Booksology 
Our Share of Night by Mariana Enriquez, translated by Megan McDowell
Mariana Enriquez is a writer who does not hesitate to confront nightmares in order to tell stories that resemble real experiences and history. The disappearing people of a military regime, the charisma that obliterates the perspective of a cult, the powerful exploiting the weak – these are themes we are familiar with and that permeate Enriquez’s horror novels. Proceeding non-linearly over time, the story primarily follows the Peterson family, father and husband Juan, mother and wife Rosario, and son Gaspard. The Peterson family has ties to a powerful occult society in Argentina, and they meet Juan and Gaspar, who are on the run.
The details of the family’s ties to this occult group, how Juan became a single father, and what role Gaspard will play in the future of society are revealed as the story progresses. These are complex characters who are flawed, unforgivable, and deeply human, but Gaspard is a character I’ve always been obsessed with, as we follow him from his childhood of abuse and neglect to his adulthood. He is innocently thrown into a deadly and disorienting game where he unravels the turbulent life circumstances planned by his father and how the mysteries of his life affect him and his loved ones. He is exposed again and again, exposed to brutality and loss. Although a sense of hopelessness and inevitable tragedy weighs heavily on many of the characters in this story, Gaspard’s emotions are the thread that connects the reader along a motivational path through horror after horror caused by the destructive occult horrors that existed long before him and threaten to exist forever.
Enriquez deftly weaves nuance into one of the most gripping and heartbreaking horror novels I’ve ever read. After reading this book, we recommend that you calm down with a light book.
