A review by flyinglark
Celestial Monsters by Aiden Thomas

adventurous lighthearted 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

4.25

Aiden Thomas brings the reader back to the Mexican-inspired queer normative world of El Reino de Sol. The book almost immediately picks up after the conclusion of the prior novel. The road trip during an apocalypse was fun. I was worried about not being in the demographic anymore, but it was pleasant to read. Teens are acting like teens, and this is going to be a given in a YA.  

Regarding the characters, we get to see the POV of Teo and Xio. Younger readers may resonate with them. A highlight of this book
was the deconstruction of the society they were raised in. The first book started the conversation about how the trials were a pretty horrific idea. The world is not as ideal as they were thought.
Xio especially struggles with
who they are, and who they should align themselves with within a society that views them as a “monster” and lies told to them. The characters are slammed with different truths, but they can all coincide with each other.


I wasn't a fan of the ending after the main battle.
The whole buildup is that the society will change and it did, but did the Dioses need to also "die" to kick start human independence from them? They go from one extreme of Dioses' constant presence to only once a year. But overall the characters do have work to do, but they also find their happy places.


Other than the ending, I enjoyed the sequel, a nice conclusion to the Sunbearer Duology. 
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(Not All) Content Warnings:
Ableism - Loss of Ability to Communicate between Deaf Characters via Hand Binding, Animal Attacks, Blood, Confinement, Death of Parent/s (Mentioned, Depicted in Ch 31), Drowning, Fire Injury Detail, Genocide (Mentioned), Grief - Missing Sibling, Dead Parent, Injury Detail, Suicidal Thoughts (Self-Sacrifice for Ritual Purposes), Violence
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POV: 3rd Person - Dual  
Format: Audio - Single Narrator
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