Book: Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas
Read From: 3rd August - 5th August 2021
Rating: 4/5 stars
Summary: When his traditional Latinx family has problems accepting his gender, Yadriel becomes determined to prove himself a brujo. With the help of his cousin and best friend Maritza, he performs the quinces ritual himself and sets out to find the ghost of his murdered cousin Miguel and set it free. However, the ghost he summons is actually Julian Diaz, the school's resident bad boy, and Julian is not about to go quietly into death. He's determined to find out what happened and tie up some loose ends before he leaves. Left with no other choice, Yadriel agrees to help him so they can both get what they want. But the longer Yadriel spends with Julian, the less he wants him to leave.
I loved this book so much! A couple of pages in, I thought I was a bit out of my depth because I didn’t really understand the magic system and what a brujo actually was, but this was soon resolved and I ended up devouring this story in only a couple of days because I was hooked!
A stand out feature of this book was definitely the banter between characters. Although they’re cousins you can literally tell that Yadriel and Maritza are the best of friends and their relationship and humour was just incredible. The addition of Julian into this crew made it all the more better too - he fit in straight away with all the sarcasm and dry humour. There were times I laughed out loud which is very rare for me where books are concerned so I think this is only testament to how well Thomas crafts the personality and wit of their characters.
AND THE STORY🥺 it was bound to be emotional, particularly as it’s obvious from the outset that there will be a huge focus on Yadriel’s gender identity which is such a touching journey to dive into in and of itself. But the premise of sending Julian back to the afterlife😭 I came to love these characters so much and so the undertones throughout the whole story about sending Julian back, all whilst seeing friendships and relationships develop, really had me in my feels.
Overall this was an amazing read. It was entertaining, fun and binge-worthy but at the same time it also taught me a lot about Latinx magic and witchcraft that still exist today. If you’re looking for a standalone fantasy recommendation with the most loveable characters look no further!