Reviews with content warning for Blood - Teach the Torches to Burn: A Romeo & Juliet Remix

This was a great story! A queer remix of Romeo and Juliet, it still deviates enough from the story to be unexpected and intriguing. I absolutely loved many of the characters and it featured a slightly rose-tinted depiction of acceptance and love which is really nice to read as a queer person (it can't all be angst and blatant homophobia). Also, I feel that Roehrig did a great job of writing characters who are both teenagers and adultified because of the historical context in which they live.

This book is perfect for when you want to just curl up and enjoy a story without needing to put too much thought into it.

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wellgonomorearoving's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring tense 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? No

4.0

Teach the Torches to Burn is a queer/gay/achillean re-telling of what is probably Shakespeare’s most re-interpreted work: Romeo and Juliet. Pop culture is littered with Romeo and Juliet retellings. It’s a classic love story (it’s not) so, why shouldn’t it be gay too?

I love this Remixed Classics Series idea, because I think every story should be at least a lil gay, and I adore retaking things/making them ours. I would have been flat out obsessed with this story as a teen, and it’s the kind of representation I’m so glad the next generation will have.

The story capitalizes on the undeniable chemistry between Romeo and Mercutio (you can’t tell me that’s not there), but actually pairs Romeo with a new character: Mercutio’s little brother, Valentine. Their relationship is adorable and swoon worthy, caught up in the classic teen issues of feeling trapped in your hometown and smothered by your family’s expectations. Those stakes are raised by the classic feud and ensuing politics, and this time the lovers are star crossed because they are gay in a fourteenth century world. There’s enough of the original story to retain its shape and flavor, but fresh takes and additions make this well known story new and interesting.

It also has TWO ace characters! They’re side characters, but they’re well fleshed out and integral to the story/plot. The whole cast is incredibly entertaining and the dialogue flows well, and it’s genuinely amusing when the teens are all talking. I also adored how it treated Juliet’s character. In a story that makes Romeo gay, it would have been really easy to fall into the trap of just setting Juliet aside. But it’s well acknowledged how horrible her arranged marriage to Paris is, and the situation that puts her in. She’s also witty, intelligent, and way more bad ass than Romeo.

Overall, this is probably my second favorite interpretation of the story (I once saw a drunk Romeo pretend he was in the X-Men and use his super powers to bring Juliet back to life, and you really can’t top that). I love that this story exists, and it makes me smile thinking of all the queer youth out there who will be reading this for their English classes instead of the OG.

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micaelacccc's review against another edition

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emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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readingwithkaitlyn's review

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hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

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ezwolf's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful 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

This book gave me a lot of emotions and it was fantastic and I loved every moment of it. Romeo was a bit of a disaster, but I loved him for it and Valentine is just so sweet. Juliet is honestly so relatable for me too.

One of the most important things I loved was that on top of our main character and love interest being gay we are also given some good asexual and aromantic representation! There was also a great discussion with Romeo and Juliet about how even though Romeo is limited by his lot in life, Juliet is even more limited as a woman with little to no agency in their society and it forces Romeo to consider from someone else's perspective.

This is the second book I've read in the Remixed Classics series (A Clash of Steel was the first) and I cannot wait to read more of them. Most Ardently by Gabe Cole Novoa will be next!

For those of you who are like me who see that this is a retelling of a story the main characters die and are worried about Romeo and Valentine I want to assure you that we are given a queer happily ever after.

Thank you to NetGalley for making this available in exchange for an honest review!

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