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4.08 AVERAGE
4.08 AVERAGE
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Getting the obvious out of the way, this was not as good as the first book. But that isn’t to say that it was bad. It was actually really nice, and I did like a lot of things about it.
There were things I disliked too, though. Firstly, why is everyone crying? I have nothing against crying, but someone is tearing up in every chapter. There are definitely strong moments that are really well done. But there are also a lot that don’t feel strong enough but you see tears running down someone’s faces, and at one point it just feels somewhat unrealistic.
And speaking of unrealistic, I had the same issue with the dialogues. The dialogues in the first book flowed really well. And that made me all the more disappointed with the dialogues in this book. Not that they were always bad, a lot of them were amazing and felt great, but some just didn’t feel real. It might be just me, but it’s a lot of impactful lines one after the other, and that does sometimes make them come across as slightly corny.
I think most of the issues I had with the book came down to one thing. It felt like it had too many ‘strong’ moments. And there are a lot of really, really good ones, they made me want to not put down the book. But there seem to be so many of those. It ends up being a constant stream of attempts at powerful scenes, without enough building up to a lot of them. And at times, that just leaves them feeling lacking and unrealistic.
And lastly, I did not like how much of a secondary character Dante was except for being the guy Ari loves.
But overall, it was a good book. Not something I regret reading at all. I really liked the ideas and concepts it talked about. How it explored complicated feelings, how we tend to not see people as people, how comforting silence can be- it was great reading about it all. Would say it is worth reading despite its shortcomings.
There were things I disliked too, though. Firstly, why is everyone crying? I have nothing against crying, but someone is tearing up in every chapter. There are definitely strong moments that are really well done. But there are also a lot that don’t feel strong enough but you see tears running down someone’s faces, and at one point it just feels somewhat unrealistic.
And speaking of unrealistic, I had the same issue with the dialogues. The dialogues in the first book flowed really well. And that made me all the more disappointed with the dialogues in this book. Not that they were always bad, a lot of them were amazing and felt great, but some just didn’t feel real. It might be just me, but it’s a lot of impactful lines one after the other, and that does sometimes make them come across as slightly corny.
I think most of the issues I had with the book came down to one thing. It felt like it had too many ‘strong’ moments. And there are a lot of really, really good ones, they made me want to not put down the book. But there seem to be so many of those. It ends up being a constant stream of attempts at powerful scenes, without enough building up to a lot of them. And at times, that just leaves them feeling lacking and unrealistic.
And lastly, I did not like how much of a secondary character Dante was except for being the guy Ari loves.
But overall, it was a good book. Not something I regret reading at all. I really liked the ideas and concepts it talked about. How it explored complicated feelings, how we tend to not see people as people, how comforting silence can be- it was great reading about it all. Would say it is worth reading despite its shortcomings.
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
3.5
Thanks to Jonathan Ball Publishers for gifting me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
This book follows Aristotle and Dante after the events of the first book. They are learning how to be gay Mexican boys in America, and at the same time dealing with many other struggles.
In terms of plot, there isn’t much. There is one big plot point that happens in the latter half of the book, but other than that, it didn’t feel like one cohesive story to me. It felt more like a bunch of different glimpses into Ari’s life, which the author then used to try and portray certain messages.
I love Ari and Dante’s families. While Dante is an interesting character, we don’t get to know him very well since the book is told from Ari’s perspective. I do feel like Ari comes into his own a bit more in this book, and starts to develop his own thoughts more than in the previous book. He certainly undergoes some major character growth, and I liked that he could rely on his family, but that he also found a family of his own with his friends.
The thing that I struggled with the most was the writing style. There’s no doubt that the author is a great writer, and that there were many amazing passages throughout this book, but I often felt like the way characters spoke didn’t feel realistic to me, and that some passages were just added in the book even though they didn’t necessarily make much sense within the context of a particular scene.
I do think that this is an important book because it touches on many important subjects. I also know that, while I only like the book, most people adore it, and I am clearly in the minority here.
Overall, while I don’t think this sequel was truly necessary, I did enjoy it more than the first book and I am glad I read it. These books mean the world to many people and for that alone I think everyone should read them. If you experience the same struggles that Ari and Dante do, perhaps you’ll see yourself reflected within these pages. If you don’t share their struggles, perhaps these books will open your eyes and teach you something valuable.
Thanks to Jonathan Ball Publishers for gifting me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
This book follows Aristotle and Dante after the events of the first book. They are learning how to be gay Mexican boys in America, and at the same time dealing with many other struggles.
In terms of plot, there isn’t much. There is one big plot point that happens in the latter half of the book, but other than that, it didn’t feel like one cohesive story to me. It felt more like a bunch of different glimpses into Ari’s life, which the author then used to try and portray certain messages.
I love Ari and Dante’s families. While Dante is an interesting character, we don’t get to know him very well since the book is told from Ari’s perspective. I do feel like Ari comes into his own a bit more in this book, and starts to develop his own thoughts more than in the previous book. He certainly undergoes some major character growth, and I liked that he could rely on his family, but that he also found a family of his own with his friends.
The thing that I struggled with the most was the writing style. There’s no doubt that the author is a great writer, and that there were many amazing passages throughout this book, but I often felt like the way characters spoke didn’t feel realistic to me, and that some passages were just added in the book even though they didn’t necessarily make much sense within the context of a particular scene.
I do think that this is an important book because it touches on many important subjects. I also know that, while I only like the book, most people adore it, and I am clearly in the minority here.
Overall, while I don’t think this sequel was truly necessary, I did enjoy it more than the first book and I am glad I read it. These books mean the world to many people and for that alone I think everyone should read them. If you experience the same struggles that Ari and Dante do, perhaps you’ll see yourself reflected within these pages. If you don’t share their struggles, perhaps these books will open your eyes and teach you something valuable.
medium-paced
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I struggled to rate this because I liked it but it felt so idealized?? But there was also such strong trauma. So I’m not sure how to feel. But I love the voice and the general idea.
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
It wasn’t as well written as the first book, and I was sometimes confused about how some events came about, but it was overall a pretty good book.
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
As much as I wanted to love it, it's kinda the sequel noone needed. The characters are still so genuine though and I still love them all.
Be warned: this book will imprint on your heart and you will not be able to stop thinking about it. Proceed with caution.