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sydthereader's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Transphobia, Death of parent, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, and Grief
Moderate: Violence, Cursing, Torture, and Child death
Minor: Dysphoria, Self harm, Medical content, and Deadnaming
howlinglibraries's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
First of all, Cemetery Boys was my first major re-introduction into YA fantasy after taking almost two years off from the genre, and let me say that it was literally one of the best possible stories I could have chosen to break my hiatus with. YA fantasy used to be my most commonly read genre, so I got a bit burnt out and thought I had just worn out my welcome with it, but Cemetery Boys reminded me of everything I adore so much about the incredible offerings the world of YA fantasy gives us. This is a story full of self-discovery, and self-love, and hope, and forgiveness, and healing, and it is full of some of the most lovable characters I've read in a long time.
Yadriel is such a delightful narrator to spend time with. He's impossible not to love and root for, and I just wanted to climb into these pages and grab some of his family members by the shoulders and shake them for not recognizing the wonderful human he is. Watching him deal with the casual transphobia and erasure in his home was a painful reality to witness, which made his emotions when some of those family members apologized and began to truly realize how wrong they were even more powerful. And then there's Maritza, who is such a hilarious and fiercely protective cousin and best friend, I knew I'd adore her from the moment she was introduced.
Finally, Julian exudes all of the best himbo energy I love to see in a love interest. He's dopey at times, a little oblivious, volatile and young — but compassionate, protective, supportive, and honest, and I love him. I think one of my favorite moments in the entire book was when Yads spotted Julian's graffiti message about transphobes (IYKYK). Loving Julian so much made the entire scenario tug on my heartstrings every step of the way, because knowing that he's a ghost and his entire life should have been ahead of him just hurts once you realize how important this kid is, and how much everyday greatness he's meant for.
The magical elements in Cemetery Boys are captivating and lovely, and feel like the most brilliant love story to many walks of Latinx spirituality that I found myself needing more, more, more information about how the brujx magic and rituals worked and about the deities referenced throughout the book. The mystery that plays out was probably the only part of the story that I didn't fully connect to, but I think that's because I was so enraptured by the characters and the magic that the mystery felt like a side arc that I could have taken or left. That said, I still enjoyed how it played out and was quite surprised by some of the developments near the end!
All in all, Cemetery Boys is a gorgeous book from start to finish and is entirely deserving of every ounce of the hype it's received since it came out. I'm so grateful to have read this, and will absolutely be reaching for more of Aiden Thomas' books in the future. ♥
Buddy read with Malka!
✨ Representation: Yadriel is Cuban-American, gay, and a trans boy; Julian is Colombian-American and gay; most side characters are Latinx; one side character is a trans girl
✨ Content warnings for: transphobia, misgendering, deadnaming, loss of a parent, grief, loss of family members, minor self-harm for magical purposes, use of animal blood for magical purposes, murder, extensive discussion of death and spirits, mentions of anti-Latinx racism and cultural appropriation
Yadriel is such a delightful narrator to spend time with. He's impossible not to love and root for, and I just wanted to climb into these pages and grab some of his family members by the shoulders and shake them for not recognizing the wonderful human he is. Watching him deal with the casual transphobia and erasure in his home was a painful reality to witness, which made his emotions when some of those family members apologized and began to truly realize how wrong they were even more powerful. And then there's Maritza, who is such a hilarious and fiercely protective cousin and best friend, I knew I'd adore her from the moment she was introduced.
Finally, Julian exudes all of the best himbo energy I love to see in a love interest. He's dopey at times, a little oblivious, volatile and young — but compassionate, protective, supportive, and honest, and I love him. I think one of my favorite moments in the entire book was when Yads spotted Julian's graffiti message about transphobes (IYKYK). Loving Julian so much made the entire scenario tug on my heartstrings every step of the way, because knowing that he's a ghost and his entire life should have been ahead of him just hurts once you realize how important this kid is, and how much everyday greatness he's meant for.
The magical elements in Cemetery Boys are captivating and lovely, and feel like the most brilliant love story to many walks of Latinx spirituality that I found myself needing more, more, more information about how the brujx magic and rituals worked and about the deities referenced throughout the book. The mystery that plays out was probably the only part of the story that I didn't fully connect to, but I think that's because I was so enraptured by the characters and the magic that the mystery felt like a side arc that I could have taken or left. That said, I still enjoyed how it played out and was quite surprised by some of the developments near the end!
