“On the shores of this river, all the birds that fly, drink, perch on branches, and disturb siestas with the demonic squawking of the possessed—all those birds were once women.”
This opening line from one of the short stories in A Sunny Place for Shady People encapsulates the thematic essence of Mariana Enríquez’s world. In her collection of twelve short stories, Enríquez takes us through the uncanny, the unsettling, and the outright terrifying — all hidden beneath the surface of seemingly mundane lives. She presents us with Argentina as a land both familiar and foreign, haunted by ghosts, creatures, and supernatural forces that seem to mirror the complex emotions and unresolved traumas of her characters.
Much like her previous works (Things We Lost in the Fire, The Dangers of Smoking in Bed), A Sunny Place for Shady People showcases Enríquez’s ability to weave the psychological with the fantastical. In these stories, the human and the monstrous coexist, blurring the lines between reality and myth. Yet what makes these tales deeply impactful is the way they dig into the raw and emotional core of human existence — the very things we fear, the way we confront loss, identity, and the slow erosion of our sense of self.
Thematic Exploration: Haunting the Living
At the heart of A Sunny Place for Shady People is a recurring theme of hauntings, both literal and metaphorical. Enríquez introduces characters who are often pursued by the dead or by their own emotional ghosts. These hauntings emerge in various forms: mothers returning from the dead, young women turning into birds, and ghosts of lost boys who refuse to leave the city behind.
But these are not mere horror stories. The real horror lies in the emotional and psychological unraveling of the protagonists. The ghosts they encounter are reflections of guilt, trauma, and the heavy weight of the past. This is evident in stories like My Sad Dead, where the protagonist is tied to the memories of her mother and the ghosts of boys who have died tragically in the city. In this world, even the living feel as if they are only half-alive, trapped by the unresolved emotions of their past.
Narrative Style: The Lyricism of Horror
Enríquez’s writing in A Sunny Place for Shady People is a delicate blend of the poetic and the macabre. Her sentences are lyrical, often flowing with a dream-like quality that pulls the reader into a surreal and darkly beautiful world. In the hands of translator Megan McDowell, the prose retains its original intensity, with each story resonating with its intended emotional weight.
In the story Face of Disgrace, for instance, the grotesque transformation of the protagonist is described in such a way that it feels not only terrifying but also strangely beautiful. The horror is amplified by the rhythm of the sentences, which mirror the disintegration of the protagonist’s identity and self-awareness.
McDowell’s translation deserves particular praise for maintaining the balance between the lyrical and the unsettling. The stories never lose their cultural specificity, with Argentina’s political and social landscapes seeping into the narratives. Yet, they are universal enough to evoke a deep sense of familiarity — the anxieties of change, the fear of the unknown, and the ever-present dread of losing control.
Character and Identity: The Horror of Transformation
One of the most striking aspects of A Sunny Place for Shady People is Enríquez’s exploration of identity. In nearly every story, characters undergo some form of transformation, both physical and psychological. Whether it’s the face-melting horrors of Face of Disgrace or the bird-women of Night Birds, these transformations symbolize the deeper emotional and existential shifts the characters are experiencing.
In Metamorphosis, a protagonist is consumed by a transformation that strips away their physical form. But the real terror is in how this transformation reflects their sense of loss and alienation from the world around them. Enríquez’s characters frequently struggle with their own sense of identity, feeling as though they are slowly becoming something unrecognizable — not just to others but to themselves. This is a central theme in stories like Black Eyes, where a woman’s eyes turn black, causing her to lose touch with who she is.
This recurring motif of transformation serves as a powerful metaphor for the characters’ inner worlds. Their external changes are often the physical manifestations of deeper emotional conflicts — unresolved traumas, unfulfilled desires, and suppressed fears.
Summaries of Each Story
My Sad Dead
The narrator lives in a decaying neighborhood surrounded by crime and poverty. She reflects on her relationship with her mother and the haunting presence of boys who have died in the city. The story explores themes of guilt, memory, and a decaying sense of place as the narrator feels tied to her mother and the dead boys she cannot abandon.
