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A review by nikia4
Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
I figured out the plot twist less than halfway thru the book and there were some things that felt like maybe lazy writing to me, but I honestly loved the characters, the romance, and the worldbuilding so much that this was still a really lovely read. I really enjoyed it. I think I may be older than the target age group for this book too and it would be a great book for younger kids/teenagers to read.
The things that confused me:
1. Why/how was Julian still briefly alive at the end pre Yadriel’s sacrifice when the others were all dead aside from it being a plot device for Yadriel to be able to talk to him… Also how did he have a spirit if he was still alive the whole time?? How did he survive while bleeding out for 3 days??
2. Those daggers needed to be in a triple locked safe and tracked at all times bro. Wdym it was in a box in some grandma’s storage??? it makes no sense that it was That easy to steal and that they were being that casual about it being lost
Aside from that tho i felt like there could have been more development towards the final twist in the second half, it kind of felt like there was no plot progress for a while until suddenly at midnight on Dia de Los Muertos. It slso made me sad that the uncle was the villain, even tho i could tell he was being set up for it bc he was just too perfect and nice/the daggers gave power and he didn’t have much. I didn’t love that the trope was that the one guy without power was the villain and I would have preferred if it was like a false flag and people turned on the Tio and then it turned out they were wrong. It would have done more for the narrative of broader inclusion. It felt like Yadriel’s arc was him being accepted because he evolved to fit perfectly into the binary, and I wish it had been a nicer message loll. But this book is definitely for people younger than me and I can see why a simple narrative of belonging like this would be important.
1. Why/how was Julian still briefly alive at the end pre Yadriel’s sacrifice when the others were all dead aside from it being a plot device for Yadriel to be able to talk to him… Also how did he have a spirit if he was still alive the whole time?? How did he survive while bleeding out for 3 days??
2. Those daggers needed to be in a triple locked safe and tracked at all times bro. Wdym it was in a box in some grandma’s storage??? it makes no sense that it was That easy to steal and that they were being that casual about it being lost
Aside from that tho i felt like there could have been more development towards the final twist in the second half, it kind of felt like there was no plot progress for a while until suddenly at midnight on Dia de Los Muertos. It slso made me sad that the uncle was the villain, even tho i could tell he was being set up for it bc he was just too perfect and nice/the daggers gave power and he didn’t have much. I didn’t love that the trope was that the one guy without power was the villain and I would have preferred if it was like a false flag and people turned on the Tio and then it turned out they were wrong. It would have done more for the narrative of broader inclusion. It felt like Yadriel’s arc was him being accepted because he evolved to fit perfectly into the binary, and I wish it had been a nicer message loll. But this book is definitely for people younger than me and I can see why a simple narrative of belonging like this would be important.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia and Murder
Moderate: Self harm, Violence, and Blood
Minor: Animal cruelty and Racism