Longlisted for the PEN Translation Prize
Our Culture Magazine, A Most Anticipated Book of Fall
Electric Literature, A Most Anticipated Book of the Year
Literary Hub, A Most Anticipated Book of the Year
“Propulsive . . . [A]n insightful and sprawling book, clever enough to turn its formal contradictions into a strength. Heather Cleary’s translation from the Spanish has the wit and charm of the original . . . In a story that is conscious of its own telling, Cleary seizes the opportunity to add yet another metafictional layer, to great effect.” —Bruna Dantas Lobato, The New York Times Book Review
“Mothers is Lozano’s most propulsive novel, a thriller with a social consciousness that takes an unapologetically feminist look at the pleasures, pressures, and terrors of motherhood in a patriarchal society beholden to money and access.” —Cory Oldweiler, Southwest Review of Books
“From the get-go, Mothers, deftly translated from the Spanish by Heather Cleary, puts the reader on alert.” —Esther King, Words Without Borders
“Smashing.” —Sophia Stewart, The Millions
“Smashing . . . Equal parts detective story, family drama, and social novel . . . Lozano crafts a darkly comic and deeply human narrative. It’s an unforgettable portrait of maternal envy gone mad.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Lozano’s interests lie in large questions—societal expectations of mothers and the corresponding pressures to conform, how economic inequality determines who matters in a crisis. Lozano has a good eye for detail . . . The initial mystery of Gloria’s disappearance gives way to deeper mysteries, taking the reader to unexpected places. Another ambitious and original work from a writer who is always worth watching.” —Kirkus Reviews
“This book promises twists and turns that read like a thriller and asks how far a mother would be willing to go for the love of her children . . . I am ready for this, especially from the author of Witches.” —Vanessa Diaz, BookRiot
“Brenda Lozano has written a powerful and haunting tale, full of twists and surprises, but also incisive observations on what it means to be a woman and a mother—both in 1940s Mexico and in the world today.” —Miriam Toews, author of Fight Night
“I loved this book. It is surprising and mothering and abundant and wounding, a novel in which desires are ferocious yet capable of unexpected transformation, and where life—often cruel, sometimes a blessing—endlessly remakes life.” —Madeleine Thien, author of Do Not Say We Have Nothing
“We hear this is what happened . . . So begins a tale with the momentum of detective fiction and the force of a historical novel. Class, motherhood, urban life, and the media are just some of the pieces in the astonishing puzzle of this novel that seems to be speaking of the past, but is actually telling us about the present.” —Mauro Libertella
“Lozano’s marvelous novel reads at once like a crime thriller, a family drama, a ballad and an investigation of love. Psychologically and politically insightful, while also being charming and swift, Mothers has the understated moral complexity of a fable. This is an exceptionally wonderful book.” —Rivka Galchen, author of Everyone Knows Your Mother Is a Witch
“In this novel, the language shimmers then leaves us with questions like open wounds: What are we mothers capable of doing for the love of a daughter? What do our medical and social systems make (im)possible for women? Who has access to justice? What are the consequences of fear in our society? How can we ever forgive? These questions echo through our current context. With an engaging cast of characters and an astute narrator, Lozano knits together 1940s Mexico and our contemporary moment with surprising power and tenderness.” —Gabriela Jauregui, author of Controlled Decay
