Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas
Young Adult, LGBTQ+, Fantasy
Rating:
Synopsis
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.
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Review
Cemetery Boys is such a wonderful book. At its heart, it is a book about accepting people for who they are, which is a message everyone needs to hear right now.
This book is the perfect book to read this time of year. It focuses on Dia De Los Muertos and the brujos that help to release spirits. And as the name implies, a lot of the story takes place in a cemetery, which gave the whole story a great vibe. In addition to having a great plot, I loved the characters. All of the main characters did not fit into the molds they were supposed to. Yadriel especially has something to prove, and I loved how determined he was to show his community that they were wrong about him. This book takes place in LA, and while I’m not intimately familiar with East LA, there were shoutouts in this book that I really enjoyed, the King Taco one especially.
As I mentioned, this book has a clear message. A good message of acceptance and love, and how alienating people who don’t fit the mold perfectly can end up being so much worse. The story around which that message was crafted was an exciting mystery. Not only did you really feel for these characters, but you wanted to know what was going to happen next.
I cannot recommend this book enough! Trust me just read it!
Purchase Links
Bookshop.org | Amazon | Book Depository
