Coming October 6, 2026
BRUJA’S NEST
DEBUT NOVEL
"Bruja's Nest is 100% twisty fun! It's Succession with gristle, the [chicken] heart of darkness, and Shirley Jackson if only she could have watched telenovelas. There's bizarro bravado on every page. ¡Felicidades, Brenda LaTorre! Sequel!"
—Nancy Holder, New York Times Bestselling Author
“Brenda LaTorre’s Bruja’s Nest is an eerie and unsettling delight, a supernatural page turner with macabre echoes of Geek Love and We Have Always Lived in the Castle. A delectably dark debut novel.”
— Elizabeth Hand, author of A Haunting on the Hill, Wylding Hall, and Generation Loss
“Tense, boldly written, and fiercely addictive, Brenda LaTorre’s debut novel BRUJA'S NEST is part class war telenovela, part shocking body horror, and every bit as wicked and biting as its conniving and irrepressible heroine. I am a major fan.”
—Robert Levy, author of THE GLITTERING WORLD and NO ONE DIES FROM LOVE
"Bruja's Nest is a potent and startling literary incantation that invokes the most powerfully complex elements of magic, motherhood, and unflinchingly grotesque body horror. This is an uncompromising and deeply affecting work exquisitely scrawled in blood, fury, and pain."
—Eric LaRocca, author of Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke
Raised amidst poverty, alcoholism, and sexual abuse, Yolanda is determined to seize control of her future. When she starts work as an indentured servant on the Fernández De la Rosa estate, she realizes she can secure a place as the lady of the house: all she has to do is trick their naive son into getting her pregnant.
The local bruja’s fertility ritual horrifies her, and Yolanda delivers a massive egg under the watchful eye of Santa Muerte, the Mexican folk saint of death. But the hacienda where she’s been promised a permanent home is full of blasphemies, secrets, and bodies, and the family she’s tied herself to is loyal only to wealth and power. Worst of all, her beloved son is unacceptable to them – a monstrous reflection of the circumstances that gave him life.
But Yolanda will do anything to protect them both.
Upcoming Events
Published Work
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"Things We Lost While Scrubbing"
BDA Publishing
2025
Rage is power. Fury is creation. What does yours look like?
Feminine rage is often silenced, misunderstood, or weaponized. This anthology aims to transform it into a source of power, action, and change.
All proceeds go to advocacy organizations supporting women’s rights, with a focus on the Black and queer communities.
Your Body, My Rage is a haunting, visceral exploration of feminine rage through the lens of horror. From the grotesque to the psychological, from ghostly whispers to strangled screams, this collection showcases the bold, unapologetic voices reclaiming the narrative. -
"Insects Don't Bleed"
Moth Eaten Magazine
2024
A MOTH EATEN HORROR STORY is a collection of poetry & prose inspired by FX's AMERICAN HORROR STORY! This collection is by turns freaky, funny, and sexy! And of course, very queer! We are so proud and happy to present A MOTH EATEN HORROR STORY!
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"Ashes to Ashes"
Heartland Women Society of Writers
2024
(w)holes is an anthology where women and nonbinary writers consider the wholes that form us and the holes that cause relationships and structures to erode. This anthology explores the theme literally or figuratively in each carefully selected short story, poem, and nonfiction essay.
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"Franchesca's Garden"
Polymorphic Magazine
2024
Nine authors and thirteen visual artists come together to share their stories in this all-new 2024 volume of Polymorphic Magazine, featuring ten original and fully-illustrated horror-fiction shorts by writers and illustrators across the world. From the gruesome to the utterly bizarre, you’re sure to find something that’ll stick in your mind — whether you want it to or not.
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“When La Muerte Visits”
Voices From the Mausoleum
2023
A horror anthology taking place in a singular room in the house. Monsters. Ghosts. Punishment. Dimensional travel. How can we escape fate when it has trapped us within the most vulnerable place in the house? The bathroom.
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“Mamá’s Tamales”
Pyre Magazine
2023
Pyre Magazine presents its first physical copy edition. 120 beautiful pages full of art, short stories, flash fiction, poetry, and nonfiction. In this slam-packed special edition, you'll find work from more than 30 artists.
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“The Seven-Year-Glitch”
Collective Tales Publishing
2022
Collective Visions: Lost in Transmission delivers exciting tales of mysterious messages, malfunctioning robots, misinterpreted prophecies, madcap miscommunication, misrepresenting aliens, missed romantic connection, and much more!
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“Quetzal Feathers”
Ravens and Roses Publishing
2022
Not all Tales stay in the past! 15 authors come together with 15 stories inspired by mythos, lores, and legends across the globe. Immerse yourself in tales from Native American lores, Greek mythology, Arthurian legends, Fairytale retellings, Scandinavian mythology, and Ancient Indian lores.
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"Things that Happen at Dawn"
Collective Tales Publishing
2021
Do you love sci-fi but have a low attention span? Maybe you're too busy to read a full-length novel? Well, look no further! Little Visions has microsize stories from nine of our returning authors from Collective Visions: Lost in Transmission. We've got environmentally-friendly aliens, territorial farmers, probes colliding, and so much more.
News & Updates
Thoughts
About
Brenda LaTorre is a Mexico City native, author of BRUJA’S NEST, coming out in 2026. Her stories have found a home in different places such as Pyre Magazine, BDA Publishing Anthology, the Collective Visions anthology, and more.
She holds an MFA from the University of Southern Maine and a Creative Writing Certificate from UCSD. She was Editor of Popular Fiction in the Stonecoast Review Magazine in 2024.
Currently, she is enjoying her work as a writing mentor in the WriteHive Mentorship Program!
Contact Brenda
Follow Brenda on Instagram
2025-2026
WriteHive offers the opportunity to join the mentorship program. They help pairing talented mentors with writers who want to take their work to the next level.