Reviews with content warning for Dysphoria - Cemetery Boys

There are some plot holes. the magic rules are not well defined. you can see some of the plot twists coming a mile away.

But Yadriel and Julian are so dang cute 😭 it's a fun story with a good pace. Also the concept of a teen witch who won't use her healing powers because she's vegan is hilarious.

I'm curious how much of the "brujx" culture is real and how much is imaginary - I would love to learn more.

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iridescentsung's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring 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? No

4.5

really cute, trans mc, amazing represention because it's done very casually, literally perfect just loses half a point for being YA because im getting a bit old for 16 yo charas, read it twice and still so good

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voidboi's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful 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

3.75

- very cute spooky, mostly closer to middle-grade but with some more graphic violence at the end that pushes it more towards YA
- Great characters, great chemistry, the romance-y bits with the car etc were perfect
- sometimes cheesy leaning into identity politics (mostly the vegan and side-queer things, a little more telling than showing), but the author is trans and this is a great trans MC treated with so much love and honesty

- all the flipping back and forth with thinking people were really dead at the end was a bit much, and lessened the impact eventually.
- I wish the author had taken more time with the ending- I get the value of a simple happy ending, but the things they went through at the end weren't simple and I don't think the character's reactions were very realistic or relatable. Yadriel and Julian can care deeply for each other and still experience their own pain and recovery, without completely ignoring everyone trying to help them. Then again, they're teenage boys, so maybe that part just wasn't for me.
- Very disappointed that the queer-coded uncle was evil. However, the text does an excellent job of highlighting that he was corrupted by an outside source, and the brujx community takes responsibility for their part in creating that vulnerability, so I think it was very well done.

-Overall, this was fun and sweet and I'm sure will mean so much to kids and teens who need this story with them. Glad I read it.

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laurajones's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious fast-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

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lucithefer's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious tense fast-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

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offbrandclubsoda's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious 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? No

4.5

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cemeterygay's review against another edition

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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

I do not think I can emphasize how much I adored this book.

As a main character, Yadriel resonated with me in a way that few main characters do. Not only is this one of the few books I've read that has a Latine trans main character but it deals with that aspect of his identity so well. I love how well-integrated the cultural elements are in this book and how it is allowed to be explored in relationship with Yadriel's gender identity and sexuality. Julian is also an amazing character, I only wish we had a bit more time to see his relationship with his family. The relationship Julian and Yadriel had was incredibly sweet.

While not revolutionary or that shocking I really enjoyed Yadriel's journey discovering what happened to Julian and how it related the death of Miguel. I found the ending to be pretty satisfying although some aspects weren't the most believable.

The magic system was explained quite well and Dia de Los Muertos was integrated incredibly well into the worldbuilding. I do think though that if you are not familiar with any of the cultural elements, there will be a learning curve for you which absolutely isn't a flaw but is something to note.

I also really loved the full cast of characters in this book and I thought Aiden Thomas did a pretty great job in helping to differentiate the characters.

Of course, I would be remiss not to mention how much I adore Thomas's writing style and prose. It is incredibly engaging while still being suitable for their target audience.

I will say that this book does trend to the younger side of YA so it may be hit or miss for adult readers.

Beyond that, I would absolutely recommend this book to others.

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