the Filipino culture and I really enjoyed getting to read about the landscape, customs and people. Overall I liked the writing style and the pace was good. The primary premise of the first section of the book was quite disturbing. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance reader copy.

Celestina's House offers a promising premise with its lush tropical setting and the intrigue of supernatural forces, but the execution leaves much to be desired. While the novel does provide an insightful glimpse into Filipino culture during this period, it feels as though it becomes overly focused on cultural exposition at the expense of meaningful character development and plot progression.

Celestina, the protagonist, never quite rises to the potential of being the entrancing character the blurb suggests. The characters throughout feel two-dimensional, with no one truly standing out or engaging the reader in a lasting way. Even the ghosts, which are advertised as a central element of the story, come across as an afterthought, failing to add any real depth or mystery to the plot.

Though the novel sets out to be a darkly romantic and immersive tale, it falls short, with much of the story feeling flat and lacking in emotional resonance.

BOOK: CELESTINA'S HOUSE

AUTHOR: CLARISSA TRINIDAD GONZALEZ

PUB DATE: OCTOBER 2O24

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REVIEW

Thanks to Netgalley and the Publisher for this ARC. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

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When you see books like this, you know you're ready for a book that will pack a punch and this book delivered that. It pulled at my heartstrings and it made me feel a lot of things.

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This book followed the life of Celestina Errantes from when she was born to adulthood. You might think, what was so interesting about her life? Unfortunately, she was sexually assaulted by someone she trusted the most and she was not supported or helped through the trauma. Throughout the book she tried to form substantial relationships, fall I'm love, but her past always stood in the way. Celestine was a character that broke my heart. On the surface, it looked like she had a lot when in reality, she doesn't. But through that, she still tried to make something of her life. She still lived her doing what she loved best and I loved that for her

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My favorite part of the book is how the author was able to describe Phillipinean culture effortlessly. I was taken through so many places there, their food and superstitions and even their history. I loved reading it. And I liked that the author provided translation for the words I was not familiar with. The book also had a huge theme of magical Realism and ghosts and it was nice to read.

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The main part of the book was set in Celestina's house that she inherited from her grandparents. There, she lived a lot people that later formed her family and lovers. My heart broke for her when she didn't get the love she wanted and deserved. But, that house had a lot of ghosts, including her aunt. They spiced the book a little bit. I liked reading about the lives of the people Celestina hung out with too. They had their own POVs. Especially the titular Celestina's house, the house was a character on its own. The author really described the house well, it felt like I could see it.

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When I finished this book, I wanted a different ending, but I understood the ending the author provided. It was feasible considering what Celestina had gone through. I still didn't like JoMa. I liked this book although it was slow paced in some parts, it was worth it and I learned a lot. But, let me warn you, the most hateful characters are the ones that should have been lovable.

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You should definitely read this book.

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Celestina's House is a story following the horrors of a house that seems normal on the outside, but is so much more than what meets the eye. Perfect for Fall spooky season and cozy ar the same time.

I started this read with really high hopes. The premise of the book was really good, but in my opinion it lacked on the delivery. The writing style wasn't my favourite. The author used a lot of local vocabulary, which made a lot of sense, but I don't feel that is was explained in the best way, also making the read a bit confusing at times. The story itself was beautiful, right until the last few chapters. I felt that it was building up to such a great romance, a beautiful story, but in the end it fell flat.

Thank you NetGalley and Dundurn Press for the ARC 💜

Celestina's House by Clarissa Trinidad Gonzalez is a novel that's a bit difficult to categorize. It's sort of a family saga but the focus is on one character, the titular Celestina. It also has magical realism elements but it could be considered a plotless slice-of-life book too if it fit the conventions of that genre better. It's written by a Filipino author from Canada which made me excited as I can't say I've read too many books from the Philippines so far but I'm definitely planning on changing that.

The atmosphere is amazing right from the beginning, it's sinister, dark, and has a lyrical sadness to it.

It made me think about why I don't read family sagas anymore when I'm obsessed with family lore and personal mythology. These are two of the topics I think about the most regarding my own life so why don't I read fiction about it? I need to try more, especially from outside Europe and the US.

I want to acknowledge that this novel is currently rated pretty low on Goodreads and some of the criticism is scathing but I'm totally baffled as to why.

I mean, it is written in a very melodramatic style, a bit like a soap opera but I've seen this a lot from magical realism and family sagas and wasn't bothered by it at all. If anything, the style was pleasant to read to me.

There also isn't much story, it is basically just Celestina's life story who comes from a Chinese-Filipino family with a lot of dark history and we can observe how that manifests in her life. I don't recommend this if you need a clear, fast-moving plot.

There is a traumatic experience that happens to Celestina quite early on in the book (definitely look up trigger warnings). It's not fun to read about it but I thought the way it was done was well thought out on the author's part. It clearly informs Celestina's personality and choices throughout the book and fits into the overarching theme of the family being cursed.

I loved the descriptions of Manila, food, and superstitions! This was probably my favorite aspect of the book. The city comes alive very beautifully on the pages and I enjoy food descriptions in general (though reading about balut was pretty rough).

Apparently, however, there are cultural inaccuracies that were pointed out by Chinese-Filipino readers but I can't comment on these, just keep them in mind while reading.

A weird thing for me was how difficult it was to pinpoint when exactly this book took place. For a while, I thought it was historical and the setting was maybe between the world wars or something. Then some of the mentioned technology made me think it was the 90s or the early 2000s but I'm honestly not sure.

Also, another point of frustration might be that the men Celestina gets involved with just keep getting worse and sometimes it's difficult to stomach.

But all in all, I enjoyed reading this even if the ending was a bit abrupt. I tried not to scrutinize too deeply what the point of this story was and just went with the flow, soaking up the atmosphere. If that fits your reading style, this might just work for you too.