Certain Dark Things

Certain Dark Things is a great case for making big worlds into little stories. I don't say that to belittle Moreno-Garcia's novel, this story is not small in a bad way, but it is tight and rather simple. And yet behind it is some pretty sophisticated world building.

Moreno-Garcia alternate universe is one where vampires have been out of the coffin (as Charlaine Harris would say) for fifty or sixty years. Humanity has done its best to create vampire free zones without antagonizing their superiors on the food chain (this did made me think quite a bit about how you manage a society where one group of people needs to eat the other to live), and one of those supposedly safe places is Mexico City. This is where the young vampire Atl runs when her vampire-narco clan is wiped out by a rival cartel. There, she runs into Domingo, a naive but charming street kid who decides to help her get out of the city while the Necros, the police and Mexico City's cartels are trying to kill her.

Domingo is a refreshing main character in many ways. I always appreciate it when a writer creates a character that isn't smart. A character doesn't have to be brilliant, or even particularly wise to earn my respect or interest. Despite living on the streets for a few years, Domingo's knowledge - of the world, of vampires, of emotion and relationships - is limited. He barely knows how to express his affection for Atl other than telling her she's “pretty.” But he is dedicated and loyal, and I like to think he knows a good person when he sees them. Atl has both parts bad ass supernatural chick, and sheltered narco brat who barely knows how to take care of herself on her own. Both her and Domingo are emotionally vulnerable and immature in this way and its why, while their romance is light-handed, its still effective. It's also why Nick Godoy, the Necro heir that comes to Mexico City hunting after Atl, serves as a good foil for both of them, but Atl in particular. Much the same way, Nick is a spoiled son of a vampire cartel boss who thinks he can do and get whatever he wants, and what he wants is for Atl to suffer. He's an easy villain to hate, and one that keeps the pace fast and the adrenaline high.

As said, this is a tightly wound book. Moreno-Garcia doesn't spend a whole lot of time dwelling or ruminating on anything with maybe the exception of the relationship between Domingo and Atl. Nick's hatred of Atl is summed up in a brief flashback of them meeting in a club and his anger about her attacks against his family. Nick's personality is summed up in his greed and petulance - he's not complex. The suggestions that there was a relationship between the Revenant, Bernadino, and Atl's mother are indulged for a just a moment and then left hanging. Moreno-Garcia also treats us to the inner workings of some more seasoned characters involved in the conflict, only to give them rather unceremonious and rather disappointing endings. I am glad though that Bernardino had his moment. I had a feeling once we began to learn what a Revenant was that this guy was going to have moment. That, thankfully, did not disappoint.

Certain Dark Things is enjoyable, but I couldn't shake the feeling that there's supposed to be more, that there's a deeper story hidden between the lines. Maybe I'm projecting a little bit. There's a fascinating little glossary of different vampire subspecies at the back of the book, and even though I'm not really sure its Moreno-Garcia's thing, I'm really crossing my fingers for a sequel, or some sort of expansion of this world. This book felt like a snack, a tasty snack, but I feel like somewhere there's a meal.