"...the one thing that makes me smile now, laugh even, is the notion that the Spaniards conquered us. Oh, they say, it only took five hundred men to conquer the Mexica, as if their thousands of Indigenous allies had been as useful as clouds of dust. It only took a year, they say. And I laugh, even now, I laugh at their bold-faced stupidity. For it was not those men who conquered us."

GENRE: Historical Fiction
RATING: 5/5
FORMAT: eBook Arc

Overall Impression: Easily became one of my favourite Historical Fiction & reads!

Review:
What a book! I loved everything about The Other Moctezuma Girls, from the historical aspect of it, to the characters and the story telling/writing style. It is descriptive and so emotionally powerful that it breaks your heart a little in the best of ways.

We follow Isabel's POV mainly but we get journal entries from her mother, Tecuichpoch and follow the journey of her life and how everything came to be. It genuinely was such a captivating story that broke my heart, reading about how everyone was harmed with colonialism. It also dives into how colonialism can happen with the help of people living in the area and we get to read about why people make the decisions they do.

I also loved reading about Catina, who is deaf after getting sick (coming from someone who is deaf too) and how they developed a way to communicate with her. All the characters in this book were written so well that you couldnt help feel an emotional connection to them or dislike them. We get to explore the family dynamic and watch Isabel find her footing and who she is in the world as someone who doesn't appear "ladylike".

I am so excited to read more from the author and to continue reading books set in the same time period. I was provided a free advance reader copy and I’m sharing my honest thoughts.