Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'

Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas

34 reviews

bree_h_reads's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

2.75

I really wanted to like this book. And I had enjoyed it for the most part until the very end, which is why I think this feels so disappointing.

I thought the book had a pretty strong intro. It established the world effectively and did so in a way non-Latin readers could understand. I had a quick grasp on relationships and dynamics. I think the book ended up being a bit heavy handed in foreshadowing with this establishment of the world, but I still appreciated it and that there was foreshadowing.

I also really liked the complexity in the family dynamics. It didn’t feel like Yadriel’s family was villainised for not fully understanding him. It was upsetting, you understood Yadriel’s pain, and (at least with his father) you felt like he was TRYING. And when Yadriel revealed he had become a brujo how PROUD he was of Yadriel. It felt realistic and I appreciated that aspect. This also leant well to the story being told of Yadriel’s struggle as a trans teen, which was compelling and provided such great insight into what trans teens go through in trying to find comfort in their own body.

The biggest issue I had with the book was the romance. I had such a hard time buying into it, especially considering how short of a time the book takes place over. When it did fully turn to romance it felt sudden and like the story hadn’t properly built to it. I felt the book would have been better if it had been about forming a friendship instead of a romance. Especially considering how isolated Yadriel felt as the only noted “friends” outside his family were his cousin’s friends. This was only emphasised when in the ending there was a dramatic declaration that the Julian had feelings for Yadriel and all I could think of was the Sassy Gay Friend video for Romeo and Juliet. I had a couple other issues with the end, but they’re spoilers so I’ll refrain from sharing them.

Overall a book with a strong start that fumbled the ending.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Death, Grief, Transphobia, and Blood

Moderate: Violence, Child death, Dysphoria, Racism, Classism, and Murder

Minor: Deadnaming, Physical abuse, Child abuse, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cultural appropriation, Fire/Fire injury, Bullying, Deportation, Drug abuse, Drug use, Homophobia, Gun violence, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, and Outing

vikosaurus's review

adventurous inspiring lighthearted 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? N/A

4.5

I just love the casual representation of queer people so much !!! It was the perfect density and weight for it to be readable even when there was a lot going on and it was still catchy enough for my adhd brain to be able to finish it. Also overall pretty comfy vibes. Love it very much <3

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death of parent, Blood, Bullying, Death, Transphobia, Deadnaming, Murder, Grief, and Dysphoria

Minor: Physical abuse, Domestic abuse, Bullying, and Outing

mattyb's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional 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? No

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood and Death

Moderate: Kidnapping, Violence, Grief, Dysphoria, and Transphobia

Minor: Medical content, Physical abuse, Death of parent, and Deportation

aerietta's review

adventurous emotional funny 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? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood and Death

Moderate: Transphobia, Death of parent, Bullying, Gaslighting, and Grief

Minor: Physical abuse, Car accident, Child death, Deadnaming, Medical content, Alcohol, Animal death, Cultural appropriation, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Murder, and Kidnapping

lunep's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious slow-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Blood, Transphobia, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Death of parent, Medical content, Physical abuse, Deportation, Xenophobia, Deadnaming, and Child abuse

Minor: Body shaming, Classism, Bullying, Grief, Alcohol, Fire/Fire injury, Car accident, and Abandonment

merah's review

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious relaxing sad tense 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? Yes

5.0

the writing is absolutely incredible. 
I felt every single emotion while reading this book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Racism, Transphobia, Body horror, Child death, Gore, Grief, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, Suicide, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, Medical content, Blood, Death, Murder, Violence, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Body horror, Deportation, Animal death, Animal cruelty, and Dysphoria

Minor: Car accident, Confinement, Alcohol, Cancer, Terminal illness, Fire/Fire injury, Vomit, Classism, Cultural appropriation, and Deadnaming

loads of knives, blades, cuts and stabbings

robyn_fenix's review

adventurous challenging 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? No

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Gore

Moderate: Death of parent, Dysphoria, Violence, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, and Deadnaming

Minor: Bullying

anni_swanilda's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious sad 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? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Grief, Death, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Deadnaming, Dysphoria, Transphobia, and Violence

Moderate: Cursing

Minor: Racism, Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Bullying, Child abuse, Deportation, Domestic abuse, and Physical abuse

chaotic_corvid's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious tense 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? N/A

4.75

Nie spodziewałom się, że młodzieżówka może połączyć aż tak dobrze romans z wątkiem przygodowo-śledczym. Zwrot akcji nie jest w pełni przewidywalny ale są bazy by mieć swoje podejrzenia, niestety jedna postać drugoplanowa staje się przez niego trochę... słabiej napisana. Tak jak Yadriel jestem trans gejem i myślę, że gdybym miał te książkę w okresie gdy dopiero to odkrywałem to bardzo by mi pomogła w zrozumieniu siebie wcześniej. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical content, Outing, Grief, Physical abuse, Xenophobia, Death, Dysphoria, Transphobia, Violence, Child death, Death of parent, Blood, Murder, Deadnaming, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Drug use, Misogyny, Torture, Deportation, Racism, Cursing, Homophobia, Cultural appropriation, Classism, Alcohol, Religious bigotry, and Animal death

bookish_purrsuits's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful 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

4.75

Loved this book! I love the way Aiden Thomas writes characters. They all seem so real and believable as teenagers without falling into the whiny angst trap. Thomas has revitalized the YA fantasy genre for me and is quickly becoming an auto-buy author! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Transphobia and Deadnaming

Moderate: Blood

Minor: Death of parent, Physical abuse, and Deportation