Cemetery Boys Book Review

February 10, 2021 / 0 comments

Cemetery Boys Book ReviewCemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas
Published by Macmillan on September 1st 2020
Genres: Fantasy
Format: audiobook
Source: Borrowed, Library
Purchase @ AMAZON  or  BN
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Rating 

A trans boy determined to prove his gender to his traditional Latinx family summons a ghost who refuses to leave in Aiden Thomas's paranormal YA debut Cemetery Boys, described by Entertainment Weekly as "groundbreaking."

Yadriel has summoned a ghost, and now he can't get rid of him.

When his traditional Latinx family has problems accepting his true gender, Yadriel becomes determined to prove himself a real brujo. With the help of his cousin and best friend Maritza, he performs the ritual himself, and then sets out to find the ghost of his murdered cousin and set it free.

However, the ghost he summons is actually Julian Diaz, the school's resident bad boy, and Julian is not about to go quietly into death. He's determined to find out what happened and tie off some loose ends before he leaves. Left with no choice, Yadriel agrees to help Julian, so that they can both get what they want. But the longer Yadriel spends with Julian, the less he wants to let him leave.

Liezel’s Thoughts:

If you asked what was the best thing that I loved most about this book, I wouldn’t be able to pinpoint one specific element. The first thing that caught my attention was the main character – Yadriel. His strength is unparalleled. I am not talking about physical strength rather the strength in his character, in his personality.

To come out to his family as being trans is a challenge all on its own but to forge his own path despite being disregarded by those who should’ve been supportive of the most is what made me admire him the most.

I enjoyed the suspense of it all, how the author kept me guessing until the very end. I didn’t expect that villain in the story which made it more surprising. The way that the story revolved around the cultural celebration of All Soul’s Day is definitely the highlight of the entire book.

I was looking for something unique and have to say… I found it in Cemetery Boys. Debut author Aiden Thomas delivered such an intense, attention-catching, an unforgettable cultural piece about a boy trying to fit in a straight-laced, traditional society. I will definitely keep an eye out for more releases by this author.

The Verdict:

 

About Aiden Thomas

Aiden Thomas is a New York Times Bestselling Author with an MFA in Creative Writing from Mills College. Originally from Oakland, California, they now make their home in Portland, OR. As a queer, trans Latinx, Aiden advocates strongly for diverse representation in all media. Aiden’s special talents include: quoting The Office, useless trivia, Jenga, finishing sentences with “is my FAVORITE”, and killing spiders. Aiden is notorious for not being able to guess the endings of books and movies, and organizes their bookshelves by color.



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