In The House of Gardenias, an intoxicatingly macabre YA historical fantasy from The Hacienda author Isabel Cañas, a teen girl employed by an infighting political family collaborates with the ghost of a boy they wronged to dismantle their legacy.
Presidente Valbuena has ruled the Capital ever since his democratic regime overthrew the del Valle Viceroyalty. Sixteen-year-old Minerva, with "black hair and skin that turns deep in the sun," fled the Capital's slums to work for Señora Encarnación del Valle; one of her brothers went to work for el Presidente. When el Presidente is assassinated, the Capital plunges into war, and Minerva's brother is killed. Minerva accompanies Encarnación as she escapes to la Casa de las Gardenias, the del Valle stronghold. But misgivings seethe amid the family of "traitors" and "turncoats" and Encarnación is poisoned. Minerva watches as "shadows" that "[writhe] like beheaded snakes" steal the life from her employer. This feeding strengthens Ygnacio, a ghost trapped in the house due to the del Valles's lazy malevolence. Ygnacio reveals himself to Minerva, expressing his desire for revenge, and Minerva seeks every method to ensure his success.
The vengeful ghost and the ferociously courageous girl narrate this taut firestorm of a novel. Minerva's anger is fueled by the political undertow of the two similarly vile groups seeking to rule--she suffered under el Presidente but despises the murderous del Valles. Cañas builds arresting rapport between Minerva and Ygnacio via tense scenes in which Minerva must trust the ghost; he, in turn, softens toward her in a beautiful burgeoning camaraderie. Minerva's sibling storyline, which culminates in an unpredictably impossible choice, adds another deeply moving layer. --Samantha Zaboski, freelance editor and reviewer