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.

𝗖𝗲𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗮'𝘀 𝗛𝗼𝘂𝘀𝗲 is a Gothic themed bittersweet novel filled with yearning that tells the story of a woman haunted by her past and her ancestors.

Gonzalez's writing style is nothing less than beautiful and atmospheric. She paints vivid pictures of Manila's culture, sights, and smells with mouth-watering descriptions of Filipino food.
And that cover is absolutely gorgeous!

I was a little disappointed, though, as the blurb promised that that magical realism would play a larger part in the story than it did. The haunted house and spirits are sporadic and only briefly mentioned.

I feel this novel had so much potential, but unfortunately, it fell short in character development and plot execution.

Overall, it was a decent read, and I enjoyed learning about the Philippines.
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This novel deals with several heavy topics, so those should be addressed before reading this book.

Thank you to Netgally and the publifor my early copy. My review was voluntary.

I didn't enjoy this book. I found it confusing, chaotic, and poorly structured. The portrayal of the father-daughter relationship made me very uncomfortable. I wish I could provide a more positive review, but I was disappointed overall.

Celestina's House by Clarissa Trinidad Gonzalez is a poignant, character-driven novel that captures the essence of community, family, and the weight of personal history.Gonzalez's prose is rich with cultural detail and atmospheric descriptions, drawing readers into the world of a small, tight-knit community. The novel’s exploration of loss, healing, and resilience is beautifully handled, with an underlying warmth that permeates even its most somber moments. A heartfelt read that lingers long after the final page.

Did not finish. I was intrigued by the description of this book & the writing style was fine but storyline wise it was a bit too chaotic for me - it seemed like the author just used all the ideas they'd had rather than editing & making them into something coherent.

This one was tough for me. I want to start this by saying if you are a victim of sexual assault, child abuse, and/or abortion then read with caution as these are all depicted in the book, and I wish someone had warned me because I was caught off guard in a way that left me feeling a bit uncomfortable. Now, I’m pretty neutral towards the idea of putting trigger warnings in the front of your book, but I think in the case of this book they would be definitely useful as this graphic content isn’t forewarned by the premise of the book, and catching people off guard with such intense subject matter could end up being to this book’s detriment.

Moving past that, I did really enjoy this book until I didn’t. I really liked how deeply the author developed the characters. I’m a very character driven reader so being able to understand them and their motivations really enriched my reading experience. Unfortunately, this book does not live up to the concept of a haunting story as it is described. There are haunting elements throughout, but they are only ever really small asides and that concept is all but nonexistent by the last third of the book. I think this book would have been better served without them, and just focused on Celestina and her story and her development throughout the duration of the book. Or, more thoroughly develop the haunting element, but you can’t have your cake and eat it too.

I’ll stop being a Negative Nancy and say that I adored the writing, and I will be picking up this author’s books in the future as well. Their descriptions of the Philippines were so rich it felt like I was there. This book was so Filipino, I loved that! It is very clear this author has a profound love and appreciation for Filipino culture as evidenced by this book. Overall, I thought it was alright, but the story itself left me a little unsatisfied. I’m excited to read more from this author in the future, though!

Thanks to NetGalley & Dundurn Press for the eARC!

This book is tonally WILD, and not in a good way. It is marketed as a Gothic haunted house novel compared to The Hacienda and Mexican Gothic. It starts promising - a derelict house being dismantled - but we then don't get to see the haunted house for about a third of the whole book. Instead, we follow the story of Celestina's family, her mother's defiance of the clan patriarch and marriage for love. Okay, maybe Celestina's House is her dynasty, and the haunting is going to be about the family? Nope, the family is never explored as characters. We get glimpses here and there, but that's it. Instead, the story turns into a tale of parental sexual abuse, exploring Celestina's dad assaulting his daughter (yep, the dad her mom married 'for love'). Okay, so this is a literary drama about sexual assault? Nope, not again. The book does yet another 180, and the promising exploration of what the assault does to Celestina's relationship with her mother is promptly dropped. Now it is Bright Young Things of Manila set in a haunted house. Via a completely underdeveloped story of Celestina's aunt's dalliance with a Japanese officer during WWII, which reads like a Tan Twan Eng novel synopsis. Synopsis, because we get about 10 pages of that story in a 300-page novel. Then, for some reason, the story becomes a love square (yup, a whole three guys are into Celestina) 'worthy' of a third-rate telenovella. We get tons of completely unnecessary backstory into the three guys, even though two of them matter for a whole total of about 5 pages each. I won't even go into the last 'romance' as it is as toxic as the male protagonist is underdeveloped. And yes, the hauntings are sort of there, too, and the main malevolent one is never explained and does not affect the plot in any way beyond abruptly killing off a secondary character.

I guess the sense of place was sort of there. We do get quite a lot of Manila. There were one or two promising ideas somewhere underneath the 197 different novels the author was trying to write at the same time. I wanted to DNF, but sunken investment cost won. It was like watching a train wreck.

Honestly, folks, what have I just read.

Thank you, NetGalley, for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review

I can understand why many people would love this book. It was certainly entertaining but it was not come of the plot was too much/over dramatic. I could see my patrons enjoying this book but it just wasn't my cup of tea.

I found the idea of ​​talking about generational trauma in such a magical and somewhat fantastic way that the author used in this book very interesting. And despite understanding that it was a writing choice that matches the idea of ​​the book's aesthetics, I was a little tired with the loose reading, without a timeline and a bit vague of some parts of the story. In general, it's a good book that teaches a lot about a culture that I've never had the opportunity to get to know before and I would definitely read something by the author again.

Celestina's House, by Clarissa Trinidad Gonzalez. I enjoyed reading this beautiful debut, and I look forward to reading her future works.

I really enjoyed Celestina’s House by Clarissa Trinidad Gonzalez. In this fictional tome, set in the Philippines, we learn about “malas”. Malas are things that bring bad fortune to your home and family. Celestina’s mother and grandmother are superstitious and wary of anything that could potentially bring “malas” to the family.

The titular character, Celestina, is traversing this world of “malas” and “buenos” when she deals with early abuse by her father. She grows up well ahead of her time and ultimately ends up inheriting a home “Celestina’s House” from her grandparents at a young age. Strange things begin happening to her once she visits this home and the story progresses with her looking for love while dealing with something eerie within her new home.

It took me a little while to warm up to this book as it deals with heavy topics such as molestation, subjugation, superstitions, etc. I did enjoy learning a little more about Philippine culture and picked up a few vocabulary words via this book.

Overall, I think the book could have been more evenly spaced out in terms of the plot, which felt choppy at times, but it was an interesting read - different from other books I have read this year, yet somehow reminiscent of the Mexican Gothic and the Haunting of Alejandra.

This wasn't quite what I hoped. I love family generational sagas filled with magic, trauma, love, and family craziness. This was more focused on the one character and was more of a romance. Not a bad book, but not for me so I don't feel right rating bad.