All in all, Cemetery Boys is a gorgeous book from start to finish and is entirely deserving of every ounce of the hype it's received since it came out. I'm so grateful to have read this, and will absolutely be reaching for more of Aiden Thomas' books in the future. ♥
Buddy read with Malka!
✨ Representation: Yadriel is Cuban-American, gay, and a trans boy; Julian is Colombian-American and gay; most side characters are Latinx; one side character is a trans girl
✨ Content warnings for: transphobia, misgendering, deadnaming, loss of a parent, grief, loss of family members, minor self-harm for magical purposes, use of animal blood for magical purposes, murder, extensive discussion of death and spirits, mentions of anti-Latinx racism and cultural appropriation
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia, Deadnaming, Grief, and Death of parent
Moderate: Racism
Minor: Self harm
laurajones's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death of parent, and Grief
Moderate: Body horror, Dysphoria, and Transphobia
Minor: Animal cruelty, Car accident, Deadnaming, Medical content, and Self harm
sab_j's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Self harm, and Death
annieundomielf's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Transphobia, Murder, Death of parent, Blood, Racism, Self harm, and Dysphoria
emmajam's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I really enjoyed this book. It definitely has a certain autumn mood to it. I could tell from like 30 pages in that the uncle was going to be evil. The first introduction reminded me of the uncle from spiderverse. I wish there was more of a resolution between Julian and Rio. Overall a very cute story that I would love to revisit.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood and Death
Moderate: Transphobia, Deadnaming, Death of parent, and Self harm
Minor: Fire/Fire injury
Knives are used frequently and there are depictions of self inflicted wounds for religious purposes.beforeviolets's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
Yes. Period.
I don't know what I was expecting but I was not expecting this to quickly become a new favorite book and I was NOT expecting to be breaking out the waterworks at midnight after staying up to finish it in a day because I could not physically bring myself to put this book down.
This book has my whole heart and soul and I am so grateful to have spent my Saturday visiting this world and this story. Aiden Thomas flawlessly developed an environment and community in this book that is so incredibly approachable and engaging to the reader at every turn. My emotional and mental attention was constantly and fully plugged in to each and every moment. And the pacing was impeccable. I never felt dragged along or like a moment was inappropriately lingering but I also never found myself feeling rushed through the experiences or through the beats of the story, which is incredibly impressive - especially since a lot of the YA books I've read tend to sacrifice the tension and the dramatic rhythm for the sake of a quicker pace.
Though this book is YA, it handles such a large amount of deep and difficult topics such as transphobia, racism, death, grief, and more with such an immense amount of ease and grace. Any book that can make me both cry and laugh within a matter of sentences is going to be a fast favorite, and this is no exception. I can't wait to read more of Thomas's work.
If you've been thinking about picking this one up, this is your sign to do so.
I don't know what I was expecting but I was not expecting this to quickly become a new favorite book and I was NOT expecting to be breaking out the waterworks at midnight after staying up to finish it in a day because I could not physically bring myself to put this book down.
This book has my whole heart and soul and I am so grateful to have spent my Saturday visiting this world and this story. Aiden Thomas flawlessly developed an environment and community in this book that is so incredibly approachable and engaging to the reader at every turn. My emotional and mental attention was constantly and fully plugged in to each and every moment. And the pacing was impeccable. I never felt dragged along or like a moment was inappropriately lingering but I also never found myself feeling rushed through the experiences or through the beats of the story, which is incredibly impressive - especially since a lot of the YA books I've read tend to sacrifice the tension and the dramatic rhythm for the sake of a quicker pace.
Though this book is YA, it handles such a large amount of deep and difficult topics such as transphobia, racism, death, grief, and more with such an immense amount of ease and grace. Any book that can make me both cry and laugh within a matter of sentences is going to be a fast favorite, and this is no exception. I can't wait to read more of Thomas's work.
If you've been thinking about picking this one up, this is your sign to do so.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Transphobia, Religious bigotry, Murder, Kidnapping, Grief, Gore, and Blood
Moderate: Self harm and Animal cruelty
nicolaparty's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Murder, Transphobia, and Violence
Moderate: Bullying
Minor: Deadnaming, Self harm, Cultural appropriation, and Cursing
mothman19's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Deadnaming, Violence, and Transphobia
Moderate: Animal death, Blood, Death of parent, Grief, Self harm, Panic attacks/disorders, and Murder
rebeccagatzlaff's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I didn't really like this book. The plot was all over the place. The book was trying to be multiple genres at once. I did like the culture in the book.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cursing, Death of parent, and Death
Minor: Child abuse, Deadnaming, Homophobia, and Self harm