A review by oatmeal_oatmeal
Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas

3.5

I picked this book up since I’d heard good things about it and it appears pretty frequently on Best LGBTQ Books lists! The audiobook is also narrated by Avi Roque and I like their voice so that was a plus too tbh :)

Now right off the bat, I have to say the beating heart of this story is Yadriel, by FAR. His character is fully realized, and I really felt like I understood him by the end of the story. He learns a lot (what it means to be truly selfless, how to balance a desire for validation with the desire to live authentically) and it’s fulfilling to watch him go through that as a reader. Yadriel’s conversations with Julian are a treat– it’s what I found myself looking forward to the most. And I know it’s been said before over and over, but Yadriel as transgender and gay representation is fantastic. His position as post-coming-out but pre-acceptance really resonated with me, as it doesn’t oversimplify the process like other media often does. Each scene regarding Yadriel’s interactions with his family– a family who loves him but doesn’t understand him– is raw and honest. I appreciated it, and I think it’s a gift to see that in YA media.

The worldbuilding, which is heavily tied to Latine culture, also felt very well done. I am not Latine myself so I don’t feel qualified to speak heavily on the subject, but I got the sense throughout that Thomas put a lot of care into the world. The scenes involving tradition, family, and food were the ones most rich with description, and it clearly came from a place of love.

Idk if this is controversial to say or not, but Cemetery Boys has a major Achilles’ heel, and that is pacing. The pacing in this book was WILD and my listening experience really, really suffered for it. It was a struggle for me to push through the first part of this book, though I am ultimately glad that I did. There were some spots in this book that dragged so much that it’s honestly hard to believe that the events of the novel occurred over like a three-day span. Take the opening chapter, for example, where Yadriel and Maritza sneak through the graveyard to perform the quince ritual against their family’s wishes, and then feel the violent death of their cousin Miguel. Any tension or air of mystery that this scene could have had is completely kneecapped by exposition drops and a hell of a lot of ‘tell don’t show.’ It’s a recurring problem too, so the momentum is very start-and-stop until the climax hits and surprises you. I completely understand wanting to relay all that worldbuilding work to the audience, but here it comes at the expense of natural dialogue and a consistent flow. Another contributor is the seeming lack of motivation of the main characters. The story seems to happen to them rather than come as a result of their actions. I kept feeling so bad for poor Miguel, because despite him kickstarting the story and allegedly being Yadriel’s primary motivation for acting (besides seeking approval from his family), no one seems to care about him very much. There’s no hustle, there’s no drive, and that could have helped push the narrative a bit more.

Also, I feel like I have to comment on this: the prose is a bit lacking sometimes. There’s a lot of “was” and “were,” and when the writing does get descriptive, Thomas has a few favorite phrases. (Cemetery Boys drinking game: take a shot when the word “chest” is used. I go feral for chest and ribs imagery, but that word’s frequency got distracting FAST.) There were also some scenes of repetitive dialogue, talking in circles for a little too long (in particular, the last couple of chapters). It’s a shame because those issues could have been solved with just a little more extensive editing and strengthened the story so much more.

I am very aware that I’m not this book’s target audience (I’m in my early twenties, and the main characters are 15–16). I think there’s a lot to love and appreciate for teens here! It’s so important for teens to see themselves, their identities, and their cultures shown with love and appreciation, and I know there are a lot of kids out there that see themselves in these characters. I remember what it felt like to be a queer teenager with no one to talk to about it, and books like this would have meant a lot to me. However, I also think teens deserve to have their stories told well, and a couple of tweaks could have helped it in that direction.
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