"In the silence after her death, her novel, full of voices as passionate as her own, is particularly precious ... The end of the story is wrenching; it invades the reader's space as the confrontational Dolores has invaded the falsely secure space of Irene, making it unsafe and real." The Village Voice

"A high pitch of emotional intensity is sustained throughout." Christian Science Monitor

"A well-paced and tense story, building up to the final climactic moment. The translation is superb." Choice

"Poignant and powerful." Texas Observer

"It was all so recent, it all seems so close, so recognisable, even familiar ... Yet they vanished into a hell beyond the scope of normal imagination. This impressive and very readable book understates all this, making its point artistically much better than if it had been more explicit." London's Financial Times

"Once read, it cannot be forgotten." Everywoman

"Mothers and Shadows reflects the political awareness of women in Latin America and the emergence of women into the political sphere." Sojourner

"Revealing and heartbreaking." National Catholic Reporter

"What sets this novel apart from the familiar coterie of leftist/revolutionary tracts is the sensitivity and intellectual flexibility of its central characters." Review: Latin American Literature & Arts

"A brilliant writer, gifted with a deft sense of understatement and a luminous intellect, Traba animates her characters with compassion and dignity. She is also adept at creating details that evoke an atmosphere of psychological intensity and suspense." San Francisco Chronicle

" As timely today as when it was first published" Los Angeles Review