A Sunny Place for Shady People
A journalist from Buenos Aires travels to Los Angeles to investigate a strange ritual at the hotel where Elisa Lam’s body was found in a water tank. She participates in a morbid ceremony in which people try to communicate with Elisa’s ghost. The story reflects on loneliness, the supernatural, and the morbid fascination with death.
Face of Disgrace
The protagonist, Alex, starts experiencing terrifying physical transformations, which are progressively making her face disappear. The grotesque metamorphosis mirrors her inner turmoil, reflecting themes of identity, horror, and self-perception as she grapples with the irreversible changes happening to her.
Julie
Julie, a troubled young woman, returns to her family in Buenos Aires after living in the United States. Her mental illness manifests as interactions with invisible spirits that give her pleasure. The story delves into family dynamics, mental illness, and the thin boundary between reality and the supernatural.
Night Birds
In this story, birds are said to be women who have been punished by transformation, a recurring myth in the narrator’s region. The protagonist reflects on her sister Millie’s obsession with becoming one of these bird-women, exploring the intersection between folklore, family ties, and madness.
Metamorphosis
This story tells of people who undergo physical transformations, paralleling emotional and psychological changes. The protagonist becomes obsessed with her own transformation and the disintegration of her physical appearance, which symbolizes her detachment from reality and descent into madness.
Hyena Hymns
A haunting tale about a woman who encounters a group of supernatural beings who resemble hyenas. These creatures manipulate her mind and emotions, leading her to question her own sanity and morality. The story delves into fear, manipulation, and the uncanny.
Different Colors Made of Tears
In this story, the narrator experiences a surreal series of visions and encounters with beings that seem to blur the lines between dreams and reality. As the boundaries of her perception dissolve, the story explores grief, loss, and the overwhelming power of emotions.
The Suffering Woman
A tragic tale about a woman haunted by memories of her lost child and the pain that has consumed her life. As her suffering becomes unbearable, she is faced with the reality of her emotional and psychological torment, which manifests as physical and mental anguish.
The Refrigerator Cemetery
This story revolves around a mysterious cemetery where the dead are stored in refrigerators. The protagonist investigates the strange customs of this place, uncovering dark secrets about the nature of life, death, and the preservation of memory. The story is a reflection on mortality and the desire to hold on to the past.
A Local Artist
A tale of a reclusive artist who creates disturbingly lifelike sculptures of people she once knew. The art seems to possess a supernatural quality, blurring the line between creation and reality. This story explores themes of obsession, art, and the power of creation.
Black Eyes
A chilling story about a woman who begins to notice that her eyes are turning completely black. As the transformation takes over, she begins to lose her sense of self, becoming something entirely different. The story taps into body horror and the fear of losing one’s identity.
The Supernatural as Emotional Catharsis
What sets A Sunny Place for Shady People apart from traditional horror literature is how the supernatural is used as a vehicle for emotional catharsis. The ghosts, transformations, and strange creatures are not merely elements of horror; they are representations of deeper emotional and psychological states.
In The Suffering Woman, for example, the supernatural presence of her dead child reflects the overwhelming grief that the protagonist cannot escape. Similarly, the ghost girls in My Sad Dead are not just spirits — they are manifestations of the protagonist’s guilt and inability to move on from the past.
A Social and Political Underpinning
Enríquez’s stories also contain a subtle but significant social and political dimension. The backdrop of many stories is an Argentina marked by poverty, crime, and social decay. The decaying neighborhoods and haunted houses in these stories are reflective of a society struggling with its own ghosts — the unresolved traumas of political violence, economic hardship, and the marginalization of the poor.
Final Thoughts
A Sunny Place for Shady People is a masterful short story collection that blends horror with deep psychological exploration. Mariana Enríquez takes the reader on a journey through desolate emotional landscapes, where the supernatural intertwines with human frailty. Each story is a study in fear—of loss, of identity, of death—but also a reflection on the human condition. The collection is not just for fans of horror but for anyone interested in exploring the dark, often hidden, parts of the soul.
Enríquez’s prose is unrelentingly sharp, and her stories leave a lasting impression of dread and melancholy. This book is highly recommended for readers who appreciate complex narratives that mix supernatural elements with emotional depth.