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ems_book_shelf's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Child death, Deadnaming, Death, Blood, Kidnapping, and Death of parent
Moderate: Grief, Classism, and Deportation
angelfireeast24's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Child death, Emotional abuse, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Death, Classism, and Deportation
Minor: Racism
sapphic_alpaca's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Body horror, Cursing, Death, Gore, Misogyny, Sexism, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Murder, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Deadnaming, Racism, Xenophobia, Medical trauma, and Death of parent
Minor: Homophobia, Sexual content, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Classism, and Deportation
rieviolet's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
I felt like the beginning and the end of the story were stronger and more memorable, whereas the middle part was a bit slow and, to be honest, I remember very little of what happened, it all kind of blurred together.
I really liked the representation of the trans experience thorugh the character of Yadriel. We got to see the big and more evident aspects of it, but also the little and everyday details.
I appreciated the cultural elements, as well as their more fantastical re-imagination; though I think maybe at times the author verged into overexplanation. I also liked the interspersed sentences and expressions in Spanish.
I wasn't quite sold at the beginning on the romance but, as the story progressed, it got better and I'm not ashamed to say that
Graphic: Death, Racism, Transphobia, and Blood
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Deadnaming, Gore, Sexism, Violence, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Animal cruelty, Bullying, Drug use, Homophobia, Self harm, Torture, Medical content, Fire/Fire injury, Cultural appropriation, Abandonment, Classism, and Deportation
offthecarousel_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This LGBT coming-of-age story was extremely compelling and had a good ratio of mystery mixed with character development. The romance felt gradual and believable (what feels like a rarity for stories with MCs in high school) and was very cute.
A great book for trans representation and I believe both of the main characters are neurodivergent as well (anxiety and ADHD). I'm excited for the sequel.
I described Yadriel and Julian to my friends as "an anxious grumpy/reckless sunshine vibe." They're so fun!
Graphic: Blood
Moderate: Child death, Death, Transphobia, Grief, and Deportation
Minor: Deadnaming, Mental illness, Car accident, and Classism
ageckocalledachilles's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Deadnaming, Death, Gore, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Homophobia, Mental illness, Racism, Police brutality, Medical content, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Lesbophobia, Outing, and Classism
mirandyli's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Deadnaming, Death, Transphobia, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
cowardlyteaman's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
I'll be completely honest, and say that the first half of the book was rather uninteresting. The action didn't start until the last hundred pages of the book, but there was definitely potential for more action earlier on as well, to make it more exciting. There was a lot of identity issues and character dialogue during the first half of the book, which is by no means irrelevant to the plot, but to me it got dull.
I also wish that Yadriel had been given a more distinct personality. Julian was exceptional, Maritza was amazing, Catriz was fabulous, but Yadriel...? He deserved more than being a pretty standard protagonist-y type. Apart from being trans, he doesn't stand out as a protagonist at all, and being trans shouldn't be what makes him special. At least the trans people I know have personalities beside being trans.
However! I loved how Spanish was used in this book. Usually, non-English words will be written in cursive, alienating them, as it were. But here they're kind of just woven into the text as any other word, because of course Spanish isn't foreign at all to the narrator, and it makes it easier for me as a reader to relate as well, despite being the from the whitest of corners in Norway.
This applies to the rest of the culture references as well. It was all explained in a very nice way.
On a side note concerning the identity and language here: Why was there one line where author Thomas wrote «Latinx mom»? If the gender was unspecified, it would've made perfect sense, but if it's given that she's a mom, then wouldn't she be Latina...? As far as I know, you wouldn't really have a Latino mom? Maybe a Latino's mom, but... unless I misinterpreted, that wasn't the case.
Anyways, I've given my opinion, but I still enjoyed the read. Frankly quite predictable, but aren't all stories these days.
Graphic: Death, Transphobia, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Racism, Death of parent, Murder, and Dysphoria
Minor: Animal death, Cursing, Deadnaming, Abandonment, Alcohol, Classism, and Deportation
lunep's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Death, Transphobia, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child abuse, Deadnaming, Physical abuse, Xenophobia, Medical content, Death of parent, and Deportation
Minor: Body shaming, Bullying, Grief, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Classism
atsuanna's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
"You ready?" Julian asked.
Graphic: Death, Blood, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Deadnaming and Transphobia
Minor: Car accident, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Classism, and Deportation