The Pink Agave Motel and Other Stories

Castro references Hellraiser at one point and I think it's a great indication of the experimental style of the titular novella and its accompanying short stories. The monstrous characters in this book are where pain meets pleasure, they are hungry, vengeful, and erotic.

There were so many aspects of this collection that I was enamoured with, monstrous immortal figures taking what they want because they want it, it is bloody, gory, full of camp, and ultimately about women taking well-deserved power.

The stories I particularly enjoyed were Shrouded, Corpus Christi Nights, and Mako. They were definitely my favourites and I could have easily read full-length novellas or more based on these characters and settings. But there was something missing in the collection as a whole. At one point, I thought that perhaps the short stories were set in the same world as the novella but there are a few that don't quite fit into the larger puzzle and the only connecting thread seemed to be monstrous love. There were times where the excessive gore and spice felt like we were trying to mix oil and water. In the end, I really liked the concept and I could see the vision but it felt half-baked.