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tortime 's review for:
Burn Down, Rise Up
by Vincent Tirado
Burn Down, Rise Up is a supernatural, YA thriller with a focus on family, friendship, young love, and local history. The story revolves around a parallel world that traps horribly violent parts of a places history in an endless loop. This world can be entered through a mysterious “challenge” with vague rules and an extremely low survival rate. When people close to Raquel and Charlize are affected by this dark alternate reality, they jump into action to save the day with a bat and no real plan.
I found this story propulsive, especially the sections with literal countdowns at the start of each chapter. And although there were intense portraits of violence, they were used with purpose to show the horrors people of the past went through and to provide a deeper understanding on the history of the Bronx. I also appreciated the positive relationships portrayed in this story. Raquel has loving parents who try their best in their own way and she has a best friend who respects and trusts her. Positive relationships offer a nice juxtaposition to the horror elements of the story, and help to further the themes of community that permeate the narrative.
I found this story propulsive, especially the sections with literal countdowns at the start of each chapter. And although there were intense portraits of violence, they were used with purpose to show the horrors people of the past went through and to provide a deeper understanding on the history of the Bronx. I also appreciated the positive relationships portrayed in this story. Raquel has loving parents who try their best in their own way and she has a best friend who respects and trusts her. Positive relationships offer a nice juxtaposition to the horror elements of the story, and help to further the themes of community that permeate the narrative.