Lotería

Lotería by Cynthia Pelayo is an expanded edition of an earlier release, with 54 short stories that is very much like playing the lottery. They span genres and themes, time and locations; some are familiar bits of folklore with a twist, like La Llorona or the Loch Ness monster,  others are modern noir, others are ghost stories, etc.

Like any collection, there are some stand-outs, such as El Diablito which shows to what lengths people will go to protect the children of their family or La Araña, which was just effectively creepy.   This is definitely a book I'll keep on hand to revisit and dip into as the mood strikes.

Thank you to NetGalley and Union Square & Co. for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review. Pub. date: 9/2/25

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